5. Personalizing Windows
In this chapter, you find out how to customize the look and feel of Windows to your own personal satisfaction.
Personalizing the Windows Desktop
Configuring Other Windows Settings
When you first turn on your new computer system, you see the Windows lock screen, and then the Windows desktop, complete with the Start menu. You can accept the default look for each of these items, or you can customize them to your taste. It’s one way to make Windows look like your version of Windows—and make your workplace more efficient.
Personalizing the Windows Desktop
You can personalize several elements on the Windows desktop. You can change the color scheme, choose your desktop background, and even “pin” your favorite programs to the taskbar or the Start menu.
Personalize the Start Menu
You can customize the Windows 10 Start menu to display tiles for your favorite programs. You can move or resize these tiles as you like.
Click the Start button to open the Start menu.
Resize the Start menu by mousing over the top or right edge; then click and drag the window to the desired size.
“Pin” a program to the right side of the Start menu by right-clicking the name of the app and then selecting Pin to Start. (You can also use your mouse to click and drag the app to where you want it on the right side of the Start menu.)
Pinning
“Pinning” an app creates a shortcut to that app. You can pin programs to either the Start menu or the taskbar. Pins you add can be removed at any time.
Rearrange tiles on the Start menu by clicking and holding a tile and then dragging it to a new position.
Resize a tile by right-clicking the tile, selecting Resize, and then selecting the desired size. Tiles come in four possible sizes: Small, Medium, Wide, and Large.
Remove a tile from the Start menu by right-clicking the tile and selecting Unpin from Start.
Live Tiles
Tiles for some apps display “live” information—that is, current data in real time. For example, the Weather tile displays current weather conditions; the News tile displays current news headlines.
Change the Desktop Background
The Windows desktop displays across your entire computer screen. One of the most popular ways to personalize the desktop is to use a favorite picture or color as the desktop background.
Right-click in any open area of the desktop and select Personalize from the pop-up menu. The Personalization window displays.
Click to select the Background tab.
Use a picture as your desktop background by clicking the Background control and selecting Picture.
Click to select one of the thumbnail images displayed. Or…
Click Browse to select another picture stored on your computer.
If the selected image is a different size than your Windows desktop, click the Choose a Fit list and select a display option—Fill (zooms into the picture to fill the screen), Fit (fits the image to fill the screen horizontally, but might leave black bars above and below the image), Stretch (distorts the picture to fill the screen), Tile (displays multiple instances of a smaller image), Center (displays a smaller image in the center of the screen, with black space around it), or Span (spans a single image across multiple monitors, if you have multiple monitors on your system).
Set a color for your desktop background by clicking the Background list and selecting Solid Color.
Click to select the color you want. (Or click Custom Color to choose from a broader palette.)
To have your desktop background rotate through a variety of pictures, click the Background list and select Slideshow.
By default, the slideshow chooses pictures from your Pictures folder. To select a different folder, click Browse.
To change how long each photo is displayed, click the Change Picture Every list and make a new selection.
To display pictures randomly, click “on” the Shuffle switch.
Click the Choose a Fit list and select a display option.
Change the Accent Color
You can select any color for the title bar and frame that surrounds open windows on the desktop. You can also set the color for the Windows taskbar, Start menu, and Action Center.
Right-click in any open area of the desktop and select Personalize from the pop-up menu. The Personalization window displays.
Click to select the Colors tab.
Make the Windows desktop elements transparent by clicking “on” the Transparency Effects switch.
To have Windows automatically choose the accent color based on the color of the desktop image, click to check the Automatically Pick an Accent Color from My Background option.
To select a different accent color, uncheck the Automatically Pick an Accent Color from My Background option, and then click to select the color you want.
To show the accent color on the Start menu, taskbar, and Action Center, scroll down the window and click to select the Start, Taskbar, and Action Center option. (This option is only available in Dark mode, discussed in the next task.) Uncheck this option to display a black Start menu, taskbar, and Action Center.
To show the accent color on windows title bars and borders, click to select the Title Bars and Window Borders option.
Switch to Dark or Light Mode
The latest versions of Windows 10 offer both a Dark and a Light mode. Dark mode displays a dark background in the taskbar, Start menu, and many windows. Light mode displays a light gray background in these same areas.
Right-click in any open area of the desktop and select Personalize from the pop-up menu. The Personalization window displays.
Click to select the Colors tab.
Click the Choose Your Color list and select either Light or Dark. Or to set one mode for Windows elements and the other for apps, select Custom.
Change the Desktop Theme
Although you can configure each element of the Windows desktop separately, it’s often easier to choose a predesigned theme that changes all the elements in a visually pleasing configuration. A theme combines background images, color schemes, system sounds, and mouse cursor appearance to present a unified look and feel. Some themes even change the color scheme to match the current background picture.
Right-click any open area of the desktop to display the options menu and then click Personalize to display the Personalization window.
Click to select the Themes tab.
To save the currently selected background, color, sound, and mouse scheme as a new theme, click Save Theme. When prompted, give this new theme a name.
Scroll down to the Change Theme section to view all themes installed on your PC. Click any theme to change to that theme.
Additional themes, most free of charge, are available from the Microsoft Store online. Click Get More Themes in Microsoft Store to view what’s available.
Personalize the Taskbar
Windows enables you to personalize some of the items that appear on the taskbar. You can also opt to move the taskbar from the bottom to another side of the screen.
Right-click any open area of the taskbar to display the pop-up menu.
Click Search to customize the Search icon/box. Select Hidden to display no Search items. Click Show Search Icon to display only a Search icon. Click Show Search Box to display the larger Search box.
Check Show Cortana Button to display the Cortana icon. Uncheck this option to hide the icon.
Check Show Task View Button to display the Task View icon. Uncheck this option to hide the icon.
Check Show People on the Taskbar to display the People icon. Uncheck this option to hide the icon.
Check Show Windows Ink Workspace Button to display the icon for Windows Ink. Uncheck this option to hide the icon.
Check Show Touch Keyboard Button to display the icon for launching the onscreen keyboard. Uncheck this option to hide the icon.
Check Show Touchpad Button to display the icon for a laptop’s touchpad. Uncheck this option to hide the icon.
Check Lock the Taskbar to prevent unintended changes to the taskbar. Uncheck this option if you want to make taskbar changes.
Click Taskbar Settings to configure other settings for the taskbar.
Click and drag the taskbar to the left, right, or top of the screen to move the taskbar there. Click and drag it back to the bottom if you prefer the original position.
Personalizing the Lock Screen
You can personalize the lock screen, which you see when you first start or begin to log in to Windows. You can change the background picture of the lock screen, turn the lock screen into a photo slideshow, and add informational apps to the screen.
Change the Lock Screen Background
You can choose from several stock images for the background of your lock screen, or you can upload a photo to use as the background.
Lock Screen
The lock screen appears when you first power on your PC and any time you log off from your personal account or switch users. It also appears when you awaken your computer from Sleep mode.
Right-click in any open area of the desktop and select Personalize from the pop-up menu. The Personalization window displays.
Click to select the Lock Screen tab.
Click the Background list and select Picture. (Or stick with the default Windows Spotlight to have Windows choose new background pictures for you every few days.)
Click the thumbnail for the picture you want to use.
Alternatively, click the Browse button to use a picture stored on your computer as the background.
Display a Slideshow on the Lock Screen
Windows lets you turn your computer into a kind of digital picture frame by displaying a slideshow of your photos on the lock screen while you’re not using your PC.
Right-click in any open area of the desktop and select Personalize from the pop-up menu. The Personalization window displays.
Click to select the Lock Screen tab.
Click the Background list and select Slideshow.
By default, Windows displays pictures from your Pictures folder. Click Add a Folder to select a different picture folder you want to display in your slideshow.
Add Apps to the Lock Screen
The lock screen can display a number of apps that run in the background and display useful or interesting information, even while your computer is locked. By default, you see the date/time, power status, and connection status, but it’s easy to add other apps and information (such as weather conditions and unread email messages) to the lock screen.
Right-click in any open area of the desktop and select Personalize from the pop-up menu. The Personalization window displays.
Click to select the Lock Screen tab.
Go to the Choose Which Apps Show Quick Status on the Lock Screen section and click one of the + buttons to display the Choose an App panel.
Click the app you want to add.
Change Your Account Picture
Windows displays a small thumbnail image next to your account name when you log in to Windows from the lock screen; this same image displays next to your name on the Windows Start menu. When you first configured Windows, you were prompted to select a default image to use as this profile picture. You can, at any time, change this picture to something more to your liking.
Click the Start button to display the Start menu.
Click your name or picture on the left side of the Start menu to display the options menu.
Click Change Account Settings to display the Settings tool with the Your Info tab selected.
If you’ve previously selected a profile picture, click one of the images displayed at the top of the page.
Use another picture stored on your computer (or online at OneDrive) by scrolling to the Create Your Picture section, clicking Browse for One, and then selecting the picture you want.
Alternatively, you can take a picture with your computer’s webcam to use for your account picture. Click Camera; then follow the onscreen directions from there.
Configuring Other Windows Settings
You can configure many other Windows system settings. In most cases, the default settings work fine and you don’t need to change a thing. However, you can change these settings, if you want to or need to.
Configure Settings from the Settings Tool
You configure most Windows settings from the Settings tool, which consists of a series of tabs, accessible from the left side of the window, that present different types of settings.
Click the Start button to display the Start menu. Or…
Click Settings.
Click the Notifications icon on the taskbar; then click All Settings.
Windows opens the Settings tool. To search for a specific setting, type your query into the Find a Setting box and click the Search (magnifying glass) icon. Or…
Click a category icon to display settings of that type.
Click the tab on the left to select the type of settings you want to configure.
Configure the necessary options from the right side of the window.
Click Home to return to the Settings tool’s Home screen.
