Desktop Enhancements
Font Tools
Font Runner
Browse through your font collection quickly to help you find 'just the right font' for any project. Organize your fonts with drag-and-drop ease; cataloging them into different folders and projects. Search your fonts by name, similarity or by character. Also, preview your fonts inside Font Runner or by making them available to other applications. Finally, Font Runner gives you the ability to make printouts of your fonts so you can thumb through them easily.
Download Font Runner
dp4 Font Viewer
Features:
- displays all fonts in any folder in OpenType (OTF), TrueType (TTF) or Collections (TTC) format
- has its own render engine with 256 subpixel anti-alias
- filters for font type / class / width / weight
- choose between ASCII or glyph display, it is possible to enter your own text
- shows unicodes and keys
- simple management functions - install, delete, display font information
- multi language executable - german and english
- list sub folders
- print function for single font and for complete font list
- no installation required, very small program.
Download dp4 Font Viewer
gdipp
The gdipp (codename) project is a replacement of the Windows default text render, which brings to you the effect of text like Mac OS and Linux distributions. It is easy to use with ignorable overhead, and it is fully customizable.
Download gdipp
Icon Tools
Desktop Restore
This tiny application operates as a Shell extension. It records the layout and positions of icons and programs on the Windows Desktop, and permits restoration of the layout. Sometimes other programs will switch screen size and trash your layout as well. This program is an answer to this problem, and I thought other people might find it useful too.
Download Desktop Restore
Iconoid
- Save and Restore Icon positions for each (or every) screen resolution
- Transparent icon backgrounds or use any color
- Select any color for icon text
- Automatically hide icons when you don't need them and show them when you do
- Automatically or manually select the best color for the text background
- Quickly minimize all windows so that you can see your desktop wallpaper.
Download Iconoid
ICU - Icon Configuration Utility
Restore your desktop when the icons get 'rearranged'.
Download ICU
DesktopOK
Save and restore the positions of icons. DesktopOK is a small but effective solution for user that have to change the screen resolution often.
Download DesktopOK
IconSort
IconSort is a small utility that can store/restore the position of the icons in the desktop of Windows.
Download IconSort
IconViewer
IconViewer is a free Windows Explorer extension that lets you easily view, copy, and save icons contained within programs and libraries.
Download IconViewer
Screensavers
UsefulSaver
UsefulSaver displays CPU info, RAM info, disk activity, disk space, top 5 processes, battery life remaining, and how long the screensaver's been running.
Download UsefulSaver
Shell & Desktop Management
SKTimeStamp
SKTimeStamp is a very simple shell extension which adds a new page to the Explorer properties dialog. On that new page, you can change the file/folder dates and times.
Download SKTimeStamp
WOW64Menu
The WOW64Menu application was developed to be a small tool will allow you to use shell context menu of 32-bit applications on 64-bit editions of Windows. It adds 'Show WOW64 Menu' command to context menu of objects on Desktop and in Windows Explorer. When choosing this command a new context menu including 32-bit applications will be shown.
Download WOW64Menu
FreeSnap
FreeSnap allows you to instantly resize any window edge to the corresponding screen edge. Want that window to touch the right edge of the screen? Press and hold the left 'Windows Key' and press the right arrow. It's just that simple. The number-pad keys work as well, regardless of the NumLock state.
Download FreeSnap
Windawesome
Windawesome (pronounced - contrary to what you would expect from the way it is written - Windows-om, not Wind-awesome) is a highly customizable dynamic window manager written in C#, which works on top of explorer.exe and NOT as a shell replacement. Windawesome is scriptable and pluggable in IronRuby, IronPython and any .NET language that compiles down to an assembly.
Download Windawesome
KillKeys
KillKeys disables specified keys, preventing programs from picking them up. They then effectively become dead keys that does nothing while KillKeys is enabled. The default behavior is to disable both windows keys and the menu key when in fullscreen windows to prevent accidentally pressing them when playing games. You can configure KillKeys to block any key you wish.
Download KillKeys
WindowsWhere
Use WindowsWhere with Windows 7 to make sure that explorer windows stay where you left them. See, Windows 7 (and Vista as well, apparently) like to forget where you left your explorer windows, so that new explorer windows end up wherever the last window was, instead of where that particular window was last. It's pretty annoying, considering it seemed to work fine on Windows XP. This tiny program is an attempt to regain that functionality.
Download WindowsWhere
MOBZRuler
MOBZRuler is the .NET successor to gRuler (previously known as DXRuler). Very simple but surprisingly useful tool that displays a grid on screen. Great for lining up screen elements, measuring screen distances etc.
Download MOBZRuler
MOBZoom
MOBZoom is a very lightweight yet powerfool zoom tool. Start it up, move the mouse around and view the area around it in the main MOBZoom window, then capture the zoomed image and save it to the clipboard or to file in a variety of formats (even as Windows icons - which is something special!).
Download MOBZoom
See Through Windows
Press a hotkey to make the current window transparent, allowing you to see through it! Press hotkeys to minimize/maximize the current window, or to send it to another monitor (like Windows 7, except also if you don't have Windows 7).
Download See Through Windows
InstantLogonChanger
With InstantLogonChanger always have your Windows 7 logon background the same as your Desktop wallpaper or set it to any other image or color without any security prompts or changing system files. JPEG, PNG, BMP, GIF, or TIFF image formats are supported. You can fill, fit, stretch, tile, or center your image and change background color for images that are too small to fit the screen.
Download InstantLogonChanger
TortoiseHg
TortoiseHg is a Windows shell extension and a series of applications for the Mercurial distributed revision control system. It also includes a Gnome/Nautilus extension and a CLI wrapper application so the TortoiseHg tools can be used on non-Windows platforms.
Download TortoiseHg
PWT (Python Windows Tiler)
A small simple tiler for Windows written in Python, using the pywin32 modules.
Features:
- Tiling window management
- Workspaces
- Per monitor tiling
- Low use of resources
- Ergonomic VI-based hotkeys
Download Python Windows Tiler
Synergy
Synergy allows you easily share a single mouse and keyboard between multiple computers with different operating systems. It's intended for users with multiple computers on their desk since each system uses its own monitor(s). Redirecting the mouse and keyboard is as simple as moving the mouse off the edge of your screen. Synergy also merges the clipboards of all the systems into one, allowing cut-and-paste between systems.
Download Synergy
Sh'elf
Sh'elf is an on-demand desktop with drag and drop. Good for alternate shells, or as a second desktop. Program supports relative (portable) paths for customizable image viewing, text editor, command shell, etc., as well as interface options such as stay-on-top and tray icon.
Download Sh'elf
DS Clock
DS Clock is a FREE digital desktop clock that displays variable date and time information built from the format string.
The program allows you to fully customize its look and feel.
You can select any combination of date, time, and time zones, insert any text, pick custom colors and fonts, set custom sound to play at the top of the hour, play real Westminster chimes, etc.
DS Clock can synchronize your computer's clock with Atomic Time Servers.
Download DS Clock
Emerge Desktop
Emerge Desktop is a replacement windows 'shell' (the desktop environment normally provided by Windows Explorer). In order to replace Windows Explorer as a shell, it provides a system tray (the area that collects the icons collected at the lower right corner in Explorer), called emergeTray. It will also provide access to the users programs (normally accessed with the windows 'start' button) via a right-click on the desktop, via emergeCore.
Download Emerge Desktop
StExBar
The ultimate extensions for Windows Explorer or: what Microsoft forgot to implement in the Explorer.
The StExBar provides many useful commands for your everyday use of Windows Explorer. And you can add as many custom commands on your own as you like.
Download StExBar
Synergy
Synergy is FOSS (Free and Open Source Software) that lets you easily share a single mouse and keyboard between multiple computers with different operating systems, without special hardware. All you need is a LAN connection. It's intended for users with multiple computers, where each system uses its own display.
Download Synergy
FilerFrog
FilerFrog is a new and innovative way of manipulating files in windows explorer. It integrates with windows explorer as a shell extension so it can provide you with tools to perform your every day file manipulation actions easily and efficiently.
Download FilerFrog
Start Killer
Start Killer removes the Start button from your taskbar. When you run Start Killer it remove the Start button from taskbar and give you additional space on taskbar, when you close Start Killer the Start button is again shows. Though the Start Button is removed, you can still open Start Menu using CTRL+ESC or WIN key.
Download Start Killer
T-Clock
T-Clock is a handy application that runs in your taskbar and will modify your taskbar clock also acting as an alarm clock, a timer and a customization tool.
Download T-Clock
Rainmeter
Rainmeter is a desktop customization platform. Through Rainmeter, you can enhance your Windows computer at home or work with skins: handy, compact applets which float freely on your desktop, much like Windows Sidebar gagdgets, or dashboard widgets for the Mac.
Download Rainmeter
Zoro
Zorro is a utility to completely blank the screen except for a rectangular area selected by the user. This is especially useful for watching videos on your computer without being distracted by other programs.
Download Zoro
Taskbar Shuffle
Taskbar Shuffle is a simple, small, free utility that lets you drag and drop your Windows taskbar buttons to rearrange them.
Download Taskbar Shuffle
FileBox eXtender
FileBox enhances Windows by adding several advanced functions to the standard Open File and Save File dialog boxes.
Download FileBox eXtender
FileMenu Tools
FileMenu Tools allows you to customise the context menu of Windows Explorer.
Download FileMenu Tools
Taskix
Taskix - Reorder taskbar tabs and more...
Download Taskix
VistaSwitcher
VistaSwitcher is an elegant and powerful task management utility for Windows OS. Once installed, it replaces the default Windows Alt-Tab dialog with a nice box that shows a list of all running tasks, with their names and preview snapshots, and enables the user to take actions on them using the mouse and keyboard shortcuts.
Download VistaSwitcher
7 Taskbar Tweaker
7 Taskbar Tweaker enables you to tweak your Windows 7 taskbar.
Download 7 Taskbar Tweaker
Open++
Open++ is a context menu shell extension that allows you to quickly open the target file or folder with the customized commands.
Download Open++
Link Shell Extension
HardLinks provide the ability to keep a single copy of a file yet have it appear in multiple folders (directories).
Download Link Shell Extension
WindowsPager
WindowsPager is a desktop-switcher/pager for Windows Vista/7/XP to manage 'virtual' workspaces/desktops. It will integrate smoothly into the desktop panel.
Download WindowsPager
Wallpaper
Okozo Desktop
Okozo Desktop utilizes the latest DirectX and Adobe Flash technologies to render interactive, low-resource animations as your desktop wallpaper. Simply get the software to gain access to hundreds of wallpapers available from the Okozo Web site. If you are a flash developer and would like to see your works available with Okozo, you can submit them to us and upon approval they will be featured on the Web site and be available for download.
Download Okozo Desktop