Windows 7 Tips
https://www.computersprofessor.com/2017/06/windows-7-tips.html?m=0
Windows
7 keyboard shortcuts
Use the
below Windows 7 keyboard shortcuts to make the most of your Windows 7
experience.
Windows key and the arrow keys
Pressing
the Windows key and Left or Right arrow keys will dock the window your
viewing to the left or right-hand side of the screen. Pressing the Windows key
and the Up arrow will maximize a window and pressing the Windows key and the
Down arrow will resize and then minimize the window.
Use Shift: To stretch a window vertically, press the
Windows key + Shift+the Up arrow. If you have multiple monitors use the Windows
key + Shift+the Left or Right arrow keys to move the window to another monitor.
Windows key and plus and minus keys
If you
ever need to zoom in or out of what is being displayed on your screen press the
Windows key and the + (plus) or - (minus)
keys. Pressing the plus zooms in and once zoomed in the minus will zoom out.
Clear all background programs
If you
are not viewing a window in full screen and have other windows open in the
background clear all background open windows by pressing the Windows key + the Home key.
Use
the Windows 7 search
Find
and run anything in Windows by using the Windows 7 search box. Click the Start
orb or press then Windows key and type the name of the program you
want to run or file you want to edit. Windows 7 does a good job at finding an
exact match and press enter to execute that program or open that file. If more
than one match is found, use the up and down arrow keys to select the file you
want to open and then press Enter.
Running as administrator:
Some
programs may require administrator mode to function properly. If you'd like,
you can run any program as administrator from the search box. To do this, type
the name of the program you want to run into the search box, but do not press
enter. Instead, press Ctrl+Shift+Enter. This shortcut runs the program as administrator.
If you want to click and run a program as administrator hold down the
Ctrl+Shift and then click the icon.
Take
full advantage of the Taskbar
Pin programs to the Taskbar
All
programs can be pinned to the Taskbar and allow easy access to
your favorite programs without having to use the Start Menu. To Pin a program
to the Taskbar right-click on the program or
shortcut to the program and in the menu choose the Pin to
Taskbar option. Alternatively you can also drag the icon to the Taskbar.
If you
want to remove a pinned program, right-click on the Taskbar icon and click Unpin
this program from the Taskbar.
Alternatively you can also drag the icon off of the Taskbar and then click
Unpin this program from the Taskbar.
Move the icons and pinned programs
Any
pinned or opened program on the Taskbar can be moved and arranged. Left-click
on any icon on the Taskbar and drag it to the location you want it to remain.
Windows key and a number
Pressing
the Windows key and a number on the top row of your keyboard open the window
corresponding to the open program on your Taskbar. For example, in the picture
below of the Windows 7 Taskbar, Firefox i the first icon, Control panel is the
second icon, and Adobe Photoshop is the third icon. If the Windows key + 3 was
pressed, Adobe Photoshop would become the active window. To make it even easier
arrange your icons (as mentioned above) from left to right by most frequently
opened.
Pin your favorite folder
If you
frequently access the same folder (e.g. your favorites, my documents, Dropbox, etc.) pin the folder to the Windows Explorer icon on
the Taskbar. To do this drag your favorite folder to the Taskbar until you see
Pin to Windows Explorer. Once pinned, right-click the Explorer icon to access
that folder under the Pinned section.
Open a second instance
If you
want to open a second instance or window of a program that is already open,
press and hold the Shift key and then click the
program icon on the Taskbar.
Get to the Desktop
Click
the Desktop button on the far right edge of the Taskbar to get to the Desktop.
Customize
the Notification area
Windows
Vista and Windows 7 allow the Windows Notification area(aka Systray) to be
modified. By default, many of the icons shown in the past are now hidden and
give Windows a much cleaner look. Customize this area to make icons show or not
show by clicking on the up arrow next to the icons and selecting Customize, as shown in the picture. Once in Customize you can choose what
programs show, don't show, or only show notifications.
Improve
the quality of your text
Use the
Windows ClearType Text Tuner to improve the
overall quality of all text you read on your screen. To start the ClearType
Text Tuner click the Start Orb and type cttune.exe and
press Enter.
Enable
and disable Windows 7 features
Turn on
and off Windows features by clicking Start, typing features and
press enter. In the Programs and Features window on the left-hand column click Turn
Windows features on or off and in the Windows Features box check or uncheck the features
you want enabled or disabled.
Use
the Reliability and Performance Monitor
View the
reliability history of your computer by using the Reliability Monitor. Click the Start orb
and type reliability and press enter for View Reliability History. In the Reliability
Monitor, you'll be able to view the overall reliability of your computer and be
able to identify any past problems your computer has had.
If you
want to view the performance of your computer in real time use the Performance Monitor. Click the Start orb
and type performance and press enter for the Performance Monitor. In the
Performance Monitor, you can view your computers performance in real time or
view a log of your systems performance.
Re-enable
underlined keyboard shortcuts
By
default, Windows 7 has the underlines for keyboard shortcuts like those shown
in the picture. To re-enable these underlines in all Windows programs follow
the steps below.
1.
Open the Control Panel
2.
In the Control Panel
click Ease of Access
3.
In Ease of Access click Change
how your keyboard works
4.
Finally, check the Underline
keyboard shortcuts and access keys and then click Ok.
Rename
multiple files at once
To
change the name of multiple files at once highlight all the files you want to
rename in Windows Explorer and
press the F2 key. Type in the new name you want to
use for all files and press enter. Once done all files will be renamed to the
name entered followed by a unique number.
Install
Windows Essentials
Install
missing Windows software by installing the free Windows Essentials software
package. Windows Essentials includes: Windows Live Family Safety, Windows Live
Mail, SkyDrive for Windows, Windows Movie Maker, Windows Photo Gallery, Windows
Live Writer, and other programs.