Thank you for the reply:
"What is taking up my bandwith" is just an example of what this thread isn't about. People ask that question way too often.
I'm aware of device manager, but it doesn't have a activity function.
I just want something that will tell me when a piece of hardware is being used.
example: I'm on skype...i would like to see that my mic and camera are in use. (even though i'm well aware that they are being used)