Windows 8.1 - Another little hint...

If you're using Windows 8.1 and you are for example reading a news App and you happen to move the mouse pointer down into the zone where your taskbar is normally located, and suddenly, that taskbar magically re-appears, and you don't know why, because you haven't set it to automatically hide itself, and even if you had, it shouldn't be showing up in these conditions, here's why, and how you can fix it....

To see this little window, right-click an empty area of your Taskbar and choose "Properties" down at the bottom of the list. In its Default condition, this window does not have a check-mark in the box for "Auto-hide the taskbar" so why is it suddenly seeming to behave as if it had a check-mark in that box?

Because: Down further, there's another item "Show Windows Store apps on the Taskbar." This is one of the "improvements" in Windows 8.1, and it comes with its check-mark already in the box. So you get surprised by your taskbar appearing when you didn't expect it, because Mighty Microsoft is apparently starving to death to the point where they are willing to risk our displeasure rather than miss an opportunity to once again hustle us for a buck. You have to be aware of this, and remove that little check-mark from the box to stop that taskbar popping up when you hadn't expected or wanted it, and you wouldn't know this unless someone points this out. And that someone would be me... 

Just for the record, here's that same Taskbar Properties window in Windows 8, and as you see, there's nothing about showing Windows Store Apps on the Taskbar, or anywhere else. That's because back in Windows 8, we know where to find our Apps, and we don't need to be beaten over the head with them.... so today's Question Everything is:- "Isn't Progress wonderful? Don't you love it?"