Ever wish you didn't have to go through the process of installing applications you need to use on every Linux desktop you access? I do too, and that's why I started carrying AppImages around in a USB drive . Here are some of my favorites.
AppImages are similar to portable EXE applications you can get for Windows , but they only work on Linux. They're self-contained application files with all the dependencies they need and run on just about any Linux distribution. That means you never need to worry about common Linux problems like software that's absent from or outdated in your distro's repositories. You can copy or move them to an external flash drive and run them on virtually any Linux desktop you boot up.
Flameshot: Take Screenshots Anywhere
With the portable version of Flameshot , you can capture and annotate professional-looking screenshots on any device. This is especially useful when I'm testing out live versions of Linux distributions where I may not have or be familiar with its built-in screenshot system. I can just launch the Flameshot AppImage, save some screenshots to the flash drive, and move on.
In fact, Flameshot is one of our favorite screenshot apps for Linux . Aside from its annotation tools, it has a ton of customization options so you can easily become a screenshot-creating power user.
Kiwix: Save Wikipedia (and Other Sites) to Your Device
If you've ever wanted to be able to browse Wikipedia, iFixit, and other useful databases of information, you'll definitely want the Kiwix AppImage saved to your USB drive. Kiwix lets you download entire websites and the reams of knowledge they contain. You can keep copies of websites stored on the drive as well, or on whatever device you prefer to do your browsing on.
This is especially useful if you want to be prepared for emergency situations with your USB stick. You can grab databases like MDWiki to get information about medicine and first aid, and with the entirety of Project Gutenberg saved, you'll never run out of eBooks to read.
LibreOffice: A Free Microsoft Office Alternative
Put a LibreOffice AppImage on your USB drive and you'll be able to work on documents, spreadsheets, presentations, math formulas, and even databases on any Linux device. Keep those document files alongside the AppImage and you'll be able to take your work with you.
LibreOffice is one of the biggest AppImages in my collection in sheer bytes, and with good reason. It's designed to replace Microsoft Office, which are some big shoes to fill. Still, it manages to offer one of the best open source Microsoft Word alternatives .
LibreWolf: A Web Browser With Less Surveillance
I don't often recommend so-called "private" web browsers, in part because there's simply no such thing as privacy on the web . It doesn't exist, and anyone telling you otherwise is trying to sell you something. However, given the options out there, if I want to use a browser with somewhat more-than-average privacy, I'd reach for LibreWolf .
The LibreWolf web browser is just a modified version of the open source web browser Mozilla Firefox. It includes several tweaks to the default settings that reduce the ease with which trackers can follow you. Some of Firefox's annoyances, like making Google the default search engine, are also fixed in LibreWolf. It can be handy if the installed browser on a distro you're using doesn't measure up for the level of privacy you need.
Vesktop: Discord But Better
Vesktop is a lightweight desktop app for Discord called Vencord. It lets you use Discord but with added plugins and with optimizations for Linux, and without some of Discord's telemetry collection.
If you don't use Discord already, you should know it's a useful app for maintaining a community. You can make a private server and divide discussion topics to channels. Discord can work well as a way for family and friends to chat without relying on the perils of group texting and traditional social media.
Vesktop is built around Vencord, a client mod for Discord, and client modifications are technically against Discord's terms of service. However, Vencord reports that Discord has not been known to enforce these rules and that there have been no reports of anyone being penalized for using it. Still, I recommend using Vesktop with discretion.
KeePassXC: Offline Password Manager
Typically, I keep the system-integrated version of KeePassXC installed on my PCs. When I need to quickly get access to some of my passwords without relying on online apps, though, I use the AppImage version on my USB stick.
That's the beauty of relying on KeePassXC for your passwords: everything is securely stored in an offline database, a KDBX vault file that you can stick on the USB drive alongside the KeePassXC AppImage if you want. That way you always have your passwords close at hand, even if you don't have access to the internet.
Standard Notes: Encrypted Note-Taking
The fact Standard Notes is available as a portable Linux app is one entry in a long list of reasons I prefer it for note-taking. In fact, I wrote the first draft of this article in it. It's a note-taking app that emphasizes security with its end-to-end encrypted cloud storage.
With the Standard Notes AppImage, I can log into my account and get all of my encrypted notes on whatever device I connect my USB drive to, so long as there's internet access. It's cross-platform, so you can also keep working on the same notes with your iPhone or Android or whatever other platforms you use.
The free version offers basic functionality, but I like it so much that I pay for the Professional subscription. Since at the time of writing it's almost November, let me clue you in that Standard Notes usually offers deep discounts on subscriptions every Black Friday. That means now is a great time to trial free Standard Notes.
While not every Linux app I use is available as an AppImage, I think I could accomplish quite a bit with just these. An honorable mention I'll throw in though is Kdenlive, a great open source video editor if you need one. The AppImage will come in handy if you happen to need to edit videos on the go.
