Give Lables to Your Windows 8 Metro Groups
This page explains how to label your groups of Metro tiles. I will also show you the knack of creating new columns.
Name Your Groups of Metro-style Tiles
- Preliminary Task – Sort Your Tiles
- How to Create Names for Metro Groups of Tiles
- ‘How to’ Articles on the Metro UI
- Windows 8 UI on Desktops
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Preliminary Task – Sort Your Tiles
Let us assume that you have signed on to the Windows 8 computer, and are looking at the Metro interface. Before creating any groups, spend a few minutes dragging the tiles into groups, for instance, arranging the apps into columns of games, tools and people.
How to Create a New Vertical Block of Metro-style Tiles
Before naming the columns, let us create a new island of tiles. Just grab a tile and move slowly to the right, a vertical column will appear, just drop the tile in the very middle of the band; as a result there will be a wider alleyway between the tiles. You have created a new group.
What defines a Metro-style group is a thicker alley between the neighbouring tiles. Observe the ‘Calendar’ and ‘Camera’ on either side of People, compare the screenshot above with the one below and see how People is now in its own group. Incidentally, Camera and Snipping Tool are in the same group, which is two tiles wide but with only a thin alley in between the elements.
Now we are ready to tackle the main event – creating labels for these Metro groups.
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How to Create Names for Metro-style Groups of Tiles
For our naming task we need a tiny magnifying glass with four dots, called a semantic zoom.To activate this tool hover your mouse over the very bottom right corner of the main Metro UI screen.
Click on the semantic zoom magnifier; it’s surprising how the screen now looks smaller! But the benefit is that you can select a group of tiles, wide alleyways mean separate groups and thin lines mean the tiles are in the same group.
Once you have selected a column or two with the semantic zoom, right-click on one group of tiles – note the white tick. Now look down at the bottom of the screen and you should see a pin labelled ‘Name Group’; in the accompanying dialog box enter the label of your choice.ce.ce.ce.ce.
Repeat for other blocks of tiles in your Metro interface. Get into the rhythm: select the whole column, a white tick appears, find the dialog box, and then type the group’s name. See one I did earlier, ‘Main’ in the right of the screenshot.
Other ‘How to’ Articles on the Metro-style UI
- Windows 8 New User Interface
- How to Create a Metro Tile
- How to Modify the Lock Screen
- Windows 8 Desktop
- See How to Configure the Desktop Version of IE 10.
Summary of How to Create a Metro Group of Tiles
Begin by clicking on the semantic zoom at the bottom right corner of the Metro screen, next, select the columns of tiles you wish to label. The ribbon at the bottom now provides a naming box. It’s also worth developing the knack of creating new columns, which you can then name.
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Microsoft Windows 8 Metro-style User Interface
• Windows 8 Metro UI • Windows 8 Metro-style Tile • Windows New UI • Windows 8 Desktop
• Windows 8 Configuration • Windows 8 Charms • Name a Metro Group • Windows 8 Jump List
• Windows 8 Metro -v- Desktop • Windows 8 -v- Apple iPad3 • Windows 8 Touch Interface