How do I create recovery discs in Windows 8

The title says it all.

Just got a new computer with this monstrosity of a Windows OS on it. It is recommended that I create a set of recovery discs; but they don't tell me how. The format is not that intuitive. I am already starting to hate it. Longing for a return to XP.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

j

 

Understand your initial frustration with Win 8 but this particular problem is nothing to do with Microsoft or with Win 8, it's something that has been added by your computer manufacturer so that you will have the means to reset your computer to its ex-factory condition should you ever need or want to. You do not say which make/model you have - that might help if anyone here is familiar with it. Otherwise there will be tools provided somewhere in Start or on your taskbar which you need to find and use in order to create your recovery disks.

 

It is an HP 110-023wb bundle. They don't even list it on their website. The closest I come is a 110-020 CPU.

There is nothing intuitive with W8. Frustrated already and I only set it up yesterday. Perhaps I expect too much too soon.

 

I've never had an HP computer but I think you need to locate HP Support Assistant. If that isn't visible in all apps try typing it in the Start screen. There is no input field - just type away.

 

SOLVED

Thanks. That did it.

Apparently there are a whole bunch of secret commands to Win8.

 

There are no secret commands in Windows 8. From the Metro Screen, you would right click, left click on the icon on the lower right, it brings up all installed programs.

Better way, install Classic Shell or Start8, to bring back the conventional All Programs menu, then go to Maintenance, or HP, and it would give you the option to create the restore discs.

It even states in HP support for your machine, how to create them. Not to bust you, but 8 is no different than 7, other than you go into that fugly Metro screen.

 

Oh man, what an absurd statement. Win has no Start button; it has a separate Start screen with tiles to apps that open on the familiar desktop but also many new apps that open on an unfamiliar Start screen. The shutdown procedure is completely different since Shutdown is no longer found by clicking a Start button. Those apps that open on the Start screen have no Minimize, Maximize/Restore Down, and Close buttons, so new Win 8 users don't know how to close those apps. Also, those apps can't be resized to any size, as can apps/programs that open in the desktop. And, what about switching back and forth between apps on the Start screen and those open on the desktop? New users won't be familiar with that. And, they won't be aware of how to use the mouse to point to corners of the screen to display the Charms bar, to go to other apps on the Start screen, etc. I could go on but, surely, I've said enough to illustrate the absurdity of your statement.

 

Windows 8 does indeed have a start button. Move all the way to the lower left corner and it appears as a tile. 8.1 has the button viewable and not just the tile.

As for resizing, you can resize them horizontally through the snap feature that allows multiple Metro apps to run side-by-side, or Metro with desktop. Windows 8 is limited to two, Windows 8.1 can do more.

 

I should have been more clear. Yes, I know Win 8 and 8.1 have a Start button but my point was that it is much different from the Start button on previous versions of Windows; it does not display the familiar Start menu and Programs menu and it does not lead to the Shutdown button.

I have upgraded from Win 8 to 8.1. If the Snap feature was in available Win 8 on the Start screen, I was not aware of it. I know it worked for programs/apps on the desktop (same as Windows 7) but I was not aware that Snap worked on the Win 8 Start screen. If Snap does work there, how would new Win 8 users know that?

 

http://www.nextofwindows.com/windows-8-guide-metro-snap/

The same way with previous OSes, help menus or the Internet. New features and explaining them aren't apparent in Windows unless you stumble upon it or read about it. It has always been that way.

 

I think we need to differentiate between Snap and Metro Snap, the term used at the link you provided. I was aware of the technique for displaying two apps on the Win 8 Start screen, or Metro UI. But, it does not work the way Snap works in Win 7. In Win 7, Snap automatically sizes a program to fit exactly half of the screen. No such feature exists in Win 8's Metro UI. The Metro Snap in Win 8 does not split the screen in half for two apps; it divides the screen into two parts but they are not of equal size.

 

Apologies. I figured that us discussing metro apps in the first place implied that I wasn't discussing a desktop feature

Windows 8/8.1 needs a thick user manual to come with it, IMO. It would help alleviate some issues.