I have been following the Cairo Shell project for years now, from very early on in its existence when it was called the Manolis Project, and with its first public alpha release on Tuesday this week I thought I should start telling people about good this software.

What is Cairo Shell I hear you ask, well it is going to be a shell replacement for Windows Explorer which not only adds a cleaner and simpler look to the desktop but also adds some new functionality and a plugins system that should really add to the desktop experience. In the picture below you can see how the latest build of Cairo looks on a desktop, with the Menu Bar at the top and the Taskbar at the bottom.

The build that will be released on Tuesday will be an earlier milestone, donators will have access to a much more recent build, but there is still some great features in the build. One of my favourites features from when I tested the software was Stacks that drop down from the Menu Bar and allow quick access to files.

Other things I am looking forward too coming out in the next builds will be the Multi Desktop feature, the Dynamic Desktop giving the users the ability to browse files and folders right on their desktop without the need to open an explorer window and the amount of customisation that will be allowed within the software. I also look forward to what plugins will be made for the software to really get the most out of the desktop.

I really do think you should try Cairo Shell when it is released on Tuesday but bear in mind that this is a still an early alpha build of the software. Just a few more pictures showing the end goal of the project.