Customizing Windows Sidebar on Windows Vista

Windows Sidebar is a long vertical bar that is displayed on the left/right side of your desktop. It contains mini-programs called gadgets, which offer information at a glance and provide easy access to frequently used tools.

Run, exit, show, or hide Windows Sidebar

- You can run Windows Sidebar via : Start menu > All Programs > Accessories > Windows Sidebar. Then Windows sidebar appears on the right side of desktop.

- If you want exit from Windows Sidebar, right-click on Windows Sidebar icon on the taskbar, and then click Exit. Now Windows Sidebar and its icon on taskbar disappear.

- If Windows Sidebar is closed (not exit), and you want to show it again, then right-click on Windows Sidebar icon on taskbar, and then click Open. Now it appears again.

- If  you want to just hide Windows Sidebar but not exit, so right-click on empty area on the Sidebar, then click Close Sidebar. Now it disappears but not exit.

Customize Windows Sidebar

Through Windows Sidebar Properties window, you can decide whether:
- Sidebar will run when Windows Vista starts
- Sidebar is always on top of other windows
- Sidebar is locate on the left side or the right side of desktop

To open Windows Sidebar Properties window, right-click the Sidebar icon on the taskbar, and then click Properties.
Next, please notice this picture:

Don't forget to finish by clicking OK button.


Add, remove, and customize a gadget

You can easily add, remove and customize gadget inside the Sidebar.

To add a gadget:
1. Right-click on empty area in Sidebar, and then clic Add Gadgets.
2. On gadget gallery window, Double-click a gadget to add it. Please notice the picture below:

To remove a gadget from Sidebar:
1. Right-click the gadget, then click Close Gadget.

To customize a gadget:
1. Right-click the gadget, and then click Options. (Note that some gadgets might not have options)
2. On the gadget properties window, change the settings, and then finish it by clicking OK button.


Detach a gadget from Sidebar

It's quite easy to detach a gadget and put it on desktop:
Right-click the gadget you want to detach, then click Detach from Sidebar. Now it's not in Sidebar. You can also detach the gadget by dragging it from Sidebar to other area on the desktop.

In order to send back the gadget to Sidebar, just drag it into the Sidebar. It automatically arranges its position in Sidebar.