By default, the Quick Launch bar is not available in Windows 7, 8, 8.1 & 10. To open programs quickly, you can drag the program icons to the taskbar.

However, you can follow the steps in this article to restore the Quick Launch bar and the Show Desktop button as it was in Microsoft Windows Vista and Windows XP.

1. Right-click an empty area of the taskbar, point to Toolbars, and then click New Toolbar.

2. In the dialog box, copy and then paste the following folder name to the Folder box, and then click Select Folder:

Windows 7
%AppData%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch

Windows 8, Windows 8.1 & Windows 10
%UserProfile%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch

Note that on Windows 10, you will have to keep the Taskbar Search Icon set to HIDDEN.