I, like many, really would like a familiar "desktop" that can be used on any PC from a USB drive, yet I can't seem to find anything that provides this in a simple, elegant way. There are ways to mimic this, but they all seem to be too complex.
One thing that I wish was different is that PStart, PortableApps Menu, and most other "launcher" apps all use the same "menu" layout concept. Has anyone considered providing any alternate layouts? For example, I would like to see a "desktop" style layout. It would include all the great functionality of PStart or PortableApps Menu, but when you launch it, it would display a more familiar "desktop" window that resembles a PC desktop. It would contain folders (similar to PStart "Groups") and icons (similar to PStart "Items"). Heck, it could even have a user-selectable "wallpaper" image, and the "Start" button would display the launcher's menus. Yes, this adds complexity, but it would also provide a very slick "portable desktop" form.
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There used to be a launcher like this on Mac System 6 or 7, it was really good - wonder if anyone else used to use this! I think it was called powerlaunch or something...
I just stumbled upon an interesting app called "SideSlider" (http://www.northglide.com/sideslide.html) that just might do what I'm looking for, but in order to be truly portable, it needs the following:
1. Needs a "portable" install version that can simply be copied to a USB drive. You can extract the installer files and copy them manually, but it's only a workaround.
2. Needs "relative path" support. It DOES support relative paths if you manually edit, but the icons get mangled.
I contacted the developers, so we'll see what they say...
-Jim Barr
http://JimsTips.com
Yeah, that looks pretty interesting doesn't it. Hopefully the developers can sort it.