Last week I wrote about two Menu Applications for Windows operating systems. I specifically mentioned Windows Vista and 7 but those two apps will work on most any of them. They were “Desktop Sidebar” and “RocketDock“. Check last week’s Double Click for more details.
I also mentioned bringing the Windows’ “Quick Launch Toolbar” that many of you, just like me, miss in the newest versions of the Windows operating systems. I received several emails from readers saying they were really looking forward to this information, so here we go!
The Quick Launch Toolbar was a really great app and was available up until Windows 7. Yes, even though you may not have realized it you could restart it in Vista by right clicking on the taskbar.
However, in Windows 7 the QLT is hidden so that you have to really hunt for it and once found you will need to set it up. I am going to save you from a time consuming hunt.
1) Unlock your taskbar (This isn’t necessary but makes it much easier set up.)
2) Right click on the taskbar and choose “Toolbars” then “New Toolbar…”
3) A browser window will open up waiting for you to enter a location of the toolbar items you want to enter.
4) Use the following for the Quick Launch Toolbar:
C:\Users\REPLACE THIS WITH YOUR USERNAME\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch
After entering the above folder path the QLT will immediately appear all the way over on the right side of your taskbar. To move it to the left, click on the dotted lines and drag the toolbar all the way to the left (yellow arrow in graphic). Warning: this is about the trickiest part of the set up.
Then remove all the text you will see all on the new Quick Launch Toolbar. To do this, right click on the dotted lines (at the left edge of the new toolbar) and uncheck “Show Text” as well as “Show Title” from the menu.
Once you have it located and looking the way you want it to look I suggest checking the “Lock the taskbar” checkbox.
In case you do not remember how to use your old favorite all you have to do is drag shortcuts to the QLT. Then the programs will be added to the toolbar and will now, “launch quickly”. The icons may also be rearranged to your heart’s content by dragging them around the QLT.
Enjoy having your Quick Launch Toolbar back home again!
