Windows 8.1 Articles

Article / Updated 06-26-2017

You can use the Sync feature to share your PC settings among Windows 8.1 devices so you don’t have to redo the settings on each device. To sync, you have to turn on the sync feature. With the Sync feature turned on, sign into your Windows Live account on another device, and all your settings will be synced from the cloud. To begin, press Win+I. Click Change PC Settings, and then click SkyDrive→Sync Settings. Click the Sync Settings on This PC On/Off button. Syncing works only with Windows 8 or 8.1 settings and settings for apps that you buy from the Windows Store. When you turn on syncing, you can choose what you want to share. For example, you can share language preferences, passwords, or Ease of Access settings — it’s up to you. To set up what you want to sync, begin by pressing Win+I. Click Change PC Settings. Click SkyDrive→Sync Settings. Click the On/Off buttons for the various settings you want to share such as Personalization or App settings. With Sync turned on, selected settings are synced automatically among Windows 8.1 devices. If you're charged for data or Internet connection time — for example, a Windows 8.1 tablet with 3G — go to Sync Settings in the PC Settings and click the On/Off button under Sync and Back Up Settings over Metered Internet Connections. You might want to keep the next item, Sync and Back Up Settings over Metered Connections Even When I’m Roaming, off, as syncing settings while roaming can really cost you.

Article / Updated 06-23-2017

Depending on where you buy your computer, you may have to set the date and time in Windows 8.1. Your computer will keep the time and date through most eventualities, so setting it once is usually more than enough. Press Win+I to display the Settings panel of the Charms bar. In the Settings panel, click Change PC Settings. In the PC Settings panel, click Time & Language. Click the Time Zone field in the right panel and then choose a time zone from the drop-down list. If you want to, click the Adjust for Daylight Saving Time Automatically On/Off button to turn this feature on or off. Press the Windows key on your keyboard to return to the Start screen. Another way to display the Charms is to move your cursor to the bottom right or top right corner of the Start screen or Desktop. If you want to set the date and time manually, you can use the Windows 8.1 Desktop Control Panel. This panel is similar to the Control Panel you may have used in previous versions of Windows. On the Start screen, click the All Apps button and begin typing the words Control Panel. Click the Control Panel app that appears in the search results. Click Clock, Language, and Region, and then click the Set the Time and Date link to open the Date and Time dialog box and make settings.

Article / Updated 06-21-2017

The Camera app was new with Windows 8. If your laptop has a camera (in the case of a computer, what you have may be a webcam), you can use the Camera app features to take both still photos and videos. Click the Camera app tile on the Start screen. Aim your laptop towards your subject matter and click the Camera button. The photo is captured. Click the Video button to record a video. Click the Video button again to stop recording. When you take a photo, you can right-click on the picture. Buttons then appear that you can use to open the picture in an app such as windows Photo Viewer or delete it. If you take multiple pictures, use the arrows that appear when you move your mouse to the sides of the screen to scroll through the photos. To adjust photo resolution or make settings for audio recordings when you're recording a video, right-click and then click the Exposure button to use a slider to adjust exposure brightness. View a digital image in the Photos app To peruse your photos and open them in the Photos app, click the Photos tile on the Start screen. In the Photos app, double-click a photo library to display files within it. Double-click a photo to view it. You can then right-click the photo and use the tools to do any of the following: The Delete button deletes the selected image. Click the Open With button to use another program, such as Paint, to edit the photo. Click the Set As button to set the image as your lock screen image, the image background for the Photos app tile, or as an app background. Click the Slide Show button to run a slide show. Use the Rotate button to rotate the image 90 degrees at a time. Use the Crop button to display handles you can drag to crop to a portion of the Image. Click the Edit button to make changes to the photo. You can also press Win+I and then click the Options link to choose whether to shuffle photos on the Photos tile or not. Share a photo Click the Photos app tile on the Start screen. Locate a photo you want to share and then press Win+C. Click the Share charm for more sharing options in Photos. Click Mail. In the e-mail form that appears, enter an e-mail address or addresses, subject, and a message. Click the Send button. An e-mail is sent from your default e-mail with your photo attached. If your photo is large, consider clicking the SkyDrive link, if available, rather than Mail to upload it to your SkyDrive account and share it with the recipient. Run a slide show in Photos You can use Photos to play a slide show, which continues until you stop it. Click the Photos tile on the Start screen and click a photo album or library to open it. Right-click and click the Slide Show button. Click anywhere on the screen to stop the slide show.

Step by Step / Updated 04-11-2017

One of the biggest complaints that Microsoft heard about Windows 8 was the lack of a Start Button. Well, the Start Button has come back in Windows 8.1. Here's how the Windows 8.1 Start Button works.

Cheat Sheet / Updated 03-27-2016

If you have a computer or tablet that runs Windows 8, you really should upgrade to Windows 8.1. If you’re starting out fresh, moving from Windows XP or Windows 7 (or an earlier version), be forewarned that Windows 8.1 is nothing like the Windows of yore. Whether you have a touch screen or use the traditional keyboard and mouse, you'll want to find your way from the Metro Start screen to the desktop and back, uncovering the new Windows 8.1 features you’ll want to start using right away. Along the way, you can customize Windows 8.1 to work in a way that makes sense to you.

Step by Step / Updated 03-27-2016

Windows 8.1 enables you to change the background and colors in your Start screen. Although you have the ability to control the colors in Windows 8, it’s much easier to change them in Windows 8.1. To change the background and colors, follow these steps:

Step by Step / Updated 03-27-2016

If you want to wipe your computer and install Windows 8.1 from scratch, do that by booting from a DVD or USB drive and running a clean install. If you’re going to upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 8.1, and want to keep your data and programs intact, perform the online upgrade. As long as you stick to upgrading 32-bit Win7 to 32-bit Win8.1, or 64-bit Win7 to 64-bit Win8.1, the online installer works great. You must make full backups of all your data, write down all your passwords (unless they’re stored online someplace like LastPass), get all your software installation CDs and DVDs, and make yet another backup just in case, before starting this process. If you buy a shrink-wrapped copy of Windows 8.1, you get a DVD (or possibly a USB drive) that’s ready to boot. With a bootable USB drive or DVD in hand, you may have to adjust your computer so that it boots from the USB or DVD. Here’s how to go through the whole process — and survive to tell the tale:

Step by Step / Updated 03-27-2016

If you don’t mind getting your hands a little dirty, the next time you think about running Refresh in Windows 8.1, see whether you can roll your PC back to a previous restore point, manually, and get things working right. System Restore is a nifty feature that works very well. The folks at Microsoft figure it’s too complicated for the general computer- and tablet-buying consumer public. They may be right but, hey, all it takes is a little help and a touch of moxie, and you can save yourself a Refresh. Here’s how:

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

Modern PCs running Windows 8 aren't just for work, they also provide a number of excellent entertainment options. Just one example: you can watch a DVD movie on your laptop, if you've installed the VLC media player. Take a look at how you can use VLC media player to play your favorite DVDs: At the Windows 8 start screen, type VLC. When you begin typing the name of an app that you want to open, Windows 8 displays the apps that are installed on your PC that match the characters you type. When you see the app that you want, click on it to open the app. Choose the view option. After the VLC media player is open, click the View menu to display the list of viewing options for the player. For watching DVDs, you'll probably want to choose the Fullscreen Interface option, which you can also select by pressing F11. Insert your DVD into your DVD drive on your PC. If this is the first time you've played a DVD on your Windows 8 PC, a prompt will appear in the upper right corner of your screen instructing you to tap on the prompt box to choose what happens when a DVD is inserted. Choose your DVD playback option. To automatically play DVDs using VLC media player whenever a DVD is inserted, choose the Play DVD movie VideoLAN VLC media player option. If you'd rather choose which action to take each time, choose the Take no action option. Open the DVD from within VLC media player. If you inserted the DVD before VLC media player was running or if you selected the Take no action option, select the Media, Open Disc option from the VLC media player menu. Click the Play Button. The Open Media dialog box enables you to select various playback options, such as choosing an alternate audio or subtitle track before you begin playing the DVD. Use the playback controls near the bottom of the screen to control the DVD. You can use the controls to pause the playback, to expand the movie screen to fullscreen, and to adjust the volume as you watch your DVD.

Article / Updated 03-26-2016

In theory, connecting your Windows 8 tablet to a monitor is quite simple: Connect a cable between your tablet’s video port and your monitor’s input port. The challenge is finding the right cable. No single cable works in every situation. That’s because tablets and monitors contain different types of video ports, and your cable needs the correct jack on each end, or it won’t work. Most tablets come with a Micro HDMI port, and most PC monitors and HDTVs include a full-size HDMI port. So, you connect a cable as shown. But if those ports don’t resemble the ones on your tablet or external monitor, read on. Most tablets come with one of two types of video connectors: HDMI or miniDisplayPort. HDMI: By far the most popular, HDMI ports appear on most high definition TV sets (HDTVs), computer monitors, and even cellphones. Most tablets include a Micro HDMI port, shown in the figure (left). It’s the same type of video port found on many cellphones today. miniDisplayPort: Launched on Apple computers and slowly moving to some PCs, the miniDisplayPort now appears on some tablets. TVs and monitors also include one or more different types of video adapters. HDMI: Shown in the figure (right), this port is the same as the ones found on many tablets, but it’s full-size — more than twice as large. DVI: The next most popular, this port appears mostly on PC monitors rather than on TVs. VGA: This old chestnut appeared on monitors for more than a decade, so it’s still around on a lot of equipment as a last resort connector. Cables and adapters with VGA connectors cost more, because they need more circuitry to translate between the types of signals flowing through the cable. After you identify the video ports on your tablet and your monitor, buy a cable with a plug for your tablet on one end and the plug for your monitor on the other. There’s another method, as well: If you already have a cable that fits into the video port on either your tablet or your monitor, head to Amazon, Newegg, or your local electronics store to buy an adapter for the cable’s other end. An adapter can turn a cable’s HDMI plug into a miniDisplayPort plug, for example, letting it plug into a tablet’s miniDisplayPort. Depending on the variety of external monitors you plan to connect to your tablet, you may need to collect several types of cables or adapters. Don’t pay more than ten or fifteen dollars for a cable. The higher-priced ones don’t make the video signal any better.