3 Windows 8 Tips to Make Life Easier
Windows 8 has been around for a full year, already. To many people, though, the Modern interface is still a mystery. Here are a few tips on getting things done on Windows 8.
Using your Modern interface on the Desktop
The Modern interface on Windows 8 that’s filled with touchscreen-optimized tiled apps hasn’t been a hit with Desktop users who don’t have a touchscreen monitor. On a Desktop computer that’s mainly intended to run traditional Desktop programs, the fact that Windows 8 allows you to either use a Modern app or a Desktop program (but not both at the same time) can seem like a major oversight. The Desktop user with a dual monitor setup, for instance, would find it very useful to run a weather app or something else on one monitor and do his Desktop work on another. Windows 8 will have none of it, though.
If Microsoft allowed people to just run their Modern apps on a separate window right on their Desktop, they would possibly begin to care about Modern apps instead of considering them a hurdle to be crossed on the way to the Desktop.
The solution comes in the form of a program called Modern Mix. This application from StarDock costs about $5 and is easy to install. Once you have the program running, it places an icon on the top-right hand corner of your screen. When you have a Modern app running, you can click on its icon and turn it into a window on your Desktop.
Screensaver
To many people, having fun screensavers on their computer is an important part of the enjoyment that derive from it. The problem with screensavers on Windows is that they don’t start on demand. The best that you can do is to set a short screensaver timeout. If you set it really short, though, it can become an annoyance, starting up when you need to work slowly.
The solution to this problem is a little free program called Monitor ES. When you install this program, it allows you to start your screensaver on demand – you simply have to use the Windows + L shortcut to lock your computer each time you need your screensaver to start up.
Printing on Windows 8 Modern apps
The Modern interface, along with all its apps, is meant for casual, mobile use. Perhaps this is the reason that Microsoft hasn’t included printing on these apps by default. If you do need to print out of a Modern app, though, it isn’t hard.
Your first step would be to open an app – your mail, for instance. When you arrive at something that you need printed, you hit Ctrl+P. This should bring up a list of available printers. Alternatively, you can bring out the Charm bar and hit on Devices to bring out a list of printers available.
Windows 8 has been around for a full year, already. To many people, though, the Modern interface is still a mystery. Here are a few tips on getting things done on Windows 8.
Using your Modern interface on the Desktop
The Modern interface on Windows 8 that’s filled with touchscreen-optimized tiled apps hasn’t been a hit with Desktop users who don’t have a touchscreen monitor. On a Desktop computer that’s mainly intended to run traditional Desktop programs, the fact that Windows 8 allows you to either use a Modern app or a Desktop program (but not both at the same time) can seem like a major oversight. The Desktop user with a dual monitor setup, for instance, would find it very useful to run a weather app or something else on one monitor and do his Desktop work on another. Windows 8 will have none of it, though.
If Microsoft allowed people to just run their Modern apps on a separate window right on their Desktop, they would possibly begin to care about Modern apps instead of considering them a hurdle to be crossed on the way to the Desktop.
The solution comes in the form of a program called Modern Mix. This application from StarDock costs about $5 and is easy to install. Once you have the program running, it places an icon on the top-right hand corner of your screen. When you have a Modern app running, you can click on its icon and turn it into a window on your Desktop.
Screensaver
To many people, having fun screensavers on their computer is an important part of the enjoyment that derive from it. The problem with screensavers on Windows is that they don’t start on demand. The best that you can do is to set a short screensaver timeout. If you set it really short, though, it can become an annoyance, starting up when you need to work slowly.
The solution to this problem is a little free program called Monitor ES. When you install this program, it allows you to start your screensaver on demand – you simply have to use the Windows + L shortcut to lock your computer each time you need your screensaver to start up.
Printing on Windows 8 Modern apps
The Modern interface, along with all its apps, is meant for casual, mobile use. Perhaps this is the reason that Microsoft hasn’t included printing on these apps by default. If you do need to print out of a Modern app, though, it isn’t hard.
Your first step would be to open an app – your mail, for instance. When you arrive at something that you need printed, you hit Ctrl+P. This should bring up a list of available printers. Alternatively, you can bring out the Charm bar and hit on Devices to bring out a list of printers available.
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