Improving and Customizing the Windows Taskbar

[Amir Shoam]

With a few easy tweaks, the Windows taskbar can save you time and display more information while taking up less screen real estate... and become less disturbing.

Read the full article here.

https://www.techspot.com/guides/2263-windows-taskbar/

 

[envirovore]

As one that uses a 43" TV for a monitor on a desk, I'm not sure how I never considered moving the task bar to the top of the screen before now.
What a quality of life change. No more getting lost trying to see the time or open the Settings menu.

 

[neeyik]

As one that uses a 43" TV for a monitor on a desk, I'm not sure how I never considered moving the task bar to the top of the screen before now.
What a quality of life change. No more getting lost trying to see the time or open the Settings menu.

I've had the taskbar at the top for as long as can I remember - it just seemed like the natural place for it to be, given that the majority of apps I use have context menus at the top too.

 

[DZillaXx]

Taskbar Belongs at the bottom. Down out of your main sight.

But everyone has their choice to change it.

 

[Fox God Records]

Or you could just save yourself the trouble of accidentally turning off your PC by using the WIN7 style menus. As for the location of the taskbar, mine has always been hidden at the bottom. I'm too old and too stubborn to go moving it now. The rest of the tweaks are tweaks I have been making for years and years. Good stuff, those.

Oh, one you missed: As long as the taskbar isn't locked, you can increase the height of the taskbar by dragging the innermost edge. Make it two rows or three rows high if you want. It goes as high as 10 rows, but that's just acting like a crazy person.

 

[pcnthuziast]

Bottom, auto hide, desktop icons off. That's how I roll, plenty of ways to navigate around still.

 

[envirovore]

I've had the taskbar at the top for as long as can I remember - it just seemed like the natural place for it to be, given that the majority of apps I use have context menus at the top too.

For a short time I did the left hand side of screen, but ultimately gave that up as I didnt like how it cut into the screen so much, but liked the lay out.
Just went back to bottom of screen because, well, that's just what we're used to.

Will take maybe a day or two to adjust to the top placement, but it'll seem far more functional in the long run.

 

[Kshipper]

I build and setup a lot of computers and I already use a lot of these suggestions. I think you could have gone a little further: I click the 'show the touch keyboard button' so I can more easily get to those crazy letters and symbols. I pin notepad, wordpad, snip tool & the weather widget (since the weather widget is a live tile it alerts you to weather events right on the taskbar).

 

[BadThad]

You left out the ability to create your own toolbar. I use the old Windows 7 style toolbar with items like notepad, calc, paint, etc. on it.

 

[Guyver1wales]

Taskbar to the side!!

Vertical real estate is far more important than horizontal with 16:9 monitors

 

[terzaerian]

Small taskbar buttons, never combine, buttons on taskbar where window is open. I don't know how people get anything meaningful done without those settings.

You left out the ability to create your own toolbar. I use the old Windows 7 style toolbar with items like notepad, calc, paint, etc. on it.

Yeah, that's always been way faster and more responsive than pins. Everything they've done to it since XP has been dumb BS.

 

[hahahanoobs]

Add recycle bin to taskbar:
New toolbar > %appdata%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch

 

[AmigaInside]

Not sure why moving it to the side is promptly put down. It does save space - we don't all own giant monitors. And the icons are more neatly spaced and grouped together (tray icons included).