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Dear PC Doctor,
When working from my Windows 7 computer, I need to have a few programs open. Usually it's Microsoft Excel and the calculator. However, every time I switch from using the calculator to Excel, the calculator vanishes behind the Excel window. Is there a way for me to set the calculator to always be on top?
Thanks, Aaron
Dear Aaron,
Unfortunately that isn't a native feature in Windows 7. You can work with what you've got by resizing the windows so both fit on the screen but this doesn't work very well if you're working on a large spreadsheet in Excel.
However, there is a small app that you can easily download to get this feature. In your internet browser, visit http://tinyurl.com/APLPCDOCTOR. This will automatically start a download. The download is a .zip file. After it downloads, find the file location (typically in Downloads or My Downloads) and double-click it. Next select the “always-on-top.exe” file and click Extract and then choose the location you'd like to save it to. (Desktop is an easy place to remember). After it finishes downloading, go to your Desktop and double-click the new icon on your desktop. The software is so small that you won't see anything popup. Don't worry, it's probably working fine.
After starting up the program, find the window that you'd like to stay on top of all your other windows. Select it as if you were about to use the program then press the Spacebar key on your keyboard while holding down the CTRL key. Next, open another window and test it out. The window you chose should now be on top of the other window.
Just to be safe, you'll want to run the “always-on-top” every time you restart your computer.
Good luck! PC Doctor
Until next time… happy computing!
Posted: to Athol Library News on Fri, Aug 16, 2013
Updated: Fri, Aug 16, 2013