14. Log in automatically
Tired of manually logging in every time Windows 8 launches?
Hold down the Windows key, press 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, click OK, reboot, and you shouldn't be prompted for your login details again.
15. Windows key shortcuts in Windows 8
The Windows Metro interface is primarily designed for touch screens, but it does also support most of the old Windows key shortcuts, many of which are now more useful than ever.
Win + C : displays the "Charms": the Settings, Devices, Share and Search options
Win + D : launches the desktop
Win + E : launches Explorer
Win + F : opens Search
Win + I : opens Settings
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 : search your system settings (type POWER for links to all power-related options, say)
Win + Z : displays the right-click context menu when in a full-screen Metro app
Win + + : zoom in
Win + - : zoom out
Win + Tab : switch between running apps
16. Launch programs quickly
If you're working with a keyboard and don't want to have to scroll through Metro tiles to find the program you need, don't worry, Windows 8 still supports a useful old shortcut.
Open the desktop, launch Media Player, right-click its taskbar button and select Pin this program to Taskbar.
Close Media Player, and drag and drop its taskbar icon to the extreme left, so it's next to the taskbar button, then press the Windows key again to return to the Metro interface.
Now hold down the Windows key, press 1, and you'll see the desktop appear and Media Player launch. You can similarly press the Windows key and 2 to launch the second icon (IE, by default), or 3 to launch the third (Explorer), while adding as many others as will fit.
17. View all installed programs
Windows 8 no longer displays a Start menu, which means you can't easily see all the non-Metro programs on the system.
Unless, that is, you hold down the Windows key, and press F to see the Search dialog. Click Apps and you'll be left with an alphabetically-sorted list of installed apps and applications - just click one to launch it, or right-click one and select Pin to add it to the Metro screen for easier access later.
18. Shutdown shortcuts
The fastest way to shut down your PC is via a suitable shortcut.
Launch the desktop app, right-click an empty part of the desktop and click New > Shortcut.
Enter
shutdown.exe -s -t 00
to shut down your PC,
shutdown.exe -h -t 00
to hibernate it, and click Next.
Type a shortcut name - Hibernate, say - and click Finish.
Right-click the shortcut and select Pin to Taskbar, or copy the shortcut to the C:\Users\<AccountName>\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs folder.
Hold down the Windows key and press F to open Search.
Type the name of the shortcut, click Apps beneath the search box, and it should appear on the left.
Finally, right-click the app, select Pin and it should appear on the far right of the Metro screen - just drag it wherever you like.
19. Restore the Start menu
If you've explored Metro but don't like it at all, there's a way to restore a more traditional look.
Launch REGEDIT and browse to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer.
Double-click RPEnabled, and change it from 1 to 0 to remove Metro, the new Task Manager, Start menu and more.
Alternatively, set RPEnabled to 2 to remove Metro, restore the Start menu but keep most of the other improvements.
20. Launch Metro apps from the desktop
Spending most of your time in the desktop doesn't have to mean abandoning Metro apps altogether.
Create a new folder on your desktop called:
Applications.
Then open it and you'll see icons for every app on your Metro screen, along with other Windows applets. So if you need to open a particular Metro app, open this folder, double-click the icon, and you can launch it without having to switch back to Metro.
Windows 8 tips: new options and features
21. Install Windows 8 from a USB flash drive
If you'd like to install Windows 8 from a USB flash drive, rather than a DVD, then the Windows 7 USB/DVD Download Tool has been reported to work. Just point the program at your Windows 8 ISO file and it'll create a bootable Windows 8 installer on the USB drive for you.
22. SmartScreen
Windows 8 now uses IE's SmartScreen system-wide, checking downloaded files to ensure they're safe. In general this is a good thing, but if you have any problems then it can be tweaked.
Hold down the Windows key, press R, type control.exe and press Enter to launch the old-style Control Panel.
Open the Action Centre applet, and click Change SmartScreen Settings. Here you can keep the warning, but avoid the requirement for administrator approval, or turn SmartScreen off altogether. Make your choice and click OK to finish.
23. 64-bit IE
If you have the 64-bit version of Windows 8 then its copy of Internet Explorer can also run in 64-bit mode - but only when manually enabled.
Click Tools > Internet Options > Security, choose the security zone you wish to tweak, and check Enable 64-bit Mode. Click OK, restart and you're done.
24. Virtual Machines
Install Windows 8 and you also get Microsoft's Hyper-V, allowing you to create and run virtual machines (as long as you're not running in a virtual machine already). Launch OptionalFeatures.exe, check Hyper-V and click OK to enable the feature. Then switch back to Metro, scroll to the right, find and click on the Hyper-V Manager tile to begin exploring its capabilities.
25. Early Launch Anti-Malware
When your Windows 8 system launches it can now selectively decide which boot drivers to initialise, refusing to load dubious or unknown drivers and so protecting you from some infections.
You need to turn this feature on manually, though. Which may not be a good idea just yet, because if a legitimate driver is blocked then your system may crash, lock up or become unstable.
But if you'd like to try this anyway, launch GPEDIT.MSC, browser to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > System > Early Launch Anti-Malware, double-click Boot-Start Driver Initialisation Policy on the right, and choose your preferred option.
26. Windows 8 File History
Windows 8 includes an excellent File History feature, which can back up your selected files whenever you like. To set this up, go to the desktop Control Panel, and open the File History applet. Click Exclude Folders to decide what you're saving, Advanced Settings to choose the backup frequency, Change Drive to choose the backup destination, and Turn On to enable the feature with your settings.
And once it's been running for a while, you can check on the history for any file in Explorer by selecting it, choosing the Home tab and clicking History.
27. USB drives
You don't need a large external drive to use File History - a USB flash drive will do. Just connect it to your Windows 8 system, choose "Configure this drive for backup using File History" from the menu, and by default your libraries, contacts, favourites and desktop contents will immediately be backed up. (Use the settings options mentioned above to tweak how this works.)
Windows 8 tips: tweaks and customisations
28. Control Panel
The process of customising Windows 8 starts when you click the new Metro Control Panel tile.
Click Personalise, for instance, and you can change your lock screen image in a click or two. Click User Tile at the top of the screen, though, and you can also change the picture representing your account, including grabbing an image from your webcam, if you have one.
29. Picture password
Windows 8 allows you to create a picture password, where you choose an image, then draw on it in a combination of taps, lines and circles - only someone who can reproduce this pattern will be able to log on. Click Control Panel > Users > Create a Picture Password to get started.
30. Simplify Search
By default Windows 8 includes every bundled app in its Search results. If you'll never want to use some of these - the Store app, say - then click Control Panel on the Metro screen, select Search, choose which apps you don't want included, and your search list will be more manageable in future.
31. Touch Keyboard
By default the Touch Keyboard will try to help you out by, for instance, playing sounds as you type, capitalising the first letter of each sentence, adding a period if you double-tap the spacebar, and more. If any of this gets in your way, though, you can turn the relevant feature off: just go to Control Panel > General and customise the keyboard to suit your needs.
32. Sync selectively
Windows 8 can synchronise its settings across every system you have it installed, which sounds great - but can also lead to privacy problems. It will synchronise everything, including internet history and some passwords, for instance, maybe a problem if several people use your PCs. If this doesn't suit your needs then you can customise Sync from the Metro Control Panel: simply click Sync PC Settings and select your preferred options.
33. Full power
If these basic options aren't what you need, then you can scroll to the bottom of the new Control Panel and click More Settings to see all the old applets.
Or, if you're using a keyboard, just hold down the Windows key, press R, type Control.exe and press Enter to launch the full Control Panel directly.
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