How to Rid Program Icons From the Toolbar

Ridding yourself of unneeded icons can reduce visual clutter and increase productivity. One potential source of clutter is toolbar icons. The Windows 7 toolbar, commonly known as the taskbar, holds your Start menu, a list of active programs and the Notification Area. As programs add new icons to the toolbar, you may find it difficult to manage your workflow. Correct this problem by displaying only the icons you want to see.

• 1

  Locate the small arrow in the Notification area on the right side of the toolbar. It is near the system clock.

• 2

  Right-click the arrow and select "Customize Notification Icons." A window will open and display a list of the Notification Area icons.

• 3

  Click the drop-down box next to an icon that you want to hide. A list of options will appear.

• 4

  Select "Hide Icon and Notifications" or "Only Show Notifications." If you select the first option, Windows will hide the icon, but it will not notify you of system changes or updates. Choose the second option to hide the icon and still receive notifications.

• 5

  Repeat the previous two steps for each icon that you wish to remove.