Using Task Manager to Shutdown Applications

Windows: End Task on the Task Manager

To close a program that's frozen on Windows:

• Press Ctrl+Shift+Esc to directly open the Task Manager.
• In the Applications tab, click on the program that's not responding (the status will say "Not Responding") and then click the End Task button.
• In the new dialog box that appears, click End Task to close the application.

These instructions were found on LifeHacker.com.  If you've never used the Task Manager to close applications before, I would recommend opening a few programs (Word, Internet Explorer, etc) and try closing them using Task Manager.  Don't forget that this feature is often helpful when a program has frozen and will not let you close it down in the regular fashion.