Taskbars
Address Toolbar to the Taskbar
You can set up direct Web access right on your Taskbar if you have Internet Explorer (IE) 4.x+ installed on your computer. To create an Address toolbar, right-click a blank area of the Taskbar and select Toolbars, Address. An Address bar similar to the one in your browser window appears on your Taskbar. You can resize it by holding your mouse pointer over the vertical bar at its left edge. When the pointer changes to a double-pointed arrow, click and drag in either direction. Now type an address or the first few letters of it and the rest pops up automatically if you have previously typed it. Finally, press Enter.

Taskbar Launching Methods
With Win9x/Me/2000/Me, you can launch applications from the Start Menu, icons on the desktop, Application’s folder, or the Quick Launch toolbar on the Taskbar. This last method is the least used by most users although it is the most efficient one. By adding shortcuts to that Toolbar, you can have easy, one-click access to your favorite applications. If you choose this method, first remove from the Toolbar any unneeded icons. To remove them, right-click an icon(s) and then select Delete. You should not delete the Desktop icon that looks like an ink blotter with pencil and paper on top of it. To add an icon to the Taskbar, drag a shortcut from the desktop, any folder, or Explorer Windows and drop it into an empty space in the Quick Launch area. If your Quick Launch area becomes too crowded with icons, increase the available space by placing your pointer at the top edge of the Taskbar. Then, after it turns into a double arrow, click and drag the edge upward until you’re satisfied with the results. 

You can also create your own Toolbar by right-clicking the empty space on it and selecting Toolbars. If you choose Links, you will get the Links bar from IE. By clicking Address, it generates a field that you can use to enter an Internet address or a local path. If you then select Desktop, all the icons will move from your desktop to the Taskbar. You can select the New Toolbar option to create a Toolbar view of any folder. If you decide later to make a change to the layout of any Toolbar, click the vertical handle at the left of the bar you want to move and drag it right, left, up, or down. Alternatively, you can double-click it for quick “maximum” or “minimum,” and to fit sizing. Now if you need to clear more room on your desktop, right-click an open space next to any Toolbar and uncheck Show Title and/or Show Text. If you want to relocate the Taskbar to the top, left, or right edge of the screen, click an empty spot on the Taskbar and then drag it to a new location. With WinMe you might have to alter the Taskbar’s settings by right-clicking the Taskbar, selecting Properties, choosing the Advanced tab, and then checking Enable moving and resizing at the end of the Start menu and Taskbar properties list.

Enlarge Taskbar
There are several reasons you may want to increase the size of the Taskbar. One is to fit more program buttons on it. Another is to give more space for each program button so you can read the full program or document name instead of just an abbreviation. With more space, the buttons have room for longer names. To enlarge the Taskbar, use the double arrow to click/hold and drag the inward edge to a larger size.

Hide the Taskbar
If you want more screen space, hide the Taskbar by clicking on Start, Settings, Taskbar, Start Menu, and Auto Hide. You can also shrink it by dragging the inward edge of the Taskbar toward the edge of the screen and then release the mouse button. Your Taskbar will then take up just the slimmest strip of space. When you want it back on the screen, move the cursor to that strip and drag the edge of the Taskbar back on the screen. Or, as an alternative to that method, right-click a blank area of the Taskbar and choose Properties. In the Taskbar Properties dialog box, click the check box next to Auto Hide and then click OK.

The Taskbar remains visible at first; however, when you open a program window, it slides down and out of view providing more space onscreen for your programs. If you want to access the Taskbar, just hold the mouse pointer at the very bottom of the screen to make it temporarily reappear.

Taskbar on Top
Hiding the Taskbar may be too extreme for some computer users. There's a compromise called Always On Top. With this option users can have the space they need on the screen while most of the Taskbar remains visible by choosing Start, Settings, Taskbar and Start Menu. Remove the check from the Always on Top box and the check from Auto Hide, then click OK.

Missing Taskbar
If you have accidentally dragged the Taskbar or Start menu completely off the screen, you can press the Windows key, next to the Spacebar, or you can press Ctrl+Esc. Another method is to try and locate it along the edges of your screen and when your cursor changes to a two-headed arrow, pull it back out where you can see it again.

Application Removal from Taskbar
With Win98 you can remove application shortcuts, that indicate programs running in the background and take up valuable memory, from the system tray or Taskbar by running Msconfig.exe and going to the Startup tab. You can probably delete everything there but Systray, Explorer, and your virus checker.

File Deletion
Windows has the ability to hold and remember recently used documents, Web pages, and other programs. Although useful, the storage of these extra files can take up extra space. To get rid of these references, right-click on the Taskbar and choose Properties. Now, click the Advanced tab and click on the Clear button.

Toolbars
Custom Toolbar
If you run WinMe and accidentally click on the Toolbar, it seemingly disappears forever from your computer. But, it’s not a major problem. WinMe actually just creates a folder listing for your Toolbar. When you close the Toolbar, the link is lost. Fortunately, it is just the link that is lost, and not the folder. If you just recreate the Toolbar, you'll be fine.

Internet Explorer 5+
Alexa and Google, two Web search services, have launched Toolbars that can be added to IE 5 and above. The Toolbar add-ons by Alexa and Google can both be easily installed on the latest version of IE. Although Netscape users cannot currently install either Toolbars, they can access the same information via Netscape’s “What’s Related” feature, which uses the Alexa database to comb for related links to whatever Web page you happen to be viewing at the time. The latest version of Opera includes a built-in version of the Google Toolbar that can be customized to use other search engines. What’s new about these new search tools is their increased functionality. The Google Toolbar has a text input box that feeds requests directly to its search engine and presents the results in a new browser window. Alexa’s 5.0 Toolbar works in conjunction with a sidebar to provide instant access to information about sites related to the one you’re visiting at the time.

Movable Toolbars
Moveable Toolbars are a neat feature in OfficeXP. Toolbars usually appear at the top of the screen. You may even find two or more Toolbars smashed together. With OfficeXP you can tear off your Toolbars and move them anywhere around the screen, including the side, bottom, or right in the middle of the screen.

Toolbars in Microsoft Word
You can use the mouse to drag Toolbars to a document window. If you drag a Toolbar to one side of the window, it will anchor there. However, if the Toolbar has a text box, such as the Formatting Toolbar in Word, you'll only see the text box if the Toolbar is anchored in a horizontal position at the top or bottom of the screen. If you anchor such a Toolbar on a side where it must become vertical, the text boxes turn into buttons to fit into the space allowed them.

Toolbar Controls
With Win98/Me some Toolbars, such as the Links bar for the My Computer window, have handle controls. These vertical lines at the ends of the Toolbar can be dragged to change the bar size. You can also double-click on the handle controls to expand the Toolbar so it takes up most of the width of the window, pushing aside any other toolbars on its shared line.

Toolbar Descriptions
To find out what a button on a Toolbar does, choose Help, What's This? or press Shift+F1 and click a Toolbar button. A description of the button appears onscreen. You can also move the mouse pointer over a button to read a one- or two-word description. If you're not seeing the descriptions, choose Tools, Customize, click the Options tab of the Customize dialog box, and click the Show ScreenTips on Toolbars check box.

Toolbar Expansion
If you need an icon for a command not currently found on your Toolbar, then add it by selecting Tools, Customize and choosing the Commands tab. Browse the Categories section on the left side of the tab to find the command's menu and look through the Commands section on the right side of the tab to locate the command. Click and drag the command to the spot on the Toolbar where you want it to appear. Release it and click Close.

Toolbar Selection
If you wish to remove one or more of the Toolbars on the top of your Word screen, click Tools, Customize. The first tab is Toolbars. Check the ones you want to delete from the top of your document window. At the Commands tab you can remove any unwanted buttons by just clicking each one and then dragging them individually down to the Commands area. Conversely, scroll down through the list on the right of the various Toolbars and click one to see the choices for each on the left of the dialog box. Now click those you want and drag them up to the top of your screen.

Summary
The Taskbar aids in task switching in Win9x/Me. The Toolbar controls various functions of the software. Both are very useful computing tools that can enhance your computing skills.