Reader sgosp3 wanted a desktop that was minimal and helped him focus on his research work. He built this Windows desktop so he has plenty of space to work, and the right tools easily in reach. Here’s how he did it.
It looks deceptively clean, but there are lots of shortcuts to all of his academic tools right at the top, where he needs them. Here’s what you’ll need if you want to make this custom desktop yourself:
- The wallpaper from DeviantArt
- The Rainmeter system tweaking and monitoring tool for Windows
- The Enigma skin for Rainmeter for the media player, search bars, weather, calendar, and system monitors
- The LuaTimer skin for Rainmeter as a rolled in Pomodoro Timer (for those familiar with the Pomodoro productivity method)
- The Do I Need a Jacket skin for Rainmeter for the simple weather display in the bottom right
- The Desktop Coral utility to keep the toolbars all visible
- Our tweaks for Windows 8 toolbars to get them collected and organised together
sgosp3 noted that the search bars can be each configured for commonly-used research databases, like your institution’s library OPAC, and he uses the timers to keep him on task and schedule his breaks. The design keeps everything nice and clean so there’s plenty of room to work.
Dark Minimal Academic [sgosp3]
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