Desk TopMost, a brilliant utility you never knew you needed
This free program solves a problem I never knew needed solving—accessing Windows desktop icons without minimizing everything else. It works with Windows XP, Vista and Windows 7.
You launch and it runs in the background, waiting for you to type Ctrl+Alt+D to access the desktop icons.
The desktop icons are moved to the front visual layer while leaving all your open windows intact, as pictured below.
Click on an icon to launch that program/shortcut or right click on the desktop to hide that layer.
Download it at http://www.virtualdisk.net/desktopmost.html