xDesk2

xDesk2 is a cool tool that makes your desktop background come alive with videos! For a long time, if you wanted to change your desktop picture, you had to do it manually. But then Microsoft added a feature for rotating pictures. Now, with xDesk2, you can easily set animated backgrounds by just clicking a few buttons.

Easy Access from the Tray

This application hangs out in the tray area of your computer. That’s where all the magic happens! There’s no big window or control bar on your desktop. Instead, you can start and stop your video right from the tray area. It’s super simple to load a video file through there using the browse dialog.

Supported File Formats

Now, xDesk2 doesn’t support every file format out there, but it does handle some popular video types like MOV, DAT, MPG, AVI, ASF, and WMV. Just keep in mind that there isn’t a playlist editor available. So if you want to avoid constantly changing videos, pick something long and engaging! Unfortunately, you also can't stream videos directly from websites; it only works with local files.

Your Desktop Becomes a Movie Screen

Once you load up a clip, your entire desktop background transforms into a video screen! You can still click on everything as usual; just be aware that shortcuts may flicker during playback. There is an option to hide the desktop icons too—but note that this will hide your video as well. The good news? You can easily hide icons using the desktop context menu instead!

Playback Options

xDesk2 gives you some neat options for looping videos and even lets the app run automatically when Windows starts up. You can manage playback from the tray icon or use hotkeys for convenience. Just remember that those hotkeys are fixed—you can't change them around!

A Fun Desktop Enhancement

In summary, xDesk2 offers great ways to jazz up your desktop experience—especially if you're not using it for shortcuts or folders. Your window management stays intact too! The only thing it's missing is that playlist editor so you'd have less hassle changing videos frequently.