How to Customize Windows 10 to the Fullest
September 5, 2023
Windows 10, the flagship operating system from Microsoft, is celebrated for its user-friendly interface and robust features. What makes it even more remarkable is its exceptional customization capability, allowing users to shape their computing environment according to their unique preferences. This article is your comprehensive guide to personalizing Windows 10 to the fullest extent, from tailoring the aesthetics to boosting productivity and ensuring privacy.
All You Need to Know About the New Windows
Personalizing the Desktop
Wallpapers and Themes
Your desktop’s appearance sets the tone for your computing experience. Right-click anywhere on the desktop, select “Personalize,” and explore the “Background” section. Choose from a collection of stunning wallpapers or click “Browse” to select an image of your choice. Alternatively, you can further personalize your desktop with pre-designed themes that encompass matching wallpapers, color schemes, sounds, and cursor styles.
Taskbar and Start Menu
The taskbar and Start Menu are at the heart of your Windows experience. To enhance productivity, consider pinning your most-used apps to the taskbar for quick access. To do this, simply drag an app from the Start Menu or desktop onto the taskbar. You can even resize the icons or enable the “Use small taskbar buttons” option for a streamlined look. Want more screen real estate? Right-click the taskbar, go to “Taskbar settings,” and turn on “Automatically hide the taskbar in desktop mode” for a clutter-free display. For the Start Menu, customize the layout by resizing tiles, grouping related apps, and deciding whether to display more tiles or fewer on each column.
System Appearance
Colors and Accent
Express your style by selecting an accent color that resonates with you. Open the “Personalization” settings and navigate to the “Colors” section. Here, you can pick an accent color that’s reflected in the Start Menu, taskbar, window borders, and other elements. You can also enable the option to “Automatically pick an accent color from my background” to ensure a harmonious color scheme.
Transparency Effects
Add a touch of modernity to your user interface with transparency effects. These effects create a subtle layer of depth and visual appeal, allowing windows and other interface elements to blend seamlessly. To enable transparency effects, go to “Personalization” > “Colors” and turn on “Transparency effects.”
Personalizing File Explorer
Quick Access
File Explorer’s Quick Access section is your gateway to frequently used folders. Pin folders to Quick Access by right-clicking on them and selecting “Pin to Quick Access.” This ensures that your essential directories are readily accessible, saving you time navigating through the directory structure.
Folder Options
Tailor how files and folders are displayed in File Explorer to suit your preferences. Click the “View” tab in File Explorer options to reveal a host of customization options. You can opt to show or hide file extensions, hidden files, and system files. Additionally, you can choose between icon, list, details, tiles, or content views for file listings.
System Performance
Power Options
Windows 10 offers various power plans to optimize performance and energy consumption. To access these plans, navigate to “Settings” > “System” > “Power & sleep.” Choose from the power-saving, balanced, or high-performance plans, depending on your usage patterns. The high-performance plan prioritizes maximum system performance but may consume more power.
Visual Effects
Achieve the perfect balance between aesthetics and performance by customizing visual effects. Type “Performance Options” in the Start Menu’s search bar and select the corresponding result. In the “Performance Options” window, navigate to the “Visual Effects” tab. You can choose between pre-defined settings or customize individual visual effects based on your preferences.
Enhancing Productivity
Virtual Desktops: Modern work often involves juggling multiple tasks and applications. Windows 10’s virtual desktops offer a powerful solution to keep your workflow organized and efficient.
Creating Virtual Desktops: Click the “Task View” button on the taskbar or press Win + Tab to open the Task View interface. From here, you can add a new virtual desktop by clicking the “New Desktop” button. Each virtual desktop functions as an independent workspace.
Managing Applications: Open applications on different virtual desktops to avoid clutter. For example, you can dedicate one desktop to work-related tasks and another for personal browsing. Switch between virtual desktops seamlessly to focus on specific projects.
Moving Apps Between Desktops: To move an app from one virtual desktop to another, use the Task View interface. Right-click the desired app and choose “Move to” to select the target desktop.
Snap Assist: Windows 10’s Snap Assist feature makes multitasking effortless by allowing you to manage multiple windows side by side.
Snapping Windows: Drag a window to the left or right edge of the screen to snap it to that side. This automatically resizes the window to fit half of the screen, making it easy to work with two apps simultaneously.
Creating Quarters: You can also snap windows into quarters by dragging them to the corners of the screen. This enables you to have four applications visible at once, which is particularly useful for research or data comparison.
Taskbar Preview: Hover your cursor over an app’s icon on the taskbar, and a preview of the open window will appear. This gives you a quick glance at the window’s content without having to switch to it.
Shortcuts and Notifications
Custom Keyboard Shortcuts: Streamline your workflow by creating custom keyboard shortcuts for frequently used applications and actions.
Creating Shortcuts: Right-click on the application’s shortcut and select “Properties.” In the “Shortcut” tab, look for the “Shortcut key” field. Assign a combination of keys that aren’t already in use to avoid conflicts.
Boosting Efficiency: Custom shortcuts are especially handy for launching applications that you use regularly. For instance, you could set Ctrl + Alt + E to open your email client or Ctrl + Alt + C to launch your code editor.
Action Center and Notifications: Managing notifications efficiently can help you stay focused on tasks at hand.
Customize Notifications: Click the “Action Center” icon on the taskbar to open the notifications panel. Here, you can customize which apps can send notifications and how they appear.
Focus Assist: This feature allows you to suppress notifications during specific periods, helping you stay concentrated during work or relaxation. Configure Focus Assist settings in “System” > “Focus Assist.”
Windows Key Shortcuts: Windows 10 is packed with useful keyboard shortcuts to enhance your productivity.
Windows Key: Pressing the Windows key opens the Start Menu. To access it quickly, press Ctrl + Esc.
Windows Key + Number: The taskbar often hosts pinned applications. Pressing Windows key + a number (e.g., Windows key + 1) opens the corresponding app.
Windows Key + Tab: Opens the Task View interface, allowing you to manage virtual desktops and switch between applications.
Privacy and Security
Privacy Settings: In an era where digital privacy is a significant concern, Windows 10 offers granular control over how your data is shared and accessed by applications. Navigate to “Settings” and click on “Privacy” to access an array of privacy settings.
Location: Control which apps have access to your location data. This is particularly useful for applications like maps and weather that require location information. You can choose to grant or deny access on an app-by-app basis.
Camera and Microphone: Safeguard your privacy by managing which apps can access your camera and microphone. This ensures that only trusted applications can use your hardware for video conferencing, recording, and more.
Contacts and Calendar: Decide which apps can access your contacts and calendar data. This is important for apps that synchronize with your contacts or require access to your schedule.
Speech, Inking, & Typing: Windows 10’s speech recognition, inking, and typing features can be helpful, but you can manage their privacy implications. You can clear your typing history, disable speech recognition, and control the use of handwriting data.
Diagnostic & Feedback Data: Windows collects diagnostic and feedback data to improve its services. However, you can choose the level of data collection that you’re comfortable with. Select from options ranging from Basic to Full, or even switch to the “Optional Diagnostic Data” setting.
App Permissions: Manage individual app permissions under the “App permissions” section. You can control access to your files, documents, photos, and more. This is particularly important for apps that request extensive access to your personal data.
Activity History: Windows maintains an activity history to provide a seamless experience across devices. If you’re concerned about privacy, you can clear your activity history or disable this feature entirely.
Security and Threat Defense
Windows Security: Protecting your system from malware and cyber threats is paramount. Windows 10 includes Windows Security, a built-in tool to safeguard your PC.
Virus & Threat Protection: Regularly scan your system for viruses and threats using Windows Defender Antivirus. You can perform quick scans, full scans, or customize scan options according to your needs.
Firewall & Network Protection: Manage your network connections and configure firewall settings to ensure that your PC is secure from unauthorized access.
App & Browser Control: Windows Security offers protection against potentially harmful applications and files. You can adjust settings to block suspicious apps and downloads from harming your system.
Device Security: Check the health and security status of your device under this section. Windows Security provides information about the security features enabled on your PC and offers recommendations for enhancing security.
Updates: Keeping your system up to date is essential for security. Windows 10 regularly releases updates that not only add new features but also patch security vulnerabilities. Ensure that your system is set to receive automatic updates to stay protected from the latest threats.
Microsoft Account Security: If you’re using a Microsoft account to sign in to Windows 10, take steps to secure your account. Use strong, unique passwords, enable two-factor authentication for an added layer of security, and regularly review the security settings of your Microsoft account.
Conclusion
Customizing Windows 10 to the fullest is not just about aesthetics; it’s about creating an environment that aligns with your workflow, preferences, and personality. By personalizing the desktop, optimizing appearance, enhancing productivity, customizing File Explorer, tweaking system performance, and prioritizing privacy and security, you can transform your Windows 10 experience into a masterpiece of tailored computing. Experiment with these customization features, and watch as your operating system becomes an extension of your unique style and requirements.
