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gr00vy0ne
gr00vy0ne
Join Date 08/2001
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My current favorite desktop utilities

or, what's littering my desktop right now...

June 1, 2005 2:22:09 AM from JoeUser ForumsJoeUser Forums
The first thing to mention is Konfabulator which I discussed in my previous post. I won't belabor why but for the time being, it works and does exactly what I want it to do. It's pretty and no-nonsense.



The second thing that I've recently started using is True Launch Bar which also simply works. It's a taskbar add-on that adds a lot of functionality to the task bar. It is like the quick launch bar but on steroids with many grouping and menu options, a variety of useful plugins, and some skinning abilities. One of my main reasons for getting it was the fact that it had a pretty neat battery monitor. I hate the fact that after all this time, Windows' charging/battery task tray item is essentially useless. It basically shows you full, half and nearly empty. Is it that difficult to give a more accurate reading? The battery monitor plugin for TLB can display percentage, time remaining, and a more accurate visual indication depending on the skin you're using. I made my own skin to simply display the battery and time remaining and another with just the battery as shown above. I don't care about the percentage as much since the battery indicates 10% increments which is way better than 50% increments. I've also created a skin for the wireless monitor plugin that shows signal strength and transfer lights. I'm still learning how to optimally use the other plugins but so far it's been worth the money and easy to use.



Finally, I started trying out TaskSwitchXP which is an enhanced ALT+TAB task switcher. I find it to be more informative than the standard and Powertoy task switchers and it only uses a little bit of memory (~1.2MB). Since I tend to keep a lot of things open, I like being able to quickly jump through open applications and windows and visually see everything. It's neat and free and very configurable so it's worth taking a look at.

So, what are the rest of you using? Any hidden gems you care to share?
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gr00vy0ne
_jason_walker
Join Date 10/2003
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Reply #1 June 1, 2005 9:26:25 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
I use Restore Desktop to keep my icons in order.

Link
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gr00vy0ne
brian934
Join Date 05/2005
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Reply #2 June 2, 2005 6:33:58 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
I've been using True Launch Bar for over 2 years and as far as I'm concerned it has all the other docks and launch bars beat by a mile. It's too bad it doesn't get more attention.
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gr00vy0ne
Tarkus
Join Date 04/2001
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Reply #3 June 2, 2005 8:58:09 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
True Launch Bar looks pretty cool!

One utility I've found indispensable for years is ClipMate. It's a clipboard extender that offers a ton of extra features to the clipboard function, including maintaining a history, organization of old clips, power pasting, etc. Way too much to try and explain here.


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gr00vy0ne
gr00vy0ne
Join Date 08/2001
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Reply #4 June 2, 2005 10:29:56 PM
from JoeUser ForumsJoeUser Forums
I've been using True Launch Bar for over 2 years and as far as I'm concerned it has all the other docks and launch bars beat by a mile. It's too bad it doesn't get more attention.

I like the fact that it uses what you already know and are use to. The quick launch interface is tried and true. I find that every time I try to switch to a new dock/launchbar I always end up coming back to good ole taskbar. I am trying to get used to ObjectDock Plus in tabbed mode which is very elegant. We'll see how that experiment goes.
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gr00vy0ne
Swedenskins
Join Date 05/2004
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Reply #5 June 3, 2005 5:02:45 PM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
I have to agree about all the positive comments about True LaunchBar, made to be used and the best there is, thats why I make the Swedish translation, and every skin I make is made with buttons and menus to be used with TLB.
You can take a look at my site and find some examples of skins and menus. http://offsee.se/">Link
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gr00vy0ne
dukeofchutney
Join Date 05/2001
+1
Reply #6 June 4, 2005 8:58:18 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
I've been using TLB for about 3 or 4 years now (infact so long, I can't remember when I bought it) - and although I like ObjectDock and other bits 'n bobs I still run TLB anyway - like gr00vy0ne says " it simply works".

Another utility I use all the time is NetPerSec (PCMag utility), it places an icon in the System Tray which shows the through-put of your network traffic, NIC, DUN or a combo of both. It's was originally done for Win9x (I think), but works on 2K and XP just fine. Indispensable as it tells me visually, and at a glance, whether I've got connectivity or not.

You should also check out Mike Lin's Startup CPL (www.mlin.net) - combine this one with his other StartupMonitor program and you have a fairly good headstart against viruses that write themselves into the Startup and Run keys of the registry.
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gr00vy0ne
Tarkus
Join Date 04/2001
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Reply #7 June 4, 2005 11:23:24 AM
from WinCustomize ForumsWinCustomize Forums
I agree about NetPerSec. I've been using it for years and wouldn't be without it.

Regarding Startup CPL, I much prefer Startup Cop, another PC Mag program, which not only allows you to control what starts up on your system, but allows you to save different sets of programs, so you can easily switch things around, depending on what you want to do. Link

Another favorite is Shove-it, a program which pushes windows that are off the screen back onto the screen, and (optionally) reduce the size of windows to fit onto the screen. So, for example, if you want to dock a window in a corner, you can simply drag it past the corner, and it will automatically be pushed back. Or if a misbehaved program puts its own window off screen, it will take care of that, too. Link

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