BarTime

In the constant quest for digitizing humanity’s most important aspects, some elements may always remain more useful in their classic form. A good example is the analog clock format, which, compared to the digital one, lets you visualize the passage of time as it happens, increasing awareness of the current moment relative to the past and future.

Bartime is an interesting concept meant to bring an analog clock version to your taskbar for easily viewing time differently, more akin to a circular progress bar.

Thanks to its open-source license and portable format, users do not have to worry about hidden data collecting features or cumbersome installation wizards when using this program. Its lightweight memory footprint makes it great for setups with lower RAM or processing power.

Double-clicking the executable instantly places the app in the system tray. Since the taskbar remains fully visible regardless of the currently running applications, users can quickly glance at any point to preview the time.

The system tray icon places the 24-hour format in its center, while showing the minutes in the form of a circular progress bar, similarly to an analogue-type clock. This style can be easier to read for some users who rely on the classic wall clock and round wristwatch shape for telling the time, without taking up too much taskbar space or being too distracting for regular or intensive workflows.

Those who removed the regular date and time taskbar section for certain reasons through third-party programs can preview that same information by hovering the cursor over this program’s icon when they feel the need to do so.

While the app does not have an option to start itself at the same time with the system, one can place it in the Windows Startup folder to achieve the same result, removing the need for manually executing the process each time.

Exiting the program can be done at any point by right-click the system tray icon, letting users avoid using the task manager or other cumbersome workarounds for turning it off. Finally, the application could use an option for increasing the icon size for better readability.

Whether you are used to analog clock formats for a better visualization of the time left in a day, or you are a fan of alternate time displays, Bartime can be useful thanks to its lightweight memory footprint and portability in terms of placing an analog progress-bar-like clock icon in the always-visible taskbar.