Windows 10 Virtual Desktop Shortcut | Windows 10 Multiple Desktops

This post elaborates a neat trick to switch between Windows 10 Multiple Desktops. It will also tell you about a Windows 10 virtual desktop shortcut that you probably might not have come across yet.

So the other day my one-year-old niece barged in on my laptop and started pressing random keys. I had unsaved work on my desktop and I didn’t even have a chance to save my drafts. Her hands were on the touchpad and I noticed my desktop sliding away to pave way for another one.

Whoa!

The first thought was, “Dammit! I lost all my data.” But then I tried to do what she was doing and I noticed that it had simply switched to a different desktop. That was a big relief. I didn’t even know my Operating System had that feature when I started digging in to find out more.

Yes, Windows 10 comes with the ability to switch to different desktop screens which allows you to work on different workspaces giving you an impression as if you are working on separate machines.

I will tell you what the Windows 10 Virtual Desktop Shortcut is, that I had encountered accidentally but first let’s understand what Windows 10 Multiple Desktops are all about.

Windows 10 Multiple Desktops

Do you remember coming across people or movie clips wherein multiple machines are lined up against each other? And the guy who is working on them is doing so simultaneously. He has to monitor all the screens for data, do an analysis before preparing a report on the third one.

Or just go back in time for a while, when you were a kid, and you were copying homework from your friend’s notebook, at the same time watching your favorite cartoon show. Didn’t you like it better then? Since all you had to do was to lift your head, and multitask.

Well Windows 10 provides you with a feature to multitask with desktops. Yes, you heard that right. Switching to workspace isn’t just limited to Alt + Tab task switcher. Now you can move your entire screen in a jiffy and people wouldn’t even have a clue as to how.

Steps to Use Windows 10 Multiple Desktops Feature a.k.a. Task View

Before I tell you all about the Windows 10 Virtual Desktop Shortcut that you could use to trick people or escape tricky situations, I would like to first show you a step by step process to use the multiple desktops feature.

Step 1: Click on the Windows Task View button. It will be located on your task bar (at the bottom of your screen) right next to the search box.

Doing so will take you to a new screen, that will showcase all your open windows. You will notice that it is from here too, you could navigate to any open window. A task probably slower than what pressing Alt + Tab does for you.

Step 2: Look for the option of “New Desktop” towards the bottom right corner.

Just click on the + sign and it will create a new desktop for you.

As you can see in the picture above a small thumbnail of the desktop begins to show.

Step 3: Click anywhere on the screen and it will open the newly created desktop for you.

Here’s how my newly created desktop looks like:

I know it looks uggo, right?

Moving on.

You can create as many desktops as you want following the above three steps. I will go ahead and create three more to show you how easy it is.

Navigating through and Closing Virtual Desktops

Alright, so how do you get back?

Just click on the thumbnail you wish to navigate to, and it will take you to the concerned desktop.

Easy-peasy! Right?

So you are done working on your current virtual desktop, or maybe opened accidentally an extra virtual desktop, and now you wish to close it.

Notice there’s a small close button option on top of each thumbnail. You can just click on it, and it will get rid of the said desktop.

Windows 10 Virtual Desktop Shortcut

This takes us to a series of Windows 10 Virtual Desktop Shortcuts that I came across to accomplish the above tasks even more easily.

The first shortcut deals with switching virtual desktops in Windows 10. And I would like to thank my niece for that.

So in order to switch between open desktops all you have to do is use four fingers like this:

and then swipe it gently towards left or right whichever direction your Desktops are at.

Amazing right?

NOTE: If gestures on your touchpad device are not working, then you probably haven’t updated your 10 compatible touchpad driver. You can also do that manually by going to Device Manager and then by updating your Touchpad driver.

Another great shortcut for the above is:

Windows key + Ctrl + Right or Left

For creating a new virtual desktop you can press:

Windows key + Ctrl + D

For closing an open Desktop you can press:

Windows key + Ctrl + F4

Benefits of Using Windows 10 Virtual Desktop Shortcut

You must be wondering why would I need a Windows 10 Virtual Desktop shortcut for. Well to that I have listed some useful and preposterous reasons that might help you relate.

• Makes working with virtual desktops effortless
• You want to prank your younger brother/sister
• You are watching porn and your mom walks in
• Your boss shows up unannounced
• You want to close a software from a different desktop so no one could tell what you were doing
• Multitasking of course

Limitations of Windows 10 Multiple Desktop Feature

Although Windows 10 provides you the feature to jump over to different screens there are certain limitations that we wish the future releases to patch. Here are some of the limitations:

• You can’t change the wallpaper of individual desktop screens.
• You can’t drag and drop programs to different desktop screens.
• Applications running in the first desktop can be closed from another opened virtual desktop. (Don’t know whether it is a good or a bad thing. Debatable!)

By the final point, I mean your taskbar manager window remains the same for all of the desktops. If there is something you wish to stop an application from another virtual desktop, you can do so by right clicking on the taskbar and opening Taskbar manager.

You can then search for the concerned application on the list, and then click on End Task button to close it.

In the above example I was trying to close VLC Media Player from another virtual window.

And Success!

Like this amazing trick? Don’t forget to check out more cool tips and tricks on DITD.