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Easily Unlock the Power of Your New Windows 10 Computer
Discover hundreds of tips and tricks you can use right away with your Windows 10 computer to get more done and have more fun.
You’ll learn how to use your Windows 10 computer both as a powerful communication, organization, and productivity tool and as a feature-packed entertainment device. Guy Hart-Davis shows you strategies for making the most of Microsoft’s robust built-in apps, from the new Edge browser to your Cortana personal assistant.
Easy to understand and nontechnical, Windows 10 Tips and Tricks is perfect for beginners--and for more experienced users ready to get more productive or move to a new computer. Whether you’re running Windows 10 on a desktop, a laptop, or a tablet, get this book and run it better!
Here’s just a sampling of what this book’s tips, tricks, and strategies will help you do:
Introduction 1
What Does This Book Cover? 1
What Do I Need to Know to Get Started? 3
Chapter 1: Setting Up Windows 5
Starting the Installation 5
Choosing Between an Upgrade and a Custom Installation 6
Choosing the Drive and Partition for a Custom Installation 7
Making the Right Choices on the Setup Screens 10
Choosing Between Using Default Settings and Configuring Windows Manually 10
Choosing Personalization and Location Settings 13
Choosing Browser, Protection, Connectivity, and Error Reporting Settings 14
Working on the Who Owns This PC? Screen 15
Working on the Make It Yours Screen 16
Setting a PIN and Meeting Cortana 17
Working on the Create an Account for This PC Screen 17
Working in the Networks Pane 20
Signing In and Out of Windows 21
Locking Windows 22
Restarting Windows 22
Putting Your Computer to Sleep or into Hibernation 22
Configuring and Using Cortana 25
Configuring Cortana 25
Searching with Cortana 27
Shutting Down Your Computer 28
Chapter 2: Navigating Windows Like a Pro 29
Using the Start Menu 29
Opening the Start Menu 30
Getting Around the Start Menu 30
Tweaking Your Input Devices 31
Adjusting the Mouse or Touchpad 32
Choosing the Right Pen and Touch Settings 38
Configuring Pen and Touch Input 42
Configuring Your Keyboard 43
Configuring Typing Settings 44
Configuring Your Language and Keyboard Layout 46
Setting Up Speech Recognition 48
Inputting Text 50
Inputting Text with a Hardware Keyboard 50
Inputting Text with the Touch Keyboard and the Handwriting Panel 51
Inputting Text via Speech Recognition 54
Resizing and Arranging Windows 55
Resizing and Closing Windows with the Command Buttons 55
Using Snap and Snap Assist 56
Arranging Windows Manually 57
Resizing, Arranging, and Closing Windows with Keyboard Shortcuts 58
Switching Among Open Windows 58
Chapter 3: Connecting to Networks and the Internet 61
Connecting to a Wired Network 62
Connecting to a Wireless Network 63
Connecting to a Wireless Network That Broadcasts Its Name 64
Connecting to a Hidden Wireless Network 67
Disconnecting from and Reconnecting to Wireless Networks 70
Whitelisting Your Device on a Wi-Fi Network 70
Managing Your Network Connections 71
Using Airplane Mode and Turning Off Wireless Devices 71
Configuring IP Settings Manually 72
Connecting Through a Proxy Server 78
Prioritizing One Network Connection over Another 81
Bridging Two or More Network Connections 82
Improving Wireless Speed and Reliability 84
Forgetting a Wireless Network 87
Connecting Through a VPN 88
Setting Up a VPN Connection 88
Connecting via the VPN 90
Mapping a Drive to a Network Folder 91
Sharing Your Computer’s Internet Connection 94
Diagnosing and Repairing Network Problems 95
Determining Whether a Problem Has Occurred 96
Using the Troubleshoot Problems Feature 97
Chapter 4: Connecting External Hardware 99
Connecting External Drives 99
Making the Physical Connection 99
Formatting a Drive 100
Configuring an External Drive for Better Performance 102
Ejecting an External Drive. 104
Sorting Out Your Displays 104
Connecting a Display 105
Opening the Display Pane in Settings 105
Choosing Essential Display Settings 106
Choosing Advanced Display Settings 107
Using Virtual Desktops 111
Setting Up Your Printers 112
Connecting a Local Printer 113
Connecting a Network Printer 113
Configuring Your Printer 114
Chapter 5: Customizing Windows to Suit Your Needs 121
Customizing the Start Menu 122
Choosing Which Categories of Items to Display on the Start Menu 122
Customizing the Start Menu Directly 124
Customizing the Taskbar 125
Moving and Resizing the Taskbar 126
Configuring the Taskbar’s Behavior 126
Putting the Apps You Need Most on the Taskbar 128
Making the Most of Taskbar Toolbars 128
Choosing Which Icons to Display in the Notification Area 130
Saving Time with Automatic Login--and Why You Shouldn’t 133
Making the Lock Screen Show the Information You Need 135
Displaying the Lock Screen Pane 135
Setting the Picture or Slideshow 135
Adding Apps to the Lock Screen for Quick Reference 136
Making the Recycle Bin Work the Way You Prefer 137
Telling Windows Which Notifications You Want to Receive 139
Opening the Notifications & Actions Pane 140
Choosing Essential Notifications Settings 140
Chapter 6: Sorting Out Your Files, Folders, and Storage 143
Navigating File Explorer Quickly and Efficiently 144
Opening a File Explorer Window 144
Putting Useful Buttons on the Quick Access Toolbar 144
Using the File Menu 146
Finding Your Way Around the Ribbon 147
Customizing How File Explorer Looks and Works 148
Changing the Layout 149
Customizing the Quick Access View 150
Choosing How to Lay Out the Items 150
Sorting and Grouping Items 151
Choosing Which Items to Show and Which to Hide 152
Adjusting Folder and Search Options 152
Finding the Files and Folders You Need 162
Using Libraries and Folders the Smart Way 163
Coming to Grips with the Default Libraries 164
Creating a New Library 165
Including Folders in Your Library 166
Setting the Library’s Default Save Location and Public Save Location 167
Configuring the Library to Work Your Way 168
Restoring Your Default Libraries 169
Managing Your Storage 170
Seeing What’s Taking Up Space on Your Computer 170
Controlling Where Windows Saves Games, Apps, Music, and Other Items 174
Creating Pooled Storage with Storage Spaces 175
Understanding Simple Spaces, Mirror Spaces, and Parity Spaces 175
Creating a Storage Space 176
Using the Storage Space 179
Changing an Existing Storage Space 180
Deleting a Storage Space 180
Chapter 7: Securing and Sharing Your Computer 181
Configuring Accounts for Practicality and Security 182
Setting Your Profile Picture 182
Connecting a Local Account to a Microsoft Account 182
Securing Your Account with a Password, Picture Password, PIN, or Windows Hello 184
Creating Accounts for Others 186
Tightening Your Computer’s Security 189
Locking Your Computer with a Startup Password 189
Setting Your Computer to Lock Automatically 192
Increasing Login Security with Secure Sign-In 193
Configuring User Account Control 194
Controlling Recent App Switching 197
Setting Up Assigned Access 199
Configuring Sharing 200
Sharing via a Homegroup 200
Using Advanced Sharing 205
Chapter 8: Optimizing Your Computer’s Performance 211
Adding Memory If You Can 212
Turning Off Eye Candy to Boost Performance 214
Configuring the Paging File 217
Controlling Data Execution Prevention 221
Stopping Unnecessary Services 222
Turning Off Superfetch and Prefetch 227
Turning Off Superfetch 227
Turning Off Prefetch 227
Reducing the Number of Startup Items 229
Optimizing and Defragmenting Your Computer’s Hard Drive 231
Checking Free Space and Opening the Optimize Drives Window 231
Analyzing and Optimizing a Drive 233
Choosing Settings for Scheduled Optimization 234
Getting Rid of Useless Apps 235
Extending Runtime on the Battery 237
Setting a Sensible Power Plan 237
Using Airplane Mode and Turning Off Wi-Fi or Bluetooth 242
Avoiding Power-Hungry Apps 242
Choosing Settings for Playing Games 242
Chapter 9: Installing, Running, and Managing Apps 245
Getting the Apps You Need 245
Getting Apps from the Store 246
Getting and Installing Apps from Other Sources 252
Managing the Apps You’re Running 261
Closing an App That Stops Responding 261
Going Further with Other Actions in Task Manager 262
Removing Unwanted Apps 271
Setting the Default Apps You Need 272
Opening the Default Apps Pane in the Settings App 273
Choosing Your Default Apps 274
Choosing Default Apps by File Types or by Protocols 274
Choosing Default Apps by Apps 274
Opening a File in a Non-Default App and Changing the Default App 276
Chapter 10: Enjoying Music, Photos, and Videos 279
Understanding Windows Media Player and Groove Music 279
Using Windows Media Player 280
Setting Up Windows Media Player to Protect Your Privacy 280
Navigating Windows Media Player 284
Adding Your Music to Windows Media Player 286
Playing Music with Windows Media Player 295
Syncing Music with Your Phone or Tablet 295
Importing Photos and Videos Using Windows Media Player 297
Sharing Media Libraries 297
Exploring the Groove Music App and the Groove Service 302
Getting Started with Groove Music 302
Adding Music to Your Groove Music Collection 304
Playing Music with Groove Music 306
Creating Playlists in Groove Music 306
Watching Videos and DVDs 307
Chapter 11: Browsing the Internet Safely 309
Navigating Microsoft Edge Like a Pro 309
Viewing Pages 312
Working with Tabs and Windows 313
Browsing Fast with Page Prediction 314
Copying Text with Caret Browsing 315
Removing Distractions with Reading Mode 315
Browsing the Smart Way with Favorites 315
Returning to Pages You Viewed Earlier 316
Catching Up with Your Reading List 317
Annotating Web Pages with Web Note 318
Controlling Microsoft Edge with Keyboard Shortcuts 320
Configuring Microsoft Edge for Comfort and Security 321
Configuring General Settings 321
Configuring Essential Advanced Settings 323
Configuring Privacy and Services Settings 325
Clearing Your Browsing Data 327
Chapter 12: Communicating via Email and Skype 331
Communicating via Email 331
Setting Up Your Email Accounts 332
Navigating in the Mail App 343
Configuring Your Email Accounts and the Mail App 348
Communicating via Skype 354
Getting the Skype App 354
Completing the Initial Setup Routine 356
Navigating the Skype Screen 357
Communicating via Skype 359
Configuring Skype to Work Your Way 360
Configuring Keyboard Shortcuts on the Hotkeys Screen 369
Choosing Options on the Accessibility Screen 370
Saving Your Configuration Changes 371
Chapter 13: Updating and Troubleshooting Windows 373
Making Windows Update Work Your Way 374
Configuring Windows Update 374
Applying an Update 377
Backing Up Key Files with File History 378
Enabling File History 379
Using History to Restore Files 381
Resolving Issues in Action Center 382
Reviewing Security and Maintenance Issues 384
Creating and Using System Restore Points 386
Creating System Restore Points 386
Restoring Windows to a System Restore Point 389
Undoing a System Restore Operation 393
Solving Problems with the Recovery Tools 395
Accessing the Recovery Tools 395
Resetting Your PC 396
Going Back to an Earlier Build of Windows 397
Using the Advanced Startup Tools 398
Chapter 14: Going Further with Advanced Moves 405
Working with Partitions 405
Examining the Partitions on Your Computer’s Drive 406
Shrinking a Partition 409
Creating a New Partition 410
Extending a Partition 413
Deleting a Partition 414
Running Multiple Operating Systems on Your Computer 416
Dual-Booting or Multi-Booting Windows with Another Operating System 416
Installing and Running Other Operating Systems with Hyper-V 419
Installing and Running Other Operating Systems with Third-Party Virtual-Machine Software 430
Making Advanced Changes by Editing the Registry 430
Opening Registry Editor and Navigating Its Interface 431
Understanding What’s What in the Registry 432
Backing Up and Restoring the Registry 433
An Example: Removing an App from the Open With Submenu in File Explorer 435
Index 437