Start Windows 8 in Safe Mode

Safe Mode is a way to get into your system when something won't allow you to start up normally. Troubleshooting becomes a breeze when corrupted drivers and files aren't loaded that prevents a system from functioning.
It used to be as easy as tapping the F8 key when the system starts up, but doing so with Windows 8 will take you to Automatic Repair Mode. The trick to getting back to good old fashioned Safe Mode? Hold down the Shift key and press F8 while booting up.
 
This takes you to the Recovery mode. Select "advanced options," then "troubleshoot," then the "advanced options" again (there are a lot of advanced options).Select Windows Startup Settings and finally the Restart button. This will reboot the computer and give you the option to boot into Safe Mode.

 If you need to get into Safe Mode from within Windows, open the dialog box (the Windows key + R) and type "msconfig" (no quote marks). Select the Boot tab and check the Safe boot box. The system will continually boot into Safe Mode until you go back and uncheck the box.

Solid State Drive (SSD) vs Hard Disk Drive (HDD)

Is your pc running slow? Do you need an upgrade? Have you considered a Solid State Drive (SSD)?

You’re probably familiar with USB memory sticks??

A SSD can be thought of as an oversized and more sophisticated version of the humble USB memory stick.  Like a memory stick, there are no moving parts to an SSD, information is stored in microchips.  Meanwhile, a hard drive uses a mechanical arm with a read/write head to move around and read information from the right location on a storage platter.  This difference is what makes SSD so much faster.  

 Contact the DurbanGeek for more info contact: info@durbangeek.co.za  or Kenny on 0711035273

How do I get the start button back in Windows 8?

This is the most commonly asked question about Windows 8 since its release

The link below describes the how you can get the start button back through 3rd party software.
Although i am a power user and use the windows + x key, i did try out the classic shell 3rd party software and it worked well.

 http://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch001374.htm

Using the Search Box in Windows 7

Find and run anything in Windows by using the Windows 7 search box. Click the Start Orb (that is the little circle on the bottom left of the task bar with the windows flag / logo in it) or press then Windows key and type the name of the program you wish to run or file you wish to edit. Windows 7 does a very good job at finding an exact match and simply pressing enter will execute that program or open that file. If more than one match is found, use the up and down arrow keys to select the file you wish to open and then press Enter.

 Running as administrator: Some programs may require administrator mode in order to function properly. You can run any program as administrator from the search box by typing the name of the program you want to run and then instead of pressing Enter to run the program press Ctrl+Shift+Enter to run as administrator. If you want to click and run a program as administrator hold down the Ctrl+Shift and then click the icon.

How to Increase the size of your Desktop Icons & Fonts

While on the Windows Vista,  Window 7 or Windows 8  hold down the Ctrl Key and scroll up and down using the wheel on your mouse. While scrolling up all the icons on the desktop will increase in size and while scrolling down all the icons will decrease in size. Note: that this acts as a zooming function  in a web browser or office document as well.