Both Cinnamon and GNOME, as well as whatever they call OSX’s proprietary desktop environment have “workspaces” in varying capacities. With a quick motion (a multi-fingered touchpad swipe on OSX ctrl+alt+arrow on GNOME/Cinnamon) I can switch between multiple “workspaces” that each have different programs launched on them. This is very, very useful for making good use of space, and for times when I need to follow step-by-step instructions or copy text longhand (i.e. without the clipboard). It also minimizes distractions by being able to keep Chrome on another workspace from the one my work is on.
Is there anything comparable I can install for Windows 7 (x64)? Looking around, there are a few programs online, but I hesitate to install anything that radically changes the desktop environment on an OS without getting input on it first because that way lies breaking your computer.