Windows 8 In Depth

Taking Control of the Notification Area

The notification area (sometimes called by its old name, the system tray) on the right side of the taskbar has been a fixture on the Windows landscape since Windows 95, and for most people it’s either really useful or it’s a complete waste of otherwise useful taskbar space. You’re more likely to fall into the latter camp if your notification area in earlier versions of Windows was bristling with icons, as shown in Figure 24.15.

Figure 24.15. An out-of-control notification area.

Horror stories of notification areas threatening to take over the taskbar must have inspired Microsoft to rein in the bloat, so ...