Last October I explained to how to shut down Windows 8—a subject you wouldn’t think would require its own how-to guide. And yet.
At the end of that post (which generated quite the conversation), I promised to return with a shortcut that would minimize the hassles of mousing and clicking through the Settings menu to reach the shutdown option. And then I plumb forgot!
Reader Jodie recently called me on it, and rightly so. Here, then, from the Better-Late-Than-Never Dept., is your guide to creating a shutdown tile for Windows 8:
1. It starts, ironically, in Desktop mode, which you can reach by clicking/tapping the Desktop tile or pressing Win-D (that’s the Windows key and the letter D).
2. Right-click in any open spot on the desktop, then choose New, Shortcut.
3. We’re going to make a Shutdown shortcut, so in the location field, type shutdown /p and then click Next.
4. Choose a different name for the shortcut if you want, or leave it as “shutdown,” then click Finish.
5. Right-click the new shortcut and choose Pin to Start.
Presto! You’re done. The next time you return to the Start screen (aka Metro), you should see a Shutdown tile. One click or tap and your machine should immediately shut down.
You can also use this method to create a reboot tile. Just substitute the following text in step 3: shutdown /r /t 0. (That’s a zero at the end, and you shouldn’t include the period after it.)
Note that using the reboot tile will immediately reboot Windows, with no second-chance warning.
Note to Microsoft: While you’re figuring out this whole Windows Blue thing, why not add a shutdown tile to the Start screen instead of forcing users to do it manually? I mean, seriously, what possible reason could you have for excluding it?
Contributing Editor Rick Broida writes about business and consumer technology. Ask for help with your PC hassles at hasslefree@pcworld.com, or try the treasure trove of helpful folks in the PC World Community Forums. Sign up to have the Hassle-Free PC newsletter e-mailed to you each week.