The taskbar (the small strip at the bottom of your screen that contains the start menu button, clock, and other options) has been around since Windows 95. However, recent versions of Windows have made the taskbar extremely useful. If you have Windows 7, 8, or 8.1, here are some ways you can configure the taskbar to help you.
Pin It - Are there programs that you regularly use? For me, those programs are Chrome, Excel, Access, Quicken, Calculator, and VirtualBox. Instead of searching through the start menu or start screen each time you need to open it, you can pin the icon to the taskbar. Open the program, then right-click the program's icon and select "Pin this program to taskbar". If you change your mind, you can unpin it by right-clicking it at any time and choosing "Unpin this program from taskbar." If you want to reorder the pinned icons, click and hold an icon and then drag it where you want it to go.
Load Pins Quicker - Instead of clicking on your pinned icons in the taskbar, you can load them even quicker with a key combination. Hold down the Windows key and then hit the number that represents the icon's order in the taskbar. (Windows + 1 opens the first program, Windows + 2 opens the second program, etc.) If the program is not running, it will open a new window. If the program is already running, it will load the program's window. If you want to open a new window for that program (like a second browser window), add the Shift key to the combination.
Use Jumplists - If you right-click on a program's icon in the taskbar, you can access its jumplist. The features of a program's jumplist can be customized by the program's developer, so each one will be different, but they usually contain a list of useful features or recent programs. For example, Chrome's jumplist contains your most visited sites, recently closed tabs, and a few common program options. The jumplist for Thunderbird (an email reader) gives the options "Write a new message" or "Open address book". If a program doesn't have a built-in jumplist, you will only see the options to run the program or pin/unpin it.
Don't Combine - Starting with Windows 7, the taskbar began combining multiple windows from the same program under one icon. You can still switch back and forth between them, but you must first hover over the program icon to display a list of the open windows. If you primarily use multiple windows from one program (for example, you usually only have several windows of your browser open), you can tell the taskbar not to combine them. Right-click in open space and select "Properties". Towards the middle of the screen, you will see the "Taskbar buttons" option. Change the menu to "Never combine", and you will get a separate icon for each window.
Move It or Hide It - By default, the taskbar is at the bottom of the screen, but it doesn't have to stay there. If you want to move it to another edge, click on it and drag it to that edge. (If it doesn't move, you may need to right-click in empty space and uncheck "Lock the taskbar".) You can also hide the taskbar to give your screen more space. To do this, right click in empty space, select "Properties", and then check "Auto-hide the taskbar". Now, the taskbar will only appear when you move your cursor to the bottom (or the edge where you moved the taskbar).
Add Toolbars - Usually, the thought of toolbars brings memories of unwanted toolbars installed in your internet browser when you load other software. However, these toolbars are created by Windows and are much more useful. To see the available toolbars, right-click in empty space and then hover over "Toolbars".
My favorite toolbar is the "Address" toolbar, which adds a box to the taskbar for entering internet addresses and performing searches. (Searches and addresses will open in your default browser, and searches will be conducted by the default search provider in Internet Explorer, not your default browser. To change your search provider, open Internet Explorer, click on the gear icon, select "Manage Add-Ons", select "Search Providers", and then select the search provider you want to use or select "Find more search providers..." at the bottom. When you have the provider you want on the screen, select it and choose "Set as Default" at the bottom.)
Other toolbars include a quick access to your bookmarked links, your desktop, and a keyboard. You can also create your own toolbar to quickly access any folder.
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