The PortableApps.com Suite is a collection of free portable apps including a web browser (Firefox), email client (Thunderbird), office suite, calendar/scheduler, instant messaging client, antivirus, sudoku game, backup utility and integrated menu, all preconfigured to work portably. This guide will take you through installing and setting up PortableApps to best suit your needs.
- To get started, plug in your USB thumb drive. You don’t have to delete everything on it, but it might be a good idea to copy the contents over to your hard drive just in case something goes wrong and your data gets erased during the PortableApps installation. Visit PortableApps.com and decide which package is right for you. I went with the Standard Edition, so that’s what you’ll see screenshots of in this tutorial. One of the best features of PortableApps is how customizable it is, so even if there’s something in the Standard Edition that you don’t want, you can remove it at any time. Or if there’s something missing from the Standard Edition, you can add it at any time.
After the download has completed, run the file by double-clicking it. Make sure to select the root of your thumb drive as the installation location. In the screenshot below, you’ll see that my thumb drive shows up as E: - yours may be a different letter. Click the Install button when you’re ready.
- PortableApps can take a while to install. You might want to grab a cup of coffee at this point.
- Once the installation is complete, navigate to your thumb drive in Windows Explorer (via My Computer). Double-click StartPortableApps.exe.
- The PortableApps icon will appear in your system tray.
- And the PortableApps menu itself will probably appear. If it doesn’t, just click the tray icon and it will.
- To customize your version of PortableApps, click the Options button. From here you can increase the font size of the PortableApps menu, install or uninstall apps etc. Click Get More Apps…
- Firefox - the portable edition that’s already on your thumb drive - will launch….
- and take you to the PortableApps page that lists all of the applications you can install.
- Select one that you want to include on your thumb drive (I opted for PuTTY) and click its download button.
- You can save the file to your hard drive - or - your thumb drive.
- Double-click the file once it has downloaded, and it should auto-detect the correct installation location.
- Once the installation has completed, select Refresh App Icons from the Options list.
- The application you just installed will now appear in the list.
- The next time you plug in your thumb drive, Windows will prompt you on what you want to do. Select Start PortableApps and you’ll be up and going in now time.
- Remember that when you set up the applications on your thumb drive, the settings for the applications are stored on the thumb drive itself. So you can take your drive to use on another PC, and everything will ready to go. If you use Thunderbird to check your email through PortableApps, you may want to set it to leave mail on the server, so that your email is available to your main mail application.
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Thanks for the post on portable apps. I just wanted to add that you don’t have to use the portable apps menu or install the whole suite. I have some of those apps and some different ones, but I control them with the Pstart menu, which is just excellent. It’s here: http://www.pegtop.de/start/ and also free.
ho installato sulla “penna” PortableApps a prescindere dalla grande utilità e praticità di poter avere i programmi preferiti o se volete più usati sempre a portata di mano vorrei sapere se esiste il programma in italiano.
Grazie a chiunque vorrà o potrà darmi un aiuto
Mi pregunta es que, a veces, al instalar algunas aplicaciones portables externas a la suite, se muestra en el menú algunos ejecutables sin función alguna que solo molestan. ¿se pueden ocultar para que no se muestren en el menú?
Gracias
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