How to Close a Not Responding Program

Generally, a program may throw the digital equivalent of a temper tantrum and refuse to close.When that happens, you can force it to shut down by using the Task Manager, as follows:...


1. Simultaneously press the Ctrl, Alt, and Delete keys on your keyboard, which opens the Windows Task Manager. (However, if your version of Windows is configured differently, then pressing these keys might open a Windows Security box. In that case, simply click the Task Manager button.)

2. Click the Applications tab.

3. Click the name of the unresponsive program.

4. At the bottom of the Task Manager, click the End Task button.

5. If the troubled program doesn’t close immediately, a message alerts you that the program is not responding. Click the End Now button.

6. If the program still does not respond, or if Windows feels sluggish, then shut down your computer and restart it.