My Geekdom

For about 20 years now I've tried a bunch of software tools that provide the illusion of having multiple desktops. I've tried switching, scrolling and dragging desktops (see Wikipedia definition) and some that combine multiple types. The basic idea I was trying to implement begins with grouping windows into tasks, that is, a set of windows that I use on a related project. I would then have one virtual desktop per task. On it I'd keep all of the windows associated with that task open. When I wanted to switch tasks, say from reading email to a work project, I'd simply switch virtual desktops. Many people have other uses for virtual desktops but this was the one that I thought would work best for me. Unfortunately, all implementations I tried came up lacking and I soon decided they weren't worth the overhead.

Well, I might have accidentally stumbled on one that I'm going to stick with. It's called Dexpot (don't ask me why but I bet I'd think it clever if I spoke German). It has a whole bunch of features that I feel are essential. Some of them I always thought were required while others I've just discovered and fallen in love with in Dexpot.

1. It is not a switching desktop. This means, if I move a window so that it is half on and half off of a screen, parts of it won't appear on other desktops.
2. It has a desktop preview. That is, a single window that shows you what windows are open on which desktops. Surprisingly, while I've always considered this a requirement, expot has an option that I've enabled which actually replaces the windows preview (a miniature of the window) with an icon. It just seems less cluttered.
3. It has keyboard keys mapped to switch desktops.
   
4. It implements a "roll-up" feature. I had never heard of this before (seems it is common on Unix systems but I've been cursed to a Windows desktop for years now). This allows you to "roll-up" the window just into the title bar (thinking of rolling up a window shade). I don't use it most of the time but it is a quick way to uncover what a window is hiding without while keep it handy.
5. It implements a "minimize to systray" feature so that you can minimize any application to the systray.
   
6. You can set the transparency on windows so you can see through one to the one behind it.
7. It implements a feature like Windows' Ctrl-Tab that allows you to scroll through all of the windows in all desktops (lots of configuration switches around this).
8. The program was written in German and localized for English but the process name still comes up in German. OK, this isn't that exciting but I'm running out of good reasons and "top nine" didn't seem nearly as exciting as "top ten".
   
9. Dexpot has a GUI that lists each virtual Dexpot and the windows on each one. You can use this to move windows between desktops, copy windows to multiple or all Dexpots, etc...
   
   and (drumroll please)...
10. Tons of customization. You can assign keys to specific functions, mouse clicks on the windows, positioning the mouse along the border or in a corner, and about a billion other things. You can also change backgrounds, desktop logos, etc... depending on which desktop you are on. I have my initial desktop background as gray and then the next eight as the colors of the rainbow so I can quickly look at the background and tell which desktop I'm in. You can also name the desktops. For example, I have one labeled "Work" and another "GMail". When I first went to customize Dexpot I actually had information overload and actually had to go back several times to figure up all that coudl be done.