- A Microsoft executive has made a small utility for Windows 11
- The app is called PeekDesktop and lets you minimize all windows by clicking on an empty piece of the desktop
- It's very much the same as a macOS feature, and while there are keyboard shortcuts in Windows 11 to do this already, this is more convenient, and handy for Mac defectors
A Microsoft executive has put together a little utility that brings a neat piece of functionality to Windows 11, and it's something that macOS users will be familiar with.
Windows Latest reports that Scott Hanselman, a VP, member of technical staff at Microsoft – and one of the players behind the fix Windows 11 campaign – has made a tool called PeekDesktop.
It's a very simple app that allows you to "click your desktop to peek at it", working in the same way as the 'click wallpaper to reveal desktop' feature seen with macOS Sonoma.
The point is that it's a quick way to minimize all open windows, especially if you have a lot of them, and get to see the desktop underneath, just by clicking on a blank piece of desktop (the wallpaper, as opposed to any icon). Click again (on a blank spot) and the active windows are reinstated.
While it sounds very simple, almost to the point of being too basic, I can guarantee you that this is one of those neat shortcuts that'll become indispensable once you get used to having it.
And if you're worried about the resource usage involved here, don't be, as PeekDesktop uses less than 2MB when sitting in your system tray (in the taskbar) watching for your clicks.
It's worth noting that there's also a version for Arm-based laptops (Snapdragon X), as well as for PCs with AMD and Intel CPUs.
Analysis: comforting clicks
Of course, this ability is already in Windows 11. You can press the Windows key + D to minimize all windows and get straight to the desktop already. (Or Windows key + M, although that can't be used to restore active windows by pressing it again). Or indeed you can bind this function to one of your spare mouse buttons, if you have a mouse with lots of them, as I have (I use this power a lot).
However, having the ability to click on the desktop is a more convenient way of actioning this than a keyboard shortcut that involves pressing two keys. Indeed, I can't believe this is a feature that hasn't been brought in before now, because it's surely not difficult to implement, and is a useful piece of honing of an already existing power in Windows 11.
As noted, it's something in macOS already, and what's interesting is that when asked about the feature on X – and the way it duplicates Windows 11's existing keyboard shortcuts, as mentioned – Hanselman said that it's intentionally designed to be the same as how it works on macOS "so Mac folks feel comfortable".
I wonder if this ability might be something that makes the cut for Windows 11 in the future, and more to the point, whether Microsoft is looking at the Mac as a more serious rival these days. Mainly because macOS has definitely become a bigger threat to Windows 11, at least in the world of laptops, with the launch of Apple's newest budget-oriented notebook.
That is, of course, the MacBook Neo, which has been very well-received by reviewers and consumers alike, which must worry Microsoft. Particularly when the company has had to hike price tags across its entire Surface range in a big way, making these devices look a whole lot less tempting even compared to Apple's MacBooks outside the much more affordable Neo.
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