If anyone is using a dock program like ObjectDock, RocketDock or RK Launcher then you have to check out this Docklet by Matías Moreno. It emulates the Stack feature that was introduced in Apple’s OS X Leopard.

Although a dock provides a great way to clean up the icons on your desktop, you’re limited to how many icons you can add — basically, the width of your screen. So if deleting icons is not an option then you do what big cities do … you build taller buildings. But this docklet does it in style — it springs open in an elegant arc and hides itself after you click on an icon.

ObjectDock with Stacks Docklet

Although there is no offical page for this docklet, you can download it from RocketDock’s Addons site. However, this version seems to be a bit older. So if you go to the author’s site, you can download a more recent “preview” version (1.0.0.134) here:

Since there’s not a lot of instructions on how to use it, here are some steps you can follow for ObjectDock:

1. Unzip the file to your docklets folder (e.g., C:\Program Files\Stardock\ObjectDock\Docklets).
2. Right-click on your dock, select “Add” then “New ‘Stack’ Docklet”. You should see a new icon (with a down arrow) on the end of your dock.
3. Right-click on the new icon and select “Dock Entry Properties…”
4. In the “Folder” section, click on the “…” button to select a folder (e.g., C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Start Menu\Programs\Accessories).
5. In the “Icon” section, click on the “…” button to select a different icon.
6. Click “OK”.
7. Now hover over and click your new icon, you should see all your accessory icons appear in a nice fan.

How’s that for functional and cool?!

Of course, if you’re like me, you probably won’t be satisfied with the choice of icons since most icons are for specific programs. Ideally, what we need is a group or folder icon to depict what’s in it. Fortunately, I found a site full of great looking and free folder icons by a user named deleket.

Have fun!