There are two ways to view Internet Explorer in Windows 8, either from the Start screen or while in Desktop mode. Both offer different viewing experiences for users.
Go ahead and from your Start screen, click the Internet Explorer tile. Once it opens, let’s also open Internet Explorer from the desktop. Push the Windows Logo key on your keyboard to go back to the Start screen. Click the “Desktop” tile and then click the blue “e” to open Internet Explorer from Desktop mode. You now have two Internet Explorer windows open, one in each mode.
Let me show you a little trick that makes it easy to toggle between all your open windows. First, push the “Alt” key down on your keyboard and hold it down, then push and release the “Tab” key (don’t let up the “Alt” key just yet). You’ll notice that a small window opens showing all your open programs. While holding down the “Alt” key, push the “Tab” key once again and you’ll see that it will switch to the next window. Continue to hit the “Tab” key while holding down the “Alt” key and you will cycle through all your open programs. This makes it especially easy switching between windows that are open from the Start screen and those open in Desktop mode.
Since we are all familiar with Internet Explorer in Desktop mode, let’s talk about Internet Explorer from the Start screen.
The most obvious difference is the Address Bar has been moved to the bottom of the screen. There are also different menu icons located at the bottom-right named “Refresh,” “Tabs,” “Favorites,” “Page Tools” and “Forward.”
You can still search from the address bar to find websites or you can click the “Star” icon and it will open your saved favorites with a row of tiles. You can use your scroll button on your mouse to move from left to right to view all your favorites, or you can click the scroll bar at the bottom to move to the right. These favorites are the ones you have listed in your Favorites Bar. If you want to see all your saved website favorites, on the left, click “All” and all your favorites are displayed. You can see all the other options by clicking the down-arrow next to Favorites.
Lastly, at the bottom-left, click the “+” sign to open a new tab. Once you click this, it will show tiles of recent website visits or you can just type in the website address you need and it will open in the new tab.
It is my opinion that Microsoft left Desktop mode in Windows 8 to make the transition from previous Windows easier, but I believe it will go away in subsequent Windows versions.
View Internet Explorer from the Start screen and use the available options to see which mode you prefer, and next week, I’ll show you how to set it up so Internet Explorer opens in the mode you prefer each time.
Scott Lindsay actively promotes learning the computer, regardless of age, to better one’s life and circumstances and has helped thousands of people over the past 13 years to become better computer users. He can be reached at Scott@MicroScottPro.com.