http://www.webscopia.com/2011/09/windows-8-all-you-want-to-know-help-guide-how-to/
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Windows 8 – All You Want To Know
A
two part comprehensive guide to Windows 8. Its got everything that you
need to know about the preview of next gen operating system from
Microsoft.
Jump menu:
The Metro Interface
Start Menu in Windows 8
Search for Applications in Windows 8
Switching between Applications in Windows 8
How to close an application in Windows 8
How to shutdown or restart your computer in Windows 8
Internet Explorer in Windows 8
How to Change the City in Weather app in Windows 8
How to Hibernate / Sleep Windows 8
How to Login Automatically in Windows 8
Keyboard Shortcuts you must know in Windows 8
How to add a quick launch shortcut in Windows 8
Add Shutdown / Hibernate shortcuts on Taskbar in Windows 8
How to use Microsoft’s Hyper-V in Windows 8
The Metro Interface
When you logon for the first time in Windows 8, the metro interface
is first thing that you’d be greeted with. Metro Interface is very
similar to the one already included in Windows 7 mobile. Just like the
mobile version, it is packed with all kinds of applications by default.
These applications are called ‘tiles’ and you’d be itching to swipe the
screen to the left in order to see what is on the far right side. You
can swipe on your tablet but on a regular computer you would have to
rely on the scroll bar at the bottom or you can use the scroll wheel on
your mouse to scroll through the tiles.
Tiles can be changed from the original arrangement. Just click on a
tile and drag it to the left, right, up or down to your preferred place,
as you’ll do this, you’ll see other tiles moving and giving way to the
tile being dragged.
Go through the apps by clicking on them to know more about them, you
can always come to the original point by pressing the ‘Windows Key’ or
moving your mouse to the left bottom corner of the screen.
(Keep in
mind that if you had an app open and you didn’t close it, pressing
‘Windows Key’ would take you back to that app. This also goes for the
desktop too, goto ‘Desktop’ from your metro interface, press ‘windows
key’ and it will take you back to the metro interface and vice versa!)
Right clicking on an app would put a check mark on it and selecting
‘unpin’ would remove that from the metro interface or you can make them
smaller. You can also choose to uninstall it from your computer too.
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This is one of the most talked about new feature of Windows 8. As
Microsoft said, “The start menu in Windows 7 is gone”, it is replaced by
a more ‘simplified’ version of start menu. Settings, Devices, Share and
Search are the only options in this one. You can access it by moving
your mouse to the bottom left corner of your screen. Follow our article to
get back the old classic Windows 7 start menu.
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Search for Applications in Windows 8
Windows 8 lets you search for your applications right from the metro
interface as an alternative to the ‘Program Files’ of classic start menu
that was present in Windows 7. (Remember no start menu in Windows 8.)
To run an application, press ‘Windows Key’ and start typing the name of
the application. A search windows will open up in the left page and
there’d also be a list sorted alphabetically, to let you choose an app.
You can run this dialog by pressing the search keys ‘Window + F’. (
WIN+Q for the Applications).
This is comes in handy when you want to see all the installed
applications in your computer, if you want to start an application from a
list.
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Switching between Applications in Windows 8
Since you’re on the Metro Interface most of the time in Windows 8 and
there is no taskbar, you are bound to loose the track of applications
that you will run. Cycling between applications is pretty easy in
Windows 8. Just like all previous versions of Windows, pressing ‘Alt +
TAB’ would cycle through the applications that are currently running
with the thumbnails of those applications. ‘Win + TAB’, unlike Windows 7
will let you switch between the next running application. And just like
the mobile version of Windows 7, you can click on a tile to open an
application again, if that application is already open and you still
clicked the tile to open it, it will open the the previous instance of
that app. As stated earlier, pressing the ‘Windows’ key on your keyboard
repeatedly will cycle between the current running application and the
metro interface.
Want to know which application you used last? Just move your mouse to
the end on the left side and a small thumbnail of that application will
appear.
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How to close an application in Windows 8
You can not close an application in windows 8, well technically
because there is no ‘Cross’ or ‘Close’ button in application of the
Metro Interface. Applications are suspended, just like any mobile OS and
they will be closed if you’re low on resources or some other
application needs some more memory. If you really want to get rid of an
application, just fire up the Task Manager by pressing ‘Ctrl + Shift +
Esc’ and ‘End Task’ your application.
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How to shutdown or restart your computer in Windows 8
This is no more the job for the ‘Start’ button. To shutdown, restart
or put your computer to sleep, you need to move your mouse to the left
corner, click on settings and then click on the ‘Power’ icon. This can
be done while you are anywhere in the windows, be it the Metro Interface
or the Desktop.
However, when in Desktop mode, you can press ‘Alt + F4’ and then choose the appropriate option in the dialog.
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Internet Explorer in Windows 8
Using internet explorer 10 in windows 8 Metro Interface is a little
bit tricky if you have no experience of touch interfaces or browsing
internet on mobile devices. IE10 in metro is completely touch friendly
but if you’re using a desktop computer or laptop without touch
capability, it should still be pretty easy for you to operate. Just fire
up the browser by clicking on the Internet Explorer tile in metro.
It will open a full screen browser with a toolbar at the bottom, not
visible by default. Right click on the empty space and you can view the
thumbnails of tabs and that bar at the bottom again. You can open a
webpage by typing in the address and it will remember your frequently
used websites and you can also pin a specific most used website to it
too, using this button.
However, if you prefer the more classic internet explorer, it is
available in the desktop. Switch to the desktop mode and click on the
shortcut on the taskbar. You can also use the this button
on the metro version of internet explorer to switching the current
browsing page over to the desktop version of the internet explorer. I
never imagined that I’d say this but for on the fly internet browsing,
the metro version of internet explorer is pretty sleek and super fast.
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How to Change the City in Weather app in Windows 8
By default the weather app is pre configured with the current
conditions in Anaheim, California, but if you can add your local city
too in the list. Just click Weather to launch the app, right-click and
select Add City,
type the name of your nearest city, and choose it from the list, when it
appears. For a detailed overview, take a look at the following video.
(View it in full screen HD.)
Weather Application in Windows 8
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How to Hibernate / Sleep Windows 8
The option to hibernate a Windows 8 computer is not available in the
‘Shutdown’ dialog, but you can restore it by following these steps.
- Go to Desktop and type (powercfg.cpl) in the RUN box (WIN+R) to launch the Power Options window and click “Choose what the power buttons do” in the left
hand pane.
- If you see a “Change settings that are current unavailable” link, then click it, check the Sleep and Hibernate
options, click Save Changes, and the new options should now appear in your shutdown dialogs.
Also in the same window, check on ‘Show Sleep’ option. (These options are greyed out by default.)
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How to Login Automatically in Windows 8
If you are a single user on your computer or you don’t want to give
password, every time you login to Windows then follow these simple steps
to enable ‘Auto Logon’:
- Press WIN+R, type netplwiz and press Enter to launch the User Accounts dialog.
- Clear the “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer” box and click OK.
- Enter the user name and password of the account that you’d like to
be logged in automatically (you may have to click on a specific user
account that you want to change from the list), click OK,
reboot, and you shouldn’t be prompted for your login details again.
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Keyboard Shortcuts you must know in Windows 8
- Win + C : displays the “Charms”: all those Settings, Devices, Share and Search options in new improved ‘Start Menu’
- Win + D : launches the desktop
- Win + E : launches Explorer
- ‘How to search for files in Windows 8?’ Just press Win + F : and start searching.
- Win + I : opens the Settings, also where you go to shutdown your computer.
- Win + L : locks your PC
- Win + P : switch your display to a second display or projector
- Win + R : opens the Run box
- Win + U : open the Ease of Access Centre
- Win + W: Similar to ‘Search Files’ but this shortcut will take you directly to let you search for your system settings.
For example, if you type ‘wallpaper’, it will return you settings related to ‘changing your desktop background’.
- Win + Q: It will let you search for the Windows
Programs both for Metro and Desktop Interfaces. Really good alternative
for the search bar on classic Windows 7 Start Menu.
- Win + Z : This will display the right-click context
menu when in a full-screen Metro app. For example, the right-click menu
in the weather application.
- Win + + : This will let you zoom in at any part of
your Metro Interface as well as Desktop Interface. Adds a pretty cool
magnifier icon which lets you change the magnify settings.
- Win + - : zoom out
- Win + Tab : switch between running apps, works like ‘Alt+Tab’ in previous Windows.
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How to add a quick launch shortcut in Windows 8
What do you do to launch your favorite application in Windows 8? You
definitely go to the Desktop Interface to open the shortcut on the
desktop OR you search for the file using the WIN+F shortcut. This short
tutorial will let you add a quick launch shortcut to your favorite
application in simple steps. This is the windows 8 default shortcut, so
if you press the Windows key plus a number, it will let you open your
favorite app that is on the quick-launch on the Desktop. For example, by
default there are two icons, Internet Explorer and Windows Explorer on
the task bar. So if you press WIN+1, it will launch Internet Explorer
and pressing WIN+2 will open the Windows Explorer. The good thing about
this trick is that it also works on the Metro Interface. That is pretty
much the trick to it. For example:
- Start Windows Media Player by searching for Apps.
- Move it to the left of Internet Explorer, if you want this to be
your number one shortcut. The one that will be launched by pressing ‘WIN+1’.
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Add Shutdown / Hibernate shortcuts on Taskbar in Windows 8
Follow these simple steps to add quick launch shortcuts that will appear in ‘WIN+F’ search box.
- Go to C:\Users\<AccountName>\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs
folder in Windows Explorer. Where <AccountName> would be your
username of Windows. You can go there using the windows explorer but
keep in mind that ‘AppData’ folder would be hidden by default. So either
you have to ‘Unhide’ the hidden system files and folders or you can use
the run dialog. Just press WIN+R and copy/paste the above address. (Don’t forget to replace <AccountName> with your username.)
- This will open the Programs folder, just add a new shortcut by Right Clicking on an empty space and choosing ‘New > Shortcut’. Then type shutdown –s –f –t 00 for shutdown, shutdown –r –f –t 00 for restart and shutdown –h –f –t 00 for hibernate. -f is to force the applications to close, –t is the time before the current task will be executed so 00 would execute it at one. You can also use the time switch to schedule a shutdown.
- Click Next and give your short cut a name. You can pin this to the taskbar by right clicking on the short cut and selecting ‘Pin to taskbar’. Click on the icon to shutdown your computer or Now when you’ll press WIN+Q and type ‘shutdown’ it will show you the app shortcut you just added. Click on it to shut down your computer.
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How to use Microsoft’s Hyper-V in Windows 8
Microsoft has added support for Virtual Machines in Windows 8. It
will be installed by default when you install Windows 8 on your
computer. Follow these two steps to enable it:
- Press Win+Q and search for OptionalFeatures.exe, it will be shown on the right side as you type it.
- In ‘Turn Windows features On or Off’ window, click to check Hyper-V and click OK.
- Now press the windows key, go back to metro and you’ll see that Hyper-V tiles have been added at the end.
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