Question

I’d like to have the users desktop or whatever windows they have open show through the background with a slight bit of opacity. I did a quick mockup in photoshop to try and illustrate what I’m aiming for

I’m fine with using a bit of jQuery if need be, but would prefer to keep the foot print light. I don’t really want to add a ton of overhead just for a fancy effect.

Answer 1

The term is Form Opacity, and you have to have access to the applications source code, in most cases to manipulate it. Several programs already have this as a standard or hidden feature, i.e. Trillian, and iCalenderLite, to name a couple…. Windows 7 allows you to do it to any open window.

form.opacity

EDIT: Answer has been getting downvoted without comment, so I added the OP’s and my additional remarks here.

Would this still be out of bounds for a website to change though? FREX I couldn’t have my website turn form opacity on (just for site X) if it wasn’t already? – aslum Jun 7 ’11 at 23:33

For that, I would have to say "not possible", unless it was a "live" control, loaded by the browser to begin with. You most likely would not be able to do it on a "by site" basis only. And even though most user initiated events are "technically" replicable via script or code, proper security levels, would render such an event, inaccessible to outside manipulation. – tahwos Jun 8 ’11 at 22:04