Crystalize XP

Computer personalization benefits from a great variety of options even provided by Windows through the default set of features. However, you might only be interested in other small changes such as adjusting the window level transparency. If so, Crystalize XP makes this possible with just a few mouse clicks.

Although the application was initially intended for Windows XP, like the name might suggest, it can perfectly blend even in modern Windows iterations. It takes little time and effort to get it installed on your computer, and running it instantly applies transparency at a default level.

However, a prompt shows up on launch to load and apply transparency, but it goes away before you get a chance to find out that you can access settings through the Ctrl + Alt + P hotkey command. What’s more, there’s no tray icon associated with the application, taskbar entry, or anything else to inform you how settings are accessed.

By default, the application is configured to run on startup so it’s ready by the time you reach the desktop. This can easily be changed from the settings panel. Here is also the place where you can adjust transparency level through a slider, with changes instantly applied even on the settings window for instant preview.

Unfortunately, Crystalize XP is dedicated to File Explorer instances only, which means no other window or application is affected by its core function. The taskbar is also one of the targets, and there’s no option to choose what elements to include or exclude when applying transparency.

All things considered, we can state that Crystalize XP comes with good intentions, and is still capable of doing it’s job right even though it’s been quite some time since it received any updates. It would have been useful to see a window type selection option, but strictly dedicated to File Explorer instances it works like a charm.