Technical information

Windows 8 For Dummies, Dell Pocket Edition

As you work, you’ll constantly switch between the

screen-filling Start screen and the traditional screen-

filling desktop, covered in the next chapter.

Despite the drastic remodel, the Start screen still

offers a way to start programs; adjust Windows set-

tings; find help for sticky situations; or, thankfully,

shut down Windows and get away from the computer

for a while. Some Start screen tiles needn’t be opened

to see their contents. For example, the Calendar tile

constantly updates to show the current date and day,

as well as your next few appointments. The Mail tile

cycles through the first words of your latest e-mails.

Your Start screen will change as you add more pro-

grams and apps to your computer. That’s why the

Start screen on your friend’s computer, as well as in

this book, is probably arranged differently than your

computer’s Start screen.

Try the following tricks to make the Start screen feel a

little more like home:

✓ See the Start screen’s tile named Desktop?

Click that one to fetch the familiar Windows

desktop. Whew! If you prefer to avoid the

Start screen, you can stay on the traditional

Windows desktop as much as possible. (I

explain the desktop in Chapter 2.)

✓ Does your mouse have a little wheel embed-

ded in its back? Spin the wheel, and the

Start screen moves to the left or right,

accordingly. It’s a handy way to move

quickly across the entire Start screen, from

left to right.

✓ As you move your mouse pointer, the Start

screen follows along. When the pointer reaches

the screen’s right edge, for example, the Start

screen brings the offscreen portions into view.

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