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One of my FAVORITE sources for tech information is on the KenRadio World Technology Round podcast which I listen to via Stitcher (killer iPhone app by the way!) He plugged a brand new app called BumpTop, which is an interactive 3D desktop. The concept is simple: use your computer desktop like the one in your office.
We have grown accustomed to using folders to manage large amounts of similar data. With BumpTop, files can be stacked like papers on a desk and flipped through to make a messy desktop with a million icons far more accessible. The coolest feature however is the wall, onto which you can pin items of interest. You can even use a “picture frame” to hang up a photo of the family! The best feature of the wall is the applets. Currently, there is a Facebook, Twitter, and Email applet that lets you automatically post pictures to your Facebook page, send a tweet, and attach files, respectively. This app has some serious potential to increase productivity. Anything that makes the computing experience fasters gets an A in my book.
One improvement I’d like to see is better memory management. BumpTop uses a hefty 128MB of RAM, which makes it on the borderline of useable for power users, and not a great idea for users who do heavy multimedia work. My laptop on which BumpTop is running has 2GB of RAM, and there is no noticeable change in performance at all for normal use, but when I turn on my audio apps for making music, I feel the weight of the memory requirement. If there was a way to streamline the app to use around 35 to 50MB of RAM, I’m sure I can keep it on all the time. It may be out already, but I’d also like to see a theme that has glass walls so I can experience my desktop pictures in full resolution. I download a lot of desktop wallpapers, as well as make my own, so the scaled 3D version distorts the image more than I’d like. Plus, a 3D glass wall would simply look awesome. I also have to say, I’m surprised an apple version of this app isn’t out yet. Windows users tend to organize most of their folders in the “My Documents” folder, while Mac users seem to prefer using their desktops – this could be just the app for a many a Mac user!
Below is a screen of my desktop running BumpTop. In case you’re wondering, I’m running this on Vista Home Premium 32bit (using a customized taskbar) and the dock is from Rocket Dock.
Get BumpTop Here
One of my FAVORITE sources for tech information is on the KenRadio World Technology Round podcast which I listen to via Stitcher (killer iPhone app by the way!) He plugged a brand new app called BumpTop, which is an interactive 3D desktop. The concept is simple: use your computer desktop like the one in your office.
We have grown accustomed to using folders to manage large amounts of similar data. With BumpTop, files can be stacked like papers on a desk and flipped through to make a messy desktop with a million icons far more accessible. The coolest feature however is the wall, onto which you can pin items of interest. You can even use a “picture frame” to hang up a photo of the family! The best feature of the wall is the applets. Currently, there is a Facebook, Twitter, and Email applet that lets you automatically post pictures to your Facebook page, send a tweet, and attach files, respectively. This app has some serious potential to increase productivity. Anything that makes the computing experience fasters gets an A in my book.
One improvement I’d like to see is better memory management. BumpTop uses a hefty 128MB of RAM, which makes it on the borderline of useable for power users, and not a great idea for users who do heavy multimedia work. My laptop on which BumpTop is running has 2GB of RAM, and there is no noticeable change in performance at all for normal use, but when I turn on my audio apps for making music, I feel the weight of the memory requirement. If there was a way to streamline the app to use around 35 to 50MB of RAM, I’m sure I can keep it on all the time. It may be out already, but I’d also like to see a theme that has glass walls so I can experience my desktop pictures in full resolution. I download a lot of desktop wallpapers, as well as make my own, so the scaled 3D version distorts the image more than I’d like. Plus, a 3D glass wall would simply look awesome. I also have to say, I’m surprised an apple version of this app isn’t out yet. Windows users tend to organize most of their folders in the “My Documents” folder, while Mac users seem to prefer using their desktops – this could be just the app for a many a Mac user!
Below is a screen of my desktop running BumpTop. In case you’re wondering, I’m running this on Vista Home Premium 32bit (using a customized taskbar) and the dock is from Rocket Dock.
Get BumpTop Here
