PC Tips,Tricks and Secrets

 Set a picture password in Windows 8

Windows 8 enables you to create a picture password, where you choose an image, then draw on it in a combination of taps, lines and circles - only someone who can reproduce this pattern will be able to log on. Select Win + I > More PC Settings > Users > Create a Picture Password to give this a try.

Save Network bandwidth in Windows 8

Set up lots of live tiles on the Start screen and you could find they're using a lot of network bandwidth, which could perhaps become a problem if you're running a slow or metered connection. But Windows 8 does offer one option that might help.

Click your network connection on the taskbar (or the Start Screen Charms bar), right-click your network connection in the list and select "Set as metered connection" (you'll only see this with wireless adaptors). Windows will then limit what individual live tiles can do, while also downloading only priority Windows updates, and applying a few other restrictions. Right-click the connection again and select "Set as unmetered" to change it back.

Put a quick Start menu on the Taskbar in Windows 8

If don't want to use third-party software to get a Start menu, you can build your own quick-and-dirty one in no time. You won't get the full traditional Windows Start menu with Search button, recently run apps, the Control Panel, your network and so on. Instead you get a menu that lets you browse through applications and launch them.

First make sure that you can view hidden files in File Explorer

Now right-click the Desktop's taskbar and select Toolbars --> New Toolbar. From the screen that appears, navigate to
C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu
where username is your account name, and click the Select Folder button. That will place a Start Menu toolbar on the far right of the taskbar. Click its double arrow to display a variety of folders (such as Programs and Computer) that you can browse through until you see the item you want; click it to launch it.