How to stop the Cortana browser from running

The Cortana browser is a both a blessing and annoying. If you do not want it running constantly in the background and using up memory and resources, because you prefer another web browser. Below is a post how to stop it.

Source (+ pictures): http://superuser.com/questions/949569/can-i-completely-disable-cortana-on-windows-10

First disable it, then uninstall the Cortana app.
Disable it in the search settings:

1> Click the search icon/box in the bottom left
2> click the gear on the left bar
3> Click off next to Cortana/Web Searches

How to Completely Remove Cortana Background Process from Task Manager self.Windows10

submitted 8 months ago by SleepinYeti

1. Open Task Manager and have it show More details. Right click on Cortana and select Open file location.
2. Now find the Cortana folder, right click it, and select Rename. I would recommend just adding ".bak" to the end of the folder name so you can find it easily if you want to restore it back to it's original status. If you attempt to rename, it will tell you that the folder is in use.
3. This is when you want to go back to Task Manager, right click on Cortana, and select End task.
4. Right after the task ends, switch back to the Folder In Use window and click Try Again. The folder should be renamed and the Cortana task will not start again.
   
   Source: https://superuser.com/questions/949569/can-i-completely-disable-cortana-on-windows-10
   
   https://www.reddit.com/r/Windows10/comments/3fo738/how_to_completely_remove_cortana_background/

5 Free Tools to Fix Any Problem in Windows 10

Windows 10 is Microsoft’s latest and greatest operating systems (OS), but it’s far from flawless. Since its launch in July 2015, several people have encountered issues – both after upgrading from Windows 7 or 8.1, and after buying a new PC.
If you’ve upgraded to Windows 10, read about the common upgrade issues and how to fix them.
Thankfully, many free programs exist that will fix the most common problems on your PC. Our top five address major Windows 10 issues in the simplest ways possible.
These tools will fix your faulty or broken drivers, restore PC components that aren’t working, easily enable or disable hidden settings, resurrect features you loved from earlier Windows versions, and lock down your privacy settings.
Before installing them, check two important things…

Ensure Your PC Is Updated and Secure

Microsoft regularly addresses many of Windows 10 flaws with system updates, so you should first ensure your PC is updated and set to update automatically.
To do this, head to Start > Settings > Update & security > Windows Update. Here, click the Advanced options link at the bottom. On Windows 10, updates always download automatically, but to install, often a restart is required.
If you rarely reboot your computer, make sure the dropdown menu at the top is set to Automatic. Also tick Give me updates for other Microsoft products when I update Windows. Finally, go back, click Check for updates, and restart if needed.





Apart from running Windows Update, install suitable antivirus protection. There’s Windows Defender, but Microsoft’s aged security tool is far from the best method of securing Windows 10. Here are five free security programs we think offer the best all-round security for Windows PCs.
On to the five best programs to fix any major problem that you’ve encountered in Windows 10.

1. Driver Booster

If your Windows 10 PC encounters hardware problems (for example, with a speaker or printer), a faulty driver could be the culprit. We previously showed you how to take control of driver updates in Windows 10.
Thankfully, several free tools can update your drivers in a few clicks. The best among them is Driver Booster, which claims to fix and update 200,000 Windows drivers.
Remember to read and untick any unwanted boxes during installation because its parent company (IObit) tries to covertly add bloatware. A tool called Unchecky can help with that, too.





The program is divided into two tabs – Outdated and UpToDate. Select the former and click Update Now at the top to update all your outdated drivers in one go.
The program automatically updates these drivers for you, saving you loads of time and effort. You can follow its update progress at the top. You can also schedule the program to check and inform you about any outdated drivers that you can then update.
Driver Booster creates an automatic restore point before updating your drivers and it has options to automatically shut down or reboot your PC after it’s done – useful if you’re updating many drivers or in the cases where some new drivers may need a reboot to work.

2. FixWin 10

FixWin 10 is a great free program to fix issues within Windows 10 and it’s portable, meaning it doesn’t require installation.
The program is divided into six neat sections, each representing problems with a specific component (File Explorer, System Tools, etc.). Each section contains at least 10 fixes (see the full list here). Some of the fixes may require a reboot, but you’ll be informed of this when you click the Fix button.





The Welcome section lets you create a restore point (which we recommend doing) and fix any corrupted files on your computer. The one-click fixes in the File Explorer category let you add your Recycle Bin icon to the Desktop (if you don’t see it). From here, you can also expose your PC’s hidden files and folders. Similarly, the System Tools section lets you fix problems with the Task Manager, Registry Editor, and Device Manager.
If you can’t locate the fixes you want, click the Windows 10 section where you’ll see common fixes relating to your Start Menu, Wi-Fi connection problems, Windows Update, and even Office programs. The Additional Fixes section lets you address problems that take place after upgrading your to Windows 10 – such as Office files not opening and problems accessing Windows Media Player.





The Troubleshooter section works a little differently. Instead of providing one-click solutions, it has easy-to-understand options that’ll open the relevant device Troubleshooter tool on your PC. You would otherwise have to manually search and open them. The Windows troubleshooters can easily fix problems with regard to your printer, speakers, Internet connection, and Windows Update.

3. Ultimate Windows Tweaker 4

Ultimate Windows Tweaker is made by the same parent company as FixWin10 (The Windows Club). This is immediately evident because both programs share the same easy-to-use interface.
Unlike FixWin 10, which actually addresses Windows 10 issues and lets you fix them, this program lets you quickly enable, disable, hide, or remove certain features from Windows.





You can make each change listed in this program using the Windows 10 Settings app, the Registry Editor, or the Group Policy Editor. However, Ultimate Windows Tweaker puts all the options within neat sections that list relevant issues which you can then address quickly.
Click the Create Restore Point button at the bottom left before you start, tick the changes you want to make, then click Apply at the bottom. The Additional section lets you bring back Windows 7’s Windows Photo Viewer with one click.
There are over 200 Windows 10 tweaks that are available at the click of a button. Making wholesale changes to your OS has never been easier.

4. Missed Featured Installer 10

Windows 10 is not a bad OS. In fact, it was one of the best releases of 2015, fixing many of the flaws that alienated Windows 8.1 users. But people love Windows 7, which remains the most popular Windows version by far!
Windows 10 is the better OS, but if you can’t live without certain Windows 7 features, the Missed Features Installer comes to the rescue.





The program itself is a package containing several reputed (and safe) third-party programs that resurrect features from earlier Windows version to Windows 10. For example, you can use it to add a Windows 7-like Start Menu, bring back Desktops gadgets, Windows Movie Maker, and the Windows Experience Index Tool.
Its installation ISO file is over 1 GB. In earlier Windows versions, you would need to burn this to a DVD before running the ISO file. However, Windows 10 lets you simulate a virtual environment, so you can run these files directly. Open the ISO file and run the setup file within. We’ve explained how to use the program to resurrect lost features to Windows 10.

5. O&O Shut Up 10

We’ve spoken at length about Windows 10’s Privacy issues and Microsoft has received a lot of flak for it. Windows 10 contains many privacy settings you can customize. However, as with the programs above, you can benefit from tools that make this job easier and one of the best among them is O&O ShutUp 10.





The program is divided into nine sections (including Security, Privacy, and Windows Update), each offering various options. The same settings are available in Windows 10, but it’s not always clear what they do. Using O&O Shut Up, however, you’ll find that each setting comes with a detailed explanation of what it does. If you just want to apply all the recommended settings of the program, click the Actions dropdown menu and select that option.
You should address all options marked with red exclamation marks because these denote settings that are switched off, but need to be switched on. For example, the program informed us that Windows Defender was disabled.

What Windows 10 Programs Do You Use to Fix Problems?

While we think that these are the best programs to fix any problem in Windows 10, there are tons of other programs and apps (both free and paid-for) that address its many issues. At the end of the day, much of it comes down to the problems you’ve encountered and the tools you’re comfortable using to address them.

Source: http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/5-free-tools-fix-problem-windows-10/

6 easy ways to speed up Windows 10

Windows 10 may be practically brand-new, but it still suffers from some typical Windows performance issues -- especially if you're running it on an older machine. Here are some quick, easy ways to improve your PC's performance on the new operating system without swapping out your hardware. (Most of these tricks will also work on older versions of Windows.)

Go opaque

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Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET

Windows 10's new Start menu is sexy and see-through, but that transparency will cost you some (slight) resources. To reclaim those resources, you can disable transparency in the Start menu, taskbar, and action center: Open the Settings menu and go to Personalization > Colors and toggle off Make Start, taskbar, and action center transparent.

No special effects

Making the Start menu, taskbar, and action center transparent is one thing, but Windows 10 still has a lot of other snazzy, built-in special effects. To really go bare-bones on the special effects, right-click the Start button and click System.

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Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET

Click Advanced system settings to open the System Properties menu, and then, under Performance, click Settings...

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Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET

This will open the Performance Options menu. In the Visual Effects tab, either choose Adjust for best performance to turn off all unnecessary animations and special effects, or choose Custom: and deselect the visual effects you think can live without. When you're finished, click OK to apply your changes.

Disable Startup programs

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Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET

If your PC is taking a long time to boot up -- and you've enabled Fast Startup and everything -- you may have too many programs starting up when you turn your computer on. To fix this, right-click on the Start button and click Task Manager. Click the Startup tab (click More details if you don't see the Startup tab) and peruse the list of programs that start up with your computer. If you see a program that doesn't need to be there, right-click it and click Disable. You can also arrange the list of programs by Startup impact, if you'd like to see the programs that are taking up the most resources (and time).

Find (and fix) the problem

Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET

Windows 10 has a built-in performance troubleshooter that can help you find and fix any problems that might be affecting your PC's speed. To open the troubleshooter, right-click on the Start button and click Control Panel. Go to Troubleshooting and under System and Security, click Run maintenance tasks.

Reduce the Boot Menu Time-out

When your computer starts up, the boot menu is displayed for a certain amount of time before the operating system loads. This gives you time to do things like start Windows in Safe Mode. You can shave a few seconds off your startup time by changing the boot menu time-out, which is set to 30 seconds by default.

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Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET

To do this, right-click on the Start button and click Control Panel. Go to System > Advanced system settings, and, under Startup and Recovery, click Settings.

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Sarah Jacobsson Purewal/CNET

Next to Time to display list of operating systems:, change the value from 30 seconds to 10 seconds and click OK.

Restart your PC

Is speeding up your computer as simple as...restarting it? Maybe. Restarting your PC clears out its memory and stops any processes that might be taking up resources. Also, shutting down your computer is not the same as restarting it -- shutdown is affected by Windows 10's Fast Startup, which saves a snapshot of your PC and its processes in a hiberfile for faster boot-up. Restart is not affected by Fast Startup, so if you have Fast Startup enabled, restarting your PC is the only way to fully clear the memory and shutdown processes.

Source: http://www.cnet.com/how-to/6-easy-ways-to-speed-up-windows-10/

How to Set Up Multiple Desktops in Windows 10

By Andy Rathbone from Windows 10 For Dummies

Windows 10 introduces a way to run several desktops on a single monitor. Some people connect two or more monitors to their computer so that they can double the desktop real estate. These computing enthusiasts can then view a spreadsheet on one monitor, for example, while viewing the other to write a report about the spreadsheet.

Called virtual desktops, the Windows 10 desktops can be swapped into view, letting you shift your work from one desktop to another. That can be handy for people with small monitors who want to toggle among several sets of adjacent windows, for example. Instead of juggling windows, they can just switch between desktops.

To create virtual desktops and work between them, follow these steps:

1. Click the taskbar’s Task View button and then click the words Add a Desktop.
   
   A click or tap on the Task View button, shown here, and the screen clears, showing thumbnails of all your open windows. In the bottom-right corner, shown here, you see the words Add a Desktop.
   

   Click the taskbar’s Task View button, and the words Add a Desktop appear above the taskbar.
   Click the words Add a Desktop, and a tiny desktop thumbnail immediately appears along the screen’s bottom edge, shown here.
   

   When the thumbnail of the second desktop appears, switch to it with a click.
2. Click the thumbnail of the new desktop, and your second desktop fills the screen.
   The thumbnail expands into a new desktop. The new desktop is a replica of your original desktop but without any open programs or windows.

That’s it. You’ve created a second virtual desktop and moved to it. Windows keeps your other desktop tucked away until you want to switch back to it.

Some people love virtual desktops. Other people find the whole concept needless and confusing. If your emotions lean more toward loving virtual desktops, these tips will come in handy:

• To switch between desktops, click the Task View button. When your miniature virtual desktop windows appear, click the one you want.
  
• To see a virtual desktop’s currently open windows, click the Task View button. When the miniature desktop’s appear along the screen’s bottom edge, hover your mouse pointer over a miniature desktop; the screen changes to show thumbnails of that desktop’s open windows. To revisit a window on any desktop, just click the window’s thumbnail.
  
• To close an unwanted desktop, click the Task View button, and then click the X in that desktop’s thumbnail. Any open windows on that desktop will be dumped onto your original, “real” desktop. That’s important: You won’t lose any unsaved work by accidentally closing a virtual desktop.
  
• To create even more virtual desktops, click the Task View button. When the screen shown earlier appears, click the plus sign icon in the screen’s bottom-right corner.
• Keyboard lovers can add a desktop by holding the Windows key and then pressing Ctrl+D. Your current desktop immediately disappears, replaced by a new, empty desktop. (Pressing Windows key + Tab opens the Task View mode, letting you see all of your open windows, as well as any virtual desktops.)
• To move an open window from one virtual desktop to another, press the Task View button to see the thumbnails of your open desktops. Right-click the desired window on one of the desktop thumbnails and then choose the desired desktop’s number from the pop-up menu. (The desktops are numbered in the order you created them.)
  
  Source: http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-set-up-multiple-desktops-in-windows-10.html?cid=dn_article

How to use Windows 10's File History backup feature

Microsoft added a new way to access File History in Windows 10. Here's how it works.

Windows 10's File History is an easy way to get started with backing up your personal files.

The feature takes snapshots of versions of your files and stores them on an external hard drive. Over time, you build up a library of past versions that you can recover if need be. Say, for example, you really liked a sentence from the first version of a document, but you deleted it long ago and are now battling with regret. You can dip into File History, retrieve the right version of your document, and copy the sentence.

In Windows 10, you can still get at File History from the Control Panel, but there's also an easier way via the Settings app. To access this version, open the Settings app and go toUpdate & Security > Backup.

File History before it's activated in Windows 10.

Once you're there, hook up your external hard drive to Windows and then in the Settings app click the "+" next to Add a drive. You'll see a prompt to choose an external drive, choose the one you want, and that's it. File History is now archiving your data. An on/off slider will now appear under a new heading called "Automatically back up my files."

Click on More options to change File History's defaults.

By default, Windows 10's File History will back-up all the folders in your User folder. To add other folders to File History, or to remove some, click on More options under the on/off slider and scroll down to "Back up these folders."

File History via the Settings app makes it easy to remove folders from your back-up list.

From here, you can add a folder by clicking the "+" at the top of the list. To remove a folder scroll down to find it, click on it to highlight, and then click the Remove button.

Below that list you can also create a list of folders to specifically exclude, or stop backing up to the currently selected drive and choose another one. You can also select how often File History backs up your files—the default is every hour—and how long Windows stores your revisions.

Once File History is enabled, a neat new trick to access older versions of a file is to right-click on it in File Explorer, and then select Properties. In the new window that opens, select the Previous Versions tab for quick access to archival versions of your file.

The new operating system is full of handy little features like this. For more tips, check out out list of the best tricks, tips and tweaks for Windows 10.

Source: http://www.pcworld.com/article/2974385/windows/how-to-use-windows-10s-file-history-backup-feature.html

How to Combine Images into One PDF File in Windows

PDFs were designed to be a universal, easy-to-read document format, and they serve that purpose well. If you have a collection of images–say, documents you scanned into your computer as JPEGs–you can combine them into a PDF document for easy sharing.
Windows 10 now includes an option to print to a PDF file natively in File Explorer. You can simply select a bunch of image files and print them to a PDF file directly within File Explorer. If you’re using Windows 10, start with the first section below.
If you use Windows 7 or 8, the procedure is the same as in Windows 10, but you have to install a third-party tool to be able to accomplish the same task. We discuss this tool in the third section below.

How to Print to a PDF File in Windows 10

To combine a group of images into a PDF file in Windows 10, first you need to make sure your files are listed in File Explorer in the order you want them to appear in the PDF file. You might have to rename them so they get sorted the way you want.
Once you have your images in the right order, select them all and right-click on them. Select “Print” from the popup menu.





The Print Pictures dialog box displays. Select “Microsoft Print to PDF” from the “Printer” drop-down list. If you don’t see that option in the list, see the next section for information on activating it. Then, continue with the process from here.





Use the right and left arrow button below the image to scroll through the images that will be added to the PDF file. Click the “Options” link in the lower-right corner of the dialog box to access additional options for the PDF file.
NOTE: The images may look cut off, but don’t worry. We’ll show you how to fix that a bit later in this article.





On the Print Settings dialog box, you can choose to sharpen the images for printing, if you know the PDF file will be printed. If you also know you will be printing the PDF file on your own printer most of the time, leave the “Only show options that are compatible with my printer” option selected to get the best results.
You can access properties for your printer from here by clicking the “Printer Properties” link.





On the Microsoft Print to PDF Document Properties dialog box, you can select whether you want to the document to be “Landscape” or “Portrait” from the “Orientation” drop-down list. Click “OK” to accept the change or click “Cancel” if you don’t want to save the change or you didn’t change the orientation.





NOTE: If you’re using Windows 7, the Printer Properties link opens the doPDF Properties dialog box displays, allowing you to change the page Orientation (as well as other settings). Again, click “OK” to accept your changes or click “Cancel” if you don’t want to save the changes you made or you didn’t make any changes.






You are returned to the Print Pictures dialog box. If you noticed earlier that the sides of your images seem to be cut off, click the “Fit picture to frame” check box so there is no check mark in the box. You should see the entire image now. Enabling or disabling the Fit picture to frame option affects all the images you’re adding to the PDF file.
Click “Print” to create your PDF file.





The Save Print Output As dialog box displays. Navigate to the location where you want to save the PDF file. The same directory where the images are stored is selected as the default location, but you can change that. Enter a file name for the PDF file in the “File name” edit box and click “Save”.





You’re done! The PDF file is created in the selected folder and you can open it in the default PDF viewer in Windows, or in any other PDF reader you have installed.

How to Activate the Microsoft Print to PDF Option in Windows 10

If the Microsoft Print to PDF option is not available in the Printer drop-down list on the Print Pictures dialog box, you can easily add it. To install the Microsoft Print to PDF printer driver, open the Print Pictures dialog box as we discussed in the previous section (if it’s not already open). Then, select “Install Printer” from the “Printer” drop-down list.





The Add a device dialog box displays and a search for devices begins. You don’t need to wait for the search to finish. Click the “The printer that I want isn’t listed” link near the bottom of the dialog box.





On the Add Printer dialog box, click the “Add a local printer or network printer with manual settings” option and click “Next”.
NOTE: You can also access this dialog box by opening PC Settings and clicking Devices > Printers & Scanners > Add a printer or scanner. Then, click the “The printer that I want isn’t listed” link that displays on that screen as Windows tries to search for devices. The Printers & Scanners screen also contains a list of all the printers and scanners available on your system and you can set any one device as the default and remove any of the devices.





Then, make sure the “Use an existing port” option is selected (it’s the default). Select “FILE: (Print to File)” from the drop-down list to the right of that option and click “Next”.





To select the PDF printer driver, select “Microsoft” in the list on the left and then “Microsoft Print To PDF” in the list on the right. Click “Next”.





You may already have this printer driver installed, in which case the following screen displays on the Add Printer dialog box asking which version of the driver you want to use. Make sure the “Use the driver that is currently installed (recommended)” option, which is the default, is selected and click “Next”.





By default, the printer driver is named “Microsoft Print To PDF”. This name displays in the Printer drop-down list on the Print Pictures dialog box and anywhere else in Windows or programs where you would choose a printer. However, you can change the name by entering a new one in the “Printer name” edit box. Click “Next”.





You should get a message that the printer driver has successfully been added. If you print to PDF files more often than you actually print to your printer, you can set this driver as the default printer. To do so, click the “Set as the default printer” check box so there is a check mark in the box. Click “Finish”.





You are returned to the Print Pictures dialog box where the Microsoft Print To PDF printer driver has been added to the Printer drop-down list and is automatically selected. Now you can continue with the process in the first section to create a PDF file from the selected images.

How to Print to a PDF File in Windows 7 and 8

The procedure for creating a PDF file from multiple image files is the same in Windows 7 and 8 as it is in Windows 10 with one exception. When you right click on a group of selected image files and select “Print” from the popup menu to access the Print Pictures dialog box (as discussed in the first section above), you’ll notice the absence of the Microsoft Print To PDF option in the Printer drop-down list.
There are many PDF tools available that will add a PDF printer driver to Windows when you install the program and those drivers will be available in the Printer drop-down list. Here, we’ll show you how to install and use a tool called doPDF that will allow you to create a PDF file from multiple image files (among other useful features).





Download doPDF and install it. The next time you open the Print Pictures dialog box, “doPDF 8” (that’s the version number as of the time this article was published) is an option in the Printer drop-down list. Select that option.





Now, you can follow the same steps in the first section above for Windows 10 until you click “Print” to create the PDF file. Once you do that after selecting doPDF 8 from the Printer drop-down list, the doPDF 8 – Save PDF file dialog box displays. A default file name and location is automatically entered in the “File name” edit box. To change that, click “Browse”.





The Browse dialog box displays. Navigate to the location where you want to save the PDF file. The same directory where the images are stored is selected as the default location, but you can change that. Enter a file name for the PDF file in the “File name” edit box and click “Save”.





You are returned to the doPDF 8 – Save PDF file dialog box where you can select the quality and size of the PDF file and embed fonts under PDF options. If you want to always use the folder you just selected to save PDF files, click the “Always use this folder” check box so there is a check mark in the box. To open the PDF file in the default PDF reader program on your PC, make sure the “Open PDF in reader” check box is checked. Click “OK” to start creating the PDF file.





The file is created and added to the folder you specified and it opens in the default PDF reader, if you selected that option.





PDF printer drivers can also be used to create a PDF file from any document that can be sent to a physical printer. Simply select the PDF driver as the device on the Print dialog box, rather than your standard printer.



Source: http://www.howtogeek.com/248462/how-to-combine-images-into-one-pdf-file-in-windows/