Making the Most of Windows

Registry Edits

I make these changes to my Windows registry to modify a few aspects of the OS. The first edit, EnableHexNumpad, allows me to use ALT + +#### to input Unicode values instead of just the default alt codes. The second change, DisableSearchBoxSuggestions, prevents the Windows search bar from web searching.

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Computer
└ HKEY_CURRENT_USER
  ├ Control Panel
  │ └ Input Method
  │   ► STRING • "EnableHexNumpad" • "1"
  └ SOFTWARE
    └ Policies
      └ Microsoft
        └ Windows
          └ Explorer
            ► DWORD • "DisableSearchBoxSuggestions" • "1"

Note: Be careful if you decide to make these edits. Back up your registry or computer if you are not confident you know what you are doing.

Tools

These software packages add significant improvements to the Windows experience in my opinion. I have no official relationship with any of these besides being a regular user of them.

I also find installing Ubuntu using the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) to be extremely handy as someone more familiar with the Linux command line than the Windows command prompt.

Symbol Input

As of the Windows 10 Fall Creator’s Update in 2018, an emoji/symbol input panel was added. This can be summoned by pressing Win + . (Windows Key and Period). From this pop-up you can select emoji, emoticon, or symbols for input.

Useful Characters

I map these to keyboard combinations on my keyboard (it has hardware macro support), but they can be typed manually if needed.