Windows 10 Fast Start

Your 100-page quick start guide for Windows 10 Smart Brain books are written by William Stanek, who has written numerous bestselling Windows books for Microsoft, O'Reilly and other publishers. Get this Fast Start guide to learn Windows 10 quickly. Windows 10 is more customizable than any earlier release of the Microsoft Windows operating system. Powerful new features and options combined with traditional favorites allow you to work in new ways. You can perform tasks more efficiently, and you can optimize and customize the operating system in many ways.

Teaching you how to make Windows 10 work the way you want it to is what this book is all about. If you were moving in to a house, apartment, or dorm room, you would want to make the space your own. We do the same with just about everything in our lives, yet surprisingly few people take the time to make their virtual space their own, which can make using a computer a frustrating experience.

One of the ways to make Windows 10 your own is to customize the interface. In any operating system, the interface is everything that connects you to your computer and its basic elements, including the desktop, the menu system, and the taskbar. The way these essential elements look depends on appearance settings. The way they behave depends on customization settings associated with your user account.

Table of Contents

1. Kicking the Tires7

Using Touchscreens7

Getting Signed In8

Entering and Exiting Tablet Mode10

2. Navigating the Accounts Maze13

Local and Domain Accounts13

Accessing Business Networks14

3. Making the Most of Your Desktop Space17

Cortana & Search19

Task View & Changing Desktops22

4. Meet the New Start Menu25

New Tricks for an Old Dog26

More, More, More27

5. Conquering the Kangaroos29

Optimizing Interface Performance29

Mastering Desktop Essentials32

Stretching the Desktop37

Ready to Ditch Snap?41

6. Making the Start Menu Your B*tch43

Pinning Apps and Using Full-Screen Mode45

Creating Sections47

Resizing and Reorganizing Tiles48

Customizing the Most Used and Recently Added Lists49

7. Making the Taskbar Dance51

Putting the Taskbar Where You Want It51

Customizing Taskbar Appearance53

Pinning Programs to the Taskbar55

Using Flip Views and Jump Lists56

8. Customizing Backgrounds59

Using Pictures for Backgrounds61

Using Solid Colors for Backgrounds62

Using Slideshow Backgrounds62

9. Customizing Lock Screens65

Using Pictures on the Lock Screen67

Using Slideshows on the Lock Screen67

Configuring Notifications on the Lock Screen69

10. Customizing User Accounts71

Changing Account Pictures71

Changing Account Types72

Changing and Recovering Your Password73

11. Exploring Your Computer in New Ways75

Getting There75

Getting It Done77

Managing Access History80

12. Zeroing in on Apps83

Getting Your Apps83

Connecting Your Account to the Store84

Finding and Installing Your Apps87

Managing Currently Running Apps, Programs and Processes89

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