I spend most time reviewing tools that will make Windows environments better, easier to administer and more secure. Every once in a while I get to talk about something that is just plain fun! This is one of those times and I am quite excited about this tool.
Some time ago I saw a video on YouTube for the Beryl project which works on Linux machines. The video showed how Beryl blows away the Windows Aero effect by providing a 3D environment for the desktop.
I download Ubuntu and installed it along with the Beryl desktop tool and it completely rocked!!
Since then I have been looking for something on the Windows side to do the same thing. Not that Ubuntu isn’t fun, but my bread and butter are Microsoft products. And the way I reason is that software is software… if you can do it on Linux, it can be done on Windows or MAC or whatever else has a GUI interface.
So that is why I am so pumped up by the discovery of Deskspace by Otaku Software. Deskspace allows you to operate in a virtual 3D desktop environment that looks incredibly cool. You can use the mouse wheel to scroll through virtual desktops or you can hold down the shift-ctrl-alt keys and move the virtual space in all sorts of directions.
While I was playing (and that’s what I was doing…playing) I thought about the technical implications of this tool. As an IT Admin I worked with dual screens, most days I could have used three or four screens. However, I had no room on my desk for more than two. I also had no budget for those quad screen monitors. I thought it would be cool to have more desktop space without having another monitor. Often times I need to see something full screen but not necessarily all day long. Then there were times I needed to monitor users and I had the need to be discreet of course.
With Deskspace it is a simple flick of the mouse wheel and I am working on something else, with no indication on the taskbar that anything else is happening. Cool to use, nice looking effects and a real manageable IT use. Not to mention that deskspace is not expensive (less than $25 for a single license).
Deskspace is available for a free 14-day trial download. This is a product you need to try! If you need more convincing check out their demo screens and videos
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Ron Barrett is president of RARE-TECH, an IT Training and consulting company. He has been a technology professional for over a decade, working for several major financial firms and dotcoms. Barrett is a specialist in network infrastructure, security and IT management.
He is a co-author of The Administrator's Guide to Microsoft Office 2007 Servers, How to Cheat at Administering Office Communications Server 2007, and the Real MCTS/MCITP Exam 620 Preparation Kit and has been a contributor to Windows 2000 Enterprise Storage Solutions and Exam Cram �70-244-Supporting & Maintaining NT Server 4.
He has also contributed to several industry magazines and was featured in the book Tricks of the Windows Vista Masters. He has worked for Microsoft writing research and analysis documents for Windows Server 2008, Windows HPC, and PerformancePoint Server 2007. He has also created screencasts on Windows Server 2008 Administration for Linux Admins.
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