Windows has so many handy little features hidden all over the place, you can often forget they’re there and until someone reminds you. Here’s a reminder.
Since I work overseas, I have to keep track of several times zones so that I know when my editors will be online and when would be a good time to call my family. One way to do this is just by doing the math in your head or typing “time [city name]” into Google.
But if you want this information at hand for a quick glance, Windows has a built-in solution.
The system tray clock in Windows 7 and 8.1 can display up to three different world times at once. Here’s how it works.
Changing settings
The standard clock and calendar in Windows 8.1.
Click on the time and date in the lower right corner of your taskbar. A window should pop-up displaying your current time as well as a calendar.
Click on Change date and time settings… In the window that opens, switch over to the Additional Clocks tab.
If you want to show another clock, tick one of the checkboxes labeled Show this clock. Select the time zone you’d like to track from the drop down menu. All times are organized based on how many hours ahead or behind they are from Coordinated Universal Time (UTC).
The built-in Windows clock lets you keep tabs on three time zones at once.
Once you’ve selected the appropriate time zones, give each clock a label under “Enter display name.” These labels can be anything you want such as a city name, “Mom,” the name of a sibling, or whatever suits you best.
Next, click Apply then OK and you’re done.
Now whenever you want to see your multiple time zones, just drop your mouse down to the lower right side of the Taskbar, click on the date and time, and your clocks will appear in a pop-up window.
Hover your mouse over the time and date in the taskbar to see this pop-up menu.
You could also just hover over the time in the taskbar and a small yellow pop-up window will appear with all your time zones in digital time format.
Microsoft doesn’t provide a keyboard shortcut for the clock, but you can get there with the keyboard by tapping Windows Key + B. Cycle through the tray with your arrow keys until the time and date are highlighted.
[via Lifehacker]