Windows 8.1 Archives - Page 25 of 35

How to run Explorer as administrator on Windows 8.1, Windows 8 and Windows 7

As you may know, Windows Vista introduced some major changes to the security model of Windows, including User Account Control. What UAC does is introduce the concept of apps having the least privilege - only enough permissions that apps need to run should be granted to them and not full admin permissions, because if malware or bad apps run as admin, they can pretty much do any damage to your OS.

However, thanks to UAC, the user experience gets spoiled slightly and decades-old Windows users who were not used to this concept or who were not explained why it was introduced were bewildered when they migrated from Windows XP. They didn't understand why they were asked to confirm any action that does system level changes to their PC. One such application that shows considerable amount of UAC prompts if you are running Windows with the highest level of the UAC setting is File Explorer (formerly known as Windows Explorer). While Explorer does not show that many UAC prompts at the default UAC setting, the default UAC setting is not 100% foolproof. It is only secure against apps that assume admin level privileges to do bad things.

How to invert selection in File Explorer of Windows 8.1

File Explorer, formerly known as Windows Explorer, is the default file manager of Windows 8.1. Starting with Windows 8, it features the Ribbon interface, which exposes all the possible commands for quick access to regular file management features. Additionally, it offers you the quick access toolbar, where you can put any of your favorite commands.

Today we will look how we can use the Ribbon UI to manage the selection of items in File Explorer effectively.

How to disable or enable Windows Defender in Windows 8.1

Windows Defender is an antivirus software which provides 'baseline protection' according to Microsoft and ships with Windows 8 and Windows 8.1. Since Windows 8, Windows Defender is the same application as Microsoft Security Essentials, which exists as a separate download for Windows 7, Vista and XP.

While Windows Defender provides very baseline protection, it slows down your PC considerably. I have done benchmarks with it enabled and then disabled and concluded that the filter driver it installs on the system slows down disk I/O noticeably. Every time, I download some small file from the Internet, it also makes my browser hang. If you are not happy with Windows Defender and would like to turn it off, follow this simple tutorial.

Create a shortcut to open Visual options of Windows 8.1

In Windows 8.1, Microsoft has implemented the Modern Control Panel, which allows you to control your tablet with the a touch screen device in a handy way. It is touch friendly and includes many classic options. Those options are located inside the PC Settings application.
Using Visual options you can turn off notifications and animations, turn off the window background and adjust the thickness of the text cursor. Windows 8.1 allows you to create a shortcut to open Visual options with one click. Let's see how it can be done!

How to disable Windows SmartScreen in Windows 8.1

The SmartScreen filter is a technology which was initially designed for Internet Explorer to protect users from malicious websites and web applications. It was integrated with IE8 and IE9 (as the successor to IE7's Phishing filter). These days, it is a part of the Windows operating system starting with Windows 8 and Windows 8.1. The OS implementation exists along with SmartScreen for IE.

Do you know all these ways to open Control Panel in Windows 8.1

Control Panel is a special virtual folder of the Windows operating system ever since Windows 95 which provides access to most settings in Windows. There, you can change the appearance of your Desktop, the functionality of hardware and many-many other things. If you are new to Windows 8.1, you might be interested in learning how to open the Control Panel. There are many different ways available to open it, let's discover them all.

How to create a shortcut to open Region and language settings in Windows 8.1

Region and language settings in Windows 8.1 is a very simplified version of the powerful "Language" applet of the classic Control panel. It is located inside the PC Settings application and allows you to only change your current location, region and add or remove the language. However, unlike the classic Language applet, the Modern settings are touch friendly, which is their main benefit for tablet users. In Windows 8.1, you are able to create a shortcut to open those settings directly with one click.

A hidden way to open the command prompt from Task Manager

Earlier, I have covered several ways to open an elevated command prompt in Windows. Today, we will use a hidden, undocumented feature of Task Manager, which allows you to open an elevated command prompt right from the Task Manager application.

How to show or hide file extensions in Windows 8.1

By default, Windows 8.1's file manager, the File Explorer application (formerly known as Windows Explorer) does not show the file extension for most file types. This is a security risk as anyone could send you a malicious file named "Runme.txt.exe" but Windows will hide the .exe portion, so an inexperienced user can inadvertently open the file thinking that it is a text file and malware will infect his or her PC.

In this article we will look how to change this behavior so file extensions are always shown, and, as a bonus, we will also look at how we can force File Explorer to always show or always hide file extensions for a specific file type.

How to create a shortcut to open the Date and Time settings in Windows 8.1

Using the Modern Control Panel in Windows 8, you are able to change the date and time of your PC. The appropriate settings are located inside the PC Settings application, in the Time and Language -> Date and Time section. Using those settings, you can turn time synchronization on or off, change the time zone and date formats.
In Windows 8.1, you can additionally create a shortcut to open those settings directly. Let's see how it is possible to create a shortcut to open the Date and Time settings directly, with one click.