AppsBox

You can only place so many shortcuts on your desktop before it becomes cluttered, especially if you need to work with numerous applications on a daily basis.

AppsBox is a lightweight program that seeks to offer a solution to this issue, as it enables you to store these shortcuts in a separate window and organize them into categories.

Before you add any programs, you need to start by creating a few categories that they can be placed in. The process is not at all complex, but it would have been great if the category manager was not closed automatically after writing a new entry.

When adding a new application, you need to set its name, enter its path and select a PNG file that will serve as its icon within AppsBox. Images for numerous popular programs are provided, but the utility is not capable of extracting the icon automatically from the selected executable file.

Unfortunately, the layout of the categories and the dimensions of the icons cannot be customized, and items cannot be moved or sorted after they have been added.

The user interface is also fairly outdated, and the program is always launched in full-screen mode, which is less than ideal.

Moreover, you do not have the option of sending AppsBox to the system tray once you have opened a certain application. Given that the utility is meant to function as a secondary desktop, it should be possible to bring it up instantly without keeping it in the taskbar.

On the whole, AppsBox is a straightforward piece of software that can help you keep your desktop clean by storing application shortcuts in an organized manner. It lacks a number of useful functions, however, and it features a fairly disappointing UI.