How to Hide Desktop Icons When Creating a Desktop Video

Well, what d’ya know? I’m not sure how far back this feature goes (at least Vista, maybe XP, gosh, maybe even Windows 2000?), but it became a very practical solution for me today.

My Requirement

I’m the a picture is worth a 1000 words” guy – and as such, I’m always creating little Jing videos, or using Camtasia, to show an end user how something is done, quickly and with flair. The problem is, my desktop is also a hodge podge of unfinished projects (meaning shortcuts, documents, etc.) and when I start a video, I like it to be free of clutter.

The Solution

It’s just so simple, but I’ve been missing this option for a long time (though I can’t say until recently, I had a problem seeking this solution). There is an option, when you right click on the desktop and choose View, there is a toggle/checkmark for “Show Desktop Icons”. Voila – I toggle that off, create my videos now (unless of course I need to show a desktop with icons) and then toggle it back on.

Here’s the Before (ick)

Here’s the After