Hidden secret tips for Windows 8

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Windows 8 can take some getting used to. While the desktop app works very much like Windows 7, there are plenty of new shortcuts, options, and tricks built into the operating system. Think you know how to use it like a pro? Here are a few Windows 8 features that you probably haven't found yet.

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1. The Secret Start Menu

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Microsoft has replaced the old Start orb with an animated, tiled page of apps, but there's still a Start menu of sorts in place - right-click in the lower left-hand corner of the screen to bring up a menu of quick links to the Control Panel, Task Manager, programs list and other key areas of the system. From here you can search for files, launch the Run box, open the File Explorer and more.

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2. Automatic Backups

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New in Windows 8 is File History, which works in a similar way to Apple's Time Machine technology, automatically logging older versions of your files that you can restore as and when required. The feature isn't enabled by default though, so you'll need to open up the System and Security screen in Control Panel to get it up and running. You'll also need a second hard drive on hand—whether internal, external or networked—to save your file version history too. Once everything is set up, it works automatically, and can prove a lifesaver if you lose your holiday photos or a week's worth of work.

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3. Mix Metro and the Desktop

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Windows 7 allowed you to snap windows to the sides of your screen, but Windows 8 goes further—Metro-style Start page apps (like People and Weather) can be docked to the left or right edge of the display, and they will switch to a special mini mode at the same time. This means you can check on the forecast while working in Photoshop, or keep an eye on your Twitter feed while crunching some numbers in Excel. Click and drag the top of any Windows 8 app to the side of the screen to dock it, then drag out the black border bar to restore the full-screen view. It's also possible to have two Metro Windows 8 apps show at once.

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4. Sync Everywhere

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If you've just upgraded to Windows 8, then you might still be using your old user accounts—and you may not realize the features available with the new Windows IDs. Sign in with this ID (it's the same one you use for MIcrosoft services like SkyDrive and Hotmail/Outlook.com). It will make syncing emails and photos easier, and it will transfer your Windows 8 settings and preferences instantly to any other location you sign in from. If you have Windows 8 machines in the home and in the office, for example, then this is a quick and painless way of keeping your preferences, desktop wallpaper, Internet bookmarks and other data consistent across machines. You can also specify what is and what isn't synced in the Windows 8 settings, if you want to keep your personalizations without syncing your passwords.

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5. Take the Shortcuts

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The Snipping Tool introduced in Windows 7 is still present in Windows 8, but there's an even easier way to get a screenshot of your display—hit the Windows button and PrtScrn at the same time to save a PNG screengrab to a Screenshots folder in the Pictures library. Press Win+C to bring up the Windows 8 Charms. Use Win+X to display the secret Start menu we mentioned earlier. Hit Win+D to switch to the desktop app from anywhere else in Windows 8.

How to hide pictures and more in Galaxy S5

How to hide pictures and more in Private mode on the Galaxy S5

Loie Favre 5 days ago 0

The Galaxy S5 has many new features that Samsung has added to its TouchWiz skin, all of the old ones, with a whole heap of new ones piled on top. With the concerns of privacy and security of data becoming more prominent, Samsung didn’t fail to step up to the plate and has added a private mode to the new flagship, which serves the purpose of keeping pictures, videos and documents under wraps, for your eyes only. Here’s how.

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Private mode is an easy to set up mode, which you can access from the quick settings in the notification panel. If you haven’t customized the quick settings yet, it should appear at the bottom next to Touch sensitivity.

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1. Tap on the icon to launch the setup process. It will give you a quick rundown of what it means and then prompt you to set up an unlocking method when trying to access Private mode in the future. You can use a PIN, password, swipe and of course, a fingerprint, thanks to the new scanner which is found on the home button.

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2. Once the Private mode is on, you can move files there at your leisure. The only thing is that you cannot select the photo while viewing it full screen, only when it is in the album in thumbnail format, which wasn’t very well explained in the mini tutorial Samsung provides.

3. Long press on the desired image thumbnails (or video, song, voice record or document) and select the menu button on the top right corner (three vertical white dots).

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4. Here you will choose ‘’move to Private’’, which will move the pictures to a bring new Private album. You can also opt to move these back to another folder.

5. Once you are done and want to get out of Private mode, swipe down the notifications panel and tap on Private mode turned on. This will turn off Private mode so that any open content will be closed.

Now you can rest assured that any files that you would like to keep private will stay that way, even if someone tries to sneak around in your phone or on the occasion of it getting lost or stolen.