20 must-know keyboard shortcuts for Windows 10

September 5th, 2015 | Edited by | hardware

Sep
05

Windows 10 has a bunch of new features that bring new keyboard shortcuts along with them. Here’s a list of the best keyboard shortcuts to know to make your time with Windows 10 more efficient.
With Windows 10, Microsoft has added a ton of new keyboard shortcuts to give you easier access to the new Action Center, Cortana, Task View, and virtual desktops. So much so, in fact, that Microsoft recently released a handy-dandy Word document with Windows 10’s Windows key shortcuts to aid in your study.

keyboard

If you’re new to keyboard shortcuts, however, one glance at that list can be overwhelming—and there are plenty of keyboard shortcuts that don’t involve the Windows key whatsoever. To help you streamline it a bit, here’s a list of 20 must-know shortcuts for Windows 10.
This isn’t just a list for Windows 10, however. Many of these shortcuts work with older versions of Windows, and you’ll find a few standard browser shortcuts as well. If you’re on Windows 7 or 8.1 but new to shortcuts this list will also help you take control of your Windows machine and make you more efficient by lessening your dependence on the mouse.

Windows 10’s newest features

Windows key + A: Open the Action Center
Windows key + C: Launch Cortana in listening mode (for voice commands)
Windows key + I: Open the Settings app
Windows key + S: Launch Cortana
Windows key + Tab: Open Task View
Windows key + Ctrl + D: Create a new virtual desktop
Windows key + Ctrl + F4: Close the current desktop
Windows key + Ctrl + left or right arrow: switch between virtual desktops

Standard Windows shortcuts

Windows key (Windows 7 and up): Open/close the Start menu
Windows key + X (Windows 8.1 and 10): Open/close the Start button’s right-click context menu
Windows key + left or right arrow (Windows 7 and up): snap current window to right or left of screen
Windows key + (Windows 7 and up): Launch File Explorer
Windows key + (Windows 7 and up): Lock the desktop
Alt + PrtScn (Windows 7 and up): Take a screenshot of current window and copy it to your clipboard
Windows key + PrtScn (Windows 8.1 and 10): Take a screenshot of entire display and save to Computer > Pictures > Screenshots

 

Browser shortcuts (works in Edge and most other browsers)

Ctrl + T: Open new tab
Ctrl + D: Bookmark page
Ctrl + L: Highlight current URL (good for typing a new address or copying the current one)
Ctrl + Tab: Cycle through your open tabs
Ctrl + Enter: add “.com” to the end of a web address (e.g. type ‘google’ then Ctrl + Enter to get google.com)

 

 

Why you can’t find your product key after upgrading to Windows 10

August 22nd, 2015 | Edited by | software

Aug
22

With Windows 10, Microsoft is doing away with the conventional product key for digital installs. You may never have to manage product keys again.
A funny thing happens when you look for a product key in Windows 10 after doing the free upgrade: You won’t find them.
In Windows 10, utilities like Magical Jelly Bean KeyFinder or Belarc Advisor return generic product keys instead of authentic ones. Don’t believe me? This is the key Windows 10 Pro users will see in KeyFinder or Belarc Advisor: VK7JG-NPHTM-C97JM-9MPGT-3V66T.
Let’s try this PowerShell script from the Hexus forums on Windows 10 Pro. You should get this: T44CG-JDJH7-VJ2WF-DY4X9-HCFC6. That’s the generic key for build 10240.
Not a real product key to be seen anywhere.
The reason for this is that Windows 10 changes Microsoft’s traditional product key model, and if you ask me it’s for the better.

windows-8-setup

Entitlements, not product keys

When you use the free upgrade to Windows 10 or pay for a digital retail version, you don’t get a product key. Instead, your computer uses what Microsoft calls a digital entitlement.
“Upon upgrading to Windows 10, the activation state from a prior version of Windows (be it Windows 7, Windows 8 or a prior build of Windows 10) is seamlessly carried over,”  a Microsoft spokesperson told PCWorld. “Once activated, a digital entitlement for your PC’s hardware is created in the Windows 10 activation service.This entitlement can be used by the same PC again for re-activation of the same Edition of Windows 10 in the future.”
It looks like the product key is on its way out, at least as far as users are concerned. After installation, your version of Windows 10 should just activate in the background in a few moments or a few days at the most. You can check your activation status by going toSettings > Update & Security > Activation.

Clean installs all the way down

Once your Windows 10 upgrade activates, you can grab a Windows 10 install image, do a clean install, skip the screen asking for product keys, and you should just re-activate again after the install is complete. I say should, because even in this brave new world without product keys I find it hard to believe there won’t be a few installation horror stories involving product activation.
That said, I can vouch from personal experience that a post-upgrade clean install of Windows 10 just works. Shortly after I installed Windows 10 on my laptop, I swapped out my old spinning hard drive for an SSD. When I was done with the installation Windows activated right away.
For longtime Windows users the absence of product keys in Windows 10 digital installs is a relief and at the same time a little worrying. Based on the long history of activation horror stories, some of you out there may be a little suspicious of this new process. Although the notion of never having to use a product key ever again sounds great.

Well, almost…

There are still situations where you’ll run into product keys with Windows 10. If you buy a physical retail edition such as on a USB stick or DVD, you’ll still get a product key. Microsoft told us that “your activation product key stays with your PC.” We’re not clear if that means product keys work as digital entitlements, or whether you’ll be managing product keys the old fashioned way—by stashing that product key somewhere safe for later use. We’re double-checking this with Microsoft and will update this article should the company respond.
One sticking point with digital entitlements is that because it’s dependent on your hardware configuration, making a significant change can wipe out the entitlement. If you swap out your motherboard, for example, your digital entitlement will likely disappear and Windows 10 won’t activate. If that happens, you’ll have to make a call to Microsoft’s customer support line to re-activate your copy of Windows.
Keep in mind we’re talking significant hardware changes here. If you swap out your hard drive for an SSD or add more RAM, you shouldn’t see any problems.
I don’t know about you, but if I ever have to look at a product key again it’ll be too soon.

Source: www.pcworld.com

Microsoft makes it official: Windows 10 will receive security fixes for ten years

July 21st, 2015 | Edited by | software

Jul
21

The company will offer “mainstream” support for its upcoming OS until 2020 at the earliest, and “extended” support until at least 2025.

windows-10

Back in January, Microsoft first stated that Windows 10 would be free for the “supported lifetime of the device” you install it on. That wording caused some confusion: What the heck is a device’s “supported lifetime,” anyway? But we’re now getting a better idea of what you can expect in terms of Windows 10 support.
According to an updated support document published to Microsoft’s site, the company will offer “mainstream support” for Windows 10 through October 13, 2020, and “extended support” (that is, how long you can expect Microsoft to issue Windows 10 security fixes) through October 14, 2025.
For those keeping score at home, the five-year mainstream support and ten-year extended support periods are more or less in line with the support cycles for Windows Vista, 7, and 8, so you won’t be cut off early, support-wise, with Windows 10.
If your computer is no longer supported by its manufacturer, you should be good to go as well. According to ZDNet’s Ed Bott, you’ll be able to install Windows 10 “even on devices where the OEM does not officially support Windows 10 and has no plans to do so.” Put another way, you’ll still get Windows 10 software updates from Microsoft, even if your PC’s manufacturer no longer offers support for your computer.
Microsoft will release Windows 10 for PCs and tablets to the masses on July 29th, with Windows 10 Mobile following sometime this fall. In the meantime, if you’re on Windows 7 or 8, you can “reserve” your copy now and be notified when Windows 10 is released.

Source: www.pcwprld.com

10 Reasons to Embrace Windows 10

May 19th, 2015 | Edited by | software

May
19

windows10

The Windows 10 Technical Preview has been out for a few months along with various blogs, articles and presentations. There is a lot out there for both businesses and PC users to digest. Let me give you my Top 10 – not meant to be comprehensive of everything new in Windows 10, just what I find most meaningful.  In no particular order:

  1. The Windows 8.0/8.1 “live tile” UI” is now integrated into the Start Menu which can also be viewed in full screen mode.   Two worlds previously toggled via the Windows button become one, resulting in a more familiar user interface.
  2. When using a 2 in 1 system, Windows 10 optimizes the user interface for either touch or keyboard/mouse input, based on whether your device is in tablet or laptop mode.
  3. When using a laptop with a precision touchpad, Windows 10 offers new touchpad gestures for navigating through your open apps.
  4. Systems can be upgraded to Windows 10 directly from Windows 7. The option to skip Win 8.0/8.1 should be very interesting to IT managers everywhere.   Of course an upgrade to Windows 10 from Windows 8.1 is possible but not from Windows 8.0.
  5. MS Word capabilities are built into Outlook. Now it’s easier to add tables, insert pictures and more. Email is foundational to business productivity and I’m glad folks are looking to continuously improve it.
  6. Windows Updates – both update type and cadence – can be customized by IT departments based on platform/user type. The needs of the business will dictate which updates get pushed when to which systems.
  7. Windows 10 offers a more secure browser with enhanced support for modern sites as well as compatibility for legacy enterprise web pages and apps.
  8. Windows 10 offers expanded and improved device management choices including Microsoft Active Directory, Azure Active Directory, Group Policy, SCCM and improved MDM support. MDM support began with Windows 8.1, enabling IT to manage Windows PCs the same way they manage mobile devices. However with Windows 10 this MDM capability offers improvements in enterprise data protection, remote wiping for lost devices and even full control over the Windows Store among other features.
  9. Speaking of the Windows Store, Microsoft is offering a web-based portal so organizations can acquire apps and then distribute them within their Windows 10 user base. It is even possible for a company to create their own private section within the Windows Store, making public and private apps easier to find so users can customize devices as directed by IT.
  10. And finally, for added security Windows 10 is adding a feature called Windows Hello, which incorporates multifactor authentication (ex: biometric data) into the login process.

Look for more information this summer as the production version of the OS is released and businesses spend more cycles testing their applications and IT images. Windows 10 coupled with Intel-based platforms is going to be a very compelling computing solution.

Source: www.pcworld.com

It’s official: Windows 10 will not be free for pirates

May 16th, 2015 | Edited by | software

May
16

Microsoft executives said Friday that the company will not offer Windows 10 for free to those without legitimate licenses to Microsoft’s software, as the company had previously seemed to say.
Terry Myerson, executive vice president of operating systems for Microsoft, wrote Friday that the company will provide “very attractive” offers to those who wish to upgrade from what he called a Windows operating system in a “non-Genuine state” to Windows 10. But, he said, it will not be free.
“While our free offer to upgrade to Windows 10 will not apply to Non-Genuine Windows devices, and as we’ve always done, we will continue to offer Windows 10 to customers running devices in a Non-Genuine state,” Myerson wrote. “In addition, in partnership with some of our valued OEM partners, we are planning very attractive Windows 10 upgrade offers for their customers running one of their older devices in a Non-Genuine state.”

windows_pirates
If Windows thinks that the software isn’t genuine, it will create a “watermark” on the machine, notifying customers that they’re running an illegitimate copy of the software. If that happens, a customer will either need to upgrade or return the machine—assuming they just bought it—to the manufacturer itself.
“Non-Genuine Windows has a high risk of malware, fraud, public exposure of your personal information, and a higher risk for poor performance or feature malfunctions,” Myserson added. “Non-Genuine Windows is not supported by Microsoft or a trusted partner.”
What this means: This seemingly is the final act on a small drama that began in March, when Microsoft appeared to tell Reuters that it would offer free Windows 10 upgrades even to even those who had pirated the software. Two days later, however, it began walking back on that statement, claiming that pirated copies would be “still illegitimate.” Now we seem to have the final answer: If you pirate Windows, you’ll have to pay—eventually.

Source: www.pcworld.com

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