Who doesn't like convenience? When you are in the middle of work, creating a Web site, while replying to your e-mail or being creative in Photoshop, with many windows open at a time, the last thing you need to do is to click the Start button and try to find some application you need right away. Windows SideBar to the rescue. This Vista feature and its mini-applications called Gadgets can do the trick for you. You choose from the selection of Gadgets that comes with the operating system: Calendar, Clock, Contacts, CPU meter (shown), Currency, Feed Headlines, Puzzle, Slide Show, Stocks or Weather (shown). Or you can go to the online gallery and get a cool "launcher" like the one shown, where I have quick links to my favorite tools and programs. And by the way, another tip: take advantage of the Windows key (WinKey, shown above). Since the times of Windows 95 we use WinKey + E = Explorer, WinKey + F = Find, WinkKey + D = Show Desktop, etc. And of course, pressing WinKey by itself is the equivalent of clicking on Start/Windows logo, from wherever, regardless, even if the Taskbar is hidden. But in Windows Vista you have an additional feature: All the Quick Launch items in the Taskbar, from left to right, are assigned a consecutive number from 1 to 9. If you have the Quick Launch activated now, press the WinKey and, say, 2. What do you see? Try it. It's different for any computer configuration. Do you understand now what I mean by convenience?
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