Portals

A good thing about the desktop on Windows is that it is how you make it. If you want to keep it simple, have a few icons lying around, it's all good. It's the same if you want to fill it up with various widgets and organize your space. Ultimately, it's up to the end user to decide how they want their desktop to look.

Some folders are more important than others, but keeping them on the desktop isn't the most attractive thing, so what if there was a widget to make this look more appealing? Portals is the app to make that possible: preview your important folders right on your desktop through fully customizable, unintrusive widgets.

Setting up this app is no fuss, and the interface is intuitive enough that there's no need to explain anything in particular. The folder widget is referred to as a Portal, and all you have to do is name it, then select the location of the folders you wish to preview on your desktop.

The widgets will then appear, and you'll be able to move them around as you see fit. You can adjust their size, lock them to a desktop area, and customize their appearance. What we found to be especially handy is the ability to drag new files in, just like you would with a normal folder.

What is a widget if it can't be personalized? If you want to take it a step further, you can freely customize the colors of the widgets: whether it is the title bar, the text, the foreground, or the content area, you can give each of them a new coat of paint to suit your preferences. In addition to that, you may also make the content area more or less transparent.

Portals affords users the ability to keep an eye on their important files at all times, thanks to its nice-looking, customizable widgets, that marry style with convenience.