Are there any good ways to run programs straight off of my flash drive?

I have a couple of programs I’d like to be able to take with me anywhere, like 3D studio Max, Photoshop, things like that. I’ve heard rumors that you can install programs to a flash drive, and then run them from any computer without having to install them. How would one go about doing this? Are there any coverall programs I could use to act as a mini-registry?