Datasheet

85
CHAPTER 3
■
MANAGING THE WINDOWS DESKTOP
you decide to lock out a program using this method. Besides, if it’s a non-
Microsoft program and you don’t want access to it, why not just uninstall it?
One interesting behavior is that the Start menu icons reappear every
time you install or reinstall a service pack. If it bothers you, use Tweak UI or
the Group Policy Editor to get rid of them.
All about the taskbar and the notification area
Along with the Start menu, the taskbar and the System Tray are two areas you
can optimize for the way you work. They present a limited area to work with,
and so you need to determine the best balance between having plenty of
information and preserving screen real estate.
Taming the taskbar
By default the taskbar appears at the bottom of the screen, but you can move
it to any edge. Right-click the taskbar and deselect the option to lock the
taskbar. Click and drag the taskbar to any edge of the screen you prefer (see
Figure 3.20). One benefit of moving the taskbar to the sides is that you can
reduce “button crunch,” the condition where you have many windows open
and the buttons get smaller, making it impossible to tell what a particular
button’s content is.
Figure 3.20. You can see more buttons, and more of the text, when the taskbar is to either side of
the desktop.
07_763209 ch03.qxp 12/22/05 10:27 PM Page 85