Virtual Desktop Managers

[tsreyb]

I'm searching for a Virtual Desktop Manager.

For years I used Tech Superior's multiDesk, which is great except that
it is no longer maintained and it has a problem of re-arranging task
bar items in a seemingly random fashion each time you return to a
window.

I just found another product also named 'MultiDesk' - this from Fusion
Software - which also appears to be no longer maintained, and I've
found no documentation so I can't even get it to swap between screens.

I also tried Microsoft's PowerToys virtual desktop manager.
Shortcomings here are: 1. only 4 virtual desktops max, 2. taskbar
contains items from all desktops, not just the current desktop, 3.
rather unpleasant blinking of all windows when moving between desktops.

Does anyone know of a simple, reliable virtual desktop manager for
windows 2000/xp?

Thanks,
-Bob
Andover, MA

 

[Yves Leclerc]

nVidia's nView seems to also do "virtual" desktops. Can only be used by
nVidia based video cards. I also think that ATi has something similar for
their ATi based video cards. Each are free with the video card drivers.

 

[Vanguard]

nVidia's nView seems to also do "virtual" desktops. Can only be used
by nVidia based video cards. I also think that ATi has something
similar for their ATi based video cards. Each are free with the video
card drivers.

ATI's virtual desktop manager is called HydraVision. I used it for
awhile but dropped it and now just use the Windows XP PowerToys Desktop
Manager.

Regarding the OP's mention that the taskbar shows buttons for all
windows regardless of which virtual desktop they are on, just configure
Desktop Manager how you want it to behave; i.e., STOP sharing desktops.
Right-click on the Desktop Manager toolbar in the taskbar and UNCHECK
the Shared Desktops option.

I get no "blinking" when switching between virtual desktops. Sounds
like a monitor sync problem. The user should adjust the size of their
borders on the screen to see how close they are to a "switch-over point"
(where the monitor uses different frequencies to maintain the selected
resolution based on size). Use the monitor's controls to adjust sizing
within 5 steps in either direction to make sure there isn't some re-sync
point nearby. Otherwise, I don't know what the OP means by "blinking".

As to being only 4 virtual desktops, well, I've never needed more than 2
at a time. I don't recall how many maximum virtual desktops were
available when using ATI's HydraVision. Also, configuring the taskbar
to group buttons for the same application eliminates having dozens of
buttons with truncated labels in the taskbar (which also gives you the
option to Close All, so you could close all your browser windows at
once, and I can also Minimize All windows for a group), so I usually
only need one desktop. Grouping of all the windows for an application
often eliminates the need for multiple virtual desktops.

 

[andrei]

I just found another product...

Find them all at
http://www.download.com/sort/3150-2346_4-0-1-3.html?

 

[Jim McGowan]

Hi all!

I recently downloaded the MS Virtual Desktop Manager and liked it
immediately. I thought I could setup as many as four desktops with different
icons on each: one with just utilities and security shortcuts, one with web
design and graphics apps shortcuts, etc. So I removed several shortcuts
from Desktop 1 (saving them in a folder of course!) and in the 4 desktop
view it appeared that the others maintained the other shortcuts. However
when I click on another desktop to make it active the icons removed from 1
disappear from the others.

I noticed that I had not deselected Shared Desktops, so I did so and started
over, but got the same result again.

Virtual desktops don't really offer me a benefit unless I can truly
customize the configuration of each desktop. Is this possible with MS VDM?
If not, any other VDMs out there that do this? I have Object Desktop on my
other PC and it had a VDM, but absolutely no documentation and it is not
intuitive at all; I've spent much wasted time trying to get that one to
work.

All responses are appreciated!