Refresh stuck on desktop

Windows 10is probably the best edition of Microsoft's venerable operating system. But Redmond has never made an entirely perfect OS. As much as we like Windows 10and we really do like it a lotit's got problems. Just check the comments below to see how much our readers hate the tracking and lack of privacy. [For that, read How to Protect Your Privacy in Windows 10.]

Thankfully, many of the OS's problems are easily corrected. Here are the steps you can take, so version 10 doesn't drive you up the Windows wallpaper.

Stop Auto Reboots

Windows 10 updates are regular and seemingly never-ending, and pretty much out of the user's control [unless you turn off updates altogether, which is a bad idea]. What's worse: if you don't reboot your PC after an update, Windows 10 eventually takes it upon itself to reboot for you. That's a good way to lose data in open apps.

Take advantage ofa feature called Active Hours, which lets you schedule a time for updates and reboots. Navigate to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Change active hours. To select your own timeframe, click Change and choose a start and end time.

Starting with theMay 2019 Update[version 1903], meanwhile, you can also opt to have Windows automatically adjust active hours based on your devices activity. Navigate to Settings > Update & Security > Windows Update > Change active hours and toggle on the option for Automatically adjust active hours for this device based on activity.

Prevent Sticky Keys

If you hit the Shift key five times in a row in Windows, you activate Sticky Keys, a Windows feature that allows for keyboard shortcuts where you hit one key at a time instead of simultaneously [so it works with any combo that includes the Shift, Ctrl, Alt, or Windows keys].

If you activate it without knowingby hitting "yes" in a dialog box without thinking, for exampleit can be seriously annoying. Prevent it from ever happening by hitting the Shift five times rapidly to bring up that very dialog box. Click the Disable this keyboard shortcut in Ease of Access Keyboard Settings and uncheck the box next to Turn on Sticky Keys when SHIFT is pressed five times.

Calm the UAC Down

Ever since Windows Vista, User Account Control [UAC] has been there to protect users so they can quickly grant administrative rights to software programs that need itspecifically when installing oruninstalling software. In the old days, when you went to do an install, the screen would suddenly dim and everything seemed to come to a halt, causing several [anecdotal, probably fictional] heart attacks amid the populace. UAC is still there in Windows and will still dim the desktop, but you have the option to turn it off, or at least prevent the screen dimming.

Type UAC into the Windows 10 search box to get Change User Account Control Settings. The screen presents a slider with four levels of security, from never notify [bad] to always notify [annoyingit'll warn you when you make your own changes]. Pick one of the middle options; the second from the bottom notifies you without the dimming scare tactic. With that option, you'll still get a dialog box confirmation with a yes/no option when you install things.

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Delete Unused Apps

Did you know you have a program in Windows 10 calledGroove Music? Probably not, because the world usesother services. Thankfully, a few pre-installed Windows apps can finally be deleted. Navigate toSettings > Apps > Apps & Features, where you can ditch Mail and Calendar, Groove Music, Weather, and Maps.

If your uninstall option is grayed out, you could go the DOS route, but it gets a little complicated and you should be 100% sure of what you're doing.

• Type PowerShell in the Windows search boxwhen you see it, right-click and launch it via Run as Administrator.

• Type in "Get-AppxPackage AllUsers" without the quotes. A giant list of all the stuff you've got installed that came from Microsoft's Store, plus some other stuff, will appear.

• It's hard to find those apps in there, but the last one will probably clearly read Microsoft.ZuneMusicthat's actually Groove Music. Copy everything it says on the line next to PackageFullName.

• You'll then type in a command and paste that line, so it reads something like "remove-AppxPackage Microsoft.ZuneMusic10.16122.10271.0x64__8wekyb3d8bbwe" [yours will be different after the first underscore character].

• Execute it with a stroke of the return key. If you don't get any errors, the Groove Music app should be gone. Be careful using this on other appsbe sure you've picked the right one.

Use a Local Account

Microsoft really wants you to sign in to Windows 10 with your Microsoft accountthe one attached to all things Microsoft, be it your Xbox,Office 365, orOneDriveaccount, buying apps or music or video in the Windows Store, even talking onSkype, to name just a few. When you set up Windows, Microsoft specifically asks you to sign in using that account.

But you don't have to. During setup, just clickSkip this step. If you already signed in with the Microsoft account, go toSettings > Accounts > Your info. ClickSign in with a local account instead. Enter a local account name and new password [with a hint for when you forget it].

The downside is that when you end up on a service or site that requires Microsoft credentials, you'll have to enter your Microsoft login each time; it won't automatically sign you in as it does if you log into Windows with a Microsoft account.

Use a PIN, Not a Password

If you're okay using the Microsoft account, but hate how long it takes to type in your super secure password, reset it to a short personal identification number [PIN] used only on the PC. The PIN, which is only numeralsno mixed case letters or special charactersmight not sound secure. But it's PC-only, hopefully you're the only user, and it doesn't compromise the security of your Microsoft account anywhere else. Plus, the PIN can be as many digits as you desire.

Go toSettings > Accounts > Sign-in options, and click the Add button under PIN. Enter the PIN you want and restart to try it. If you've already got a PIN, you'll see options to change it, remove it, or click "I forgot my PIN" to recover it.

Skip the Password Login

Are you the only person who everand I mean everuses your PC? Then you can probablyskip the password login screenthat appears after every reboot or sometimes even when you come back from the screensaver.

Go to the User Accounts control panel by typing "netplwiz" in the search bar. Select the account, uncheck the box next to Users must enter a username and password to use this computer. You'll get a confirmation box that asks you to enter that very passwordtwice. Click okay. Reboot the PC, and it should roll smoothly into the desktop without requesting a password. Don't do this if it's shared PC. Remember, you'll still need to know the password if you're logging into the PC remotely. [Or, you could useTeamViewer.]

Refresh Instead of Reset

Windows 10 has a fantastic feature that lets youessentially reinstall Windows 10 on your computerfrom the ground up, like newwith the option to not delete any of your data [though you will have to reinstall software and drivers]. When your PC is beyond repair, you access it atSettings > Update & Security > Recovery. Click Get Started underReset this PC, pick settings like "Keep My Files" or "Remove Everything," and let it rip. You don't need any separate media, like a copy of Windows 10 on a disc orUSB flash drive.

However, that can be overkill. Sometimes, Windows just needs a reset that doesnoteradicate your software and drivers. This is also easy to do, but itdoesrequire a copy of Windows 10 on separate media. Don't have the media? Get ithere. Run it and install the includedISO fileonto a 4GB or larger USB drive to use in the reset now and in the future. Or you can just mount it as a virtual drive in Windows 10.

Double-click the setup on that media/drive's Setup option, ask to download updates and check Keep personal files and apps when it appears. After a few more prompts and waiting, your Windows 10 system will get the refresh it needs.

Hide or Disable Cortana

Master Chief would never let this happen. Windows 10 took out the switch to turn off Cortana, Microsoft's answer to Siri and Alexa. But Cortana searches more than your computer; it searches the entire internet. You can still turn her off, however.

First, there is the option tohide Cortana: just right-click the Taskbar and selectShow Cortana Button. The Cortana halo ring disappears. She's still active and easily accessible, however: tap the Windows key on your keyboard and start typing.

If you want to really take her out, so all searches are local, you need to edit the registry. Don't do this if you're not feeling like a Windows expert. Make a system restore point before you do it, just in case. This only applies to Windows 10 Home version.

Open the Registry Editor: Type+R, then type regedit and hit Enter. In Windows 10 Home, navigate to HKEYLOCALMACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Windows Search. If it's not there, create it. Right-click it to create a DWORD value and call itAllowCortana. Set that value to 0 [zero]. Once you sign out and come back, the search box will now read "Search Windows." You can put Cortana back by doing all this again and setting the value to 1 [one].

If you have Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise, you can use the Group Policy Editor to turn her off, but for that, you should first check with your IT admin. Type Windows Key+R, type in gpedit.msc to bring up the Group Policy Editor, then navigate to Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Search. Double-click on Allow Cortana, check the button next to Disabled. Close the window and restart Windows 10.

If you're killing Cortana for privacy reasons, don't forget to visit your Microsoft account online and delete everything Cortana collected about you. Under Cortana's Notebook, click the Clear Cortana Data button.

Send OneDrive to the Grave

Like Cortana, OneDriveMicrosoft's answer toDropboxorGoogle Driveis integrated into Windows 10. Tightly. Maybe too tightly. You can try to ignore it, but it comes up a lot.

Your first option: unlink it. Right-click the OneDrive cloud icon in the taskbar and selectSettings. Under theAccount tab, clickUnlink this PC. If that's not enough, under theSettings tab, uncheck all the boxes. Then go back toAccount > Choose Folders, and uncheck all the folders it was syncing. Go to Windows Explorer, right-click OneDrive and select Properties; in the General tab, by Attributes, check the box next to Hidden. Then on the Taskbar, right-click OneDrive again and select Close OneDrive.

Really want to uninstall OneDrive? Do it via the usual App & features uninstall in Settings. You'll find it under "Microsoft OneDrive."

Access Special Symbols Quick

Just using 26 letters and 10 numerals and a few pieces of punctuationthat's so old-school. We live in the emoji world now. So how do you put those fun little icons into your text when typing in Windows 10? The pop-up keyboard. It's typically meant for use when Windows is in tablet mode, but it's easy to access even when you're using Windows with a regular keyboard.

Right-click the Taskbar in a blank area, and selectShow touch keyboard button. An icon of a little keyboard will appear next to the clock in the taskbar. Tap it anytime with the mouse cursor to bring up the on-screen keyboard; tap any key on your IRL keyboard to dismiss it from the screen. Click the extra keyboard icon at the top left to access various layout options, including a split keyboard and a stylus pad.

You now have access not only to emoji but also special characters like the em dash or degrees symbol [°]. If you can't find them, that's because you first have to hit the &123 key to switch to symbols. Then, like on a smartphone, hold down your cursor on the main key to get some special symbolshold down the hyphen to get em dash and en dash; hold down on equals [=] to get non-equals [], etc. Same goes for the letters to get variations, such as accent symbols over the letters. Voilà!

Click the Smiley key to access the full suite of standard smartphone-style emoji, rendered in Microsoft's extra-colorful design, as pictured above. You can scroll left/right to see even more in each category.

This on-screen keyboard also offers quick access to theWindows 10 clipboard, which holds multiple items you've cut or copied, and speech-to-text typing [or you can just type Windows Key+V to get the scrollable].

You either love notifications or hate the distraction. The noise, the popup, it's too much when your phone is likely displaying most of the same info. Go intoSettings > System > Notifications & Actions. Turn off all the toggle switches for individual apps, especially the ones you find most annoying. Or click on the app name in the list for even more granular controlget notifications from one app on the lock screen, for example, but nowhere else. Or turn off sounds for all but one notifier. Play with the settings to get it just right.

Cool Your Diagnostics

Like many other big-name companies, Microsoft likes to get OS feedback about things like crashes. But when you do a setup and Windows 10 asks to Send full error and diagnostic information to Microsoft, Redmond's getting more than you think. InSettings > Privacy > Diagnostics & Feedback,you can set things to protect some privacy. Only allow Required diagnostic data, not Optional data; turn off the "Improve inking and typing" option; and even delete all the diagnostic data currently on your PCbut that doesn't prevent previous or future data from going to Microsoft.

Get Off the Edge

Don't likeMicrosoft's latest browser? But no matter what browser you choose, you need to make it the default, so anytime you open a link, it goes to the browser you want. Go toSettings > Apps > Default Apps, scroll down and clickWeb browser. A list will display all your installed browserspick your favorite. You can always go back to whatever Redmond thinks best later by clicking the Reset button under Reset to Microsoft Recommended defaults.

If you get problems with certain links, ensure the file type [like .htm versus .html] or even protocols [like // versus //] are all set to your browser of choice as well. ClickChoose default apps by file typeorChoose default apps by protocolon the same screen.

Most new browsers will try to take back the default position when you launch them the first time, so if you speed through a setup, you may need to revisit these settings to go back to your original, preferred web browser.