Summary
A Microsoft engineer built PeekDesktop to add a macOS-style click-to-reveal desktop to Windows.
The app offers four reveal modes: native Show Desktop, Classic Minimize, Fly Away, and Virtual Desktop.
Download releases from the PeekDesktop GitHub page to try it.
Sometimes, when Microsoft doesn’t add a feature to Windows 10 or 11, the userbase will make it themselves. One could even argue that Windows users are better developers for the OS than Microsoft itself. However, sometimes a Microsoft engineer will make an app to fix an issue they’ve been encountering and release it for everyone to use, which is like the ultimate middle-ground between a user-made app and an official Windows addition.
Such is the case with PeekDesktop, an app developed by someone who works at Microsoft and released as a standalone app instead of a core Windows feature. Best of all, the app actually takes a handy feature from macOS’s book and adds it to Windows, meaning you can tap into the power of fast desktop peeking without needing to move to Apple’s ecosystem.
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Credit:Â Scott Hanselman
As spotted by Windows Latest, PeekDesktop was the idea and invention of the VP and Member of Technical Staff at Microsoft, Scott Hanselman. If you’ve used macOS Sonoma before, you’ll know of the “click wallpaper to reveal desktop” feature, which lets you quickly hide all open windows by clicking on your desktop. It’s very handy for opening shortcuts and moving files without needing to dig through your open windows. Once you’re done, clicking the desktop a second time reveals all the windows again.
However, PeekDesktop actually comes with four different methods of showing the desktop:
Native Show Desktop (Explorer) — the default and recommended mode
Classic Minimize — minimizes and restores tracked windows
Fly Away (Experimental) — animates windows offscreen before restoring them
Virtual Desktop (Experimental) — briefly switches to an empty shell desktop for a surprisingly convincing reveal effect
If you’d like to give this app a spin, be sure to pop over to the PeekDesktop GitHub page and click the version number under “releases” on the right sidebar. That will take you to the download page for the latest version of the app.
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