Berokyo: a desktop utility for Windows

Programs to make the Windows Desktop look and work differently were once popular, but appetite for them seems to have receded in recent years.

It's hard to know whether that's because Microsoft finally got it right with Windows 7 or because everyone else just stopped trying.

Still, it's nice to see Berokyo, which is a fancy program launcher and file finder for Windows, Mac, iPhone and iPad. It uses the metaphor of a bookshelf to organise users' programs, files and folders.

Berokyo's Quick Start menu lets you choose how the 'cabinet' looks and it will populate the shelves (which the program calls Categories) with items from common locations such as the Control Panel, as well as adding all the programs from your Start menu automatically.

Alternatively, it's easy to create a new shelf, name it, and then either use Windows Explorer to browse for items to add to it or just find them on the Start menu and drag and drop them onto the shelf with the mouse. How you organise your shelves is up to you but they can contain programs, folders and files of any description.

Categories can also include sub-categories so, for example, it's possible to create an Applications shelf and then have other shelves inside that for Work, Games, Internet and so on. Once positioned, items can be re-ordered or moved between shelves, re-sized or tagged – particularly useful for photos. Double-clicking a music or video file or a photograph or document will open it just as if you were using Windows Explorer.

There can be as many cabinets as the screen size allows, and they can also be hidden when not being used or 'docked' so they stick to the sides of the screen. A powerful search tool starts to find matches as soon as you start typing.

Berokyo will appeal equally to experienced users who have a hard time organising all the programs and files on their computers and – thanks to the Kiosk mode which removes all the Windows-style menus and just leaves a bookshelf on screen – beginners who have difficulty finding their way round Windows.