Top 10 Ways to Customize Your Desktop

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You spend a lot of waking hours at your computer, so why not make it a little prettier (and more productive)? Here are 10 ways to customize every inch of your desktop, no matter what operating system you use.

WARNING: The deeper you go with customization, the more you risk causing problems with your system, particularly when changing system files. We've tried a bunch of these tools and apps before, but you should always back up your system before you start any deep customization!

10. Collect Some Sweet Wallpapers

Still rocking the default windows wallpaper? Maybe it's time to switch it up. There are a lot of great wallpaper sites out there, but you can make your wallpaper even more awesome with a few tools. Desktoppr is an awesome way to browse and sync wallpapers with all your computers, and then rotate between them with a good wallpaper switcher. Wallpapers don't have to be a time waster, either—they can be motivational and productive, too. Check our weekly Wallpaper Wednesday series for more wallpaper fun, too.

9. Install a Custom Dock

The default Windows taskbar is actually pretty awesome, especially once you beef it up. But if you prefer the aesthetic and functional nature of a dock, we recommend checking out a customizable dock like the $10 ObjectDock, or the older (but free) RocketDock. If you're on Linux, check out Docky instead. If you're on OS X, you can customize your dock with something like DockMod.

8. Change Up Your Icons

Maybe you have one or two apps with ugly icons, or maybe you want to change them all up for a more unified, customized look. No matter what your desires, it's pretty easy to change the icons on your system. Individual apps and folders are extremely easy to change on both Windows and OS X, though system icons are a bit tougher. Windows users should check out IconPackager, which can do a heck of a lot—but in my experience is a bit finicky, so be sure to back up your system first.

7. Tweak Your Favorite Web Sites

They aren't part of your "desktop," per se, but you probably spend a lot of time looking at the same web sites, and those are customizable too. Check out our guide to customizing your favorite sites with userscripts and user styles for more, and be sure to check out some of our site-specific guides too—like this one for Facebook or this one for Gmail. It's amazing how much better (and better looking) you can make your favorite sites with a few tweaks.

6. Organize Your Desktop Clutter

Of course, a lot of these customizations will mean nothing if your desktop is covered in icons. All it takes is a little organization: with an app like Fences or Desktop Groups you can not only make things more attractive, but keep everything organized by category, project, or whatever else you want, so you can reach everything easier.

5. Skin Your Windows

Tired of the boring grey window borders and traditional buttons in the corner? You can spice up your windows with WindowBlinds (Windows) or something like CrystalClear Interface (Mac). Linux users don't have as easy a one-size-fits-all method—as it depends a lot on your desktop environment and window manager—but sites like GNOME-look.org are a good place to start looking for good themes.

4. Add and Change Your Favorite Features

This one's a little more function than form (not that we're complaining). Sometimes the best desktop customization comes in smaller tweaks that help you get things done better—and that's where our favorite system tweakers for Windows, OS X, and Linux come in. With the right tweaker in your arsenal, you can customize your operating system's built-in menus, settings, fonts, or anything else under the hood.

3. Get Some Neat Desktop Effects

 

Ever feel like your windows could make a snazzier entrance when you un-minimize them? Ever get jealous of that awesome desktop cube Linux users have? Windows users can get in on the fun, too. Free app Dexpot has a few cool animations to contribute (including the aforementioned cube), but if you really want to take it further, WindowFX is an awesome (but sadly, $10) app with a ton of animations and customization built-in. Check out the video above to see it in action.

2. Overhaul Your Skin Entirely

This is definitely one of the more sweeping changes you can make to your system—not to mention riskier—but if you really want to change everything from the ground up, there are a lot of cool system-wide skins out there you might like. Want to give everything a cool transparent look? Check out the Shine skin. Want to make your Windows system look like OS X? The Mavericks Transformation Pack is for you. Search around sites like DeviantART and our Featured Desktop series for inspiration and links to some pretty cool skins, if you're feeling adventurous.

1. Create a Customized, Informative HUD

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If there's one thing we've learned from the awesome desktops you guys send in, it's that a cool HUD can go pretty far. Windows users should check out our guide to creating an attractive, customized HUD with Rainmeter. Rainmeter is an awesome program with a ton of cool skins and themes out there for you to try out. OS X users might have to do a bit more work, but can create a lot of cool stuff with GeekTool. Linux users should check out Conky, our favorite customizable system monitor, for all your HUDdy needs.

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