Thomas J. says:
Sometimes when I’m browsing the internet, I like to do it in full screen mode. That’s great, but is there some way to get rid of the taskbar so that it can be completely full screen?
Yes! and here is how to do it: (applies to Windows XP)
Right-click an empty space in the middle of the taskbar and a menu will pop up. Left-click on Properties (In the example below I have highlighted Properties in yellow).
A (dialog) box will pop up (across the top it says Taskbar and Start Menu Properties). There are two tabs. Click the tab that says Taskbar.
In the dialog box you will see five options. The third option is Keep the taskbar on top of windows. Uncheck that and click Apply. Then click on OK.
And there you go! Now the taskbar will only be visible when you are on your desktop. When you have your browser open or you’re writing a letter, you will not be able to see the taskbar.
Thanks for writing!
–Lori Cline
Another option in the same dialog window is to ‘Auto-hide the taskbar’ so it will disappear when not in use. This produces a taskbar-free screen most of the time, yet makes it immediately available by touching the mouse pointer to the edge of the screen where the taskbar is hiding. Since most ‘web surfers’ already have the mouse in hand (do they even know what keyboard is?), this is a very efficient way to access the Start button and taskbar when needed to switch to a different application or launch a new event. BTW, it is not necessary to click both Apply and OK the execute the change in any dialog window. Apply will execute the changes made while leaving the dialog window open. OK will both apply the change and close the dialog box with a single click. Why click twice when once is enough? Again, more efficient.
Why not just hit F11 to go full screen and hit again to reversre it?
Since the person said sometime, I agree using F11 would be the best option.
If you don’t know what this is, try it. While on a page hit F11, it will go full screen, even better than hiding the taskbar, as it removes the toolbars also. When you are done, hit F11 to return to normal.
I thought the answer would be the one above – Autohide the taskbar”.
Why not just press F11?
I believe that the person who asked the question that Lori answered was already using the F11 key, “…I like to do it (browse the internet) in full screen mode.” However, this does not hide the taskbar, it only hides the toolbars and the frame of the browser window.
outstanding tip as are most of them. most helpful; particulatly how you annotate them.