Desktop Enhancement Tools

17 Sep 2005

There are lots of desktop enhancement tools available on the net. Some of them are free and some of them are not. Some so called desktop enhancement tools do no enhancements other than skinning your applications. Some of them changes wallpapers regurlary, shows calendars, clocks and other useful informations in the desktop. One example is Webshots. It is a very popular tool.
Do you need them? If performance is the only thing you want from your system then the answer is NO. But if you like some eye candy on your desktop then go for it.

My recommendations
I have used Style XP, Window Blinds and Talisman. Comparing them is ofcourse difficult.
Style XP is the simplest one and some argue that it is also the faster. Well! I am also one
of them. Using Style XP you can change desktop themes, icons, boot screens, cursors,
explorer tool bars etc etc. And you can find a lot of them from websites.
Window Blinds is a skinning engine from Stardock. This company offers lots of desktop
enchancement tools. WIndow FX, Icon changer etc are one of them. The latest offering is
Desktop X. Desktop X do more than skinning. It is your desktop changer. You can place
objects instead of just links. An object can be a calculator, calendar etc. You can also download additional objects from their site.
Talisman is not just a skinning tool. It is more similar to Desktop X than Style XP or Window Blinds. It offers a complete replacement of the standard explorer shell. (A shell is the interface when you start Windows. It is Explorer by default.) It may not be recommended for basic users. I would have strongly recommended this for power users if it was free. You can only try 1 month. (Well! – you know what i mean. right? )
In my opinion, Style XP is the best if you only want some eye candy desktop themes. You can find a huge number of themes, icon packs, visual styles, boot screens etc. Desktop X is also a must try software. I recommend Talisman for advanced users who wants full control of their desktop.
Links
Style XP – www.tgtsoft.com (download size around 16 MB)Window Blinds – www.stardock.com (download size around 6 MB)Talisman – www.lighttek.com/talisman.htm (download size aroud 6 MB)