Windows Tricks: Size, Move and Arrange Windows

Windows got its name from the rectangles on the screen-the windows-where all of your computer activity takes place. Whether you are running Windows 7 or earlier generations, they share many of the same icons, buttons, controls, and functionality. You can minimize, maximize, restore, or close a window by clicking the buttons at the right end of the title bar. Additionally, you can use a number of techniques to change the size or position of an individual window. These techniques aren't new to Windows 7 but give you more control of your file and folder windows.

To size windows:

Reshape a window by dragging any edge except the top or title bar. First, position your cursor over any border until it turns into a double-headed arrow. Then drag inward or outward to make the size smaller or bigger. To resize a full-screen (maximized) window, click the restore button first. You can resize a window in two directions at the same time by dragging one of its corners. Sometimes a dotted triangle appears at the low-right corner, sometimes not. Either way, all four corners work the same way.
To change the location of a window, but not its size, drag it. To drag a window, point to its title bar, press and hold the mouse button, and then move the mouse.
To change only the height of a window, drag the top or bottom border of its frame.
To maximize the height of a window without changing its width, drag the top border of its frame to the top edge of the screen or the bottom border of its frame to the bottom edge of the screen.
To change the width, drag the left or right border of its frame. To simultaneously change the height and width of a window, drag any corner of its frame. You cannot resize a maximized window by dragging an edge of its frame; you must first restore the window to its non-maximized state.

To arrange open windows:

Right-clicking the taskbar (not a taskbar button) displays a shortcut menu of commands you can use to manage all the open windows as a group. Right-click the Taskbar and select Cascade windows, Show windows stacked, or Show windows side by side from the shortcut menu. The taskbar shortcut menu includes four commands for manipulating open windows. You can arrange all currently open windows by clicking the following commands:

Cascade windows: Displays the windows on top of each other, with the title bar of each window visible and the contents of only the top window visible.
Show windows stacked: Displays the content of all the windows arranged in a grid, with more windows stacked vertically than horizontally.
Show windows side by side: Displays the content of all windows arranged in a grid, with more windows stacked horizontally than vertically.
Show the desktop: Minimizes all the windows. This option is also available from the Show desktop button in Windows 7 (far-right end of the taskbar) and Show desktop button on the Quick Launch toolbar of earlier versions.

In each arrangement, the open windows are sized similarly, regardless of their size before you arranged them.

To hide & display windows:

When you have multiple windows open on your screen, only one window is active, which affects how it works.


Click on any visible part of a background window to bring it to the front.
Click a button on the taskbar to make the corresponding program or file pop to the front.
Press [Alt] + [Esc] to send an active window to the back. This is a cool tip!

Find more Windows tips like these at http://www.softwarepro.com/tips/windows.htm.

Dawn Bjork Buzbee is The Software ProR and a Microsoft Certified Trainer (MCT) as well as a certified Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Master Instructor, certified Microsoft Applications Specialist (MCAS) Instructor, and a certified Microsoft Office expert. Dawn shares smart and easy ways to effectively use software through her work as a software speaker, trainer, consultant, and author of 6 books. Discover more software tips, tricks, tactics, and techniques at http://www.SoftwarePro.com.

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