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Enigma Desktop 2.0 Released, Adds Installer, Widget Manager, and Templates [Downloads]

Posted on February 23, 2009
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Windows only: Reader Kaelri, well-known for his killer Enigma desktop, has released a new version complete with an installer—making this amazing desktop customization easy enough for anybody to install.

The latest update includes features geared at beginners—the new welcome dialog in the middle of the screenshot adds widgets to your desktop which can be easily dragged around the screen—making customizations easier than ever. The full list of new features includes:

- EXE Installer
– GUI widget manager.
– Template configs – usable right out of the box.
– Black & white variants for every widget.
– Individual story links for the RSS Reader.
– Show/hide button for Sidebar.
– New mail indicator for Gmail Icon.

Getting started with Enigma is simplified down to just a couple of steps, detailed in the included instructions:

1. Download and install Rainmeter. (www.ipi.fi/~rainy/legacy.html)
2. Run EnigmaSetup2.0.exe to install the theme to Rainmeter. (Make sure Rainmeter isn’t running while you do this.)
3. OPTIONAL: Choose one of the files in “Templates.” Replace C:Program FilesRainmeterRainmeter.ini and replace it with your desired template. (Make sure Rainmeter isn’t running while you do this.)
4. Run Rainmeter.

The full package includes fonts, AutoHotkey scripts, and multiple templates to get you started. Kaelri recommends also installing either the NOOTO, CleanGlass, or SlanXP visual styles for Windows to match the Enigma look. Don’t know how? Follow our guide to installing custom themes. Great work, Kaelri!

Enigma is a free download for Windows users only. Linux users can check out the previously previously mentioned Enigma for Linux.





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DoubleDesktop is a Tiny Virtual Desktop Manager [Downloads]

Posted on February 13, 2009
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Windows only: Virtual desktop utility DoubleDesktop does exactly what its name implies—it creates two virtual desktops in a tiny package that uses less than 1 MB of RAM.

Using the lightweight utility is very simple—just click the system tray icon to switch back and forth between the two virtual desktops, or optionally set a hotkey in the preferences to flip between the two virtual desktops. Moving windows between desktops is the only annoying part—you have to drag them halfway and catch them on the other side.

Readers looking for a full-featured virtual desktop solution would be better served with a solution like previously mentioned VirtuaWin, Dexpot or the very slick Vista Virtual Desktop Manager—but this tiny utility might be just the ticket for low-memory systems. DoubleDesktop is a free download, Windows only.






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Get the Old “Show Desktop” Back in Windows 7–Kinda [How To]

Posted on January 15, 2009
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Windows 7 gives users better ways to clear most everything but the desktop—namley Aero Shake and Aero Peek. But if you still cling to “Show Desktop,” however, you can kind of get it back.

Pinning a Show Desktop icon to the taskbar in Windows 7 won’t work the way it did in pretty much every earlier version of Windows. While you can still create the “Show Desktop.scf” script, it just won’t pin itself correctly. The Tweaking with Vishal blog offers a kind of work-around that makes use of Windows 7′s utterly transparent toolbars.

The short version: Create a folder, place a “Show Desktop.scf” file in there (either your standard Google-found kind or the script available at the bottom link), then right-click your taskbar to create a “New Toolbar” that points to that folder. Turn off the text and titles on that new toolbar, change the icons to large size, and then put your new one-button toolbar where you’d like.

The drawback: If you pin it too close to the right of your standard tasks and pinned items, you’ll compress them and require an extra click to get to them. If you don’t mind having your desktop button on the left, though, or have a totally re-tweaked taskbar altogether, you’re good to go.






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Enigma Desktop Customization Update Now Available [Featured Windows Download]

Posted on January 6, 2009
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Windows only: Reader Kaelri—famous for the beautiful and functional Enigma desktop—has packaged and released version 1.1 of the customization files.

What’s changed? Kaelri explains:

I’ve added:

  • RSS reader.
  • Gmail notifier.
  • Calendar by ~limpet.
  • System/battery graphics using ecqlipse 2 icons.
  • Tray clock replacement.
  • Quick-edit button for Notes.
  • Application launcher. Useless to anyone with Launchy or StandaloneStack, but it’s pretty, and way too much fun to play with. (You can see what it looks like in the deviantArt screenshot.)
  • Assorted doodads and revisions.
  • Fixed the Location bug plaguing Enigma and HUD.Vision.

The Enigma 1.1 ZIP archive includes config files for Samurize and Rainmeter, fonts, a Windows theme, and more. Unzip it to get the full installation instructions. Nice work, Kaelri! The Enigma 1.1 customization package is a free download for Windows only.

Enigma by ~Kaelri [deviantART via Flickr]






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