Windows 7 Feature - Desktop

With Windows 7, we’ve made it easier to get more done on the desktop.

New ways to juggle windows

Overwhelmed by open windows? Windows 7 comes with three simple yet powerful new features called Shake, Peek, and Snap to help you instantly clear through desktop clutter.

Peek-a-boo: Peek turns open windows translucent so you can see what's on your desktop.

Shake

Ever need to cut through a cluttered desktop and quickly focus on a single window? Just click the top of a pane and give your mouse a shake. Voila! Every open window except that one instantly disappears. Jiggle again—and your windows are back. (Who says the old mouse can’t learn a new trick?) 

Shake, part of the Aero desktop experience, is included in the Home Premium, Professional, Ultimate, and Enterprise editions of Windows 7.

Peek

Peek gives you the power of X-ray vision, so you can peer past all your open windows straight to the Windows 7 desktop. Simply point to the end of the taskbar and watch open windows instantly turn transparent, revealing all your hidden icons and gadgets. 

To quickly reveal a buried window, point to its taskbar thumbnail. Now only that window shows on the desktop. 

Peek, part of the Aero desktop experience, is included in the Home Premium, Professional, Ultimate, and Enterprise editions of Windows 7. 

Snap

Snap is a quick (and fun) new way to resize open windows, simply by dragging them to the edges of your screen.

Depending on where you drag a window, you can make it expand vertically, take up the entire screen, or appear side-by-side with another window. Snap makes reading, organizing, and comparing windows a...well, you get the picture.

Spectacular new wallpapers

We spend a lot of time staring at our PCs. Aesthetics shouldn't just be an afterthought. That's why Windows 7 includes a slew of new desktop backgrounds—wallpapers—that range from sublime to silly. Or try the new desktop slide show, which displays a rotating series of pictures (ours or yours). Your desktop will never be dull again.

Windows 7 makes it easy to express your personality with creative new themes and other custom touches.

Retooled taskbar

Since Windows 95, the taskbar has served as the go-to spot for launching programs and switching windows. Times and PC habits have changed. So in Windows 7, the taskbar has been completely redesigned to help you work smarter, cut clutter, and get more done.

Improvements to the new Windows 7 taskbar include thumbnail previews of webpages, documents—even running video.

Improved gadgets

Gadgets, the popular mini-programs introduced in Windows Vista, are now more flexible and fun. Based on your feedback, we've done away with the Sidebar, so you can stick your gadgets anywhere on the desktop.

Favorite gadgets can go anywhere on your Windows 7 desktop. 

 

Note: Not all features mentioned above are available in all editions of Windows 7.