Alt-Tab Thingy - Windows Task Switcher Alternative

Do you know that you can switch between open windows / tasks using the Alt+Tab key combination? It is of course much faster than reaching for your mouse to select a particular window that you want to use. The Alt+Tab key has long been the most popular and favorite task switcher for keyboard-geeks in Windows.

However, the effectiveness of this key will decrease when there are lots of open windows at one time. One obvious problem is that you need to press the Alt+Tab key several times to reach for a particular window and it is easy to get lost since there may be many windows open for the same application.

Alt-Tab Thingy is a free task switcher that aims to replace the original Alt+Tab key combo with some useful features.

“Alt-Tab Thingy” is an Alt+Tab replacement utility exclusive for windows XP users only. It works like the original, with a simple twist. You still need to press the Alt-Tab key to bring out Alt-Tab Thingy task list but this time, you don’t have to keep the Alt key pressed to switch between the items.

With this tool, you can use the cursor keys (arrow keys) to move back and forth between the task items. To bring a window forward once you have made a selection, just tap the Enter key once. Simple isn’t it!

Alt-Tab Thingy Features

• Improved Alt+Tab interface with open windows icons arranged neatly with its corresponding name on the window bar.

• Use the keyboard cursor keys to move between items in the task list. Alternatively, you can also use your mouse to open the task list and move between items using the mouse wheel.
• View your open window items in list mode or icon mode. I recommend the list mode for a much better view of windows from the same application.
• Taskbar Preview - if you mouse-over on any window on the taskbar, you will get a quick live-preview of it. Cool!

• Ghost function allows you to keep any window of your choice to be always on top, with a transparent effect applied. This way, other application underneath this window will still be visible for you to work on.

• Disable Alt-Tab completely - a useful feature if you are need to use the Alt or Tab key for a computer game. Can you do this with the original? I doubt it.

• Tooltip for extended information on each task list item - for example; the application memory usage.
• Minimize any open window to the system tray, instead of the taskbar. Super useful to keep your task bar clear from clutter.
• Blacklist feature allows you to define applications that won’t appear in a task list.
• Change the size of icon and text size on the task list.
• Auto minimizes open windows after a certain period of inactivity e.g. after 10 minutes.
• Change Windows resolution from within Alt-Tab Thingy settings screen.
• Set Alt-Tab Thingy task switcher to auto-start on Windows boot.

If you still prefer to use Alt-Tab but still want to use some of the features of this task switcher tool, you can map Alt-Tab Thingy to a different key combo and have both of them working inside your computer. Overall, I must say that Alt-Tab Thingy is a good, fast and effective replacement for the default Alt+Tab key combo. Try it today!