What/how many icons are on your desktop? (1 Viewer)

[Bryan X]

I'm just curious how organized or disorganized others keep their screen desktop.

I only have the Recycle Bin on my desktop. No other icons. I've never liked having icons on it. I'm not sure why I even keep the Recycle Bin up, but I do. It drives me nuts when i see someone's desktop and there are a 'bazzilion' icons covering the screen.

I do utilize the 'Quick Launch' feature on the Taskbar. I've got just seven icons there, though: IE7, Outlook, Excel, Word, Money, iTunes, and the Show Desktop icon.

 

[Will_B]

I'm with you: no icons on the desktop at all, except for the Trash icon. The panel that comes up when you click Start is populated with all the programs I use regularly, which replaces the need for icons on the desktop. And like you I also have a couple quick launch icons in the task bar.

I used to use my desktop for everything, including my most recent downloads. But I created a My Downloads folder into which everything downloads now. I appreciate having a nice wallpaper image up on the desktop rather than icons.

 

[Paul_Sjordal]

Heh.

I just got done doing a tabula rasa, and I'm still in the process of reinstalling everything, so it's very clean and uncluttered right now, but rest assured, that will change.

I tend to use my desktop as a sort of "scratch space" for stuff I don't plan on keeping permanently. HTML documents with notes in them (I now use HTML the way I once used text files), web shortcuts to particularly interesting essays, pictures used in temporary projects, installers, etc. It gets to be quite a mess even at 1280x1024 resolution.

 

[Tekara]

I also use my desktop only for temporary stuff, I used tweakui to remove all the other icons like the recycle bin and bluetooth as well. So normally there is nothing on my desktop.

For files and folders that I want to keep around longer I have a folder that is linked to from my quicklaunch bar.

 

[Jason Harbaugh]

I use my desktop pretty much exclusively for projects and common files. I will literally have the entire screen covered at times, and with dual monitors, both running high rez, that's a lot of icons, probably 300 or so. Drives some people nuts, but I have access to all of my data that I need right at my fingertips. Who needs folders?

I don't put any shortcuts though, just files. For me it is just more efficient and I'm used to working that way. I do clean house once in awhile and start anew.

 

[Will_B]

A shortcut to C:WINDOWSexplorer.exe in my taskbar is indispensable.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

About half my desktop covered. I operate almost exclusively from the task manager/start menu, since I navigate primarily by the keyboard. Usually big projects that are being completed within a short timeframe end up on the desktop, and then linger there for a while. I probably wipe them off every 4-6 months or so.

 

[David Williams]

Just one. My internal HD, Thoth, is on my desktop if the CD drive is empty. Icons are automatically generated for any disk/discs that get attached to the computer such as jumpdrives, CD/DVDs or iPods. I keep a Downloads folder in my dock to keep things I am frequently working with close at hand.

 

[drobbins]

None! Not even the trash can. I leave the "Show Desktop Icons" unchecked. I use Webshots for wallpaper & I like to see the scenery.

 

[Radioman970]

I usually have a fair amount but they are carefully organized. But recently I was doing some home movie stuff and needed lots of folders containing images, video and sound available quickly. It just became a mess and still is. I plan to remove almost everything and organize the start menu too....next year. Hee!

Does having a lot of icons effect the performance? Mine seem to "reset" constantly.

 

[Kimmo Jaskari]

I usually have My Computer and My Network Places up, because they work as nice shortcuts to other things - right-clicking lets me get at mapping drives or accessing the system properties without digging in the control panel, for instance.

I also keep icons for any games I have installed on the desktop, as well as the programs I use the most. Not many, basically one string of them running down the left side. Works nicely for me.

 

[Mike Fassler]

I only have 4 icons on my desktop, I use a program called truelaunchbar to organize and sort my icons the way I like in my toolbar. do a google search for it
it is a really cool program. yes the more stuff thats on your desktop the more memory you use, althou its not as big of a deal nowadays as it was in the past, if you are into performance do something different like I did!

http://truelaunchbar.com/index.html

 

[Francois Caron]

I also only have the Recycle Bin icon on the desktop of all my systems at home. But at the office, there are a lot of icons on the desktop. This is because everyone else at the office prefers having a ton of icons on the desktop. If someone needs to use my computer while I'm away, they need to find the common tools quickly.

In reality, they can't use my computer even if they wanted to. I use a French Canadian keyboard layout, and only one other individual in the office knows how to use it!