Virtual Desktop Manager for Windows XP

Posted on January 7th, 2008 webmaster No comments          Print

Virtual Desktop Manager is a nice free little application from Microsoft that allows you to use multiple workspaces (up to four) at the same time. This tool is very useful if you normally work with a lot of applications and windows open. I’ve always wondered why Microsoft never included this as part of their OS, Solaris and Linux have had something similar to this built in since I’ve started working on them over five years ago.

To use it, simply download and install the application, then right-click on your taskbar, go to Toolbars, then select Desktop Manager. The toolbar will then appear on your taskbar and you can select which virtual desktop to use or see a preview of all four virtual desktops.

You can also use shortcut keys to quickly switch desktops. By default they’re set as Windows Key + 1 (virtual desktop 1), Windows Key + 2 (virtual desktop 2), Windows Key + 3 (virtual desktp 3), Windows Key + 4 (virtual desktop 4), and Windows Key + V (preview).

Download it now (550 KB)!

Network and Windows Administration Skills in High Demand in 2008

Posted on January 6th, 2008 webmaster No comments          Print

Here are some good news for us network/system administrators. According to a research released by Robert Half Technology, a poll of 1,400 CIOs cited networking as a job area where they see the most growth in 2008. 70% of CIOs ranked network administration as the second-most-in-demand skill. Windows administration ranked #1 with 74% of CIOs seeking such skills.

Emerging technology trends such as wireless, Web 2.0, and virtualization seem to be the reason why network skills are in high demand. Other IT skills in demand include database management (#3 at 60%), firewall administration (#4 at 55%), and wireless network administration (#5).

About 13% of the CIOs polled said they expect to increase IT staff hiring in the first quarter of this year, 3% plan to cut staff, and 82% expect no staff changes for the next 3 months. You can read the full article here.

8 Hot IT Skills for 2008

Posted on January 5th, 2008 webmaster No comments          Print

Computerworld.com published this article about the 8 hottest IT skills for 2008. Programming/application development is number one on the list. Here’s a quick summary:

1. Programming/Application Development (AJAX, .Net, PHP, Silverlight)
2. Project Management
3. Help Desk/Technical Support
4. Security (IDS, database, wireless)
5. Data Centers
6. Business Knowledge (business/systems analyst)
7. & 8. Networking and Telecommunications (voice-over-IP, wireless, infrastructure)