The new file copy dialog box is focused on giving you more information and more options than the file copy dialog in Windows 7. Other ribbon menus are context-sensitive, and show up only when applicable files are selected: for example, the Application Tools menu shows up when highlighting an executable, the Picture Tools menu shows up when highlighting an image, the Disk Tools menu appears when working with internal or external drives, and the Disc Image Tools menu shows up when highlighting an ISO or VHD image (both of which can be quickly and seamlessly mounted into Windows Explorer without third-party tools). Hovering over most buttons will reveal tooltips that describe the button’s functionality and, if applicable, a keyboard shortcut that can be used to perform the same action. To speed up window draw time, folders no longer display small icon overlays when shared or made private-you can view these settings by turning on new “sharing status” columns in Explorer. The View tab controls the view settings, obviously, and the Share tab lets you share files both via email, printing, and burning to disc, as well as handling basic file sharing. The File menu is usually always present, and earns its keep solely by the ability to launch Command Prompt and PowerShell windows (both as the logged in user and as Administrator) in the current path, and the Home menu contains most commonly used file tasks (copy, paste, properties, and some others). You can expand and contract the ribbon using an arrow in the upper right-hand corner of the screen, and Windows Explorer will remember this preference for future sessions.Ĭlicking one of the headings like “File” or “Home” will expose all of the Ribbon functionality temporarily. If you’re a power user who does most Explorer tasks with keystrokes (and let’s face it, 90% of what most people do in Explorer can be accomplished with just the CTRL, C, X, V, A, and Delete keys), you might not even notice the change-the ribbon is minimized by default and this makes Explorer look more or less like it did in Windows 7. The Explorer ribbon is minimized by default In Windows Explorer, it falls somewhere in between. In a less feature-packed program like Paint, I think it’s unnecessary but inoffensive. In the context of a feature-rich program like Office, I think it does just what it was designed to do. You’ve probably already seen and formed an opinion about the Ribbon (it also found its way into some Windows 7 applications like Paint and Wordpad, and was refined for Office 2010)-it was introduced in Office to replace the arcane maze of traditional menus and expose hidden functionality that people weren’t using because it was hard to find. The next thing you'll likely notice is that Windows Explorer has picked up the Ribbon interface first introduced in Office 2007. Window borders have also been put on a diet, though a very modest one-a Windows 8 window will use about four pixels less horizontal space than a Windows 7 window providing the same information. The first thing you'll notice is that the window borders have changed slightly from those in Windows 7-corners are now squared-off, rather than rounded, and the font size in windows title bars is quite a bit larger. Note the very slightly narrower horizontal window borders in Windows 8. You already know how this works if you’re a Windows user, but there have been a few useful enhancements and tweaks to give heavy desktop users some reason to upgrade.Ī Windows 7 window (top) compared to a Windows 8 window (bottom). In fact, except for the absence of the Start button, it’s largely identical to the desktop in Windows 7-Metro is obviously where Microsoft has spent most of its development effort this cycle, but the Windows 7 desktop is still good enough that it’s not a big deal. If you refuse to believe that Metro can bring you anything but pain and sorrow, the good news is that the Windows desktop is still here, and it’s just as powerful and full-featured as it was in Windows 7.
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