Windows 8.1 Control Panel explained by David Harris, March 2015

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1 Windows 8.1 Control Panel explained by David Harris, March 2015 Take control of Windows 8.1 instead of letting it control you. This starts with understanding that accessing the Control Panel in Windows 8.1 can be done very easily. The Control Panel can be accessed using the charms bar, having the desktop setting in the taskbar include the Control Panel. The Control Panel Icon is so important that easy access should be placed on the Desktop and Start Menu. Action Center Action Center sits in the notification area as an icon that notifies you of problems, such as a Backup & Restore is due or your security is out of date. The control panel allows you to take action from those notifications, alerts and warning messages. For example, if you get a notification about your system backup you can use this control panel to begin a manual backup of your system. If your firewall is switched off you can switch it on via this control panel. It allows you to Partition a Hard Drive, Stop or Start System Services, Schedule System Tasks, Manage Windows Firewall Settings and so on. This control panel feature is for Advanced Users only. Add features for Windows 8.1 If your PC is running Windows 8.1, you can get Windows 8.1 Pro Pack and enjoy all the features of Windows 8.1 Pro as well as Windows Media Center for $99.99 USD.

2 It allow you to watch and record TV with Windows Media Center, Administrative Tools Administrative Tools is a folder in Control Panel that contains tools for system administrators and advanced users. The tools in the folder might vary depending on which version of Windows you are using. This is used by computer technicians for repair. This control panel feature is for Very Advanced Users only. AutoPlay Allows you to turn on or off the Automatic Play feature for each device such as a Flash Drive, Digital Camera, or piece of media like a CD or DVD you insert into the computer. AutoPlay is the requester that appears asking you if you want to Import Pictures, View Pictures, Open Folder to View Files, Play DVD and so on. Color Management Allows you to change the Color Profile for a particular device such as a Printer, Monitor or Digital Camera. Because each device will probably use a different set of colors from one another it is the Color Management's job to keep the colors looking consistent. In other words, what you see on the monitor screen should look, colorize, more or less the same when it is printed. This control panel is for Very Advanced Users only - Altering the color profiles without knowledge can produce unwanted effects/problems. Credential Manager Credential Manager allows you to remember Passwords. It allows you to store website Login details for example so that next time you visit a website Windows 8 can automatically log you in it. Credentials are saved in special folders on your computer called vaults, computers and websites. Date and Time As well as the obvious changing of the Data and Time this control panel also allows you to change the Time Zone to another and synchronize the time with the internet clock.

3 Default Programs Allows you to associate a Default a normally used Program would use to open. For example. If you associate Windows Media Player with the MP3 file type, double clicking on a MP3 file will automatically open Windows Media Player so that Windows Media Player can then play that MP3 file. Device Manager Allows you to Install, update or uninstall the driver software for a particular piece of hardware. Device Manager is used if a piece of hardware is not working correctly and needs to be uninstalled. Or when a piece of hardware cannot be installed because you have no Installation Disc for it, that contains its driver software, and therefore need to check the Internet for its driver software. Even if the hardware is working fine sometimes you might want to disable the hardware, for whatever reason. Device Manager allows you to Enable or Disable hardware as well. Device Manager is for Very Advanced Users only - Uninstalling or Disabling hardware without knowledge can produce unwanted effects or problems. Devices and Printers Allows you to set the default Printer or add a printer of your Computer. Display Allows you to adjust certain aspects of the display screen, such as its Resolution which is your desktop size, its ClearType for better font readability, text size, and brightness. Ease of Access Center Allows you to change certain display and audio settings, known as Accessibility settings that are aimed mostly at people with sight and sound difficulties. If you have trouble hearing there is a Narrator that can speak the text on the screen, describe your desktop and describe any windows you have open. And for those who are blind or have sight difficulties there is a screen magnifier that can magnify a part of the screen. Family Safety

4 Family Safety helps you set limits on your child's PC time, as well as the websites, apps, and games they can use And when they can use them. File History The File History feature replaces the Backup and Restore function, and offers protection for user files stored in user libraries. An external hard drive is needed for back up. Flash Player (32Bit) Adobe Flash Player is a lightweight browser plug-in and rich Internet application runtime that delivers consistent and engaging user experiences for stunning audio or video playback, and exciting gameplay. Folder Options Fonts Allows you to change the way you open and view folders. You could set up Windows so that each time you open a sub-folder that sub-folder opens in its own window. Or you could just have each sub-folder open in the same, shared, window. With each sub-folder having its own window open you can view the contents of each sub-folder. Whereas when each sub-folder is sharing the same window only one sub-folder and its contents can be viewed. Allows you to open the Fonts system folder, so you can view the Fonts already installed or install new Fonts. Home Group Home Group allows you to easily share your Libraries, Documents, Pictures, Video and Music folders and Printer s on a home network. With a home group, which is password protected, you can always choose what you share with a group; therefore putting you in control of what is shared, if anything at all. Intel HD Graphics These software drivers are generic versions and can be used for general purposes.

5 However, computer original equipment manufacturers may have altered the features, incorporated customizations, or made other changes to the software or software packaging they provide. This feature assures the best graphics view on your screen. Internet Options Allows you to change the Internet Settings - Settings such as Security, Privacy, Content, History, Connections and so on. Java (32Bit) This control panel feature is for Very Advanced Users only. Java is a programming language and computing platform by Sun Microsystems. There are lots of applications and websites that will not work unless you have Java installed, and more are created every day. Keyboard Allows you to change the speed of the keyboard and the speed of the flashing cursor. Language The main view of Language preferences shows you which languages are enabled on your system. You can see that on this system, English (United States) display language is installed and enabled. The keyboard layout is also US. Language preferences are the one place to go to add or change display languages, input language, and other functionality. To add another language to your Windows, simply click the Add a language link above the first tile to bring up this list. Location Settings Allows you to set up a default location so that programs on your computer can provide you with customized information and services based on your current location, surroundings and so on. This good for News or Weather if traveling. Mail (32Bit)

6 Mail is the Microsoft products. When installing Windows you are asked to open a Microsoft Outlook Mail Account. Mouse Allows you to change Mouse and Mouse Pointer settings. You can change the look of the mouse pointer, the speed of the mouse, whether or not the mouse is left-handed or right-handed, the number of lines scrolled when using a wheel mouse and so on. Network and Sharing Center Manages the Network side of Windows. You can set up and then connect to a network, check a network's status, change network settings and set preferences for sharing files and printers amongst other things. This control panel feature is for Very Advanced Users only. Notification Area Icons Allow you to select which, system or third party, software icons are shown or hidden within the notification area. Pen and Touch Pen & Touch combines the benefits of Multi-Touch with the comfort and precision of an ergonomically-designed pen. With multi-touch, you use simple hand gestures and finger taps to move around your desktop, scroll through documents, navigate the web, zoom in and out of photos, and rotate images. Only used with Touch Screen Tablets and Computers Personalization Allows you to change the way Windows looks and sounds by allowing you to change the appearance of the desktop, background, windows, menus, colors, screen size, Mouse Pointer and the Default Sound scheme. Phone and Modem Allows you to change the settings for your Internal (Dial-Up) Modem amongst other things.

7 Power Options Allows you to change the way the Power is used. You can tell the Monitor and Hard Drive to switch off after a certain period of time, in order to save power/energy, as well as program the Sleep/Shutdown buttons. This is good for Laptop users and for protecting the monitor and hard drive against unnecessary power usage. Programs and Features Allows you to Repair or Uninstall a single program or whole software package, as well as make Changes to that program or software. You can see which Windows Updates are installed from here too. QuickTime (32Bit) QuickTime is an extensible multimedia framework developed by Apple Inc., capable of handling various formats of digital video, picture, sound, panoramic images, and interactivity. Realtek HD Audio Manager Realtek HD Audio Manager is a tool that allows you to listen to audio in HD and to make sure your audio is perfect. Recovery System Restore is a feature of Windows that allows you to Restore or Repair Windows back to an earlier date and time, if it should become corrupt or broken. Preferably back to a date and time when Windows was working 100% correct. This control panel feature allows you to create a restore point or perform a system restore. Region Allows you to change the language used for displaying Text in Wizards, Requesters, Menus, as well as the region used by the keyboard for example. Other languages can be added by downloading the relevant Language Interface Pack file and then later removed if need be. RemoteApp and Desktop Connections

8 RemoteApp and Desktop Connections is a feature you can use to access programs and desktops made available to you by your workplace's network administrator. Sound Allows you to configure the Sound and Audio Devices, Sound Themes and Volume. Speech Recognition Allows you to configure Speech Recognition and Text-To-Speech settings. Voice and Voice Speed setting. When trained you can write letters and with voice commands. Storage and Space Storage Spaces basically allow you to take multiple hard drives and combine them into storage pools and storage spaces and use them to data storage. Sync Center Sync Center allows you to keep information in sync between your computer and a mobile device for example. It can also synchronize between your computer and a network server file, and any programs that support Sync Center. One example of Sync Center is to use a Flash Memory Drive that can synchronize with Windows Media Player for Playlists. The idea of sync is to have two or more files, in separate locations that are automatically updated at the same time. System Allows you to configure the Windows system, the computer's Hardware and the computer's Software. It gives you access to the System Properties where you can Install or Uninstall, Change Hardware Settings, Rename the computer or Change the appearance. This control panel feature is for Very Advanced Users only. Tablet PC Settings Tablet PC Settings are for a pen-enabled personal touch computers or tablets. Taskbar and Navigation

9 Allows you to configure the Taskbar and Start Menu settings to customize for your ease of use. Troubleshooting The Troubleshooting control panel contains several troubleshooting programs that can automatically fix some common problems with your computer, such as network problems, hardware or device problems and program compatibility problems. Although troubleshooters are not designed to fix every problem, they are a useful thing to try first, as they can often save you time and effort. User Accounts Allows you to configure the User Accounts. Their Rights, Password, Picture and so on. This control panel feature is for Very Advanced Users only. Windows Anytime Upgrade Gives you an option to upgrade to other newer Windows versions. Windows Defender Executes or Opens Windows Defender, Windows anti-spyware program. From there you can Scan for spyware problems for infections, check for updates, choose a scan type Quick or Full, use the Software Explorer to disable programs that run launch on start-up and so on. Some aspects of this control panel features are for Very Advanced Users only. Windows Firewall Allows you to configure Windows built-in, Firewall settings. This control panel is for Advanced Users only.

10 Windows Update Allows you to turn off or on Automatic Updates. When on it automatically checks the Internet for new Critical, High Priority Windows Updates, Security Updates and so on in order to protect Windows and your computer in general. The updates are either downloaded automatically in the background, as you are doing other things or can be manually downloaded by you, depending on the settings that have been set for Automatic Updates. When the updates have been downloaded they will either be installed automatically or can be manually installed by you. This depends on the settings that have been set for Automatic Updates. Work Folders It works like OneDrive that you can install on multiple computer and sync all the data at the same location. This is a free synced storage option from Microsoft that helps you to sync your important files and documents from other computer as well just like a Dropbox or other Cloud programs.