Windows 7 minimize taskbar

As far as user interface design is concerned, to prevent user confusion it's often better to have only one way to accomplish a task. The design goals of the Windows 7 taskbar are to bring control back to the user and to minimize confusion, by supporting the following principles:.

Large taskbar buttons, visual clarity, and sleekness of design dominate users experience once they are logged on to Windows 7. But how can developers leverage the new functionality that the Windows 7 taskbar has to offer? How do the underlying mechanisms work together to enable the best user experience? In this article, we will explore the new features and underlying functionality of the Windows 7 taskbar, supported with examples in native and managed code. Taskbar buttons provide the gateway to access the functionality of the new Windows 7 taskbar.

The biggest thing to notice is that the taskbar also contains icons for applications that are not currently running. For example, the user may pin applications to the taskbar, which results in a pinned icon on the taskbar but the application is not running. Clicking the icon causes the app to launch. This is a unification of the Quick Launch concept and the standard Windows taskbar.

In fact, there is no need for the Quick Launch area on Windows 7 any longer; the only reason the Quick Launch folder is still in Windows 7 is for backwards compatibility. You may have already heard about jump lists, thumbnail toolbars, taskbar progress bars, and other features. They are all connected with the large, redesigned taskbar buttons that occupy the new taskbar. The Windows 7 taskbar buttons, shown in Figure 2 , are identified with multiple visual effects.

They make it possible to immediately identify which applications are running, whether there are multiple windows in the same application, which application is currently active, and which taskbar button currently has the mouse hovering over it. All the Windows 7 taskbar features are unlocked only after you have created the taskbar button for your application. This makes sense, since you can't change the taskbar overlay icon, for example, if there is no taskbar button yet!

In practice, this means that managed and native applications using the new Windows 7 taskbar APIs will have to wait for a new window message, identifiable by the TaskbarButtonCreated string. The following code shows how a Win32 application receives the window message indicating that the taskbar button is created:. A managed application, for example an application using Windows Forms, would have to override the window procedure the WndProc method of the form to process window messages.

The following code shows this:. Now you know how to make sure that your application does not use the Windows 7 taskbar before there is a taskbar button in place.

Before we jump to more interesting features, there's just one additional piece of information that you need to complete the puzzle. How are taskbar buttons associated with windows and applications? How does the system decide whether an application needs two taskbar buttons for its different windows or whether multiple applications need to share a single taskbar button?

The answer is application ID. This is a new property of the Windows Shell and is an attribute of windows, processes and shell links also known as shortcuts. By controlling the application ID of individual windows and processes, application developers can ensure that the taskbar buttons are associated to their windows exactly as they deem fit.

To make sure application IDs do not accidentally collide, the recommendation is to include in the application ID the company name, product name, and application name. The default application ID for a window is determined by the default application ID for the process to which the window belongs. This is, in turn, a default application ID generated for the executable file that the process runs. Try launching an application like Notepad several times to see this in action. There is only one taskbar button created even if you run multiple instances of Notepad at the same time.

Right-click on the app, then select Pin to taskbar. To unpin an app, follow the same steps and select Unpin from taskbar. If the app is already open, select and hold the icon in the taskbar or right-click it , then select Pin to taskbar. Customize the taskbar from the taskbar itself. If you want to change multiple aspects of the taskbar at one time, use Taskbar settings. Press and hold or right-click any empty space on the taskbar, and then select Taskbar settings.

In the Taskbar settings , scroll to see the options for customizing, choosing icons, and much more. Typically, the taskbar icons are centered, but you can also align them to the side of the taskbar. Scroll to Taskbar alignment and select Left. Open Taskbar settings. Whenever you want to change the order of app buttons on the taskbar, just drag a button from its current position to a different one. A badge on a taskbar button is an alert to let you know that some activity is happening, or needs to happen, with that app.

Press and hold or right-click any empty space on the taskbar, select Taskbar settings , select Taskbar behaviors , then choose Select the far corner of the taskbar to show the desktop.

To restore the view of all your open windows, move the mouse over, or press, the far-right edge of the desktop again. You can hide the taskbar both in desktop mode and tablet mode. Press and hold or right-click any empty space on the taskbar, select Taskbar settings , select Taskbar behaviors , and select Automatically hide the taskbar.

To see the taskbar after it's hidden, hover your mouse over, or touch, the bottom edge of your screen. Select Colors and scroll to Accent color. Turn on Show accent color on Start and taskbar. This will change the color of your taskbar to the color of your overall theme. Note: This option is only available if you select Dark or Custom as your Windows color under Choose your mode.

If you choose Custom , you'll also need to choose Dark for Choose your default Windows mode. Open Colors settings. You can personalize it in many ways—change the color and size, pin your favorite apps to it, move it around on your screen, and rearrange or resize taskbar buttons. You can also check your battery status, minimize all open programs momentarily so that you can take a look at your desktop, or lock the taskbar to keep your options. You can do it from Start or the Jump List, which is a list of shortcuts to recently opened files, folders, and websites.

If the app is already open, right-click or press the app's icon on the taskbar, then select Pin to taskbar. Join , subscribers and get a daily digest of news, geek trivia, and our feature articles. By submitting your email, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. The Windows taskbar is great for quickly accessing frequently used applications on your computer. However, some users prefer to hide it in order to save screen space.

Your taskbar will now automatically hide. Use Google Fonts in Word. Use FaceTime on Android Signal vs. Customize the Taskbar in Windows What Is svchost. Best Smartwatches. Best Gaming Laptops. Best Smart Displays. Best Home Security Systems.

Best External Solid State Drives. I had trouble to find exactly the same article which I found few days ago. The script which is called Minimized Programs Missing looks OK, but I'm afraid of that application - I have some reports from Norton Internet Security about threads located at that website.

Below I'm pasting the source code of this script you can find out what values are deleted, and which one are changed. RegWrite p1, "explorer. In reply to nymlord's post on December 12, Try to select again Use visual styles There is also some option like Save taskbar thumbnail previews , check how it will behaves in different states.