By George Norman
Added on 15 Oct 2009(2092 Views)



One of the features you did not get with previous versions of the Windows-based operating system, mainly Windows Vista and Windows XP, is the ability to arrange the buttons in the taskbar as you see fit. I mean a web browser lets you swap tab buttons around, why wouldn’t the Microsoft developed operating system be able to provide something similar. It seems that the Redmond-based software giant realized people want this functionality in their operating system so it included it in Windows 7.

To date (as in at the time or writing this article), Windows 7 is the latest version of the Windows-based operating system. In it you can rearrange and organize program buttons on the taskbar any way you like. This includes pinned programs and running programs (these are not pinned).

Here is what you have to do to change the order of the buttons in the taskbar. It is incredibly simple, believe me:

Step 1. Select the button you would like to move.

Step 2. Drag and drop that button to the new location.

Told you it was incredibly simple.

Tips and warnings
  • Please note that open files from the same program are grouped together by default, always. This happens even when you do not open the files one after another. Here is how Microsoft explains this default behavior: “so all previews for an open program can be viewed together at the same time.”
  • Programs that are pinned to the taskbar stay where you put them when you drag and drop the button. Programs that are not pinned to the taskbar stay where you put them until the program is closed.
  • Icons that appear in the notification area on the taskbar can be rearranged as well. All you have to do is drag and drop the icon to the position of your choice.




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Tags: Microsoft, Windows 7, Taskbar

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Comments

AC - 08 Aug 2010 02:10
Tjoe, I was starting to think that I am the only person in the world who thinks it's annoying that you cannot separate the Explorer windows on that taskbar.
Tjoe - 30 Jan 2010 02:15
While true that other versions didn't let you rearrange the icons by default, the ability was there. A utility called TaskArrange did it beautifully. Although in W7 you now can rearrange the programs on the bar, it causes all icons from the same program to move at the same time (they are huddled together, not the similar items grouping). If you have multiple copies of Explorer open, they are all huddled together and you cannot rearrange the order in the huddle, nor can you scatter them around the bar. I often have a couple of explorers open and a couple of browsers open and a text editor open - all for one project. Then I'll have another set of explorers and browsers and editor open for another. I like to group them down the bar (I align on the right) in the order of my projects. Now I'm SOL until someone comes up with a workaround.

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