crutkas
commented
2 months ago Closed Technostud closed 2 months ago
crutkas
commented
2 months ago 
microsoft-github-policy-service[bot]
commented
2 months ago Hi! We've identified this issue as a duplicate of another one that already exists on this Issue Tracker. This specific instance is being closed in favor of tracking the concern over on the referenced thread. Thanks for your report!
Description of the new feature / enhancement
I have an idea for a new module in PowerToys! I have scoured the Internet, and I can’t find any other software with the following functionality. Furthermore, since PowerToys already has Windows management features, this would be a perfect fit!!
It would be amazing to add the ability to hide windows for a certain amount of time, and then have them automatically reappear. Much of my workflow involves not needing to look at a certain window for a period of time; however, I would like to keep that window running or “open”. To help keep my Taskbar uncluttered, my current method of closing a window, setting a timer of when I need to check it again, and then re-opening the window is cumbersome and time consuming. It would be amazing to be able to right-click on a Taskbar icon or Title Bar of a window and select to hide that window for a period of time. With as few mouse clicks as possible, it would be great to have the window hide and then re-appear after the set time has passed. This would save me from having to set a separate timer and manually re-open windows. I would need the ability to set the amount of time a window is hidden for. I assume that the utility settings could let me customize some defaults such as 20 minutes, 50 minutes, 2 hours, 24 hours, etc. Anyway, thank you for considering adding the feature. Is there anywhere else that I should post this Feature Request to help it gain traction? If anyone is aware of utilities that already do this, then please let me know. By the way, the utility should also have a main control panel that displays all hidden windows so that I could unhide selected windows if I need to view them early, or unhide all windows at once. Again, thanks to all those excellent programmers that make PowerToys great already and considering my feature suggestion.
Scenario when this would be used?
Examples of how I might use such a feature: • An Outlook contact window is open for someone that I need to call, but they don’t open until 9 AM tomorrow. I might as well hide that window until then. • My wife left a Microsoft Edge Browser window open that she’s working on, but she won’t be awake for another 7 hours, so it would be great to declutter my taskbar while leaving her work "open." I know that my wife and I can have separate logins, Windows Profiles, or Virtual Desktops that we could switch between, but we’ve tried those methods, and it’s always been more hassle than it’s worth. We often work from and share the same programs, and we like to leave windows or emails open for each other. • A Chrome browser tab is open regarding a sale that’s going to start at a certain date and time. It would be great to hide that browser tab until the sale starts. • I can easily get distracted with YouTube, social media, and other counter-productive windows and browsers tabs. I know that I’ll need to check on those windows later, but hiding them for a certain amount of time can help force me to be more productive. In fact, setting a timer that hides those windows for a certain amount of time will not only help me focus on more important work, but it will serve as a mental reward system by telegraphing to me, “You can look at that junk again in 8 hours.” 😊
Supporting information
Support that such a feature would be used: There are other programs on the market that hide windows such as ZHider, Windows Hider 1.2, and Fast Windows Hider 11. However, they do not have a timer that unhides the window after a set amount of time. It needs to be as easy as right clicking on a window's Title Bar or Taskbar icon and choosing the amount of time to hide the window. Everyone will have different requirements, so the presets should be customizable in the program settings. The previously programs are aimed at users that want to hide windows from prying eyes. The primary reason that I’m requesting this feature is to increase productivity. There are countless timers, task lists, Pomodoro clocks, browser extensions, and other utilities that aim to help with productivity. Even Windows has Focus Assist. My suggestion helps people take action by virtually hiding distracting windows until a set amount of time has passed.