Posted 10/20/09 at 02:30:00 PM by David Murphy

The recent release of Stardock's Fences tool (version 1.0) got me thinking about desktop organization. While Fences is certainly neat--the program lets you divide your desktop real estate into individual sections, surrounded by "fences," amongst other space-saving features--this freeware app isn't the only game in town by far. In fact, some of you expressed disgust at Stardock's latest release. Be it the fact that one needs to install Stardock's Impulse client just to access Fences, or your simple dislike of an application whose functionality is mirrored by other freeware apps, Fences was hardly a shot hit out of the park.

 So, here we are. After the jump, I'll show you five different alternative desktop managers that will help you bring increased tidiness, prettier looks, and funer... er... more fun functionality to your typical workspace. Auto-arrange your icons one last time for nostalgia's sake, because I'm about to mix up your desktop crazy-style.

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Posted 05/03/09 at 10:00:00 PM by David Murphy

The Windows desktop can do a lot of things. You can drag and drop your programs all across your display, then resize the windows--or have the operating system tile them for you--to maximize your multi-application productivity. If you're using Vista, you can call forth a cascading, three-dimensional display of your Windows and cycle through live displays of each until you're ready to select an active panel. You can create new toolbars and assign them to new edges of the screen. You can minimize everything at once to show you a clean desktop image.

The Windows desktop can do a lot of things. But you can't do everything. And that's why I've hunted down five freeware applications that give you just-that-much-more control over the programs, windows, and taskbars that clog up your PC's display. Split your desktop into individual regions for maximum display control, or take matters into your own hands and assign the customized height, width, and positining of every application you use.

That's just a slice of the Windows pie I'm ready to dish up. Fire up some programs, put on a bib, and let's chow down on some freeware.

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Posted 01/15/09 at 03:50:44 AM by David Murphy

Draw the line in the sand!  It's the showdown the tech world has feared: Microsoft's upstart Windows 7 versus Linux.  We've seen plenty of volleys back and forth from both camps over the past few days, thanks to the beta launch of the Windows 7 operating system.  The new OS has a lot going for it--features that directly target the growing Linux base in the mobile PC market coupled with design elements that, honestly, look a lot like what we've seen in Linux desktop environments for some time now.  But will that be enough to topple the best the open-source world has to offer?  We dig deep into the arguments from both camps to find out whether Windows 7 is The Terminator... or John Conner.

Grab your flag of neutrality and read on!

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Posted 06/20/08 at 10:52:50 AM by Chris Moody

openSUSE 11 officially premiered yesterday with more than 200 new features specific to openSUSE and a redesigned installer that makes openSUSE even easier to install (and if you've ever installed it before, it was pretty darn easy then).

If you're into bling (and who doesn't like a little bling), there is the 3-D desktop app Compiz Fusion and it is now default in openSUSE 11.0. It includes a number of Compiz plugins, as well as easier configuration with Simple CompizConfig Settings Manager (CCSM) and the more comprehensive CompizConfig Settings Manager that lets you do detailed  configuration of your Compiz setup.

Image Credit: openSUSE

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