How to Change the Windows Taskbar Default
- 1). Open the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties panel by right-clicking in a blank area on the taskbar and selecting "Properties."
- 2). Check or uncheck the "Lock the taskbar" option. When enabled, this option prevents anyone from resizing or moving your taskbar to an alternate location on your desktop.
- 3). Check or uncheck the "Auto-hide the taskbar" option. When enabled, this feature hides the taskbar during regular Windows use. The taskbar only appears when your mouse passes over the bottom portion of your screen.
- 4). Check or uncheck the "Keep the taskbar on top of other windows" option. When enabled, this option always places the taskbar at the front of your screen; content contained in other windows is hidden behind the taskbar.
- 5). Check or uncheck the "Group similar taskbar buttons" option. This feature optimizes the use of space in the taskbar by bringing together multiple instances of the same program within a single button. For example, if you have four Microsoft Internet Explorer windows open, the taskbar groups them under a single Internet Explorer listing. You can expand this listing to access an individual window.
- 6). Check or uncheck the "Show Quick Launch" option. When enabled, the Quick Launch feature provides access to common programs of your choosing with a single click; you no longer have to open the Windows Start menu and navigate to one or more sub-folders to launch the application.
- 7). Check or uncheck the "Hide inactive icons" option. When enabled, this feature hides icons in the system tray that you have not recently clicked. This option is located under the "Notification Area" tab in Windows Vista and Windows 7. Click the adjacent "Customize" button to specify your hide settings at a more precise level.
- 8). In Windows XP and earlier Windows versions, check or uncheck the "Show the clock" option to specify your clock display preference. In Windows Vista and Windows 7, you can also choose to display or hide the volume, network and power settings. Access these settings under the "Notification Area" tab.
- 9). Click "OK" after updating your settings to confirm the changes.
