The suggestion to run gpedit.msc to open the Local Group Policy Editor so that the Lock Screen can be turned off is a fine one, but it doesn't work for versions OTHER THAN Windows 8 Pro. Other versions, or at least the standard edition that I have, will produce a Did-not-find error when trying to run or searching for "gpedit.msc". In fact, the Local Group Policy Editor does not exist in the standard version of Windows 8, so, of course, neither does gpedit.msc.
I bought this book with the hope and understanding that I would be able to learn about and try such fine-tuning. If nothing else, perhaps a Warning needs to be included with the text that this Tip only applies for those using the Pro version. I, of course, would appreciate the author providing a Registry change that would accomplish the same thing, if that is possible. At least ALL of your readers could then benefit from this tip in a similar manner.
Note from the Author or Editor:
This is valid; the instructions work only on PCs running Windows 8 Pro or Windows 8 Enterprise, and won't work on standard Windows 8. Unfortunately Microsoft only ever provided me with the Pro version of Windows 8. In the future, we should test everything in the standard edition, too.
I'm updating every reference to the Group Policy Editor so that users of the standard edition can change the settings, too.
On page 9, the Inside Out sidebar, please change it to:
While useful for preventing tablet users from accidentally entering input while carrying their PC, the lock screen isn?t particularly useful for desktop or laptop users. The steps you follow will be different depending on the edition of Windows 8 you have:
* Windows 8 Pro or Windows 8 Enterprise. Run gpedit.msc, select Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\Control Panel\
Personalization, and then double-click Do Not Display The Lock Screen. Select Enabled, and then click OK.
* Windows 8. Run regedit. Select HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows. On the Edit menu, select New Key. Name the key Personalization. Then, right-click the Personalization key, select New, and select DWORD (32-bit) Value. Name the new value NoLockScreen. Double-click NoLockScreen and set the value to 1.
On page 44, the Inside Out sidebar, please change it to:
The Store only has apps that Microsoft has approved, so downloading should be much
safer than downloading random apps from the Internet. Still, you might not want your
kids installing apps without checking with you first. You can disable the Store by following these steps, which will be different depending on which edition of Windows 8 you have:
* Windows 8 Pro or Windows 8 Enterprise. Run gpedit.msc, select Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\
Store (to apply the settings for all users) or User Configuration\Administrative
Templates\Windows Components\Store (to apply the settings for the current user), and then double-click Turn Off The Store Application. Select Enabled, and then click OK.
* Windows 8. Run regedit. Select HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\. On the Edit menu, select New Key. Name the key WindowsStore. Then, right-click the WindowsStore key, select New, and select DWORD (32-bit) Value. Name the new value RemoveWindowsStore. Double-click RemoveWindowsStore and set the value to 1.
On page 45, the Inside Out sidebar, please change it to:
I?m from Texas, where there?s a popular saying: If it ain?t broke, don?t fix it. If you cherish
stability and don?t want to risk having someone else using your computer update
apps, you can disable app updates by following these steps, which will be different depending on which edition of Windows 8 you have:
* Windows 8 Pro or Windows 8 Enterprise. Run gpedit.msc and select Computer Configuration\Administrative Templates\Windows Components\Store. Double-click Turn Off Automatic Download Of Updates. Select Enabled, click OK, and restart the computer.
* Windows 8. Run regedit. Select HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft. On the Edit menu, select New Key. Name the key WindowsStore. Then, right-click the WindowsStore key, select New, and select DWORD (32-bit) Value. Name the new value AutoDownload. Double-click AutoDownload and set the value to 0.
On page 60, we need to remove everything before "Copying Files"--MS dropped that Group Policy sometime before RTM.
On page 115, let's change the steps at the bottom of the page to:
To automatically clear live tile data when you log off from computers running Windows 8 Pro or Windows 8 Enterprise, follow these steps:
1. Run gpedit.msc to open the Local Group Policy Editor.
2. Select User Configuration\Administrative Templates\Start Menu And Taskbar.
3. Double-click Clear History Of Tile Notifications On Exit. Click Enabled, and then click
OK.
4. Restart the computer.
On computers running the standard edition of Windows 8, run regedit.exe and create the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer key (if required). Within that key, create a DWORD value named ClearTilesOnExit, and set it to 2. Then, restart your computer.
On page 118, the paragraph that starts, "If you'd rather skip...", let's change it to:
"If you'd rather skip the lock screen and jump directly to the login screen, disable the lock screen by using the Group Policy Editor or the Registry Editor. For detailed steps, refer to the Inside Out sidebar in Chapter 1 titled, "Turning off the lock screen.""
On page 119, change the first set of steps to:
To automatically clear live tile data when you log off from computers running Windows 8 Pro or Windows 8 Enterprise, follow these steps:
1. Run gpedit.msc to open the Local Group Policy Editor.
2. Select User Configuration\Administrative Templates\Start Menu And Taskbar.
3. Double-click Prevent Users From Uninstalling Applications From Start. Select Enabled,
and then click OK.
4. Restart the computer.
On computers running the standard edition of Windows 8, run regedit.exe and create the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer key (if required). Within that key, create a DWORD value named NoUninstallFromStart, and set it to 1. Then, restart your computer.
On page 251, add this to the end of the I/O sidebar before "Then, restart your computer.":
If you're using the standard edition of Windows 8, run regedit.exe and select the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Windows Search key (or create it if necessary). Add the DWORD value DisableBackoff and set the value to 1.
On page 252, add this before "Then, restart your computer.":
If you're using the standard edition of Windows 8, run regedit.exe and select the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Windows Search key (or create it if necessary). Add the DWORD value PreventIndexOnBattery and set the value to 1.
On page 447, remove the third Group Policy from the list, and add this after the bullet list:
If you're using the standard edition of Windows 8, run regedit.exe and select the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\EdgeUI key. To disable tracking of app usage, create a DWORD value named DisableMFUTracking and set it to 1. To disable switching between recent apps, create a DWORD value named TurnOffBackstack and set it to 1.