How to Minimize a Window

By minimizing, you make a window shrink to an icon in the taskbar. This allows you to tuck away a file or program without closing the application. When you are ready to work on that file, you can access it quickly and easily. These instructions are for Windows 98.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Microsoft Windows

Minimize a Window

1. Open a window.

2. Look at the three boxes in the upper right-hand corner of the window's title bar.

3. Click on the first square, marked with a line on the bottom, to minimize the window. The window then disappears from your screen, but its icon is visible on your taskbar.

4. To open the window again, click on the taskbar icon.

Minimize All Windows

5. Right-click on the Windows taskbar.

6. Select Minimize All Windows. The desktop clears.

Tips & Warnings

• This is a nice trick to get to something on the desktop quickly.
• To restore all windows, right-click on the taskbar and select Undo Minimize All.
• Windows that are minimized are still open and using system resources. If memory and other resources are scarce, it is advisable to close the window rather than minimizing it.

on 11/22/2005 You can also minimize all the windows without even going to the mouse: hold down the windows button (it looks like the windows logo on your keyboard) and press m. Do it again, and your windows will go back to the way they were before you minimized them.