Guys, how hard have you tried to get on with the Contextual Taskbar?  It’s such an incredibly useful tool, I can’t imagine why anyone would actually hate it.  

A good first step is to take control of it by giving it a Shortcut.  I use F3 (It’s default is to toggle the Character Panel on and off.)   This gets it out of the way when you don’t need it, and can also help you find it when it gets lost — which it likes to do on a regular basis.  I always keep it set to Pinned and drag it close to what I am working on.  I do my best to avoid moving the mouse a millimetre more than I have to.

I’m sure you all understand the Contextual aspect of the CTB, and it’s constructed to give you all of the options associated with what you are doing, or have just done.  I absolutely love that!  I’ve grabbed a few screen shots showing some of what the CTB offers under different conditions.  

Something else I do is use short Actions that set and reset my workspaces.  This means I can drag panels like Properties, character etc. next to where I am using it, and have it go back to its tidy space with a single press.  This can really speed up your workflow because you are not hunting for what you need.  The CTB is by far the best example of how this helps because it knows what you are thinking!

So, please give it a chance.  Try the drop-downs with various tools selected and functions underway, and I bet you’ll come to love the Contextual Taskbar as much as I do.

This is one of the reasons I don’t use it - the jumping is super annoying, while the pinned position still covers your working area that moves behind it. I would be OK if it docks on the bottom.

Well, I always thought the contextual taskbar was a solution in search of a problem. Everything in there is available as the normal menu items and tools, and all of it can be assigned shortcuts if you need quick access. And on top it’s constantly in the way. I disabled it immediately and have never missed it. 

Just saying, you don’t really need it.

Contextual Task Bar, is a pain in the rear….. it won’t lock in place anymore, when you click on the lock button you can’t tell if it’s worked or not. I try to set mine at the top just to the right of the drop down menus, then for no reason it will jump to the left covering up most of the menu’s. PLEASE PLEASE give us a dropdown version of the dreadful contextual task bar, then SCRAP IT. Was the someone drunk who thought it up? Sorry adobe, a very bad annoying idea….. 

Being able to dock it like you can duck the Tools bar (except horizontally) would be useful to stop it wandering around the screen and generally getting in the way. Example: Color panel docked horizontally.

good idea !

It used to do the same on my side, it wasn't consistent. I believe it was when using other tools that permitted the Gen Fill options, too, which made the menu pop up elsewhere. Pinning stays pinned nowadays.

Wouldn't mind having at least an answer as to why Docking is impossible. 

I am also curious when the Context Bar does not pin and specific scenarios when it get's in your way...

Also FYI, you can get to the Generate functionality (GenFill) when you have a selection > Edit > Generative Fill, so you don't need the Contextual Task Bar open to get to that feature.

It may have been right after gen fill was out of beta, but I had issues keeping it in one place. It's possible there was user error, but it's obtrusive to my workflow and workspace customizations. I like my panels open and use an ultra wide monitor.

There's nowhere to really pin without it being in the way or off in the corner. Regardless, I think Adobe can do better and provide a better user experience. I've never been a flyout panel designer and prefer everything docked in the same location with multiple workspaces depending on monitor size and workflow.

I just keep it hidden but I'm curious why pinning doesn't work? Functionally this isn't much different than docking it.