In a multitasking world, it's not unusual to have many (or many, many) windows open on your computer at the same time, which is amply illustrated by this screenshot of my own taskbar.
So, when you need to minimize all those windows to get to something on your Desktop, it can be a real pain. (Yes, I'm THAT lazy.) Fortunately, there are faster alternatives.
Among those small icons at the right of your taskbar is one called Show Desktop. In Windows Vista, it looks like this (only way, way smaller...:)
Note: In earlier versions of Windows, you can mouse over the icons and a tooltip will pop up that shows its name.
Click once, and all your windows will be minimized at once so your Desktop is showing.
Click it again, and all the windows are restored to their previous state.
Alternate Methods
* Keyboard shortcut: WINDOWS + D. (Windows is the key with the Windows logo on it, between CTRL and ALT.)
* Right-click on any empty space on the taskbar (not on a button or icon), and select Show the Desktop.
Bonus Tip!
If your Desktop tends to look less like the one I showed above and a little more like this:
You can easily hide your icons simply by right-clicking on the Desktop (not on an icon). Then, from the View menu, click on Show Desktop Icons to remove the checkmark beside it.
You might want to do this, for example, if you're using your laptop to give a presentation and don't necessarily want your audience to know about your fondness for funny cat videos (just speaking hypothetically of course... :).
