- Quick specs
- Price: Free
- Operating system: Windows 2000/XP/Vista
- Date added: June 07, 2006
- Total Downloads: 549,679
- Downloads last week: 727
- See full specifications
- CNET editors' rating: stars
- Average user rating: stars out of 81 votes
See all user reviews
CNET editors' review
Reviewed by: CNET Staff
This versatile desktop utility offers an appealing selection of features--just be aware they take a lot of memory. At its most basic level, Desktop Sidebar lets you switch between programs or access documents more easily and efficiently, just like Windows Taskbar. But you also can transform Desktop Sidebar into a personal organizer with plug-ins such as a clock, an e-mail checker, a calendar, a stock-quote ticker, and a weather watcher. What's more, Desktop Sidebar can manage your RSS feeds and help streamline Web searches. A handy shortcut provides access to WinAmp, ICQ, and Skype. And Desktop Sidebar's active user community has developed some 50 functions, 200 skins, and 40 slide shows. Yet, as often happens with freeware, not all the features are completely bug-free. The main problem is Desktop Sidebar puts a serious drag on system functions. But if you've got plenty of RAM to spare, this is a great all-in-one utility.Publisher's description
From Idea2 :Desktop Sidebar is docked to the edge of the screen and it is always visible. It displays e-mails, appointments, task, notes, Messenger contacts, stock quotes, weather forecasts and constantly updated news from blogs, RSS newsfeeds and Web pages.
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User reviews
- Average user rating: 4.0 stars out of 81 votes
- My rating: 0 stars Write review
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Showing 5 of 22 user reviewsSee all 22 user reviews
This software version | All versions -
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful
Version: Desktop Sidebar 1.1.3
"Better Alternative Than Vista Sidebar & Yahoo Widgets"
Pros: I switched from Yahoo Widgets because this one has more "widgets" that I wanted, and the applications are much more stable and reliable. Amazingly customizeable. I feel fortunate to have found it.
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1 out of 2 people found this review helpful
Version: Desktop Sidebar 1.1.3
Pros: VERY customizable
Can display anything from stocks to simple program shortcuts and an analog clock
Cons: Too few to mention
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1 out of 1 people found this review helpful
Version: Desktop Sidebar 1.1.3
"Superb software, the best Sidebar out there."
Pros: Stable and user-friendly, with a ridiculous amount of skins and plug-ins to tweak Sidebar to perfection.
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Version: Desktop Sidebar 1.1.3
Cons: It requires a lot of memory affecting the performance of the machine with limited memory.
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2 out of 3 people found this review helpful
Version: Desktop Sidebar 1.1.3
"Nice Features that are otherwise unavailable normally"
Pros: This is all about having information at your fingertips, which it conveys quite nicely if configured to your needs. Most of the panels for it that I find useful have to be downloaded from their site, but allow me to do things like manage the windows clipboard and cut and paste 3 or 4 DIFFERENT things in a bitmap image(or any program) in only a few seconds. Or, you can see a live display of the weather from the Weather Channel, among other things. It also can support a feature that allows you to pick one of four designated desktop backgrounds on the fly, and even has a slideshow panel! All the panels can be collapsed to save space, and there are many "themes" or visual styles to choose from.
Cons: This program is just a -little- unstable. Some of the panels designed for it don't work right/at all, and the "New Panel" manager feature doesn't always show all the available panels. It is also annoying when I go to scroll down on a web page with my mouse on the right side of the screen and I accidentally activate the calendar or weather summary "auto-show" windows, which block whatever I'm doing until it fades off by itself in about 2 seconds. Don't try to install it without the .Net framework, either--most of the panels run off of it.
- See all 22 user reviews Write review
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