Windows 10 For Dummies, 4th Edition (For Dummies (Computer/Tech))

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Computer users have been "doing Windows" since the 1980s. That long run doesn't mean everyone knows the best-kept secrets of the globally ubiquitous operating system. Windows 10 All-in-One For Dummies, 4th Edition offers a deep guide for navigating the basics of Windows 10 and diving into more advanced features.

Press Shift+Windows key+S: This keyboard shortcut opens the Snipping app. Choose an option from the menu bar at the top of the screen to tell the app what you want to capture: First, a word to the wired crowd: If you've chosen to connect a computer to your router with a cable, plug one end of the cable into your computer's network port. Plug the cable's other end into one of your router's network ports. (The ports are usually numbered; any number will do.)Turn on File History. Unless you’re going to store everything in the cloud, you need to tell Windows that you want it to keep “shadow copies” of files, so you can restore older versions. (Companies that provide cloud storage have this ability built in.) Windows 7 has File History turned on by default; in Windows 10, you must turn it on yourself. The Properties dialog box for your network adapter appears. This dialog box has seven tabs that let you configure the adapter: If you can’t find a file that was sitting around yesterday, chances are good it’s either in the Recycle Bin or you dragged it somewhere weird. Cloud storage is a marketing term — when a company talks about storing data in their cloud, they’re just saying you should put it on their computers. Advanced: Lets you set a variety of device-specific parameters that affect the operation of the adapter.

Mouse and keyboard equivalent: Hold down the control key on the keyboard while using the mouse wheel to grow or shrink an item on the screen. Details: With this tab, you can inspect various properties of the adapter such as the date and version of the device driver. To view the setting of a particular property, select the property name from the drop-down list. Pinch or stretch: Place two fingers on the screen and then move them as if you were pinching or stretching a sheet of paper. The onscreen image expands or shrinks accordingly.Figure out a cloud and OneDrive data storage strategy. If you want to use Microsoft’s OneDrive, make sure you understand how it may or may not store copies on your PC. If you want to use Dropbox or one of a zillion competitors, it’s easier if you set it up and use it from the get-go. How often have you wanted to take a snapshot of what’s onscreen either to save it for yourself or to send it to someone else? Service. Microsoft continues to treat Windows 10 as a service rather than a product. And, just like any other service, Windows 10 changes constantly. Don’t be surprised if Windows unexpectedly changes its look or features.

Tweak the Windows UI so it looks and feels just the way you like it. Change the theme, adjust the icon size, or turn the new OS into a dead ringer for Windows 7. Many people find OneDrive — at least the Windows 7, 8, and 10 versions of OneDrive — very confusing because, in essence, OneDrive keeps two sets of books. (Windows 8.1 OneDrive, by contrast is quite upfront about the whole process.) In Windows 10's OneDrive, there's the whole OneDrive enchilada stored on the web. But there's a second, shadow, subset of OneDrive folders that are stored on your computer. Everything you learned about Metro apps disappears in Windows 10. All the time and effort you put into setting up and learning those tiled Metro apps in Windows 8/8.1 won’t help you very much. Microsoft didn’t like them, either. Although you see occasional vestiges of Win8 Metro apps in Windows 10’s apps, by and large, all the old Windows 8 app stuff is dead. Press and hold: You can see detailed information without having to commit to an action. In some cases, pressing and holding opens a menu with more options.Swipe from the bottom or top edge for app commands: App commands are revealed by swiping inward about an inch from the bottom or top edge. Swiping from the very top to the very bottom of the screen lets you close the current app.