If you like to listen to music but keeping your desktop environment as clean as possible, without too many windows open, there is a handy way to send VLC to the system tray. Open VLC preferences and in the default (interface) card check the option to “show VLC tray icon”. Whenever you click this icon VLC will hide to the system tray, if it is not hidden already, or it will appear on the desktop, if it is hidden.

If VLC is minimized, it will be restored when you click this icon. Click again, and it will hide in the system tray. Clicking the VLC tray icon changes its status in this order: from minimized to restored, then to hidden in the tray, then to restored.

Note that while VLC is hidden in the tray you might not be able to control it with your keyboard’s media keys, but if you have defined global VLC hotkeys from inside the program’s preferences, they will work as before.

* Don’t miss VLC Untied, a free program that lets you select one or more files or folders in Windows Explorer and load them to VLC media player instantly using a keyboard shortcut, even removing completely any files that may be already loaded and playing.