Bar displayed on an edge of a GUI desktop that is used to launch and monitor running applications
The taskbar is a graphical user interface element that has been part of Microsoft Windows since Windows 95, displaying and facilitating switching between running programs. The taskbar and the associated Start Menu were created and named in 1993 by Daniel Oran, a program manager at Microsoft who had previously collaborated on great ape language research with the behavioral psychologist B.F. Skinner at Harvard.[1][2][3][4]
The taskbar is an exemplar of a category of always-visible graphical user interface elements that provide access to fundamental operating system functions and information. At the time of its introduction in 1995, the taskbar was unique among such elements because it provided the user with a means of switching between running programs through a single click of the pointing device.
Since the introduction of Windows 95, other operating systems have incorporated graphical user interface elements that closely resemble the taskbar or have similar features. The designs vary, but generally include a strip along one edge of the screen. Icons or textual descriptions on this strip correspond to open windows. Clicking the icons or text enables the user to easily switch between windows, with the active window often appearing differently from the others on the strip. In some versions of recent operating systems, users can "pin" programs or files to this strip for quick access. In many cases, there is also a notification area, which includes interactive icons that display real-time information about the computer system and some of the running programs.
With the rapid evolution of operating systems and graphical user interfaces, items that are native to each operating system have been included in the various designs.
^Lehmann-Haupt, Christopher (1998-07-09). "Books of the Times; A Jungle? It's Murder, It's a Conspiracy". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2023-03-22. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
^Weinberger, Matt (2015-07-30). "'He was literally a rocket scientist. And even he couldn't figure out Windows.'". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 2015-08-07. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
^Andrews, Paul (1999). How the Web was won : Microsoft from Windows to the Web : the inside story of how Bill Gates and his band of internet idealists transformed a software empire (1st ed.). New York: Broadway Books. pp. 244–5. ISBN 0-7679-0048-0. OCLC 40820951.
^Inside out : Microsoft--in our own words. Microsoft Corporation. New York, NY: Warner Books. 2000. p. 30. ISBN 0-446-52739-4. OCLC 45226466.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
The taskbar is a graphical user interface element that has been part of Microsoft Windows since Windows 95, displaying and facilitating switching between...
system. Its readily identifiable elements consist of the desktop, the taskbar, the Start menu, the task switcher and the AutoPlay feature. On some versions...
Windows 11 taskbar". The Verge. Retrieved 2021-09-19. "How to move volume icon from primary monitor taskbar to secondary monitor taskbar?". Microsoft...
three-dimensional view. Taskbar live thumbnails – Hovering over the taskbar button of a window displays a preview of that window in the taskbar. Desktop Window...
"Widgets" panel on the taskbar, the ability to create tiled sets of windows that can be minimized and restored from the taskbar as a group, and new gaming...
areas have seen enhancements. Unlike Windows Vista, window borders and the taskbar do not turn opaque when a window is maximized while Windows Aero is active;...
improvements on the Windows Aero user interface with the addition of a redesigned taskbar that allows pinned applications, and new window management features. Other...
between through tabs. A taskbar is a toolbar provided by an operating system to launch, monitor and manipulate software. A taskbar may hold other sub-toolbars...
combine taskbar buttons Added the ability to hide the time and date in the system tray Updated notification bell icon in the system tray on the taskbar Modernized...
the 1st app in taskbar. ⊞ Win+2 Open the 2nd app in taskbar. ⊞ Win+3 Open the 3rd app in taskbar. ⊞ Win+4 Open the 4th app in taskbar. ⊞ Win+5 Open the...
first version of Microsoft Windows to include the Modern Windows Feel (Taskbar, Start Menu.) Windows 95 merged Microsoft's formerly separate MS-DOS and...
smartphone, and OneDrive. The new Start menu also includes a search box. Taskbar: The Taskbar has also been center-aligned, and now includes new animations for...
interface, replacing the previous Program Manager with the Start menu, taskbar, and Windows Explorer shell. Windows 95 was a major commercial success...
People", where shortcuts to "important" contacts can be displayed on the taskbar. Notifications involving these contacts appear above their respective pictures...
some notable design changes, which were integrated into Windows 11: The taskbar is now centered. It has 3 different sizes: small, intended for mouse-controlled...
Desktop Menu allowed users to open items on the desktop from a menu on the Taskbar; Explore From Here enabled users to open Windows Explorer view from any...
Clicking on the task in a taskbar or taskpanel Taskbar Some window managers provide a taskbar that shows running applications. The taskbar may show all applications...
Copilot into Windows 11, allowing users to access it directly through the taskbar. In January 2024, a dedicated Copilot key was announced for Windows keyboards...
weather styles. For devices with a larger screen, such as tablets, the taskbar is expanded in Android 14 and now shows the names of the pinned apps. Android...
Windows 98. Taskbar and Start Menu options allowed disabling of the drag and drop feature and could prevent moving or resizing the taskbar, which was easier...
the window title will dock it to the user's sidebar. Like the Windows Taskbar, the Google Desktop sidebar can be set to Auto-Hide mode, where it will...
it featured a taskbar-mounted Mini-mode in which the most common media control buttons are presented as a toolbar on the Windows taskbar. Flyout windows...
the taskbar. It is no longer possible to place toolbars on the other (non-taskbar) edges of the desktop. Grouping (placing next to each other) taskbar buttons...
voltage for an extended period of time (e.g. displaying a pointer or the Taskbar in one place, or showing a static picture for extended periods of time)...
opened apps can be displayed on the taskbar; as with desktop programs, shortcuts to apps can also be pinned to the taskbar. When a mouse is connected, an auto-hiding...
performing other functions in the Windows shell. The Start menu, and the Taskbar on which it appears, were created and named in 1993 by Daniel Oran, a program...
mimicking the interface of ChromeOS with a dedicated windowing system and taskbar for web apps. This was removed on version 49 and users that have upgraded...
IE11 visual references, such as the IE11 icons on the Start Menu and taskbar, were set to be removed from Windows 10 SAC by the June 2023 Windows security...
Windows shell although it also does some minor tweaks for the Windows Taskbar. In particular, it can serve as a Start menu replacement for Windows 8...
Global Information