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I would like to explain myself very clearly since this issue gives chance to multiple misunderstandings.

When using Mac OSX there is a feature available that let you multiply your desktop very simply. So with just moving three fingers at the same time in the pad, I can go from a desktop with full applications on it to an empty desktop. If you move these three fingers vertically it let you see how many of these you have and can add more.

It is very simple and very convenient. It is not different accounts, it is not different environments, and it is definitely not using another physical monitor (most google goes to this last option so it is very difficult to google)

It does not require complicated setups. No virtual machines etc.it is not screen sharing etc.

It is just having more landscape available to you My question is, is there a way to reproduce this on windows 10?

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  • Use virtual desktop, an inbuilt feature in windows 10.
    – Valay_17
    Commented Apr 17, 2020 at 14:07

2 Answers 2

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Windows Task View

Windows Task View is a feature similar to that of Mission Control in Mac OSX.

How To Use Windows Task View

There are Three ways in which you can use Windows Task View in Windows 10.


Method 1: Using the Task View Button on the TaskBar.

Chances are your Task View button option might be disabled, so first thing to do, enabling the Task View Button.

  1. Right Click on your TaskBar and Select the Show Task View Button .

  1. Click on this button.

It will look like this

  1. Click on New Desktop.

  1. Switch between the two desktops using the button and mouse.

Method 2: Use of KeyBoard Shortcuts.

Here’s a list of useful shortcuts you can use.

  1. Opening the Task View window : WIN+TAB

  2. Switching Between Two Windows when the Task View window is open: Arrow Keys

  3. Create New Virtual Desktop : WIN+CTRL+ D

  4. Close Current Virtual Desktop : WIN+Ctrl+F4

  5. Switch to NEXT Virtual Desktop Directly(Similiar to swiping towards LEFT with Three Fingers on MAC OSX) : WIN+ CTRL+->

  6. Switch to PREVIOUS Virtual Desktop Directly(Similiar to swiping towards RIGHT with Three Fingers on MAC OSX) : WIN+ CTRL+<-


Method 3:

The Elephant in the Room

The Similar to Mac OSX Trackpad Swiping Feature in Windows 10

Note: This will work only if your laptop has a Precision Trackpad.

First:

To open the TaskView Window Directly, Swipe Up(Away from you) with Three fingers.Note, If you do this when on the Desktop, it will open your recent open window.

Second:

To go to your Desktop, Swipe Down(Towards you) with Three fingers.

Third and the most interesting for you:

Swipe towards RIGHT with Four fingers to move to your NEXT Virtual Desktop.

Fourth with the similar vibes:

Swipe towards LEFT with Four fingers to move to your PREVIOUS Virtual Desktop.

Extra:

If you swipe towards RIGHT or LEFT with Three fingers It will work similar to ALT+TAB.


Have fun utilizing your extra space. Make sure you have more than sufficient RAM, my suggestion is atleast 16GB of RAM.

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  • 2
    Thank you for this, whilst it's not exactly the same, it's as close as I'm going to get, It's annoying that it affects both screens :(. This is such a convenient feature as it is on MacOS, why can't MICROSOFT just do the way MacOS does it instead of the The Microsoft way™ that they always insist on.
    – Thermatix
    Commented Jun 22, 2021 at 9:11
  • @Thermatix /Affects both screens Can you emphasize a bit, maybe there is a solution to your problem.
    – Valay_17
    Commented Jun 22, 2021 at 9:50
  • @Valay_17, When I press ctrl+left/right on a mac it only affects the screen I'm currently active in (laptop or monitor but only one of them), when I do the equivalent on windows ctrl+win+left/right it affects all screens (both laptop and monitor). I think it's because both screens are one "desktop" and switching means switching the desktop where as a on a mac it treats different screens as different desktops.
    – Thermatix
    Commented Jun 22, 2021 at 10:36
  • @Thermatix Yeah that’s how Microsoft chose to do it. No workarounds on that.
    – Valay_17
    Commented Jun 22, 2021 at 11:45
3

It's as simple as Mac OSX.

  • To create a new desktop, press Control + Windows + D
  • To move through desktops, press Control + Windows and then 'left arrow' if you want to go to the previous desktop and 'right arrow' to move to the next desktop.

You can also see all your desktops clicking the multitask button at the right of Cortana (It's like a box with a cutted box at the top and in the bottom).

I hope it will work. Good luck!

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  • Hey, Is there a way to share the taskbar? For eg, If I have chrome open on desktop 1 & I am on desktop 2, I'd like to go back to chrome instead of opening a new window.
    – L.Goyal
    Commented Dec 4, 2023 at 11:29

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