How to Create a "Show Desktop" Shortcut in Windows 7 and Windows 8
Information
Show Desktop was a feature present in Windows XP and Windows Vista, but has been changed to the
Aero Peek/Show Desktop button on the bottom right corner of the screen, near the Notification Area in
Windows 7 and
Windows 8.
This tutorial will show you how to create or download a
Show Desktop shortcut that you can use anywhere in
Windows 7 and
Windows 8.
Note
By default in Windows 7, the
taskbar button on the far right side is for
Show Desktop and
Aero Peek.
OPTION ONE
To Download the "Show Desktop" Shortcut
1. Click/tap on the Download button below to download the
Show_Desktop.zip file.
2. Save the .zip file to your desktop.
3. Open the .zip file, and extract (drag and drop) the Show Desktop shortcut to your desktop
.
4. Unblock the
Show Desktop shortcut.
5. In
Windows 7, you can now
Pin to Taskbar or
Pin to Start Menu, add to
Quick Launch,
assign a keyboard shortcut to it, or move this shortcut to where you like for easy use.
6. In
Windows 8 and 8.1, you can
Pin to Taskbar on desktop,
Pin to Start screen, add to
Quick Launch,
assign a keyboard shortcut to it, or move this shortcut to where you like for easy use.
7. When finished, you can delete the downloaded .zip file if you like.
OPTION TWO
To Manually Create the "Show Desktop" Shortcut
1. Right click or press and hold on an empty area on your desktop, and click/tap on New and Shortcut.
2. Copy and paste the location below into the location area, and click/tap on Next. (see screenshot below)
%windir%\explorer.exe shell:::{3080F90D-D7AD-11D9-BD98-0000947B0257}
3. Type
Show Desktop for the name, and click/tap on the
Finish button. (see screenshot below)
NOTE: You can name this anything you would like though.
4. Right click or press and hold on the new
Show Desktop shortcut, and click/tap on
Properties.
5. Click/tap on the
Shortcut tab, then click/tap on the
Change Icon button. (see screenshot below)
6. In the line under "Look for icons in this file", copy and paste the location below, and press
Enter. (see screenshot below)
%SystemRoot%\system32\imageres.dll
7. Select the icon highlighted in blue above, and click/tap on
OK. (see screenshot above)
NOTE: You can use any icon that you would like instead though.
8. Click/tap on
OK. (see screenshot below)
9. In
Windows 7, you can now
Pin to Taskbar or
Pin to Start Menu, add to
Quick Launch,
assign a keyboard shortcut to it, or move this shortcut to where you like for easy use.
10. In
Windows 8 and 8.1, you can
Pin to Taskbar on desktop,
Pin to Start screen, add to
Quick Launch,
assign a keyboard shortcut to it, or move this shortcut to where you like for easy use.
Hope this helps,
Victor Ly