The fastest way to launch one of the first five shortcuts on the taskbar is to press the Windows key and then the corresponding number. Release the Windows key to revert to the active window. You can get the same temporary desktop glimpse by pressing the Windows key and the spacebar. The Aero Peek box at the end of the Windows 7 taskbar provides a quick glimpse of the desktop. This differs from the Windows key+D shortcut in that the Aero Peek focus doesn't shift to the desktop but returns to the active window when you scroll away. Scrolling over the box hides all open windows to show the desktop. Windows 7's taskbar adds the Aero Peek box on the far right (or the bottom of taskbars arranged vertically). (Pressing the Windows+Shift+up arrow/down arrow keys docks the window to the top and bottom of the screen, respectively.) To maximize the window, press the Windows key and the up arrow key to restore or minimize the window, hit the Windows key and the down arrow key. You can achieve the same effect by pressing the Windows key and the left or right arrow keys. One of the most popular of Windows 7's interface enhancements is the ability to dock windows to the left and right side of the screen simply by dragging them to either screen edge. Resize, rearrange, and reorganize open windows from the keyboard

They let you launch applications, jump between and rearrange open windows, and sort through layers of folders in Windows Explorer faster than you can with a mouse. The most recent additions to my handy-dandy roster of keystroke combos help you navigate in Windows 7. I enhanced the list last May with a bunch of keyboard shortcuts specifically for Microsoft Word. Back in April 2008 I described how to create an easy-access list of keyboard shortcuts and Windows commands. Keyboard shortcuts are such great time-savers that I mistakenly assume everyone uses them. (I prefer to keep my desktop clear of icons by placing my desktop shortcuts on a menu that pops out of the taskbar, as I explained in a post from May 2008.)

I had been using Windows 7's Start menu search box to launch Firefox and other apps for so long I neglected to add a Firefox shortcut to my taskbar.

'Press the Windows key, type f, and press Enter,' I told him. 'Hey, don't you have Firefox on this machine?' The other day a visiting relative asked if he could use my laptop to check his Facebook account.

Best windows 7 shortcuts