# The load meter and parking widgets

> The coloured dot at the end of a desk's quick actions rates how busy the desk is, and lets you park widgets out of sight and bring them back.

Source: https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-load-meter
Section: Desks and the canvas > Desk tools
Plans: All plans
Updated: 2026-10-10

A desk with too much on it is hard to think on. The load meter keeps an eye on that for you. It rates how busy the desk is, from **Light** to **Overloaded**, and lets you park every widget except the one you are working in, so you can focus without losing anything. Parked widgets wait in a list until you bring them back.

## Before you start

- The load meter works the same on every plan, and there is nothing to set up.
- It shows whenever a desk is open, at the right end of the desk's quick actions in the header.

## Read the meter

The meter is a coloured dot with a number beside it. The colour tells you the level, and the number is the desk's load. When you have parked widgets, a **+** and their count follow, for example **+4**.

Rest the pointer on the meter to see the level in words, such as **Cognitive load: Heavy**, with the exact load.

| Level | Dot | Load |
| --- | --- | --- |
| **Light** | Green | Up to 5 |
| **Comfortable** | Blue | Over 5, up to 9 |
| **Heavy** | Amber | Over 9, up to 14 |
| **Overloaded** | Red, and it pulses | Over 14 |

## How the load is counted

Every widget on the desk that is not parked adds to the load, including widgets inside sections. Most widgets count 1. Widgets that tend to ask more of your attention count more, and small tools count less:

| Widget | Counts |
| --- | --- |
| Browser | 1.5 |
| Markdown | 1.1 |
| Note, and most other widgets | 1 |
| Sticky | 0.7 |
| Timer | 0.6 |
| Calc, Section | 0.5 |
| Color | 0.4 |

So a desk with four browsers and four stickies has a load of 8.8, which is **Comfortable**. The number on the meter is the load rounded to a whole number.

## See the details

1. Click the load meter.
2. The **Cognitive load** panel opens below it. It shows the level, a bar that fills as the load nears 14, the top of **Heavy**, how many widgets are visible and the exact load.
3. Press `Esc` or click anywhere else to close it.



## Park everything except the widget you are working in

1. Click inside the widget you want to keep working in. It becomes the active widget, and a note at the bottom of the desk says **Widget active**.
2. Click the load meter.
3. Click **Park everything except the active widget**.

The other loose widgets leave the canvas and go into the **Parked** list. These stay on the desk:

- the active widget,
- widgets pinned to the screen,
- sections, and the widgets inside them.

If no widget is active, every loose widget is parked. The park button is greyed out when one widget or none is showing.

Parking only hides widgets. Their content stays as it is, and parked widgets do not count towards the load.

## Bring parked widgets back

1. Click the load meter. The **+** count beside it shows how many widgets are parked.
2. Under **Parked**, click a widget. It comes back to the canvas exactly where it was.
3. Repeat for each widget you want back.

Parked widgets stay parked when you leave the desk or close PlexiDesk, until you bring them back.

## Other ways to lighten a desk

- **Group widgets into sections.** A labelled frame keeps related widgets together. See [Section widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help).
- **Tidy the desk.** Tidy and Smart Stack arrange what is there. See [Tidy, auto-arrange and Smart Stack](https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-tidy).
- **Work on one widget full screen.** See [Open widgets full screen and side by side](https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-focus-mode).
- **Give a widget its own desk.** See [Turn a widget into its own desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-from-widget).

## Common questions

**Why is the dot pulsing?** The desk is **Overloaded**, with a load over 14. Park some widgets, group them into sections, or move some to another desk.

**Why did a widget not get parked?** It is the active widget, it is pinned to the screen, or it is a section or inside one.

**Is a parked widget the same as a parked desk?** No. Parking widgets hides them from the canvas. **Parked** is also one of a whole desk's statuses, which you set with the status button. See [Track a desk's status and time](https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-status-time).

**Is parking the same as deleting?** No. A parked widget keeps everything in it and comes back where it was. To remove a widget from the desk, use the **×** on its title bar. See [The controls on every widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-title-bar).

## Related tasks

- [Desk quick actions in the header](https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-quick-actions)
- [Tidy, auto-arrange and Smart Stack](https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-tidy)
- [Open widgets full screen and side by side](https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-focus-mode)
- [Related desks and changes since your last visit](https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-related-desks)
- [Desks, rooms and the canvas](https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-overview)