On thing I have done on XFCE is create a new panel, size it as a large Square, and position it upper left. Then planted a custom Plugin into it with HUD that I could reference, thus using the panel for a purpose entirely different from which it was designed. I also rendered the panel background transparent.
This was a second "panel" on the desktop, with the standard panel in use at the bottom.
So even if you find a door jammed shut, you may look around to find doors you didn't know were there.