When you watch television the entire screen is filled with only one thing, the picture (unless you are one of the lucky ones with the picture-in-a-picture feature). A computer is similar to the TV in that the main part of its screen is the viewing area. You may be looking at an e-mail, a word processing document, or a Web page in the center of the screen. The main part of the computer screen, however, is often surrounded by a bevy of little menus, icons, buttons, and bars. Most of us learn to tune out all of this superfluous information, just as we may tune out a television commercial. However, every now and then, it's good to stop and take a close look at the entire computer screen. Some of those little things that we often overlook are worthwhile tools that can make our computing easier.

Have you ever noticed a set of icons to the right of the Start button on the Windows taskbar? This area is called the Quick Launch bar, and these icons can be used to instantly launch the applications they represent. This toolbar is handy since it is constantly accessible. You don't have to go back to the Windows desktop to start a new program. If you use the same program(s) day after day but are still clicking on the Start button, choosing Programs, then looking for a program when you want to use it, the Quick Launch bar will save you time and effort by substituting one click for the three or four that you now use just to open a program.

The Quick Launch bar is a handy area designed to include the applications that you use most often. Yet, this area sometimes becomes cluttered because some eager applications automatically add an icon to it when they are installed. Start by removing any icons in the Quick Launch area that you don't use often. First, look at the icons. You may recognize them by their appearance.  If you don't recognize an icon, hold your mouse arrow over the item for a second or two and a pop-up box will appear with the name of the program that the icon represents. If you still don't know what the icon does, just click on it and see which program starts.

If you find an icon that represents a program you don't use often, hold your mouse arrow over the icon, then right-click and choose Delete from the pop-up menu. This will not delete the program, but will simply remove the program icon from the Quick Launch toolbar. If you are a bit squeamish about deleting an item like some folks I know, just drag the icon to the desktop instead. This will remove it from the toolbar and place it on the desktop. As a matter of fact, this can be a good way to practice adding and removing items from the Quick Launch area. Just drag the same icon back and forth between the desktop and the Quick Launch area a few times so you can see how it all works.

Now you are ready to add icons for the programs that you do use often. To add an application, find the program icon, then drag and drop it onto the Quick Launch area. If you already have a shortcut for the program in question on your Windows desktop, you can drag any shortcut from your desktop onto the Quick Launch bar. When your cursor is over an empty area of the Quick Launch toolbar, it will turn into a large letter "I". The shadow of the icon will also be visible, so the "I" may be slightly difficult to see. Once you drop the icon onto the Quick Launch bar, the shortcut icon will remain on your desktop and will also appear on the Quick Launch bar.

If you don't have a shortcut to the program on your desktop, you can still easily add it to the Quick Launch bar. Just click on the Start button, then choose Programs, then find and highlight the program as you would normally do to start the program. However, instead of clicking to start the program, right-click your mouse on the program name, hold the right mouse button down, and drag the program name to the Quick Launch bar. You can also left-click on the icon and drag it to the Quick Launch bar; however this will remove the program from the program list which is not a very good idea. Better to right-click and drag which will create an icon in the Quick Launch area and still let that program retain its current position in your Program menu.

A Web site can also be added to the Quick Launch bar. When you are looking at the Web page that you want to put on the Quick Launch bar, simply drag the location icon from the top of the screen and drop it on the Quick Launch bar. In Internet Explorer and Netscape 6, the location icon is on the Address Bar just to the left of the actual address (http://www). In earlier versions of Netscape Navigator, the location icon on the Address Bar is to the left of the word Location.

By default, four icons are displayed on the Quick Launch bar. To make more space to display additional icons, hold your mouse arrow over the vertical bar on the right side of the Quick Launch icons until it turns into a double-sided horizontal arrow. Then drag the bar to the right.

Take the time to customize your Quick Launch bar with icons for the programs you use most often. You will appreciate this handy toolbar for the time it saves you and for its ease of use. I'm sure you'll understand why I give the Quick Launch bar my Compu-KISS« kiss of approval. Quick Launch Keeps It Short and Simple!