If you are a blogger and you use the Windows operating system then you have to be using Windows Live Writer and if you’re not then you are making your blogging life a lot harder than it needs to be. If you think I’m just bragging because I’m a supposed Microsoft fanboy think again. At this point in my computing life there are really only two programs that keep me tied to Windows. They are FeedDemon my RSS client of choice and Windows Live Writer the best damn blogging editor around.

As good as Windows Live Writer (WLW) is right out of the box it can be made even better with some great plugins. For me the following five plugins are the first things installed right after WLW is up and running.

1. Now Playing

This may not be a do or die type plugin but for folks that like to share the music they are listening to while writing this is the plugin to have. Now Playing supports Winamp, iTunes, Foobar2000, XMPlay and Windows Media Player along with supporting other plugins that can query different music services like Last.fm and Amazon. The author - Alexander Groß – is really responsive to folks needing help as I did when switching to XMPlay media player. This player wasn’t on the original list supported by Now Playing but he quickly added support after I asked if it was possible.

Grab it here

2. Flickr4Writer

More often than not bloggers are always looking for just the right graphic(s) to go with their post. For some it means search through Google Images or Live.com Images but that doesn’t always work. In times like these this plugin might be the answer as it lets you search the Flickr photo sharing service to find an appropriate image.

Grab it here

3. Insert Wikipedia Link

Bloggers are a link crazy bunch. We love linking to just about anything that we think will add value to what you are reading. The one way we do this is by linking names, places or things to their Wikipedia page. Wikipedia in the free online encyclopedia where you can find information on just about anything or anyone. This plugin handles creating that link for you when you highlight the word and click on the Insert Wikipedia Link from the WLW task bar area. It may not be the most indispensable of WLW plugins but it sure makes adding Wikipedia related links a lot easier.

Grab it here

4. Insert File Attachment

For many bloggers sharing is the name of the game whether it be their thoughts, their graphics or even files for the reader to download. There are quite a few different plugins that provide this feature for you. The first one is by Brawny and is the one I currently use.

Grab it here

Additionally I have also used the one written by Scott Lovegrove who has written many plugins for WLW.

Grab it here

5. Insert Code for Windows Live Writer

One of the big uses of blogs is in developer world and part of the reason that blogs are so popular with them is that it provides a way to both share coding tips or keep a snippet of code somewhere where they can always find it. This plugin lets you add properly formatted code to your blog post. This plugin is a definite time saver for developers.

Grab it here

Some bonus plugins

While most plugins serve as a way to add in some needed functionality sometimes you want something that is just fun and lets you create something different and unique to your posts. Here’s a couple that I have used.

Polaroid Picture – just as it says this plugin lets you add a graphic to your post but one that looks like it was taken by an old style Polaroid camera. You can also add an caption to the picture. Grab it here

Blog This for Firefox – This is just a simple button for Firefox which when you click on will launch WLW with the selected text of the current page in Firefox and the page name as the post title. Grab it here

Text Template – sometimes you might find yourself using the same text or even page layout in your blog posts. With this plugin you can create a template of that text section or page layout and use it again by opening up the Text Template dialog and selecting the template you want added to the post. Grab it here

Finishing up

There are a lot of really good plugins out there for Windows Life Writer with more coming all the time. The best source of what’s hot and new in WLW plugins is Microsoft’s own Windows Live Gallery which is followed by CodePlex where you will find ongoing plugin projects as well as their source code incase you are a developer and want to help out.