Remove gadgets from the Sidebar in Windows Vista
This tutorial shows you how to remove (hide) gadgets that are currently displayed on the Windows Sidebar (or floating) in Windows Vista. This will not completely remove the gadget from your computer: it will only hide it. It can be restored to the Sidebar at a later stage. Another tutorial will show you how to completely uninstall Sidebar gadgets from Windows Vista.
Removing a gadget
Hiding a gadget, whether it is docked on the Sidebar, or floating somewhere on your screen, is quite easy: move your mouse cursor above the gadget you want to close, and a side toolbar will appear. The mini toolbar contains three icon buttons: a close button, a settings button, and a "grabber" to move the gadget.
Click the gadget's close button, and the gadget disappears from view. Again, this does not delete or uninstall the gadget, it simply "closes" it, like any other Windows program. To restore the gadget you just closed, just read our "Add gadgets to the Sidebar" tutorial.
The Sidebar gadgets' toolbar is part of Windows Vista, not part of the gadgets themselves: this means that all gadgets, whether created by Microsoft or third-party, will display the same mini toolbar when you hover with your mouse over their area of the screen.
Vista does not delete gadgets you remove from the Sidebar
Once again: any time you remove a gadget from the sidebar, Windows Vista does not delete the gadget or uninstall any of your gadgets. It merely makes the gadget in question "invisible", but as you will see if you launch the gadget gallery, it is still there. Just drag it onto the sidebar if you want it back. Also, keep in mind that unlike regular programs, Vista gadgets are only allowed to store data while they are running inside the sidebar: take for example the Notes gadget that ships with Vista: if you remove it from the sidebar, and add it back a few seconds later, all your notes are gone! Keep this in mind when removing gadgets from the sidebar.