Windows 7 and Windows 8 include several accessibility features that can enhance your Windows experience. One of them, the magnifier tool, helps you read text that's too small and examine on-screen images in detail. Launch the tool and zoom in on your screen in a variety of ways. Windows also includes an enhanced taskbar that allows a user to pin important programs to the bottom of the screen. If you would like a zoom button on your taskbar, pin the magnifier tool there. You can then zoom your screen any time you like by clicking its icon.

1

Add zoom to taskbar

Swipe to the lower right and click on "Search" in Windows 8 or click the Start button in Windows 7. Type "Magnifier" (without the quotation marks) in the search box. The "Magnifier" icon appears at the top of the search results list.

Right click "Magnifier in Windows 8 and select "Pin to Taskbar" in the ioptions that appear at the bottom of the screen. For Windows 7, left-click "Magnifier," and hold down your left mouse button. Drag the icon from the Start menu to your taskbar. Windows pins it there.

  • Swipe to the lower right and click on "Search" in Windows 8 or click the Start button in Windows 7.
  • Right click "Magnifier in Windows 8 and select "Pin to Taskbar" in the ioptions that appear at the bottom of the screen.

Click the magnifier. The magnifier window opens. Click the "Plus" sign to zoom in on the screen. Click the "Minus" sign to zoom out. By default, each click zooms the screen or make it smaller by 100 per cent.

Click the icon shaped like a gear. The magnifier options window opens. This window has a slider that allows you to control how much the screen view changes when you click the "Plus" and "Minus" buttons.

Drag the slider to the left if you wish to make the zoom increment smaller. Drag it to the right to increase the increment. For instance, to cause each click to zoom in or out by 150 per cent instead of 100 per cent, drag the slider to the right. As you drag the slider, the current increment appears below the slider.

Click "OK" to set the increment value. Clicking "OK" closes the "Magnifier Options" window and returns you to the main magnifier window.

2

Set zoom options

Click the arrow next to the "Views" drop-down list in the magnifier window. Three options appear that allow you to determine how the tool magnifies the screen.

Click the "Full Screen" option if you want each click to zoom the entire screen. To zoom only a portion of the screen, click the "Lens" option instead. When you choose this option, Windows magnifies the area around your mouse cursor.

  • Click the arrow next to the "Views" drop-down list in the magnifier window.
  • Click the "Full Screen" option if you want each click to zoom the entire screen.

Click the "Docked" option if you do not wish to use the previous two options. After activating the "Docked" option, you can choose the portion of the screen you wish to magnify. This option comes in handy when part of the screen displays small text and the other part does not.

TIP

Pinned items remain on the taskbar until you remove them. To remove the magnifier icon, right-click it and then click "Unpin this program from taskbar." The taskbar is fluid -- you can move icons to order them any way you like. For instance, to place the magnifier zoom icon at the beginning of the taskbar, click the icon, hold your left mouse button and drag it to the left until it reaches the desired location.

WARNING

If your version of Windows 7 does not support the "Aero" theme, you can only choose the "Docked" viewing option. (See References and search for "Aero")