Chapter 10: Setting Up Your Start Menu and Taskbar

Chapter Introduction

The Start menu is nothing new--it's been around since Windows 95. But the Windows XP Start menu has been completely redesigned so that the programs you run most often are most easily accessible. Windows XP has Start menu features that move frequently used commands to the "front page" of the Start menu, and hide less-often used commands. Because of the Windows XP emphasis on keeping the desktop uncluttered, you'll probably use the Start menu more and desktop icons less.

The Start menu can contain so many submenus and commands that you can lose track of what's where. Luckily, you can search the Start menu for the program you want. To make the Start menu easier to use, you might want to reorganize it, putting frequently used programs on the left side of the Start menu and demoting other programs to submenus.

The taskbar shows you which programs you're already running. Windows XP rearranges the taskbar slightly, combining the taskbar buttons for multiple windows displayed by the same program, and shrinking the notification area (located on the right end, which used to be called the system tray). The taskbar normally appears at the bottom of the screen, but you can move it, expand it, shrink it, or even make it disappear. You can also include toolbars on the taskbar--you can display any number or none at all of the four predefined toolbars, display toolbars on the desktop, and even define your own toolbars.