Windows 10 is full of tricks, and we are going to highlight only 10. So throughout this article, we will look at the 10 best (and most useful) Windows 10 tricks.
Windows 10 arrived in July 2015, yes it has rained a lot since then, and in all this time there have been dozens of updates with improvements and add-ons. Little by little, tricks that very few people know have emerged, and now we want to capture the 10 best Windows 10 tricks in a single article.
All operating systems have tricks, some better known than others, but it is convenient to know them since more than one can be very useful in our day to day life.
So much so, that if we have an Honor or Huawei mobile in our hands, there are some tricks that we must know, as well as if we use Word daily, the tricks will facilitate our day-to-day work or study hours.
Remove Cortana
This smart assistant came to Windows 10 as Microsoft’s innovation, but unfortunately, Cortana’s days are numbered. If we don’t want to wait to say goodbye forever and we want to remove it now because we don’t use it, we must follow these steps:
- Right-click on the icon that we mark in the screenshot below.
- Next, click on “Show Cortana button”.
- Automatically, the Cortana button disappears, since what we have done is uncheck the option. If we want the button back, we repeat the steps.
Concentration assistant
Just as in our mobile we have the simple desktop mode or the do not disturb mode, and even the option to block certain apps to not receive notifications or anything for a certain time, with Windows 10 we can use the concentration assistant.
To access this tool we must write “Concentration Assistant” in the Windows 10 search bar. Within the options, we change at will so as not to receive notifications during our time of concentration.
Change active hours
We know that Windows 10 tends to update itself automatically and that after each update it is advisable to restart the computer. Well, we can tell the computer when we are using the PC, and when we do not care that it restarts automatically.
That is what the active hours consist of, and to activate them we must go to: Equipment configuration -> Update and security -> Active hours
Aero Shake
A trick that has been in Windows for years. It is a function that is activated by default and we can see it in action if we have several windows open and click on one and shake it for a couple of seconds. At that precise moment, all the windows are minimized and let us see the desktop.
To check if we have it active, we must follow this route: Configuration -> System -> Multiscreen -> and activate the option “Organize windows automatically…”.
This option may not appear, but even so we can minimize all the windows with a simple gesture: Windows key + D.
Open two tabs at the same time
If we work on an UltraWide monitor especially suitable for multitasking, this function is activated as standard, but if our monitor is normal, or if we are on a laptop or convertible with Windows 10, then we must use this key combination: Win + the right or the left (it depends on where we want to place the window).
Quick screenshot
Yes, we know that there is the “Imp screen” key, but this Windows 10 function takes screenshots to another level, since it allows us to take screenshots only of what interests us, and we can even draw and do annotations.
- In the search bar, we put “Snipping Tool“, click and it opens automatically.
- Click on “New”, choose the shape of the cutout, make the relevant annotations, as well as other adjustments, and save.
Record screen
If you want to record some instructions for a co-worker and you don’t want to do a Skype or Zoom and share screen, then we can use this tool, although it is actually focused on players to record their games and be saved on the PC automatically. We will be able to capture the screen and also the audio through the computer’s microphone.
With a simple combination of keys, the entire menu is opened to start recording the screen: Win + G.
Write quick notes
In Windows 10 there is a very interesting function that replaces the Post-its of a lifetime.
It is an app pre-installed in Windows 10. To find out if we have it, we must search, or ask Cortana to open “Sticky Notes”. If we don’t have it installed, we go to the Microsoft application store and download it. It is free and we can trust it without problems.
Open several tabs of the same app
It is something that very few people know, and although a priori it may seem absurd, once it is used, there are dozens of more uses for it.
To be able to open several tabs of the same app, we must put the cursor over the app that we want to open several times and now press the button in the middle of our mouse.
If we press 5 times, 5 equal apps will open. In our case, we have done the tests with Paint, Word, calculator app, download folder, etc.
Yes, we are used to sharing mobile data with our laptop, tablet or desktop PC, but what if we say that this could be the other way around? That is, share the WiFi from the PC to other devices thanks to a Windows 10 function.
- Click on the WiFi icon and then on “Covered area” with the right button.
- We go to the configuration and change the password.
- This method, at least on our computer, allows us a maximum of 8 devices connected to the network that we are going to share.