If you’re like most people, you use your computer for work, entertainment, and communication. But what if you could make money from using your computer? There are a number of ways to make money from your computer, and one of the most popular is through active desktop. Active desktop is a service that allows users to earn money by performing tasks on their computers. There are a number of ways to earn money through active desktop. You can sell advertising space on your desktop, or offer services such as online backup or software installation. You can also offer tips or advice on how to use the computer more effectively. Whatever you choose to do, make sure that it’s legal and safe before starting up your business. If you’re interested in starting an active desktop business, there are a few things that you need to know. First, research the market for your services. Second, create a good marketing plan that will attract potential customers. Finally, set up your business properly so that it’s safe and legal for customers to use. With these tips in mind, getting started with active desktop should be easy and fun! ..
One of the glaring changes in Windows Vista was the complete removal of Active Desktop, the feature that let you use a live web page as your background image, or in the case of some users, many live web pages. I’ve personally received emails from dozens of readers wondering how to get that feature back, and a number of readers have been interested in a replacement.
Reader Scott is interested in sponsoring a replacement for Active Desktop in Windows Vista. The How-To Geek will sponsor half of the bounty, which currently stands at a total of $103.24 for an open source replacement for this feature.
Here’s the feature details, for those unfamiliar:
The ability to display more than one web item on the desktop. Each could be a live web page or an image from a web page. The web items must be “live”, meaning they will refresh dynamically and any links on a web page will be active, launching the preferred browser. The items must be able to be resized and moved around. The items should be “glued” to the desktop the same way Active Desktop used to be. This should not be a Vista Sidebar gadget. From a technical standpoint, it should not suck memory and CPU the way Vista Sidebar gadgets do.
Here’s an example image of what you could do with Active Desktop, which was pretty useful for people interested in tracking a lot of visual data such as the weather maps shown here (click to enlarge)
The rules:
We would prefer an open source replacement, so nobody can get rid of this feature again. If you want to make a freeware closed source version, you can discuss that with Scott on the forum thread, but the Geek will sponsor open source software. You can direct any questions or submissions to geek@howtogeek. com, or discuss on the forum thread. The How-To Geek readers should get the first chance to read about the winner.
If you have questions or would like to discuss the details, there is an active forum thread for this bounty.
