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Accessibility

How to make your computers, smartphones and other types of devices easier to use, including for people with physical or situational disabilities.

How to Pin & Display Modern Windows 8.1 Apps on the Taskbar

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
One criticism about Windows 8 was that you couldn't easily access Windows Store apps from the Desktop. They were hidden, running in a different environment and switching between them and desktop programs was harder than it should have been. Windows 8.1 fixes this problem by allowing users to pin Windows Store apps to the taskbar and to set the taskbar so that it displays running apps. Here's how to work

Introducing Windows 8.1: What is the Apps View & How to Use It

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
You will notice many of our tutorials referencing the Apps View from Windows 8.1. You can think of it as a full-screen Start Menu, organized in a similar way to the Start Menu in Windows 7 but with more options on how to display the list of programs installed. In order for you to understand it better and learn how to use it, I decided to create this guide which
tutorial How to Perform Natural Language Searches in Windows 8.1

How to Perform Natural Language Searches in Windows 8.1

With the release of Windows 8.1, Microsoft has introduced a new way of searching, named Smart Search. It is designed to make search easier and better for users. When performing a search, the list of results includes not only local results like your own files and apps but also results from the Internet, provided by Bing. In a very recent update that is distributed

7 Ways to Shut Down or Restart a Windows 8 & Windows 8.1 PC or Device

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
When you first use Windows 8 or Windows 8.1, you will have a hard time figuring out how to shut down or restart your computer. Only Windows 8.1 Update improves the situation and offers an intuitive and "in your face" menu for shutting down your device. In this guide I will share all the methods you can use for shutting down a Windows 8. PC or device. You'll discover several

How to Customize the Tiles Displayed on Your Windows 8.1 Start Screen

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
The Start screen is an important concept in the Windows 8 operating systems. While it may have its share of issues, the principles behind it are good. Also, with each new version of Windows 8, the user experience has been improved. For example, in Windows 8.1 Update 1 Microsoft has further tweaked the way you customize the Start screen. Therefore we decided to share how to customize the Start screen
tutorial Introducing Windows 8.1: How to Share Screenshots from Any App

Introducing Windows 8.1: How to Share Screenshots from Any App

Windows 8.1 comes with a bundle of many apps, from Sports and News to Finance and Health & Fitness. Chances are you are going to stumble upon some interesting content while using these apps, and you may want to quickly share a screenshot with it. Traditionally this meant using the PrtScn key, saving the screenshot in an image editor and then using another program

Simple Questions: What is Hands-Free Mode in Windows 8.1?

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
If you have used Windows 8.1 or at least read about it, you might have encountered a feature named Hands-Free Mode. As the name implies, it is about using your Windows 8.1 device without your hands. But how does it work? Is it any good? Let's find out from this guide. [DC-SUMMARY-BREAK] What is Hands-Free Mode in Windows 8.1? This feature is designed for tablet or hybrid devices that have

Introducing Windows 8.1: What are the Charms & How to Use them

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
One of the most important features in Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 are the Charms. "Charms"... in Windows? It sounds strange! Right? Actually, they are not that hard to understand. To help you out, we will share how to access them, what they do and how to use them. [DC-SUMMARY-BREAK] How to Access the Charms Simply put, Charms are a set of shortcuts to common tasks, available anywhere in the system. There

Introducing Windows 8 & 8.1: How to Switch Between Sign-In Options

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 are optimized for use on a wide range of devices. Whether you're using a desktop computer, a tablet or even a hybrid device, Windows 8 and 8.1 have you covered. While many features will be accessible across all platforms, some tasks may be easier done on one form of device or another. This can be seen with a task as simple as signing in. On

Introducing Windows 8.1: How Does Search Work & How to Use It?

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
Search in Windows 8.1 has been completely redeveloped. It is so different from Windows 8 and Windows 7 that some users might have trouble understanding how it works. That's why I decided to create this complete guide on Search, filled with screenshots and examples. As you will see, the integration of Bing into Windows 8.1 is both very powerful and scary. Here's how it works: [DC-SUMMARY-BREAK] How to Start a

Introducing Windows 8 & Windows 8.1: 6 Ways to Access the Start Screen

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
The Start screen was the most important novelty in Windows 8 and it was further improved in Windows 8.1. Even though accessing it is easy, figuring out all the ways to launch it can take some work and experimentation. That's why I decided to create this guide and show all the ways to access it, both in Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 [DC-SUMMARY-BREAK] 1. Use the Keyboard - works in

How to Boot to the Desktop in Windows 8 & Windows 8.1

  • misc
  • Radu Tyrsina
Microsoft did not provide any support for setting Windows 8 to boot straight to the Desktop and skip the new Start screen. There was no registry setting available, no group policy and most of the hacks that worked with the test versions of Windows 8 do not work in the final version. Since many people want this feature in Windows 8, Microsoft gave in and, in Windows 8.1 is can

How to Configure the Windows 8 Apps Inside Which You Perform Searches

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
Performing searches in Windows 8 is fast and easy. One important difference versus Windows 7 is that you can perform searches inside Windows 8 apps, directly from the Start screen. You type a search term, select the app where you want to perform the search and the results are displayed inside that app. Pretty cool, isn't it? Also, you can configure the list of apps inside which you perform searches.

Introducing Windows 8.1: Transform the Start Screen into a Start Menu

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
One of the changes made by Microsoft in Windows 8.1 is that, due to user feedback, anyone can change the Start screen with a Start Menu. It's not the old Start Menu from Windows 7, but it sure is close enough. But how do you enable it? Here's how: [DC-SUMMARY-BREAK] The Start Screen vs. The Start Menu in Windows 8.1 In Windows 8.1, just like in Windows 8, the Start

The Complete Guide to Pinning Everything to the Windows 8 Start Screen

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
The new Start screen is by far the most controversial feature in Windows 8. Personally, I view it as a glorified full-screen app launcher, which makes it easy to start any app you want. But, until you see things my way, you will need to learn how it works, experiment and work with it for a while. To help you become productive, I would like to show how to pin

The Windows 8 Customization Guide for the Traditional PC User

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
Even though Windows 8 is hybrid in nature, it doesn't mean you cannot use iton traditional desktops and laptops. It works just fine and, most times, faster than Windows 7. But Windows 8 does things quite differently from what you may have been used to in previous versions of Windows. You will need to experiment, and you will probably want to do more customization than you have been accustomed to

The Desktop Tile Missing from the Start Screen? How to Add it Back

  • tutorial
  • Radu Tyrsina
It can happen that your Desktop tile is gone missing from the Start screen. Accidents happen and you will want to have it back. Fortunately, Windows 8 makes it easy to add its tile back to the Start screen. Here's how: [DC-SUMMARY-BREAK] How to Add the Desktop Tile to the Windows 8 Start Screen The Desktop tile shows your current wallpaper and, by default is found on the Start screen,

Download the Windows 8 Logo & Other Windows 8 Icons

  • misc
  • Radu Tyrsina
Do you want to use the Windows 8 logo as an icon on your computer? Are you interested in using other icons found in the final version of Windows 8? We extracted, converted and packaged together some of the Windows 8 specific icons, in a way that works on all versions of Windows and other non-Microsoft operating systems. Check them out! [DC-SUMMARY-BREAK] Here is how the icon with the Windows

Download the Desktop Shortcut to the Windows 8 Start Screen

  • misc
  • Radu Tyrsina
I've noticed a growing complaint with Windows 8: the fact that, on the Desktop there is no visible shortcut to take you to the Start screen. Something like "Show Start", just like we had Show Desktop in Windows XP. For a novice user, there is no clue shown on how to get back to the Start screen. That's why I decided to investigate and found a hack that gets this
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