Internet with Edge

Microsoft has been distributing the new version of Edge since January 15, 2020 via the Windows 10 updater. Users do not have to do anything themselves; the program will automatically come to the PC. The new version of Edge will automatically inherit any bookmarks and such from the old version. If you didn’t use Edge, this is a whole new start.

Edge is Windows 10’s default browser. The program never gained popularity because it couldn’t keep up with competitors like Chrome. Microsoft therefore made a whole new version of Edge. The program now uses Google’s (faster) technology and has all kinds of new functions.

Many people have the Internet application Edge icon on their taskbar. Click on it and the internet program will open. Don’t have that icon (anymore)? Then open the browser via the Start menu.

• Click the Start button.
• Scroll down the list of programs.
• click on Microsoft Edge.

The internet program opens with the start page. More on that later.

In all internet programs you visit a website in the same way: via the address bar, via a link or via a click on a favorite that has been created. We’ll now show you how to access a site from the address bar.

• Click in the address bar. That’s the empty bar at the top, in which the cursor is already blinking.
• Type a web address in the address bar, for example www.seniorweb.nl.
• Press Enter on the keyboard.

All modern Internet programs work with tabs. They are near the address bar. Tabs are useful because they allow multiple sites to be open at the same time. By default, Edge starts up with one active tab (unless you set several as homepages yourself). The tabs work like this:

• Click the plus sign next to the first tab to open a new tab.
• Go to a website, as described in the previous paragraph.
• View a site in a different tab? Click on the tab with the desired site.
• Ready with a website? Click on the tab with that site, on the cross at the top right.

By the way, the Settings and other parts of the Edge menu also open in new tabs.

Internet users can create so-called favourites. People usually do that on sites they visit often or don’t want to forget. The advantage of a favorite is that you do not have to remember the web address. Save the website address as a Favorite. Then the site opens quickly via the Favorites toolbar below the address bar, or via the menu.

• Open the website you want to save as a Favorite.
• Click the asterisk icon with the plus sign on the right side of the address bar. When you hover over the asterisk, it says ‘Add this page to favorites (Ctrl+D)’.
• The name of the website appears in the ‘Name’ field. Change this name if necessary.
• By default, a favorite site appears in the Favorites Toolbar, below the address bar. Click on Other Favorites or Choose another folder for another storage location. With a limited number of favorite sites, they all fit on the toolbar.
• click on Ready.

The favorite websites are in the Favorites Toolbar. It’s below the address bar. Can’t you see him?

• Click on the button with the three dots at the top right.
• Click in the menu on Institutions.
• click on Appearance.
• Click the drop-down menu to the right of “Show Favorites Toolbar.”
• click on All the time.
• Click on the cross of the Settings tab.

The toolbar is now always in view. Click the name of the saved website in the Favorites Toolbar to open it.

When the Internet program opens, the user is directed to the home page. Edge has several default home pages: Featured, Inspirational, Informational, and Custom. They all have a different focus.

• Featured
  Consists of a search bar with blocks below that lead to recently visited sites.
• Inspirational
  Similar to Featured, only with a nice background image.
• Informative
  Has a search bar, image, blocks and below that news items.
• Amended
  Opens a menu to turn these items on or off.

Switch easily between these different formats:

• Click the gear icon at the top right.
• click on Featured, Inspirational, Informative or Amended.

Not in the mood for such a standard homepage? You can also set up your own home page. For example, a site that you visit every day.

• Click on the button with the three dots at the top right.
• click on Institutions.
• click on At startup.
• click on Open a specific page or pages.
• click on Add a new page.
• Enter the web address of the desired home page, for example ‘www.seniorweb.nl’.
• click on Add.
• Click on the cross of the Settings tab.

This way you can set up multiple home pages. They appear on different tabs when you start Edge. Prefer the home page of Microsoft?

• Click on the button with the three dots at the top right.
• Click in the menu on Institutions.
• click on At startup.
• click on Open a new tab.
• Click on the cross of the Settings tab.

Returning to the (set) home page is done via the Home button. It is not displayed by default. Here’s how to put the home button on the address bar:

• Click on the button with the three dots at the top right.
• Click in the menu on Institutions.
• click on Appearance.
• At ‘Home button’ there is a slider with a black button.
• Click on the slider. That turns blue.
• There is now a house icon to the left of the address bar. That is the button with which you can always return to the set or general home page.
• Click on the cross of the Settings tab.

Edge has the InPrivate feature. Information about visited websites is not saved on the PC when you have finished using the internet. Handy if you are looking for a gift for your partner or internet on a shared computer. With an InPrivate window, your privacy is guaranteed:

• Click on the button with the three dots at the top right.
• click on New InPrivate Window.

A new program window opens. The background is dark. This is how you recognize the Inprivate windows. After using the internet, close this window in the normal way, via the cross at the top right.