Setting up Windows 10 - HELP!!

[dreamshark]

 Okay, my new laptop is here and it powers up and connects to my network. Now what? Although I am far from computer-illiterate I completely fall apart when I have to learn a new OS, or a new interface to a program I used to be really good at using until they "improved" it.

I determined via trial and error that I actually did not need a Microsoft login in order to boot up Windows 10. Since they seemed to be working really hard at wheedling me into creating one, I infer that it will do them more good than it will do me and I am skipping past all that. I don't need their cloud-based subscription model version of Office, since I have a nice hard copy of Office 2010 that I expect will work just fine. So unless the OS starts  trying to deactivate itself in 30 days, I don't think I need to create a Microsoft login at this late date. I seem to have made it all the way from Windows 95 to Windows 10 without one, so let's see if I can keep up the streak. 

But first.... WTF???  Some kind of browser opened up (helpfully hardwired to deliver me to the Microsoft home page) but there is nothing to identify what this browser is. I assume it's whatever they are calling Internet Explorer these days, right? Should I use this thing, or just download Chrome and Firefox, like I always do?

But before I start installing software, I need to customize this thing so I can find my way around. The first thing I need to do is get the basic tools onto the desktop: Control Panel, My Computer, and a shortcut to the hard drive. I already know (from trying to help a friend with her computer) that they not only made a point of hiding the file system in Win10, they renamed My Computer to something else to make it extra hard to find. What was it... My PC? This PC? 

Comments

[sraun]

The browser is called Edge. Download Chrome or Firefox - the Edge you've got is orphanware, and the next version will be based on Google's rendering engine.

I always just put a short-cut to File Explorer on my Desktop.