At Addictivetips.com, there’s an article you really should read, and a collection of 22 apps (all free) which might make life with Windows7 even easier and customizable to the way you want it.
Author Aatif put all this together back in March of 2010 (thank you, Aatif!).
So head on over to the url below and read about these apps and bookmark the page as I did.
1. Google Quick Search Box In Windows 7 Taskbar
2. Windows 7 Setup Customization With Win Integrator
3. Auto Login And Lock Windows 7
4. Auto Run, Perform Actions, & Sort Files Based On File Extensions
5. Open & View Any File With Universal Viewer
6. Customize Windows 7 Taskbar Thumbnails
7. Update Windows Offline On Multiple Systems
8. Extend Windows Media Center On Dual Monitor Display
9. Turn Off Display, Pause Media, Notify Contacts When Locking Windows Desktop
10. On Screen Volume Control Indicator For Windows
11. Clean Up Windows Desktop With Zum - I find Fences does this better and I'll stick to my Fences Pro.
12. Show Thumbnail Preview Of ZIP & RAR Image Archives
13. Disk Analysis Made Beautiful With Disk Space Fan
14. Advance Tweak Windows 7 & Vista With Vispa
15. Convert Any Media From Windows Explorer Context Menu
16. ClipGrab: Desktop Video Downloader
17. Image Resizer Powertoy Clone For Windows 7/Vista
18. Repair Broken Windows 7 User Profile Association
19. Add MKV Support In Windows 7
20. Automatically Mute Speakers On Lock
21. Raw Image Viewer – Add Raw Image Support To Windows 7
22. Integrate Hulu Desktop In Windows 7 Media Center
Source: http://www.addictivetips.com/windows-tips/22-free-windows-7-apps-that-you-should-know-about/
And a “Thanks Jim!” to the RedneckDude whose DX’s customize out desktops!