A Neat Little Display Tip

I was working on a client’s computer today and when I booted the system up, the display screen was completely full of icons. When I say full, I mean…I couldn’t tell where anything was. Not only was the display wall-to-wall icons, but my client was also using one of Microsoft’s optional desktop themes. I was trying to find, “my computer.” But in this theme, I didn’t even know what the, “my computer” icon looked like. After searching for almost two full minutes, I finally found it.

Discouraged by this, I made a suggestion that worked out so well, my client decided to use this trick on her home computer and laptop as well. My suggestion was simple and should help others of you who are experiencing the, "curse of the shrinking desktop” phenomenon.

The tip in a nutshell is…folders! If your desktop looks like a maze of postage stamps, it's time to gather them into <folders>. Each folder will contain icons of similar programs. For instance…if you have a bunch of game icons, why not make a <games> folder and store all of the <game> icons in it? This will help to clean up desktop clutter and make it much easier to find individual programs. Storing ten <game> icons in one games <folder> will save you nine icon spaces. If you do this with all of your programs, you’ll soon have a neat and clutter free desktop. Just think, no more straining your eyes trying to find that long lost program.

Setting up <folders> and moving your present icons into them is easy. Let’s start by making a few <folders> on your desktop. To do this, you’ll need to move the mouse curser to a place on the desktop where it won’t be touching any icons. (This may be the hardest thing for some of you!) Now, <right> click on your mouse. This will bring up a menu with several choices. One of these will be <new> and then <folder>. Once you've done this, the menu will disappear and you’ll see a new desktop icon that looks like a file folder. Look closer and you’ll see that its name is, “new folder.” Notice that your cursor is already located in the, "name" box waiting for you to enter the folder's new name. At this point, hit the <backspace> key and backspace over the, “new folder” name. Now you can type in the name you want to give your new folder. In the example above, I called this folder, “Games.”

In order to move the individual game icons from your desktop into this folder, you’ll need to position the mouse cursor (arrow pointer) over one of the game icons and <left> click the mouse, but DON’T let up on the mouse button just yet. Instead, drag the icon you just selected until it’s directly over the, “games” folder. Now, release the mouse button. The icon will disappear from the desktop and re-appear inside the, “games” folder. Do this with all of your remaining game icons.

Next, you're ready to make folders for your other software. Use descriptive names such as, “Music” , “Business” , “Utilities” , “Graphics”, etc. This one simple tip can make a huge difference in helping you to find programs quickly and easily.

Here’s another suggestion to help keep clutter to a minimum. Be choosy about the <wallpaper> you use for your desktop's background. If your icons get lost in it, use something else! A plain, single colored background may be boring, but it sure works well. Reach me at randy@randybenjamin.com.