Windows 8/8.1 tips and tricks - post them here

[Subhadip]

You know the menu that pops up when you go to the bottom left corner and right click? Or Win-X? That's going to be revamped and a Shut Down option will make it there too by RC. Right now it's just a crude context list.

Personally, I am fine with Win+I > Shut down.

[Bioran]

Anyone got a list of keyboard shortcuts? Not sure where to find 'em.

[Alexandrea Fride]

Just as someone posted before, that if you move the cursor in a rhythmic manner around the bottom right corner, you can get charms bar, same goes for the multi-tasking tab on the upper right (Y)

yes true but realy sucks having 3 screens :-) you know how hard it is for me to get those things lol, wish i could place those things to top of screen and bottom of the screen :rolleyes:

Edit: Just found a way to get those windows on left way without actually going with mouse is just doing windows key+tab

[Kelxin]

Well, just got done playing with Windows 8 and Windows 8 Server for several hours, and this is my contribution to the subject.

Tip: Microsoft really screwed the pooch on this one from an administrative side. Avoid the OS like it was vista all over again.

Trick: I won't fall for it this time either Microsoft. You got me on Windows ME. You didn't get me on Vista, and you won't get me on this one either. I refuse to support any person that buys this hunk of junk unless it's to format the machine and go back to Windows 7 with the downgrade rights that will be built into the licensing for this.

[George P Global Moderator]

You know the menu that pops up when you go to the bottom left corner and right click? Or Win-X? That's going to be revamped and a Shut Down option will make it there too by RC. Right now it's just a crude context list.

Personally, I am fine with Win+I > Shut down.

That sounds good to be but where did you hear that from? I think it's a good idea really, that right click menu is more for power users than anything else anyways and the only people tossing a fit over shutdown are the "power users" on here.

[Scorpus Veteran]

Anyone got a list of keyboard shortcuts? Not sure where to find 'em.

https://www.neowin.net/news/tip-make-life-easier-with-windows-8-keyboard-shortcuts

[Ben Dyson]

On the windows bar if you right click on a app you pin it or close it.

[BeerFan]

Well, just got done playing with Windows 8 and Windows 8 Server for several hours, and this is my contribution to the subject.

Tip: Microsoft really screwed the pooch on this one from an administrative side. Avoid the OS like it was vista all over again.

Trick: I won't fall for it this time either Microsoft. You got me on Windows ME. You didn't get me on Vista, and you won't get me on this one either. I refuse to support any person that buys this hunk of junk unless it's to format the machine and go back to Windows 7 with the downgrade rights that will be built into the licensing for this.

They're not "workarounds", they're shortcuts. The other way of shutting down (using mouse gesture to bring up the charms bar) is perfectly fine, but there are keyboard shortcuts which power users can use to expedite the process.

Technically true. But I think the point of all these posts related to shutting down is that it has become cumbersome to do it in the way that the majority of users are used to. I still want to be able to click Start -> Shutdown - quick, 2-click access to a very commonly used command. I'm not resistant to change if it's an improvement; but clearly this is not.

[Varemenos]

You can also do this:

press "CTRL ALT DEL" --> power button

[+Frank B. Subscriber²]

In order to decrease the title bar height and adjust the fonts for Windows 8 Aero, export the following Registry key from a Windows 7 installation with the settings you want:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\WindowMetrics

Then import the .reg file into Windows 8. Works like a charm. Caveat: Changing the theme will reset this tweak.

[wahoospa]

Not sure if this has been mentioned.

I removed a hard drive from one PC to another. Totally different hardware. Windows 8 Discovered this and cleverly rebuilt itself quickly and booted me into windows as if nothing had changed. Nice job MS !!!

I believe Microsoft has, in Win 8, a way of automatically rebuilding the registry and sytems files incase of..tampering, changes, viruses, crashes.

[V23]

If I choose to use a Microsoft account over a local one is there a way to have my name on the start screen rather than my email address?

Thanks.

[Bioran]

If I choose to use a Microsoft account over a local one is there a way to have my name on the start screen rather than my email address?

Thanks.

It should sync with Windows Live, so you need to set your name there.

[V23]

It should sync with Windows Live, so you need to set your name there.

Ok thanks, I'll try that now. So are the majority of people using local or Microsoft accounts? I guess you need a Microsoft account to take advantage of skydrive and a lot of the other apps.

[Eric Veteran]

Technically true. But I think the point of all these posts related to shutting down is that it has become cumbersome to do it in the way that the majority of users are used to. I still want to be able to click Start -> Shutdown - quick, 2-click access to a very commonly used command. I'm not resistant to change if it's an improvement; but clearly this is not.

Move your mouse to the lower right corner of the screen, click Settings - Power - Shutdown. It's not that big of a deal. Most people I know don't even shut their PCs down anymore. They just let them sleep.

[V23]

My name is set properly on Windows Live but it's still not showing up on the start screen.

[BeerFan]

Move your mouse to the lower right corner of the screen, click Settings - Power - Shutdown. It's not that big of a deal. Most people I know don't even shut their PCs down anymore. They just let them sleep.

Funny how you edited that. Before the edit you said, "It's still two clicks. Move your..." Guess you tried it out for yourself and realized it's now more clicks than before. See what i mean?

I agree that it's not that big of a deal. But it is still a step backwards. And I'm not sure if "most people I know" is a statistically significant population sample. I'm simply pointing out why one common gripe about the CP is valid. It's not like I'm railing the entire build or calling it useless. I like it overall... but the change in how you have to shutdown / restart / switch users is bad.

[kde]

So, like everyone else this thing is kicking my ass and taking a while to get my head around.

But once you get used to it, its actually quite pleasant.

When I use it, I get the feeling that this is the future. This is how the past was meant to be, but in the past it was done wrong, and now its hard to change old habits.

And this thing will hopefully mean every PC from now on will be touch, and I hope MS makes it mandatory for new PCs to have a touch screen for Windows 8 Certification.

And the iPad is 'todays' way of dealing with a touch screen. Windows 8 is 'the proper' way of dealing with a touch screen.

My new favourite thing to do is to have the Vimeo app running on the sideview with music videos, whilst reading people bitch about Windows 8.

It is so easy that I have trouble imagining this was no possible previously (with aero snap, yes, but that was a 50/50 split, this is much better)

Things I have found;

- that tip for doing the rhythmic action to get to metro apps + charms is invaluable - cheers for that

- when you keep you mouse over the bottom right corner, the aero peek desktop still works

- something I do all the time is drag files from windows explorer to desktop... in Win7 you could do this by holding the files over the show desktop button, then after desktop peak, dropping it on the desktop; this is still possible (much to my relief) by holding the files on the bottom right corner and waiting for desktop peek

- not sure if this has been mentioned (or maybe so obvious that it doesn't need mentioning) but the ESCAPE button is your friend. if you hit the win key, ESC takes you back wherever you were

- if you are in the search view, ESC once closes the side panel, so ESC twice to get back to where you were

- the closest thing to the old "All Programs' menu in Windows 8 is to go to the charms button and NOT click the windows button, but instead click the Search button... this is the equivalent of the All Apps view.

- if you are in a full screen metro app, and you move it to the side, the main area gets left blank. If you click on it, it takes you to the start screen, so you can pick a new app (or, like me just go directly into desktop)

[FaiKee]

I made a quick search and believe it was not mentioned:

how to name the groups on the metro start page:

1. move mouse down until the scroll bar shows

2. click on the "magnifier" on right of scroll bar

3. the start page zoom view appears, right click on the group, the rest is straight-forward.....

[FiB3R]

Can someone explain what the -s and t 0 represent in "shutdown.exe -s -t 0" Also the r in "shutdown.exe -r -t 0 "

scroll up to page 60... link

[ArialBlue]

I am not sure whether many of these are tweaks or just discovery of non-so-hidden features.

[ozgeek]

For those who want easier way to shutdown:

1) Create a shortcut (new->shortcut) on a classic desktop.

2) Direct it to shutdown.exe -s -t 0

3) Put a nice icon on it

4) Pin it on start screen

Here you go, easy shutdown button :)

Or just press the power-button on your computer case. It starts the shutdown process :)

[Ridlas]

Or just press the power-button on your computer case. It starts the shutdown process :)

I'm too lazy to reah my case. I'm not even being sarcastic.

[Mazhar]

To unpin a pinned item in Start Screen, after right click just press Space bar.

[ozgeek]

It might be mentioned before but I might mention it again:

In metro interface, to close the apps, do alt+f4 or drag the window down to the bottom of the screen (in a similar way as maximazing a window in win7).