tips
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Pin Your Stuff All Over Windows
Today it occurred to me that the pin action has really taken off at Microsoft across all products and divisions. Just like the physical version, pins are used to personalize and post your stuff in-place, wherever you want to place it. Here’s just a few places you can find this metaphor in Windows, and how […]
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Visual Effects and Performance Options in Windows 8 and 10
I’ve written before about the non-intuitive nature of visual effects in recent versions of Windows, where offloading the desktop rendering duties to the graphics card can result in considerable performance improvements. While this is true for nearly any modern PC, including those with ‘integrated’ graphics cards, there are still steps one may take to enhance […]
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Remove Recycle Bin from the Desktop
I do not suffer from obsessive compulsive disorder, but I do display some OCD tendencies. One of these is habitually emptying the Recycle Bin on my desktop — I just cannot stand to see those virtual papers in there (if only I took out the trash at home with as much fervor).
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![Radial Menu in OneNote MX [Video]](https://cmdrkeene.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/radial.webp)
Radial Menu in OneNote MX [Video]
The OneNote radial menu provides finger-friendly access to common commands. When you’re familiar with the layout of the menu, you can use it without opening it first: just swipe in the direction of the command you want to select.
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![More Commands in the Quick Access Toolbar [Video]](https://cmdrkeene.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Excel.webp)
More Commands in the Quick Access Toolbar [Video]
Pinning submenu commands to the toolbar not only provides more direct access, but also serves as a status indicator to a state that may otherwise be hidden. For example, now I can tell at a glance the status of my Excel workbook calculations, and change it if necessary before I make an edit that would […]
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![Using Gmail in Windows 8 Mail App [Video]](https://cmdrkeene.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Gmail.webp)
Using Gmail in Windows 8 Mail App [Video]
Gmail’s use of labels instead of folders typically means that using the service with most mail clients can be tricky. If you know how Gmail archives instead of deletes messages though, you can more easily triage and archive mail from Windows 8.
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![Deep Pinning on the Windows 8 Start Screen [Video]](https://cmdrkeene.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Deep.webp)
Deep Pinning on the Windows 8 Start Screen [Video]
Your Start screen tiles can link deeper into your apps, providing a one-touch shortcut to the content you care about most. Whether it’s people, email, news, or content from a variety of other apps, you can deep pin it on your Start screen easily.
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![Use Quick Access from the Keyboard [Video]](https://cmdrkeene.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/QuickAccessFileExplorer.webp)
Use Quick Access from the Keyboard [Video]
Did you know that you can add your own commands to the toolbar at the top of Microsoft Office programs? This also applies to several apps in Windows 7, and has even been expanded to the File Explorer in Windows 8!
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![Apply Folder Styles to All Subfolders [Video]](https://cmdrkeene.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/FolderTemplates.webp)
Apply Folder Styles to All Subfolders [Video]
Have you ever wondered why different folders have different layouts in Windows, or how to apply your preferred layout to all folders? Windows actually allows you to push a folder view down to all subfolders using Folder Types (templates), but it’s not very discoverable.
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![Enable Full File Search in Non-Indexed Folders [Video]](https://cmdrkeene.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Full-Search.webp)
Enable Full File Search in Non-Indexed Folders [Video]
Enable deep searching inside files in all folders, even if the search system hasn’t indexed the location. Searches in these places might take longer because they haven’t been scanned ahead of time, but this will provide consistent search experience everywhere.