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How to Switch Windows on Chromebook

Chromebooks have become extremely capable laptops, with robust multitasking capabilities. Switching between open windows is easy once you know the various keyboard shortcuts and trackpad gestures available. Here are comprehensive tips for seamlessly navigating multiple windows on your Chromebook.

Use Keyboard Shortcuts

Keyboard shortcuts are the fastest way to switch windows on a Chromebook. Here are some of the most useful ones:

  • Alt + Tab – Hold down the Alt key and press Tab to cycle between open windows. Keep holding Alt and pressing Tab until you get to the window you want, then release.
  • Ctrl + N – Opens a new browser window.
  • Ctrl + T – Opens a new browser tab.
  • Ctrl + W – Closes the current tab.
  • Ctrl + Shift + T – Reopens the last closed tab.
  • Alt + [Number] – Launches an app pinned to your shelf, with Alt + 1 opening the leftmost pinned app, Alt + 2 opening the second from the left, and so on.

These allow you to quickly switch between windows and tabs without touching the trackpad or mouse.

Use Trackpad Gestures

In addition to keyboard shortcuts, Chromebooks support useful trackpad gestures for window management:

  • Three finger swipe up/down – See all your open windows
  • Three finger swipe left/right – Switch between open browser tabs
  • Three finger tap – Open a link in a new tab

Practice these gestures to swiftly navigate your open windows.

Drag Windows to Snap

You can “snap” windows to split your screen space:

  • Drag a window to the left/right edge to snap it there, taking up half the screen
  • Drag it to the top edge to maximize
  • Drag it away from the edges to restore/unsnap

This lets you easily view two windows side-by-side.

Use Overview Mode

The Overview mode gives you a bird’s eye view of all your open windows. To activate it:

  • Press the Show Windows key, which is usually where F5 is on most Chromebook keyboards
  • Or swipe up with three fingers on the trackpad

From Overview you can switch windows, snap them to split screen, and even move windows between virtual desks.

Organize With Virtual Desks

Virtual desks allow having multiple desktop spaces for organization:

  • Swipe four fingers left/right on the trackpad to switch between desks
  • Windows can be moved between desks from Overview mode for better grouping
  • Close unwanted desks from Overview to keep things clean

Use virtual desks as project workspaces to stay focused.

Customize With Flags

Enable experimental flags in Chrome OS to customize window management:

  1. Type chrome://flags in the address bar
  2. Search for “#partial-window-snapping”
  3. Change the dropdown to “Enabled”

This allows resizing windows to custom snap percentages like 67%/33%.

Conclusion

With keyboard shortcuts, trackpad gestures, window snapping, virtual desks, and flags, Chrome OS offers powerful window management. Practice the tips covered here to effortlessly multitask on your Chromebook. Let the productivity flow!

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