Quick Screen Clear

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated January 25, 2021)

2

I often have a whole bunch of windows open on the screen at the same time. This is great, as it allows me to easily move between programs and transfer information. (I often transfer information between browser windows, Word, and Excel.) However, all the open windows can be a bit overwhelming at times, and sometimes it would be nice to work with only a single window.

The normal way to deal with this is to activate each program window and either close it or minimize it to the Taskbar. This can take a lot of time, however. A great shortcut in Windows is to use what is called "Aero Shake." (Cheesy name, I know.) Even though Aero was supposedly only a Windows 7 feature, this shortcut still works in later versions of Windows as well.

To see how it works, activate the single window you want to work on. Point to the window's title bar, click your mouse, and shake the mouse back and forth. What should happen is that all the other windows are automatically minimized, leaving only the single window open on the screen.

You'll probably have to play with this technique just a bit—it takes some finesse to get the shaking just right. When you do, it can be a real timesaver to quickly clear your desktop and focus on a single window.

 This tip (12561) applies to Windows 7, 8, and 10.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Adding a Missing Closing Bracket

When working with large amounts of data, it is a good idea to make sure that the data all consistently follows a pattern. ...

Discover More

Forcing a Worksheet to be Protected Again

Excel allows you to protect your worksheets so they can only be changed as you want to have happen. If you unprotect a ...

Discover More

Dynamically Changing Worksheet Tab Color

Excel makes it easy to change the color of a worksheet's tab. If you want that color change to be dynamic, one way to do ...

Discover More
More WindowsTips

Disabling USB Selective Suspending

USB Selective Suspending allows Windows to automatically (and without warning) suspend USB ports. Discover how to ...

Discover More

Understanding Optional Features

Windows 10 includes many features that are not enabled by default. Discover how to turn on or off the optional features ...

Discover More

Notice Your Notifications

Windows 10, by default, displays alerts or notifications for five seconds. If that's not enough time, you can increase ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WindowsTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is 1 + 8?

2021-02-01 12:36:13

Nolan

Awesome tip, man!

After all these years never knew that one.

2021-01-25 06:45:19

Geraldine Richardson

This is the craziest, cutest and one of the most useful tips I have ever seen. Who would have thought? Thanks again, Allen.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WindowsTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2022 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.