Windows Desktop Customisation – 5 Cool Applications

I’ve always loved customising my computer’s desktop. It’s not enough for me to change the background picture and few colours. I use a variety of tools to help me.

So my first application – to create a new baseline interface – is Classic Shell.

Classic Shell – Free (including for commercial use)

This program puts a skin over Windows 8 and gives you back some of the features of the old Windows desktop. It loads on startup, so you go straight into a familiar style of desktop and bypass the Metro style altogether. All the good new stuff of the OS is still accessible (you can easily get to all the Apps), this is literally just a different view on it.

There are a few options, so you can pick a style of Windows that you’d like to build on.

Rocket Dock –  Free

At the top of my screen is Rocket Dock. This program is an application launcher. The programs (or links to the web, or to folders on your machine), style, screen position, size, opacity and icons are all easily customisable. Everything launches with just one click. It also has a nice animated effect that’s cute but not irritating.

I use it for corralling my most used applications into one part of the screen.

Vueminder – Lite version is Free, Pro version is $49.95.

Vueminder has a nice little calendar desktop widget that expands either as a viewer or into the full program. It can sync with Outlook and with Google Calendars. You can subscribe to shared calendars on the internet or on a local network.

It’s a fully featured calendar app with absolutely everything you’re ever likely to need from a calendar. It’s also fairly simple to use. There’s bags of possibilities for customising it. If you want to or need to keep multiple Google calendars maintained, then I can’t recommend the Pro version highly enough.

Fences – Free Trial, then $9.99

If you use Windows a lot, then Fences is the tool you know you need but probably didn’t know existed.

It lets you create little areas on your desktop (Fences) and put things in them. Those things can be documents, program shortcuts, web links and folders. You can also create a Fence that links to a folder and shows its contents. You can have as many as you like. You can name them or not bother. You can have multiple screens to your desktop and swipe between them with your mouse. And, obviously, you can customise the appearance of your Fences.

Fences is just awesome. Seriously. If you’re using an old style Windows interface, get Fences.

The makers also have a piece of software called Object Desktop which, like Classic Shell, allows you to re-skin Windows 8. If you buy Object Desktop, you get Fences included but it does cost $49.99.

Evernote Sticky Notes – Free

Little sticky notes for your desktop. Useful for simple reminders, but the syncing feature means that you can easily make a quick note of anything and have it stored into Evernote automatically. Need to jot something important down, then there’s no need to scramble around for a pen or scrap of paper that can get lost.

It’s a useful little widget.