Let us begin from the top
1. CUSTOMIZE YOUR TILES
Customize your Windows Start screen tiles by adjusting the sizes, where they are located, and what is listed.
So how
do we do it?
Move any tile by clicking and dragging the tile. While moving a
tile, if you need a larger view of the Start screen move the tile towards the
top or bottom of the screen to zoom out.
Use your mouse wheel to scroll left-to-right through your tiles.
Any Desktop shortcut or program can be pinned to the Start
screen by right-clicking the icon and choosing Pin to Start.
In the bottom right-hand corner of the start screen is a
magnifying glass with tiles, click this icon to get a zoomed out view of your
Start screen. In this view, if you right-click on a group of tiles you'll be
given the option to name group, which can be useful if you have a
group of related tiles (e.g. games). In this view, you can also click and drag
a group to organize your tile groups.
Create a new speed bump between
tile groups by moving a tile to a speed bump.
Resize any User tile or Live tile by right-clicking the tile and
choosing resize.
If there is a tile you want on your Taskbar, right-click the
tile and choose Pin to taskbar.
Show admin applications on the Start screen by clicking Settings
in Charms, click Settings, and change the Show administrative tools from No to
Yes.
In Internet Explorer 10, you can also pin any of your favorite
web pages to your Start Screen.
2. WINDOWS 8 KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS
Here are frequent keyboard shortcuts that
might be useful to you, and enough to make your windows 8 experiences more
enjoyable--
Press
the Windows key to open the Start screen or switch to the Desktop (if
open).
Press
the Windows key + D will open the Windows Desktop.
Press
the Windows key + . to pin and unpin Windows apps on the side
of the screen.
Press
the Windows key + X to open the power user menu, which gives
you access to many of the features most power users would want (e.g. Device
Manager and Command Prompt).
Press
the Windows key + C to open the Charms.
Press
the Windows key + I to open the Settings, which is the same
Settings found in Charms.
Press
and hold the Windows key + Tab to show open apps.
Press
the Windows key + Print screen to create a screen shot,
which is automatically saved into your My Pictures folder.
3.
WORK WITH YOUR HOT
CORNERS
The corners on your screen are hot corners and give you access
to different Windows features. Below, is a brief explanation of each of these corners.
Bottom Left-hand
corner
The bottom left-hand hot corner of the screen will allow you to
access the Start screen, if you're in the Start screen and have the Desktop
open, this corner will open the Desktop from the Start screen.
TRICK: Right-clicking in the left hand corner will open the power user
menu.
Top-left corner of
the screen
Moving the mouse to the top-left corner and then down will
display all the apps running on the computer. Clicking and dragging any of
these apps to the left or right-hand side of the screen will snap that app to
that side of the screen. Each of these open app icons can also be right-clicked
to close or snap.
Right-hand side of
the screen
On the full right-hand side of the screen will be given access
to the Windows Charms.
4.
TAKING
ADVANTAGE OF SEARCH
The Search in Windows 8 has been significantly improved when
compared to all previous versions of Windows. To search for a file or run a
program in Windows 8 from the Start screen just start typing what you're trying
to find or want to run.
As you begin typing, the results will start appearing on the
left-hand side. In addition to being able to search for files and run programs,
the Search also supports limiting the search to apps such as Finance, People,
Maps, Photos, Mail, Music, Videos, Weather, and much more. If what you are
searching for is not a file or program, click on the app you wish to use as the
search. For example, if you were searching for "New York" and selected
the Weather App you would be shown the weather in New York, NY.
By default, Search organizes the available Apps by how
frequently they are used and then in alphabetical order. If you want to keep
your favorite app at the top of the Search list, right-click the app and choose
Pin. Pinning the app will lock it in place regardless of how often it is used.
If there is an app you don't want (e.g. Finance) you can turn on and off any of
the search apps through the PC settings, which is found under the Settings in the Charms.
Bonus TRICK: The Search is also found through Charms and can also be opened
by pressing Windows key + F.
5.
RUNING
TWO APPS SIDE BY SIDE
Any app can be pinned to the left or right-hand
side of the screen. For example, open the People app and then press the Windows Key + . (period) to move that app to the right-hand
side of the screen, pressing the same keys again will move it to the left-hand
side, and pressing the same keys again will make it full screen. While an app
is pinned, any other app or program can be opened and loaded into the available
space on the screen. For example, in the below picture, we've opened a browser
window and have the People app running to monitor our social networks.
Any open app can also be pinned using your mouse by clicking at
the top of the tile and dragging it to the left or right-hand side of the
screen.
Bonus TRICK: The Desktop can also be pinned to the left or right-hand side of
the screen.
Note: In order for snap to work properly your resolution must be at
least 1,366 x 768.
6.
WINDOWS 8 TASK MANAGER
The Windows 8 Task Manager has been significantly improved over previous versions of
Windows. Some of the new changes include showing a total percent usage at the
top of your Processes, which makes it easier to determine total memory and CPU
usage, improved Performance graphs, a Startup tab to see startup processes and
their impact to system performance, and the App history tab (as shown below)
that gives you the total resources an app has used over a period of time. Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to
start exploring the new Task Manager.
7.
USE A PICTURE PASSWORD TO LOG INTO YOUR
COMPUTER
Windows 8 includes a new feature called Picture password,
which allows you to authenticate with the computer using a series of gestures
that include circles, straight lines, and taps. Enable this feature if you want
a new way to access your computer or have a hard time with passwords.
1. Open
the Windows Charms.
2. Click Settings and
then More PC settings
3. In the
PC settings window click Users and then select Create
a picture password
Bonus TRICK: A four digit pin password can also
be created and used to access your computer.
8.
TAKE ADVANTAGE OF WINDOWS 8 APPS
Windows 8 comes included with several apps to help you get the
most from your computer. Below are just a few of the included apps.
People
Microsoft touts the People feature in Windows 8 because they
understand how many people are using social networks today. In the People
feature you'll be able to connect your Windows computer to all the major social
networks including Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. Once connected, you can pin the people app and
monitor your social network (as shown below), use People in Search to find
people, and get an overview of what is happening in all your social networks.
Reader
The Reader app will give you PDF support right out of the box.
SkyDrive
The SkyDrive app will give you access to the Microsoft cloud
service SkyDrive, which allows you to store your
photos, documents, and other files in the cloud and
access or share those files with any computer with Internet access.
Store
Take advantage of the Windows Store and install one or more of
the thousands of available apps designed for Windows 8. The Store is found in
the Start screen, or use Search to search the Store app for any apps that you
are trying to find.
9.
KNOW
THE ANSWERS TO COMMON QUESTIONS
Windows 8 is the biggest change to Microsoft Windows since the
introduction of Windows 95, which was released all the way back in 1995. Since so many people
have grown up with Windows, it can be difficult to transition to a new way of
doing things. Below, is a short list of the most common questions previous
Windows users will have.
·
How can I close
an app in Windows 8?
·
How do I sleep,
restart, or shut down Windows 8?
·
How do I get the
start button back in Windows 8?
10.
KNOW THE JARGON
Knowing all the new jargon introduced with Windows 8 will help
improve your familiarity with Windows 8 and make it a more enjoyable
experience.
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