Calling all Win 7 experts

Has ANYONE figured out how to stop Windows 7 from shifting your windows around on the screen constantly? I'm talking about both simply bumping a screen edge and various normal actions that jump a dialog window completely to the opposite side of the screen.

What system programmer believes he knows where MY windows should ne??

If there's a way to make things stay where you put them, HOW?

 

I personaly love this feature, But if you open the control panel, then go to the ease of access center. From there click on "Make the mouse easier to use" And then remove the checkbox for “Prevent windows from being automatically arranged when moved to the edge of the screen”, and then click the Apply button it should stop this from happening.

 

Yes, turn off Aero, is how you stop the behavior if that is what you are talking about. http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/wind...e-drag-window-arranging-feature-in-windows-7/

 

You can also disable it and keep aero going.

http://www.howtogeek.com/howto/wind...e-drag-window-arranging-feature-in-windows-7/

I don't run Windows 7 anymore, but you can see how to here. It is an accessibility feature for the mouse.

 

If you use it that's your business, but here's my issue.

Laptop - word processor. Huge file covering essentially all of the screen.

I bring up the Find & Replace which window covers a LOT of the text. I put in my search term and move the search window so it's in the margin instead of covering text. I leave just enough of it out to click the Find and Replace buttons. Get too close to the edge of the screen a time or two and the thing is covering up text again. Otherwise I have to move the Find window each and every time I do a Find, because if it locates my Find word and that word is under the search window I can't see it. Doing a repeat Find on a large document is a real time killer when a chunk of the text can't be seen.

Frankly I can't imagine why anyone would want the system to move your window to a different place than you put it, but, again, that's your business.

But the worst part is that the setting you described, which looks to me like it makes sense one way or the other, doesn't stop the window from jumping out - no matter which way it is set and applied....

 

I'm getting the impression we're not talking about the same thing. Yes, I drag a window where I want it, but the material in the above link seems to be on a different subject. :confused

 

One of my main issues doesn't seem to have been mentioned yet.

In the same situation I described regarding the Find window there are two separate problems.

1. Bumping the edge of the screen jumps the ofscreen window out a little at a time.

2. That utility (in OpenOffice Writer) opens in the lower right of the screen, covering text. When it does a Find and locates a word the window jumps clear back to where it first opened. This may be system or programming or both. Either way I hate it.

Why would a programmer think the Find utility MUST be on top of the text you are searching in? It's not only a time killer moving it out of the way - it just doesn't make any sense. It reminds me of Amazon, always setting features back to the starting point instead of leaving it where you are working.

So I'm exactly where I started. Win 7 puts my windows where SOMEBODY ELSE wants them.

Have you found Windows 8 to be an improvement over 7? In 7 I keep getting locked out of different folders and files. And I'm the one and only user/admin.

 

I've never experienced any of the above-described behavior. Does Win 7 Home Premium not have this "feature?"

 

Actually what you are talking about, is what is in the link. When you move a window to the edge of the screen, it "Snaps" to it, or attaches to the edge. To stop that behavior, you need to follow the instructions in the link.

Now if you are stating where you are getting a behavior as if you have two monitors on a computer, but really have one attached, that is a whole different story.

 

I have no idea. Pro came with the laptop I bought.

 

Yes, there seems to be some misunderstanding or confusion in this discussion. And, I agree, some replies seem to have missed the point. As I understand you, you are talking about the Find, or Find and Replace command in Microsoft Word. It the panel that is opened by keyboard shortcuts Ctrl/F or Control/H. Is that correct?

The same keyboard shortcuts also work in WordPad. Please state exactly what software you are using. I believe the behavior you've described depends on the particular software you're using, not the operating system, although I'm not absolutely sure about this.

At the moment, I'm using my new laptop with Windows 8. I just installed Office 2007. If I open Word and open the Find/Replace panel, close it and then open it again, it positions itself in the same location it was closed. I gather that is what you want but it's not working that way for you. Is that right?

If, on the other hand, I open WordPad and do the same thing, the Find or Replace panel opens at the same position with the WordPad window, regardless of what I had moved it prior to closing it.

If I'm on the right track here, I don't know how you can alter this behavior. I would guess a change in the registry might do the trick but I have no specific information to support that notion at this time.

 

Reading this, I think there were two issues. ColemanGuy's fix is clearly the right one for the first one. I recall when I found that fix myself some time ago...

The second issue is likely a "feature" of the software and likely beyond an easy fix.

 

If they are talking about the Navigation Window that comes up, when you do a Ctrl-F, you can resize or move the window if you wish.

With the Ribbon, they messed things up with Office 2k7 onward. Even worst, is now the Ribbon is a part of Windows 8, but they at least left the search bar in Explorer.

 

I've seen nothing in his comments that has anything to do with a "Navigation Window". Seems clear to me what he's talking about, as indicated in the quote below:

These Find & Replace panels that appear in Word and WordPad cannot be resized.

 

And this:

Which is a different problem...

 

I opened up the Find & Replace panel, and it is the same size that it has always been since Office 2k3. Now of course, it changed with the interface on Win8, to coincide with the changes to the gui for the desktop.

It still does not take up that much space, and is easy to close if you do not need it. Really no need to keep it open the whole time, unless you do like we do at my job, which is use a spreadsheet to keep Pharmaceutical information in, that we have to look up off of for what is called the NDC. Find is small in 2k7 as I stated before, but yes is larger in 2k10, even larger in 2k13.

Nothing you can do about it, when Microsoft designs their software to work with widescreen & multi-screen monitor setups.

Now of course, if you have a widescreen monitor, you open the Navigation pane, vs. the Find floating window.

Of course you could build your own Ribbon. More info at http://windowssecrets.com/forums/showthread.php/135656-Add-ins-tab-in-Word-2010

 

Exactly what is the Navigation pane/window? How would he use it to find something in, for example, a Word file?

 

Ctrl-f in Office 2k10 opens up a "Navigation" window. It is more prevelent on Wndows 8.

 

OK, I found references, including a good video at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dO5DSla9Gqo, confirming that feature in Office 2010 but JimLL never said he's using Word. He mentioned OfficeOffice. So, I think we're beating a dead horse here by talking about MS Office.

 

Even the box for Open Office is no different from the conventional Find window in Microsoft Office.