Fences vs. folders

in the Start menu.

Fences might be cool, if you keep a lot of shortcuts on the desktop. If you won't use the app otherwise, or if it is likely that the sysadmins will just delete it at some point, I wouldn't bother with it.

If you can't move them off the desktop, then yes, I would just dump them in a folder.

Speaking as one of those IT guys who puts all those shortcuts on your desktop, this isn't a stupid question at all.

One reason we do this is because there are users who think a program isn't installed if there isn't an icon on the desktop. They don't realize that they can access every installed program through the Start button and the All Programs menu.

Me, I try to keep the icons to a minimum and over time I've added some and deleted some from my standard configuration, but usefulness is in the eye of the beholder. I realize that the default desktop I give users is just a starting place, and that they're going to customize it as necessary. I'm sure your IT department would not object to you creating a folder called 'Default Shortcuts' or something like that, and moving all those things you don't use into it. But do you know what all of them do? You may have icons pointing to tools you're unfamiliar with that may actually be handy.

Under no circumstances should you install Fences (or any other application) on a company-owned computer without checking with your IT department first.

It still doesn't get through to some IT-guy's that they are there only because of the business. IT is accomodating the business. Business itself has to decide what they consider usefull to them to have ... not the otherway around.

To the other point ... a question is never stupid if you're not clear on what it means if you change something. Hence it is a good suggestion to ask IT if it is okay with them if you install or de-install programs.

On the installation of programs they will ask you, however, the specs of that program. At least they wanna check what concequences the program will have on the infrastructure they maintain.

All this pending on what company rules there are. If there are non, and i forsure hope that's not the case, you're free to install whatever you like. On the otherhand ... IT will be free to undo all you have done.
That could be the start of a nice IT-war ... and belief me you don't wanna go that way.

I started with it and I'll close ... IT is there to help business ... not to decide of what is usefull to the business.
In the old days of IT there were the limits of the hardware (and less the software) that were the bounderies of what was possible.
nowadays it's the software that makes what limits there are.
[i]and money availability ... its an oldie but ... all is possible given money and time :) [/i]