Switcher for Windows Vista is the first really useful Aero application I found. Like Alt-Tab or Flip 3D, you can use it to switch between open applications. It is better than Vista’s on board solutions since it uses the whole screen to display thumbnails of all windows. You can find the app you want to access much faster this way.

With Alt-Tab, it is often difficult to distinguish between different windows belonging to the same application. For example, if you have several editor windows open, you have to see the contents of the window to choose the right one. The Alt-Tab thumbnails are too small and Flip 3D (Windows + Tab) doesn’t show the complete window of an application.

Switcher for Windows Vista offers a couple of ways to launch the tool. I suggest playing with it for some time until you decide which option suits you best. Switching between different applications is probably one of the things you do most often at work. The time you can save here, will add up over time.

You’ll find it hard to change your trained habits, though. I suggest using the Alt + Tab or Windows + Tab combination to launch Switcher for Windows for some time. This way, you force yourself to work with it until you get used to it.

Speaking of Flip3D, the How-To-Geek describes how to disable it altogether. I don’t see much sense in this, though. If you disable all useless Vista functions, you’ll be busy until the next Windows version comes out. He also links to MyExpose, a similar tool like Switcher, but with much fewer options.