The Start Menu and Taskbar allow users to manage programs, search the computer, and manipulate running applications. To customize the Start Menu or the Taskbar, right-click it and choose Properties.
Start Menu
On the desktop, the Start Menu is accessed by clicking the Windows icon in the bottom left of the desktop. The Start Menu, shown in Figure 1, displays all the applications installed in the computer, a list of recently opened documents, and a list of other elements, such as the search feature, help center, and system settings. You can customize different aspects of the Start Menu, as shown in Figure 2. To customize Start Menu settings, use the following path:
Right-click an empty section of the taskbar and choose Properties > Start Menu > Customize
In Windows XP, you can change the style of the Start Menu: XP or Classic. In Windows 7, the option for Start Menu styles has been removed.
Taskbar
In Windows 7, the following new features have been added to the taskbar to make navigating, organizing, and accessing windows and notifications easier:
- Jump list - To display a list of tasks that are unique to the application, right-click the application’s icon in the taskbar.
- Pinned applications - To add an application to the taskbar for easy access, right-click the icon of an application and select Pin to taskbar.
- Thumbnail previews - To view a thumbnail image of a running program, hover the mouse over the program icon on the taskbar.