"What the caterpillar calls the end of life, wise men call a butterfly."

As many regular readers know I’m usually an advocate for Open Source and Linux, but today, I’m going to plug a few programs that run on *gasp* Windows XP Pro. Here are a few power tools that help make life livable if you’re forced to use the evil OS.

For those who are familiar with KDE and multiple desktops, the same thing can be accomplished in XP with the Virtual Desktop Manager. screenshot After you’ve downloaded and installed it, activate it by right-clicking the toolbar and selecting Toolbars -> Desktop Manager. You’ll now have 4 virtual desktops each of which can be individually hacked.

Ever change the “skin” of a small program to make it look a little cooler? You can change the “skin” of XP using a shareware program called WindowBlinds. screenshot. You can also use it to change the skins of individual programs.

Raise your hand if you own one of the Leatherman multitools… you know, the gizmo that does just about everything. Wish you had a tool like that for XP? You can if you download PowerDesk. screenshot You can do just about anything from PowerDesk. Use it to organize and manage files, digital photos, MP3 music files and web images. In just one, two or three clicks, you can customize your PC: move, copy, zip, label, color code, delete, format drives, search, view, prioritize, convert, etc., etc.

Finally, do you have a good systems administration tool for XP? If you don’t, grab a copy of System Mechanic. It will fix stubborn computer errors, clean-up your registry, defragment your hard drive and memory, speed-up Windows and the Internet, eliminate spyware, secure your PC, and perform a variety of critical system maintenance tasks.

Happy Hacking!