Change the Way Windows 7 Displays Taskbar Icons

 

I like to have the accompanying labels--at least for programs that are currently running. Fortunately, it's an easy matter to tweak this option in Windows 7. Here's how:

 

1. Right-click an open area of the taskbar, then choose Properties.
2. In the Taskbar tab, find the Taskbar buttons pull-down menu.
3. Choose Combine when taskbar is full or Never combine, then click OK.

The first option, which is what I use, keeps the text labels visible until the taskbar gets so crowded as to make that impractical, at which point Windows will ditch the labels and merge multiple instances of running program (like, say, a bunch of Firefox windows) onto a single taskbar icon.

Here's an "after" shot so you can see the taskbar with text labels:

Again, I think this makes Windows 7 a little user-friendlier. Your thoughts?
Courtesy: PC World

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Utilizing the Windows Key and Taskbar in the Best Way

Try these tricks and workarounds for your Windows Key and taskbar to boost you and your PC's productivity.
 
Quickly pull up the System Info window with the Windows key.

Work Your Windows Key

Quickly view your system specs: Press Windows-Pause to bring up the System Info window.

Launch taskbar apps:

Windows-1 will open Windows Explorer, Windows-2 will open the app positioned to the right of Explorer, and so on).

 
Press Windows-P to switch display modes when you attach a peripheral. 
  
Ditch the Displays Control Panel: To switch display modes instantly press Windows-P.

Run apps from anywhere: Press Windows-R to bring up the Run dialog box.

Taskbar Techniques

Restore your Quick Launch bar:
Windows 7 got rid of the Quick Launch bar, but bringing Quick Launch back is fairly easy. Right-click the taskbar and uncheck Lock the taskbar; then right-click the taskbar again and choose New toolbar. Type %appdata%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch into the file path, and then click the arrow button on the right to navigate to that folder. Quick Launch will be back in action.

Clean up your system tray:
Just drag the icons you use most often from the expanded tray to the minimized tray area on the taskbar. That way, you can click them immediately instead of having to expand the tray and root around for the icon you need.

Drag and drop to your taskbar apps:
Hold down Shift while you click an app's icon to open a new instance of the app. Hold down Ctrl-Shift while clicking the app's icon to open the program as an administrator. Drag a file from your desktop (or from an open window) over an app's icon on the taskbar to pin the icon to the app's jump list, or hold down Ctrl to open the file with that program.

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