Windows only: Free virtual desktop manager VirtuaWin creates multiple workspaces on your PC without bogging down your system. Like other virtual desktop utilities for Windows we’ve covered (Virtual Dimension, Vista Virtual Desktops, Dexpot) VirtuaWin provides hotkeys for switching desktops, custom features per desktop, and a configurable number of desktops (up to 160 20). VirtuaWin is also open source and describes itself as small and fast “with no unnecessary features.” If you want extra features, you can still have them by installing VirtuaWin Modules, which enhance the app much like Firefox extensions. (How we love pluggable open source software!) VirtuaWin is a free download for Windows only. VirtuaWin – Virtual Desktops for Windows [via Worker's Edge]
You love working inside your Linux desktop, but at the most inconvenient times you’ve got to reboot into Windows—whether to open a tricky Office file, try out a Windows application, or even just play a quick game. However, with some free tools and a Windows installation disk, you can have Windows apps running right on your Linux desktop and sharing the same desktop files. It’s relatively painless, it takes only a little bit longer than a Windows XP install, and it works just like virtualizing Windows on a Mac with Parallels Coherence—except it’s free. Here’s how to set up Windows inside VirtualBox, and then get Windows apps running seamlessly inside your desktop.
Virtual desktops have been popular amongst geeks for years, but they’re just starting to catch on with the consumer desktop crowd; in Leopard, Spaces be thy name. Previously Mac users had an incredible virtual desktop application called Virtue Desktops as their desktop management option, but with the announcement of Spaces, development on Virtue Desktops was dropped. I’m a huge fan of Virtue Desktops, so in my eyes, Spaces has some pretty big shoes to fill. So how does Spaces stand up?
