14 DAY TRIAL // Too much of everything can have drastic consequences and excess has never led to something good and constructive. This goes as a general rule in life and most people respect it. The same case is with work. Working too much leads to horrific results and although the employer may be thrilled about some over-clocked employee, the latter is definitely going to take a well deserved break or forced into taking one due to growing health issues.
Anyway, leaving this aside I know for sure that few are the cases when an employee works as much as his/her employer wants. Why? Because there is a lazy boy/girl in all of us. In my case I see it as a form of self defense against over-stress. However, it is tough to laze around at work when your boss bursts into the office catching you off guard. This would only increase the stress.
Given that Christmas is not far (actually last month was not far, now it is almost happening) indulge yourselves a little time off without any stress that the boss might catch you in the act. Quick Hide Windows by Cronosoft is a simple to use application and, as the name already told you, it will help you hide all give-away windows on your desktop with a simple combination of keys.
It is a freebie and works like a charm both on Vista and XP. At the first launch the program will brief you in with its purpose and features. The tutorial is short and easy to understand and should not pose any difficulty, regardless of your computer skills.
As for the actual interface, this is a bit of a trouble for your eyes as the yellow chosen for coloring it is neither quite eye-candy nor a feast for your vision. Also, you should know that it stays on top of all windows by default and this cannot be changed.
Out of the four tabs available you will only need two of them as About window explains the purpose of the program (this was already shown in the introductory tutorial) and Help file is superfluous given the complexity of the software. All it's left is Hidden Windows tab which informs you of the keys to be used for hiding active window and all visible windows. If you have already windows in hide mode this tab will show you all of them and permits you to select the ones that should stay hidden by simply checking the box next to them.
Additional options in this tab include hiding desktop icons and the taskbar. This way you can be sure that no one sees what you are currently working on or what there is on desktop. Unfortunately there is no shortcut for neither of these options. However, you have to know that Start button will still be available and functional as well as all keyboard shortcuts. So if you want to access Task Manager with Ctr+Shift+Del or Ctrl+Shift +Esc, there is no trouble at all. This is actually the only way to see what is currently running on the system.
Options tab is richer, offering easy to follow configuration and customization alternatives. It gives you the possibility of restricting the access to Quick Hide Windows interface as well as for locking the computer with a password. Users can easily define a new set of shortcuts for the different actions of Quick Hide Windows: hide current window, hide all windows, show all windows, lock computer and show user interface.
More functionality is injected into the application by enabling the lock of the computer at logon (this is unlocked only if you enable the software to run at logon) and protecting Quick Hide Windows with a password. This way you can be sure that prying eyes need more time to get to know what applications are actually running.
Locking the computer at logon feature is not state of the art and can be easily overridden by simply booting the machine in Safe Mode and uninstalling the software. However, this action requires a more time and if the "perpetrator" does not wish to leave traces it is an extremely uncomfortable method and involves knowledge on the shortcuts you use for the different actions supported by the software.
If you plan to use this software at work, here's a piece of advice: don't count on it if you generally fill your work time gaming as when hiding its window the desktop will render all the colors as they were set for the game. If this does not make your boss raise an eyebrow and ask you some questions, then game away.
The Good
Quick Hide Windows works and does a great job with desktop applications, hiding them the instant the correct keys have been typed.
It is extremely easy to use and can also be useful if you want to temporarily clear some space in taskbar. The shortcuts defining the actions are user defined, although the default ones are also comfortable as long as they do not create a conflict.
The application can be protected with a password and lock the computer for enforcing total privacy of your system.
The Bad
First of all the interface needs a re-touch. Extending the list of shortcuts to hiding the taskbar and desktop icons would contribute to increasing its value and flexibility.
The Truth
Quick Hide Windows works great on both Vista and XP, offering an easy way to hide desktop windows from view. It permits hiding current window or all of them with a touch of a keyboard.
There are minor improvements that could find a place here and hopefully these will be implemented with future versions. A good feature would be the ability to toggle between hidden windows just like Alt+Tab function in Windows but that is only on my wishlist.
All in all the application is suitable for users that tend to finish their job before schedule, have time killing activities during work hours and do not wish to get caught by their boss.
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
