3 easy ways to make Windows 10 better By Kevin Downey

 If you use an older version of the Windows operating systems, you know that Microsoft is trying really hard to make you switch to Windows 10. It came out last summer for free and by the end of last year was being used by 150 million people.

There are good reasons for that. For instance, Windows 10 starts up faster than its predecessors. It comes with Microsoft's voice-activated virtual assistant, Cortana. Plus, Microsoft has beefed up Windows' security.

However, there are a few things about Windows 10 that aren't so great. Notably, Microsoft collects lots of information about you and your online activities, while making it tough to reset your privacy settings.

 

Plus, there's a new way to delete software, but it's only slightly less cumbersome than it used to be. Worse, some of its features can look blurry on your computer screen.

These three sites, which are easy to download and use, will improve your Windows 10 experience. You'll be able to see all the information that Microsoft collects from you, with an easy way to turn each one off.

You'll be able to delete software programs with one click, instead of fumbling through numerous steps to "uninstall." And you'll be able to improve the look of your fonts if they're blurry.

Take charge of your privacy settings

One downside to Windows 10 is that Microsoft is collecting loads of your personal information.
That includes your calendar, emails, location and more. Microsoft doesn't make it easy for you to tinker with your privacy settings after your initial installation.

Fortunately, there is a solution. O&O ShutUp10 puts all of your privacy settings onto one screen. On Windows 10, those settings are currently scattered over many pages.

After you download O&O ShutUp10, choose "Run" to open it as a pop-up window. You'll see dozens of entries under these headers: Security, Windows Defender and Microsoft SpyNet, Privacy, Synchronization of Windows Settings, Cortana (Personal Assistant), Location Services, User Behavior, Windows Update and Miscellaneous.

Uninstall unwanted software

There's an easier way to uninstall software programs than you may think. If you're using Windows 10, you're probably going through several steps. From Start, you go to All Apps; right click the program you want to delete, then "Uninstall." You have to scroll through all your apps, and uninstall them one by one.

Try this instead. 10AppsManager displays a couple of dozen apps on a pop-up screen. Each app is its own, easy-to-read icon.

You'll see apps such as Skype, Money, Xbox and others. To delete a program like Money, click on it and you'll see a message asking if you're sure you want to uninstall it. If you are, click "yes."

Sharpen the look of large fonts

If you increase the size of the fonts on Windows 10, so that it's easier to read your computer screen, the fonts sometimes get blurry.

In older versions of Windows, if you increased the DPI (dots per inch) scaling to 125% or more, your fonts would get larger and easier to read. Note: This is most effective with a computer screen with a resolution of 1920 x 1080, or higher.

Unfortunately, some users of Windows 10 are finding that fonts get blurry when you do that. There are a couple of easy fixes, though.

You can change the display settings in any program where you seeing blurry fonts. Right-click on the program icon, like Word or Excel. Choose Properties >> Compatibility >> put a check mark next to "Disable display scaling on high DPI settings" >> Apply. Microsoft may make you reset those DPI settings every few times you login.

To avoid that, here's another simple fix. Download XPExplorer's Windows 10 DPI Fix; and set your DPI Scaling to the Windows 8.1 version.

Posted in: Windows