These 3 Linux apps changed all my favourite useless Windows apps

I’ve been utilizing Windows since Windows 95, and through the years, I’ve watched a variety of my favourite apps die or get changed with extra “fashionable” alternate options. While these newer variations are most likely higher, I still miss the old ones. I actually preferred their total structure and aesthetics, and perhaps it’s nostalgia speaking, however I additionally suppose these apps simply labored higher and have been much less buggy than their fashionable counterparts. As such, I’ve all the time been looking out for apps that attempt to recreate that retro feel and appear, however I by no means anticipated to seek out them on Linux, of all locations.

AbiWord

The substitute for WordPad

WordPad is likely one of the most up-to-date traditional Windows apps to be discontinued, so it solely is sensible to start out the listing with it. Microsoft removed WordPad in Windows 11 model 24H2, telling individuals to make use of Word in the event that they wanted to work with rich-text paperwork or Notepad in the event that they wished one thing easy and light-weight. Now, Microsoft has accomplished some good work to make Notepad a more capable, Markdown-enabled note-taking app — however it’s nonetheless no WordPad.

The factor is, you possibly can’t depart individuals with solely two choices at reverse ends of the performance spectrum. Having a center possibility issues. WordPad used to fill that hole: it was quick, light-weight, supported RTF recordsdata (which Notepad doesn’t), and, most significantly, was free and utterly offline.

Fortunately, for those who’re on Linux, there’s a wonderful WordPad substitute within the type of AbiWord. It appears to be like just like WordPad by way of structure, is free-to-use, handles RTF recordsdata simply nice, and, due to its comparatively light-weight design, masses a lot sooner than absolutely featured document editors like LibreOffice or ONLYOFFICE.

It covers all of the options you’d count on from a doc editor, together with rich-text formatting, a phrase rely software, footnotes, tables, tables of contents, and even revision monitoring. By default, it saves paperwork in its personal .abw format, however it additionally helps .doc and .docx recordsdata. The solely situation I’ve discovered is that some very advanced DOCX recordsdata can look a bit messy, however that’s a difficulty with LibreOffice, too.

AbiWord is accessible as a Flatpak.

OpenShot

The substitute for Windows Movie Maker

Windows Movie Maker got here bundled with Windows XP and performed an enormous function in serving to me develop a knack for making motion pictures and enhancing movies. We used to go on household journeys and are available again with a pile of footage. I’d then spend weekend afternoons stitching the clips collectively, slicing out the boring bits, and throwing in some enjoyable transitions to finally create a “film” our complete household might watch and luxuriate in. I’ve a variety of fond reminiscences related to Windows Movie Maker.

Unfortunately, Microsoft ultimately determined to discontinue it and now ships Clipchamp as a modern replacement, preinstalled on Windows 11 programs. However, it’s no Windows Movie Maker. The largest turnoff is that it’s a freemium app that tries to push a subscription. On the free tier, you possibly can export movies at as much as 1080p, whereas 4K exports can be found solely on a paid plan. That simply sucks, particularly when you think about that the alternate options are both professional-grade software program or much less succesful ad-supported apps.

Granted, a couple of good free choices exist for hobbyist video editors, together with Kdenlive and Shotcut, however the one which caught my eye is OpenShot. It comes closest to capturing Movie Maker’s steadiness between simplicity and performance. You get a similar-looking structure, assist for limitless tracks, and an enormous library of built-in audio and visible results and transitions which can be simple to use.

OpenShot is accessible as a Flatpak.

Space Cadet Pinball

The substitute for 3D Pinball for Windows — Space Cadet

Most fashionable PC video games are designed to get you hooked and maintain you taking part in for hours. And whereas that’s definitely a testomony to good storytelling and recreation design, these addictive elements can be counterproductive, particularly for working professionals who need to get pleasure from video video games as a pastime.

At occasions like these, I genuinely miss the casual games I used to play as a child — those I might simply decide up and put down with out feeling addicted or compelled to see what occurs subsequent. And the sport I discover myself lacking most frequently is Space Cadet, the 3D pinball recreation that got here bundled with Windows XP alongside Minesweeper and Solitaire.

You might play it for hours, making an attempt to beat your excessive rating. Or you can play for a couple of minutes whereas ready for a big file to complete copying. It didn’t demand your time or undivided consideration. But alas, Microsoft determined to drop it after Windows XP. If you’re inquisitive about why, try this text from Windows Latest explaining the removal of Pinball from Windows.

That mentioned, a couple of weeks in the past, whereas looking Flathub, I got here throughout Space Cadet Pinball. It’s a reverse-engineered model of the unique recreation, however it performs and feels precisely as I bear in mind it, with the identical desk and people iconic sound results. In truth, it’s so trustworthy to the unique that I initially thought it was a Linux port of the Windows model.

Run these on a Windows-like Linux distro for the perfect expertise

These three Linux apps seize the feel and appear of previous, fashionable Windows apps, however what if you would like your complete Linux desktop to feel and appear like Windows? In that case, I’d extremely suggest beginning with a Windows-like Linux distro working a highly customizable desktop surroundings like KDE Plasma, Cinnamon, or Xfce. For reference, my present system, which I used to take all of the screenshots, runs Linux Mint Xfce Edition with a customized Windows XP theme.