As you use your Windows, macOS, or Chrome OS computer, the windows can quickly pile up, especially if you open multiple ones for the same application. Before you know it, you’ve lost track of half of your programs because they’re hidden behind others.
However, each operating system comes with a variety of features and tricks to keep these windows organized, and you may not be aware of all of them. Plus, if there’s something you want to do that isn’t built in, you can often find a third-party tool that will add the functionality for you.If you’ve used Windows for any length of time, you’re no doubt familiar with the three buttons in the top right of every open window. The one on the far right is the close button, to shut the window. In the middle, there’s the maximize button, which makes a window take up the full screen (if the window is already full-screen, this icon changes into the restore down button, which shrinks the window to its pre-maximized size). On the left is the minimize button, which hides the window from view (you can click its icon in the taskbar to bring it back).
If you’ve upgraded to Windows 11, you’ll get a choice of window layouts when you hover the cursor over the maximize/restore down button. They’ll let you quickly split the screen two, three, or four ways to display the windows that are currently open. Pick a layout to use it, and you can then fill in the zones with the windows you want to see.Windows also supports snapping: Drag the title bar of a window to the left or right edge of your screen, and it will snap to that half of the display, leaving the other half clear. Alternatively, press Win+Left arrow or Win+Right arrow to get the same result. If you want to have your web browser on one side of the screen and a media player on the other, for example, this is one way to do it.
You can also click a window’s title bar and drag it into a corner to split the screen four ways. The keyboard shortcut for this is Win+Up arrow or Win+Down arrow once you’ve already snapped the window to the left or the right of the screen. Finally, you can right-click on the taskbar and choose Cascade windows (to neatly layer windows on top of each other), Show windows stacked (to show all open windows, arranged vertically), or Show windows side by side (to show all open windows, arranged horizontally).
There are also several utilities that can give you even more control. Microsoft’s own PowerToys is free and includes a tool called FancyZones that lets you arrange windows in custom grids. AquaSnap is free too, and gives you a lot of flexibility when it comes to tiling windows next to each other and covering every part of the screen precisely.Windows also supports snapping: Drag the title bar of a window to the left or right edge of your screen, and it will snap to that half of the display, leaving the other half clear. Alternatively, press Win+Left arrow or Win+Right arrow to get the same result. If you want to have your web browser on one side of the screen and a media player on the other, for example, this is one way to do it.
You can also click a window’s title bar and drag it into a corner to split the screen four ways. The keyboard shortcut for this is Win+Up arrow or Win+Down arrow once you’ve already snapped the window to the left or the right of the screen. Finally, you can right-click on the taskbar and choose Cascade windows (to neatly layer windows on top of each other), Show windows stacked (to show all open windows, arranged vertically), or Show windows side by side (to show all open windows, arranged horizontally).
There are also several utilities that can give you even more control. Microsoft’s own PowerToys is free and includes a tool called FancyZones that lets you arrange windows in custom grids. AquaSnap is free too, and gives you a lot of flexibility when it comes to tiling windows next to each other and covering every part of the screen precisely with whatever window you want.
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