Unclutter your desktop- part 2

Posted by Vic Laurie
February 5, 2008

I’m not as fanatical about a clean computer desktop as Microsoft, which has put a desktop nanny in Windows to annoy you. However, as I posted before, I think there are clear advantages to keeping the desktop from getting too cluttered. So here’s some more on the topic of a neater desktop.

Put some of the most often used icons in the Quick Launch toolbar
Frequently accessed icons are even more readily accessible in the Quick Launch toolbar since it generally remains visible even when the desktop is covered by open windows. Quick Launch is the toolbar that sits in the taskbar next to the Start button. If you do not have a Quick Launch toolbar already, right-click on a blank spot in the Taskbar and choose “Toolbars” from the menu. Then click “Quick Launch”. You may have to unlock the Taskbar first. Icons can be dragged and dropped on the Quick Launch toolbar.
Pin some frequently used programs to the Start menu
Although pinning a program to the Start menu means opening the Start menu before accessing the program, it still makes the program easy to get to. Unless you are opening and closing it constantly, pinning a program can be a useful way to have it available. To pin a program, right-click its icon and choose “Pin to Start menu” from the context menu.The program will then be accessible in the upper left section of the Start menu.
Put less frequently used icons in a folder on the desktop
If you want some icons to be close at hand but do not use them constantly, place them all in a single folder on the desktop. It adds one step to accessing them but they are still easy to find. To create a new folder on the desktop, right-click an empty spot, choose “New” and then “Folder” from the context menu. Then, just drag and drop the desired icons from the destop into the folder.

But- as they say in those TV ads- wait, there’s more. And I’ll post that in the next (and last) entry in this series on uncluttering the desktop.

Computer management, File management

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