by doticca
Phostide
OLED-safe animated themes on the real Windows taskbar — Explorer composition, not overlays.
Windows 11 22H2+ · x64 · MIT
How it works
On Windows 11 the taskbar is XAML inside explorer.exe. Phostide injects a tiny TAP helper, finds Rectangle#BackgroundFill, and paints animated Composition surfaces into that brush — the actual taskbar pixels. Icons stay on top. When Phostide exits, brushes restore.
Why not autohide?
Autohide removes the bar. Pixel-shift moves windows. Overlays sit on top. Phostide keeps the bar usable and keeps its pixels moving — so your ROG OLED (and every other panel) ages more evenly.
Themes
Procedural effects tuned for low average luminance — motion first, spectacle second.
Rainbow
Slow HSV sweep across the bar — constant pixel motion, low brightness.
Sea Waves
Soft sine layers that drift so no strip of the taskbar stays fixed.
Weather
Cloud noise and gentle luminance flicker — calm, OLED-friendly.
Space
Sparse starfield with a slow nebula wash behind your icons.