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Taskbar
In
computing, the taskbar is a term for the application desktop bar which is used
to launch and monitor applications in Microsoft Windows 95 and later versions
(actually its part of the Windows shell, see desktop shell replacement). Other
desktop environments also feature similar interface elements.
In Windows,
the default location for the taskbar is at the bottom of the screen, and from
left to right it contains by default the Start menu, Quick Launch bar, Taskbar
buttons and Notification area). With the release of Windows XP, Microsoft
changed the behavior of the taskbar to take advantage of Fitts' law.
The Start
menu contains commands that can access programs, documents, and settings. These
commands include Programs, Documents, Settings, Find, Help, Run, and Shut Down.
The Quick
Launch bar, introduced with Internet Explorer 4, contains shortcuts to
applications. Windows provides default entries, such as Internet Explorer, and
the user or third-party software may add any further shortcuts that they choose.
A single click on the application's icon in this area launches the application.
This section may not always be present: for example it is absent by default in
Windows XP, although it can be enabled.
The Windows
Shell places a taskbar button on the taskbar whenever an application creates an
un-owned window: that is, a window that doesn't have a parent and that is
created according to normal Windows UI guidelines. Typically all SDI
applications have a single taskbar button for each open window, although modal
windows may also appear there. Windows XP introduced taskbar grouping, which can
group the taskbar buttons of several windows from the same application into a
single button. This button pops up a menu listing all the grouped windows when
clicked. This keeps the taskbar from being overcrowded when many windows are
open at once.
The last
part of the taskbar is called the notification area. It contains mainly status
notifications, though some programs, such as Winamp, use it for minimized
windows. The clock by default appears here, and applications can put icons in
the notification area to indicate the status of an operation or to notify the
user about an event. For example, an application might put a printer icon in the
status area to show that a print job is under way, or a display driver
application may provide quick access to various screen resolutions. In Windows
XP, the user can choose to permanently display or hide some icons, or hide them
if inactive for some time. A button allows the user to reveal all the icons.
Optionally, a clock can be displayed in the notification area. A class of
utilities typically called taskbar clock replacements can replace the Windows XP
taskbar clock with a clock with more features.
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