ObjectDock 1.9   
by Stardock Systems   

ObjectDock is a program that acts as both a task manager and a program launcher. It lets you organize your short-cuts and running tasks onto an extremely customizable dock that sits on your desktop. Users can customize the look of each item on the dock and set various animation options for when the mouse is over an item on the dock. It is very easy to configure. Tired of hundreds of icons scattered all over your desktop? Finding it difficult to navigate through the many items listed in your Start Bar? Just want a new tool that looks good and reacts in a pleasing way when you interact with it? ObjectDock is a necessary program for everyone ? and it?s free! As in, no spyware, no adware and it never expires.

Features of ObjectDock (free version) include:

-Put short-cuts on your dock
-Display running tasks on your dock
-Put docklets on your dock
-Icons zoom on mouse-over
-Change the appearance of the icons of running tasks and short-cuts
-Position dock on any edge of the screen
-Optionally represent running programs by snapshot of their window
-Optionally hide Windows taskbar
-Skinnable

Newer features include Windows Vista compatibility, a new image searching feature, .DockZip support, a new algorithm for zoom docks, drag and drop support for items on docks, tabbed docks rotate automatically when docking them with a screen edge if necessary, and a host of mouse-over activation features. Version 1.9 is a major update over 1.5 that features faster performance while using less memory, a changed default look and icons, a new start menu docklet, options for dock placement that is completely free-form, updated user interface for easier use, more Vista support, and more!

Extra features in ObjectDock Plus ($19.95) include: Tabbed Docks, Multiple Docks, System Tray support, Custom icons for system tray icons, Fly-out menus, Smart edge docking, Taskbar grouping, Multi-monitor support, and tons of customization features.