Navigating with Toolbars

There are seven toolbars associated with the Windows Vista taskbar, and they provide access to programs, folders, and documents as well as to Internet and intranet sites. You can also use the New Toolbar to create your own toolbars that link directly to the contents of folders. You probably won't see all the toolbars listed, however, because the Language Bar and Windows Media Player toolbars are shown only if you've chosen to display them, and the Tablet PC Input Panel requires the Tablet PC tools to be installed on your computer.

Display a Toolbar

Right-click a blank spot on the taskbar.

Point to Toolbars on the shortcut menu, and choose the toolbar you want to display. (A toolbar with a check mark next to its name is one that's already displayed.) Use the table at the right to identify what each toolbar does.

Double-click the toolbar if it isn't already expanded.

If the toolbar doesn't expand, right-click a blank spot on the taskbar, choose Lock The Taskbar from the shortcut menu, and repeat step 3.

The Taskbar's Toolbars

Toolbar	Function
Address	Opens the item when you specify its address. The address can be the path and the file or folder name, a computer on the network, or even the Internet address of a Web page.
Desktop	Provides quick access to the icons, files, folders, and shortcuts on the Desktop.
Language Bar	Switches input languages if Windows has been configured to use more than one language.
Links	Links you to the same locations that are shown on the Internet Explorer Links toolbar.
New Toolbar	Creates a new toolbar that shows the contents of a folder you specify.
Tablet PC Input Panel	Displays the Tablet PC's Input Panel.
Quick Launch	Launches Internet Explorer and Windows Media Player, minimizes all the windows on the Desktop, or switches to other running programs.
Windows Media Player	Provides control for operating Windows Media Player when Media Player is minimized.