Maximizing your 3D desktop in Vista

As soon as Microsoft launched its new operating system, the Windows Vista, a lot of people were excited to install it into their computers because of the good reviews on the new features that it had. And one of the striking features in Microsoft Windows Vista is its 3D desktop which changed the way the desktop looks. What’s more, you can even customize it to be as cool as you want it to be. How are you able to do this?

1. Make a right click on the icon for My Computer on the desktop and then select Properties. From this, you can click on the Advanced System Settings link that is found at the upper left side of the pop up window.
Then click on Continue to proceed to the next step. After this, select the tab that says Advanced, the click on the Settings button. Then, select the tab for Visual Effects.

2. On the tab for Visual Effects, there will be three options presented at the top of the pop up window. It gives you the choice to “Let Windows choose,” “Adjust for best appearance,” or “Custom” your desktop appearance. Beneath the list of options is another list of the different settings that you can adjust to optimize the appearance of your desktop. The list is quite extensive which make take several minutes to scan and decide on. As you scan through the list, you can note which ones you want to use and feature in your computer. Try to visualize what each will look like and what you can do it to place on your PC.
Here are examples of the settings that you can select from:

a. Show Shadows under menus
b. Show Shadows under mouse pointer
c. Animate controls and elements inside windows
d. Enable desktop composition
e. Fade or slide menus into view
f. Animate windows when minimizing and maximizing
g. Slide taskbar buttons
h. Smooth scroll list boxes

3. Clicking on the first option, which is to Let Windows choose, the Windows Vista operating system will select a design that it thinks is the best choice for your computer, which is actually a random thing without really knowing what you want. In the end, you usually end up dissatisfied with it, although if you are just starting to learn about the computer, this option will come in handy.

4. On the second option of Adjusting for the best appearance, is basically also like the first option, which will probably choose from several templates that are included.

5. Selecting the option “Custom” or to customize your settings, you are free to choose what settings you want to place on your desktop. You can experiment with different looks and controls to be able to come up with something that will fit your personality. It will take a bit more time and a little getting used to for you to be able to get the settings right but at least you can enjoy making the selection.

6. After deciding finally on what you like your desktop to look like, click on OK to save all your settings. Then comes the best part. Testing the new settings out and seeing if it is want you really want.

If ever you are still not yet satisfied with the way it looks, you can always go back and change the settings. You can even have a different look on your desktop every week for the perfect Vista experience.