Microsoft rolled out touchpad gestures along with Windows 8. The general consensus is that touch gestures for Windows computers weren't very useful given the technology widely available at the time, but these days, that's not true at all. Since then, they've given us several new gestures—ones that are actually very useful for everyday use. We might even dare to call them essential.

With the advent of 2-in-1 laptops, many of us don't even have to decide between touchpads and touchscreens anymore. If you aren't making full use of Windows touch gestures in your own life, we implore that you give this list a look. You just might be surprised by how useful some of them are, even for casual users.

Touchpad Gestures System Requirements

Before diving in, you should be aware that some Windows touchpad gestures will only work with a precision touchpad. Your laptop should meet these requirements if it was manufactured after the release of Windows 8.1. To check your own PC, open the Start Menu and search for "touchpad". Select the Touchpad settings option.

Your Windows Touchpad settings will show you whether or not your PC has a precision touchpad.

Look under the Touchpad section for this phrase: "Your PC has a precision touchpad." It should be right under the main "Touchpad" heading on the page of settings. Gestures 5 through 8 on this list require a precision touchpad, just so you know.

1. How to Drag and Drop With Touchpad Gestures

To imitate the drag-and-drop functionality of a mouse, select what you would like to drag and drop by either tapping it or double-tapping. Then, with your selection active, click on it again with two fingers and drag it elsewhere. When you've made it to your destination, just release your finger to drop the item wherever you need it.

2. How to Scroll With Touchpad Gestures

To scroll with a touchpad, find a window with a scrollbar. Place two fingers on your touchpad and drag them in the direction that you would like to scroll in.

This works for any application that supports scrolling, including word processors, Web browsers, and music players. It works both horizontally and vertically, as well.

3. How to Zoom With Touchpad Gestures

Zooming in and out with touch gestures is intuitive and easy: use two fingers to pinch inward to zoom in. The opposite gesture, pulling your pinched fingers away from one another, will zoom you back out.

Instagrammers of the world already use this touch gesture to take a closer look at what their friends post to the platform. This Windows touch gesture comes in handy for Web pages with tiny text or if you need to navigate quickly while editing an image.

4. How to Rotate Using Touchpad Gestures

Use two fingers and spin them in a circle on the trackpad to rotate whatever item you've got selected. Keep in mind that not all items can be rotated—programs like Photoshop, for example, afford you much more freedom in this area than an app like Word would.

Related: The Best Trackpad Gestures to Start Using on Your iPad

5. How to Right-Click on Windows Touchpads

Many touchpads come with a right-click button that you can use, but if you don't have one, if it's broken, or if you just don't want to use it, tapping two fingers at once will emulate the same function. If you need to open a context menu with a touchpad, this is the way to do it.

6. How to Show All Windows With Touchpad Gestures

The touchpad gesture for Task View reveals all of your open windows at once.

To see all open windows with a touchpad, swipe up with three fingers at once. Task View is especially useful if you use multiple virtual desktops and need to find a window quickly. Then, tap the window that you want to switch to, or swipe down with three fingers to close Task View without selecting anything.

7. How to Minimize All Windows With a Touchpad

To minimize all open windows, swipe down with three fingers. You'll then be presented with the desktop Swipe up with three fingers to restore the windows again.

8. How to Use Touchpad Gestures to Switch to Next Application

Cycling through open applications using Alt + Tab is one of those keyboard shortcuts every Windows user should know. If you've got a touchpad, you can do the same by swiping to the left or right using three fingers. Swiping left cycles backward and swiping right cycles forward.

9. How to Activate Cortana or Action Center With Touchpad Gestures

You can do a lot of cool stuff with Cortana, like searching the Web or controlling your music. There's also the new and awesome Action Center for quick settings management. You can access both by tapping three fingers.

You can decide whether this gesture activates Cortana or opens the Action Center under your settings. If you don't want either, though, you can disable Cortana and tweak the registry to disable the Action Center, as well.

Related: How to Toggle the Touchscreen in Windows 10

Touchscreen Gestures

If you have a touchscreen device like a tablet or a 2-in-1 laptop, you can use the following Windows touch gestures.

1. Touchscreen Scroll

To scroll with a touchscreen, use one finger to drag your window in the direction that you want to scroll in. This is pretty much a universal gesture. It works in any app, whether horizontally or vertically, much like the scroll touchpad gesture.

2. Dragging With a Touchscreen

To imitate the drag-and-drop functionality of a mouse, tap the item with one finger. Once it's selected, grab it again with another single-finger tap, dragging it where you want to put it.

3. How to Right-Click on a Touchscreen

To right-click or to open up a context menu with Windows touchscreen gestures, use one finger to tap and hold the relevant item. This will either open up a menu of actions that you can choose from or it will give you more information about whatever item you have selected.

4. How to Open the Action Center With Touchscreen Gestures

You can activate the Action Center using Touchscreen Gestures for Windows.

To open the Action Center, use one finger to swipe in from the right edge of the touchscreen.

5. Bring Up Task View

To view all open apps, use one finger and swipe in from the left edge. This brings up Task View, which shows you all open windows. Tap the windows you wish to bring forward or touch an empty spot to close Task View.

To snap, move, or close a window, long-tap and release the item to bring up the respective menu.

6. Windows Touchscreen Gestures: App Commands

Some apps offer app-specific commands that you can access by using one finger to swipe in from the top edge or the bottom edge. Examples include Refresh for browsers and New Document for text editors.

Related: Touchscreen Not Working? How to Fix a Windows 10 Touchscreen

7. How to Close Current App With Touchscreen Gestures

To close the app open currently, you can use one finger to swipe in from the top edge all the way down to the bottom edge. This feature only works in Tablet Mode.

8. How to Zoom on a Touchscreen

Zooming in or out on a touchscreen is just the same as zooming in and out on a touchpad. Pinching two fingers in zooms you in and pulling them apart zooms you out.

9. How to Rotate Using a Touchscreen

With two fingers on the screen, drag them in a circle to rotate the selected object. In some apps, you can use this touchscreen gesture to rotate the entire window or UI.

Related: The Ultimate Guide to Windows Keyboard Shortcuts

Touchpad vs. Touchscreen: Which Team Are You On?

Even if you're a diehard mouse advocate, the usefulness of all of these touchpad gestures and touchscreen gestures cannot be denied. You might be surprised at how much you love using them after giving a touchpad or touchscreen interface a try.

Us, personally? Having at least one at our disposal is non-negotiable. Touch gestures for Windows have become just as much a part of our professional lives as our favorite mug of coffee in the morning.