One of the biggest elements of Windows 8 is the new Metro interface. If you don’t fancy the idea of installing the Developer Preview version that can be freely downloaded or using one of the various transformation packs, Metro Sidebar enables you to test drive one of Windows 8’s new feature with a minimum of fuss.
The app adds a new sidebar to the right-hand side of your desktop which fairly closely mimics the tiled look of the upcoming version of Windows. In terms of functionality, the options offered by Metro Sidebar are a little on the limited side. The sidebar can be configured to always appear on top of other open windows so the information it displays is always visible.
The sidebar starts by displaying the date and time, and beneath this are the options to restart or shut down your computer as well as locking, logging off or switching user. These are handy as it eliminates the need to visit the Start menu, saving you a click, but it is not something that most people do all that often. Beneath this is an information panel that lists the version of Windows you have installed – not necessarily something you need to be reminded of constantly.
The next section of the sidebar enables you to monitor the state of your hard drive by showing you the capacity, as well as the amount of the free and used space. The final feature of the sidebar and the only one that can be customised is a link to the web browser of your choosing. That’s really all there is to it – Metro Sidebar is an attractive piece of software, but it really has little to offer.
It’s a well-known fact that Microsoft has dropped desktop gadgets from Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 versions due to security reasons, and has been offering a tool to completely remove sidebar or desktop gadgets from Windows 7 as well.
Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 users who aren’t concerned about the security can download and install third-party desktop gadget packs that include ported desktop gadgets from Windows 7. The advantage of these gadget packs is that you not only get native Windows 7 gadgets but also get tens of cool third-party gadgets designed for Windows 7.
MetroSidebar for Windows 8 and Windows 8.1
Since desktop gadgets were originally developed for Windows 7, they don’t go well with Windows 8 and 8.1’s Modern interface. If you’re running Windows 8 or 8.1 and looking for a good sidebar program with the tiled interface, you should check out MetroSidebar program.
MetroSidebar is a free sidebar program designed to add Modern UI-style (Metro-style) sidebar to Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1. The cool thing about this sidebar program is that it goes very well with the Modern interface of Windows 8 and Windows 8.1.
The recently released MetroSidebar 2.0 displays date, time, your user name, user picture, and weather info at the right side of the screen with default settings.
Just like the tiles on the Start screen in Windows 8 and 8.1, the tiles on the MetroSidebar update in real-time. The sidebar also shows a slideshow of pictures located in Pictures folder, comes with an Alarm tile, and also lets you quickly launch Computer (My Computer or This PC), Control Panel, Recycle Bin, and Internet Explorer right from the sidebar.
The best thing about this app is that it is fully customizable. You can even change the colour of the tile to match your background wallpaper. You can also push down gadgets to other sidebar faces. The number and active face will be denoted by dots present at the bottom. You can remove the gadget tile you do not want on the sidebar. Gadgets like clock and launchers and weather do have their own settings.
To add a new tile, click the Settings icon located at the bottom of the sidebar and then click Add tiles. Select a tile’s name in the left pane and then click the plus button to add the tile to the sidebar.
MetroSidebar (version 1.0.0) has a file size of 4.47 MB and is available for download from our website. Just click the green Download button above to start. Until now the program was downloaded 121 times. We already checked that the download link to be safe, however for your own protection we recommend that you scan the downloaded software with your antivirus.