Paul Thurrott - Windows 8 Secrets

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Windows 8 Secrets: краткое содержание, описание и аннотация

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Tips, tricks, treats, and secrets revealed on Windows 8
Amazon.com Review
Q & A with the authors of From the Back Cover Microsoft is introducing a major new release of its Windows operating system, Windows 8, and what better way for you to learn all the ins and outs than from two internationally recognized Windows experts and Microsoft insiders, authors Paul Thurrott and Rafael Rivera? They cut through the hype to get at useful information you’ll not find anywhere else, including what role this new OS plays in a mobile and tablet world.
Regardless of your level of knowledge, you’ll discover little-known facts about how things work, what’s new and different, and how you can modify Windows 8 to meet what you need.
Windows 8 Secrets
•  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  Windows 8 Secrets Should consumers adopt Windows 8 or Windows RT? Windows RT offers both advantages and disadvantages compared to Windows 8, and which you choose will depend on your needs. The biggest issue with Windows RT, of course, is the lack of desktop application compatibility: Though it comes with most Windows 8 desktop utilities and a version of Microsoft Office, Windows RT is not compatible with any third party or Microsoft desktop Windows applications that are already included. That said, Windows RT should offer much better battery life and amazingly thin and light form factors when compared to similar PCs and devices designed around a traditional PC microprocessor.
What’s best way to upgrade from Windows 7 to Windows 8? Upgrade or clean install? Is an upgrade safe? Generally speaking, you will actually see better results with an upgrade with this version of Windows, which is different than our experience with previous versions. To be safe, backup everything first, perform the upgrade, and if it doesn’t go well, you can always do a clean install afterwards.
One thing to watch during an upgrade, however, is Internet Explorer: If you have configured a different browser as your default browser in Windows 7 and then upgrade to Windows 8, you will actually lose the ability to run the Metro-style version of Internet Explorer 10. You can fix this by configuring IE as your default browser after the fact.
Does Windows 8 really run faster and better than Windows 7 on the same hardware? Yes. But in real world usage, you won’t notice much of a difference in usage. That said, Windows 8 boots, resumes from sleep, and performs other power management functions much, much faster than does Windows 7. You can also use Push Button Reset to refresh or reset a Windows 8 PC in just minutes.
Will all of my Windows 7 apps and drivers work with Windows 8? For the most part, yes. Microsoft claims that if it works with Windows 7, it should work with Windows 8. And in our experience, that has definitely been the case. Even the now-ancient game “Halo: Combat Evolved,” from 2003 installs and runs just fine. That said, you may need to uninstall some applications if you’re upgrading from Windows 7 to Windows 8, and then reinstall them after the fact. And of course there will always be some exceptions.
What are the most important keyboard combinations we should memorize? If you remember just one keyboard shortcut, it should be WINKEY + C, which enables the Charms and access to several key system functions, including Search, Share, Start, Devices, and Settings. Some other useful keyboard shortcuts include WINKEY + D (to navigate directly to the desktop), WINKEY + I (for Settings), and WINKEY + L for lock. And let’s not forget our favorite keyboard combination: WINKEY + X, which displays a power user menu of sorts containing lots of useful shortcuts.
In their introduction, the authors of this book say that “with Windows 8, suddenly, everything is different.” And they are right—with a completely new interface presenting users with a completely new experience, Windows 8 and its device-based cousin Windows RT are arguably the biggest change in Windows ever. But bestselling authors Paul Thurrott and Rafael Rivera have you covered with Windows 8 Secrets, a completely new, written-from-scratch guide to the ins and outs of this new Windows experience. Covering topics both large and small, ranging from how the new immersive experiences and familiar Windows desktop interface coexist to the subtle differences in interacting with Windows 8 via touch, keyboard, or mouse, this book digs in to reveal helpful and advanced insight in all major Windows areas: application management, data backup and security, networking, and much more.
The Insider’s Guide to:
•  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  •  The Secrets series reveals:
•  •  •  •  •  [Contain tables. Best viewed with CoolReader.]

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There’s still more, but you get the idea. While many Windows 8 security features are in your face when required, some simply work behind the scenes, tirelessly keeping you safe without you doing a thing. What’s missing is the “security theater” that used to dog older Windows versions, where the security features were purposefully made to be overly chatty and interruptive, providing you with a sense that something good was happening.

Summary

With Windows 8, Microsoft offers the first major change to user accounts since, well, it added user accounts to Windows. Now, home users can get the same kind of settings-roaming functionality that was previously available only in expensive and complex corporate environments, tied to the online ID—the Microsoft account—we all already use. Of course, those using traditional workgroup-type local accounts or domain accounts won’t be left behind either, and you can mix all three account types on the same PC if desired.

From a security perspective, Microsoft has finally closed the loop and silenced the critics by adding an excellent and effective antivirus solution to the OS. That, combined with new boot-time security protections, new security features like Windows SmartScreen, a host of new Action Center-based reliability and security tracking functionality, and, of course, all the excellent security features from Windows 7, makes Windows 8 the most secure Windows yet.

But then you expected nothing less, right?

Chapter 13

Networking and Connectivity

In This Chapter

• Understanding which Windows 7 networking features carry over to Windows 8

• Connecting to and managing wired networks

• Connecting to and managing Wi-Fi wireless networks

• Understanding how cellular data networks work and how they are different from other network types

• Connecting to and managing cellular data networks

• Using Airplane Mode

• Using HomeGroup to share resources on a home network

• Using Credential Manager to share with older Windows-based PCs

After making major improvements to its networking infrastructure in Windows XP with Service Pack 2 a decade ago, Microsoft has been evolving this technology in subsequent Windows versions. In Windows 8, you see the most refined version of this technology yet, with new Metro-based interfaces for connecting to wired and Wi-Fi wireless networks. Windows 8 also includes a Metro-based front end to the HomeGroup network sharing scheme, which takes on all new importance in this release thanks to Windows 8’s Microsoft account sign-in capabilities.

More revolutionary, however, is Windows 8’s support for the cellular data networks that are becoming more and more ubiquitous thanks to the rise of smartphones, tablets, and other modern computing devices. Windows 8 treats this network type specially, with an understanding of their metered nature that will help users avoid overage charges and automatically switch to more efficient—and less costly—networks when available.

What Was Old Is New Again

All of the networking functionality you’re familiar with from Windows 7 is present in Windows 8, though some of these interfaces have been updated to accommodate the new Metro environment that sits at the core of this new OS. Features that carry forward to Windows 8 include the following:

• HomeGroup sharing:In addition to older, traditional network-based resource sharing techniques from previous versions of Windows, Windows 7 added a simple new scheme called HomeGroup sharing. This makes it easy to share digital media content, documents, and printers on a home network. Because of the move to Microsoft account-based sign-ins in Windows 8, HomeGroup sharing is more important than ever in this release, so we explore this topic in more detail later in the chapter.

• Network and Sharing Center:This complex interface provides a single place to go to view, configure, and troubleshoot networking issues, and access new and improved tools. It’s still there, virtually unchanged in Windows 8. If you’re lucky, you will never need to use it.

If you’re unlucky, you can access Network and Sharing Center via Start Search. Or, right-click the Network notification icon in the Notification Area and choose Network and Sharing Center from the pop-up menu that appears.

The Network and Sharing interface also includes a feature called Network Map that visually shows how your PC is connected to the Internet and other devices, an issue that is particularly important to understand when troubleshooting.

• Seamless network connections:In Windows XP, unconnected wired and wireless network connections would leave ugly red icons in your system tray, and creating new connections was confusing and painful. Now Windows connects to secure networks automatically. Windows will also automatically disable networking hardware that isn’t in use, a boon for mobile computer users on-the-go who want to preserve battery life.

The interface for managing wireless networks is now a Metro experience. Since it’s new, we’ll discuss that in the next section.

• Network explorer:The old My Network Places explorer from previous versions of Windows has been replaced and upgraded significantly with the new Network explorer. This handy interface supports access to all of the computers, devices, and printers found on your connected networks, instead of just showing network shares, as XP did. You can even access network-connected media players, video game consoles, and other connected device types from this interface.

• Network locations:Windows 7 featured a Set Network Location wizard that would appear whenever you connected to a new wired or wireless network for the first time. This wizard let you set multiple complex network characteristics under the hood by providing a simple list of choices for the type of network you were connecting to: Home, Work, or Public. Home and Work were essentially the same, in that both opened up sharing between your PC and other PCs and devices on the network. Public, meanwhile, was for public network connection, like the Wi-Fi connections you might run into at cafés, airports, and similar locations.

In Windows 8, network location is handled differently and, believe it or not, it’s even easier than before. Now, there are only two states, and instead of forcing the user to think about the network type, you choose between whether you want to share or connect to devices. We explain this functionality and how to configure it on a per-connection basis in the next section.

Connecting to and Managing Wired and Wireless Networks

With the move to a Metro-based infrastructure in Windows 8, many core system tasks now occur within that interface rather than in the classic desktop environment. So while many of the advanced networking features from Windows 7 are still present, largely unchanged, in Windows 8, the most frequently-needed features for connecting to and managing networks—both wired and wireless (Wi-Fi/802.11-style)—have changed.

Using Wired Networks

A wired Ethernet network is the simplest type of network to connect to, from the perspective of Windows at least. That’s because Microsoft is making a big—and usually correct—assumption with this type of connection. And that’s that anyone who signs in to Windows using a local or Microsoft account and then connects a network cable to the PC is doing so on their own home network. And that network, by definition, is trusted, a private network type, and one in which being able to share with other PCs and connect to devices is not only safe, but desirable.

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