The Misty Morning Desktop [Featured Desktop]

 This stunning desktop from Flickr user Tj Tantiangco combines a gorgeous wallpaper with only the bare essentials when it comes to desktop widgets. The result is a desktop that's simple, attractive, relaxing, and will make you feel a little less stressed when you sit down to log in in the morning, or come back from a long meeting.

Believe it or not, this is a Windows desktop. If you want the same look for your Windows system, here's what you'll need:

The Cittanova wallpaper from InterfaceLIFT.The Rainmeter system management and monitoring utility.The Elegance 2 theme for Rainmeter, for the date and drive meters.The Serenity theme for Rainmeter, for the clock, the recycle bin, and the battery/power meter.

That's all there is to it. Unlike many other desktops, this one only requires a few tools, but a little customization to make them all work quite right. Still, it shouldn't be as difficult to get the look and feel as some of the more widget-heavy desktops are. If you run into trouble, check out our guide to Rainmeter, or don't hesitate to drop by JT's Flickr page to ask questions, and don't forget to let him know how much you liked his desktop! If you have a Mac, you can duplicate much (if not all) of this in GeekTool, and if you prefer Linux, you may be able to approximate some of it with Conky.

Do you have a gorgeous, productive, informative desktop to share? Post it to the Lifehacker Desktop Show and Tell Flickr Group, and please include a description of how you made it. You never know, it may be the next featured desktop!

Red, Black, and Star Wars All Over: The Geeky Workspace for Two [Featured Workspace]

Today's featured workspace is bold in red and black furniture and doesn't hold back in its epic space film memorabilia and other collectibles.

Kris and Tab Carson built their shared office desk (a pretty long workspace to accommodate two people) using IKEA furniture. Besides the vivid desk, the couple's personalities shine through in their proudly displayed toys and memorabilia (including, out of picture, figurines on matching red shelves). I like how even Kris' desktop PC matches the red-and-black color scheme. For more shots, hit up their Flickr photostream.

If you have a workspace of your own to show off, throw the pictures on your Flickr account and add it to the Lifehacker Workspace Show and Tell Pool. Include some details about your setup and why it works for you, and you just might see it featured on the front page of Lifehacker.

Kris' side from low | Flickr

The Daft 3-Panel Home Screen [Featured Home Screen]

Reader ledlow shares his easy-to-create, but unique home screen, featuring a clean, folder-based middle screen and a number of text based widgets.

To create this home screen, you'll only need a few things:

You can grab the Daft Punk wallpaper from the Wallbase app.

Do you have an awesome, tweaked-into-oblivion home or lock screen of your own that you'd like to share? Go ahead and post it on the #homescreenshowcase forum with a description of how you made it and it may be the next featured home screen.

The Daft 3-Panel Home Screen | #homescreenshowcase

Chalkboards, Wine Bottles, and Analog Tech: The Wine Lover's Workspace [Featured Workspace]

Sometimes a little bit of the past goes well with the future, like in this workspace by Polygon Homes. The very contemporary iMac sits against a chalkboard backdrop with choice wines from recent years mounted and labeled. Even the little rotary phone adds some charm to this simple, clean, and effective home office.

This workspace is just one part of a well-designed home. Be sure to hit up the full post over at Polygon Homes to see plenty of other photos.

If you have a workspace of your own to show off, throw the pictures on your Flickr account and add it to the Lifehacker Workspace Show and Tell Pool. Include some details about your setup and why it works for you, and you just might see it featured on the front page of Lifehacker.

Kinfield at Westerleigh | Polygon Homes via Apartment Therapy Tech

The Translucent Desktop [Featured Desktop]

 If you're going to have widgets and status boxes and rss feeds on your desktop, most people would agree they should at least be unobtrusive and not a distraction from the wallpaper or the overall theme. In some cases, they can even compliment your HUD, like the Rainmeter theme that Flickr user Adrian Lupas used to create this simple but informative desktop.

All of the translucent widgets live around the borders of the desktop, out of the way but easily accessible if he wants to lock his display, search the web, see how his system is performing, or get to his favorite applications. If you want the same look for your Windows desktop, here's how you can get it:

A number of the components of this one are a bit old, so you can take or leave them as you choose, but I specifically liked the fact that Rainmeter and the one theme will get you most of the way towards duplicating the look and feel above. If you're not sure how to get started making this desktop your desktop, check out our guide to getting started with Rainmeter, or stop by Adrian's Flickr page to ask how he did it. Don't forget to let him know how much you enjoyed it, too!

Do you have a great, beautifully productive desktop of your own that you'd like to share? Go ahead and post it to the Lifehacker Desktop Show and Tell Flickr Group with a description of how you made it and it may be the next featured desktop!

Green Walls and Wooden Shelves: The Natural Workspace for Two [Featured Workspace]

This warm and inviting workspace belongs to photographer Emily Johnston Anderson and her husband Jacob, a school librarian. The mix of wood, glass, and neutral tones makes the home office seem like a calm retreat.

Adding to the harmony is the simple pairing of everything: the matching white file cabinets, letter sorters, lamps, chairs, etc. The two laptops don't take up too much space on the long glass-topped desk.

The image above isn't the whole, lovely view, though:

Design Sponge also features shots of Emily and Jacob's whole Chicago apartment, well worth a look if you like this style.

If you have a workspace of your own to show off, throw the pictures on your Flickr account and add it to the Lifehacker Workspace Show and Tell Pool. Include some details about your setup and why it works for you, and you just might see it featured on the front page of Lifehacker.

Sneak Peek: Emily Anderson | Design Sponge

The Beautiful Morning Light Home Screen [Featured Home Screen]

Reader Dbilliter created this attractive, text-free home screen using not shortcuts, but all widgets. Here's how.

The main feature of this home screen is the Desktop VisualizeR app, which uses widgets to create super customizable shortcuts on your home screen. He's using the Pyxis set of icons, an Ice Cream Sandwich ROM for his Droid Incredible, and Beautiful Widgets for the weather on the rightmost home screen.

The lock screen is a combination of WidgetLocker's default Ice Cream Sandwich theme and the Minimalistic Text widget. You can grab the home screen wallpaper here, and the lock screen wallpaper on DeviantART.

Do you have an awesome, tweaked-into-oblivion home or lock screen of your own that you'd like to share? Go ahead and post it on the #homescreenshowcase forum with a description of how you made it and it may be the next featured home screen.

The Beautiful Morning Light Home Screen | #homescreenshowcase

The Foggy Drive Desktop [Featured Desktop]

Flickr user Wyatt Wellman started experimenting with Rainmeter and came up with this desktop, which includes the basics like time, date, and temperature, but keeps them out of the center and off to the sides of the screen. The end result is a featured desktop that compliments his work instead of competing with it.

If you want the same look for your Windows 7 desktop, here's what you'll need to put it all together.

A couple of points to note: Wyatt also used a Black Windows 7 Aero theme to make his windows and applications blend in with the grey and gloomy feel from the wallpaper, and he also configured the uptime clock at the lower right in Rainmeter to be 90% transparency. It comes in full when you hover over it, but otherwise it fades into the background a bit. Finally, even though they're visible here, both RocketDock and the Windows dock are set to auto-hide to keep the desktop clean when he's working and they're not in use. You can see a version of the desktop with the dock and taskbar hidden here.

Even though this one has some specific customizations, the final product looks great and isn't distracting. If you're a beginner with Rainmeter, this is a great desktop to get started with—you might even add a Google search box in there somewhere. If you need help getting started with Rainmeter, check out our guide to building a great-looking and informative HUD for some tips. Don't forget to drop by Wyatt's Flickr page to let him know how much you like his desktop!

Do you have a great, beautifully productive desktop of your own that you'd like to share? Go ahead and post it to the Lifehacker Desktop Show and Tell Flickr Group with a description of how you made it and it may be the next featured desktop!

Rainmeter Example with Dock and Taskbar | Flickr

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