Windows 10 Academy: The Stress Free Way To Learning Windows 10 Inside & Out (2016)

Chapter 2. The Emergence of Cortana

Another newest incarnation in Windows 10 is Cortana,a virtual assistant who will be able to help you search for what you need in your computer, find files, track packages, manage your calendar, and even chat with you—especially when you need help with something!

You can access Cortana simply by typing a question on the search bar that you’ll see on top of the taskbar. You can also use the microphone icon to do this—however, it’s best to just search because not all phones (in case you’ve synced Windows 10 with your other devices, too) have clear microphones/speakers.

The Magic Word

You can let Cortana respond to you every time you say the words Hey, Cortana. To do this, just:

1. Select Notebook > Settings.

2. You’ll see a setting that says Let Cortana respond when you say Hey, Cortana. Turn that option on.

What It Does

Cortana will be able to help you out with a lot of things, but mostly here’s what you can expect:

1. Ask Cortana about weather conditions. Learning what the weather will be like is extremely helpful because it allows you to plan your events accordingly. Simply ask what is the weather in (location of choice), and Cortana will be able to answer you. You can also click Cortana’s Notebook, click Weather, and see what the day has in store for you!

2. Get Reminders based on locations. This means you’d ask Cortana to remind you of something while you’re at a particular location. For example, when you’re at the grocery and want to be reminded that you need to buy cat food, you can tell Cortana: Remind me to buy cat food while at Park Avenue Grocery—or something to that effect. Just make sure you don’t forget to say Remind Me because that’s the magic phrase here. You can also tell Cortana to edit or turn off the reminders that you already have made in order to avoid confusion.

3. Let Cortana open apps for you! Finally, you can let Cortana open the apps you need by saying Open (desired app). For example, Cortana, open Adobe Photoshop. See, now you’d be able to do what you have to do—even without making use of your hands!

4. Let Cortana search for media files according to time. Searching could be daunting if you have no idea where to start, and if there are just too much information on one page. What you can do then is let Cortana search by file type, or by date. For example, say Cortana, search for music from 3 years ago. Make sure you have the files you need on your PC or on OneDrive—or you could also connect Cortana with Edge (learn more on Chapter 7) to do this.

5. Let Cortana sing for you! Yes, Cortana isn’t just informative, she’s entertaining, too. What you can do is allow her to sing for you, and even sings with Jen Taylor’s human voice! This way, you wouldn’t be scared or think that she’s so robotic. To make her sing, you can use the following commands:

6. Let her know your preferences by telling her about myself. Simply type or say let me tell you about myself, and begin to tell her about your likes and dislikes, and what makes you happy, or what it is that you want to learn more about.

Sing me a lullaby.

Sing me a song.

What does the fox say?

Set those Reminders

Cortana could also help you set reminders for important things that are going on. You can do this simply by going to the search bar and typing whatever you want to be reminded of. For example:

1. Wake me up at 6 on Saturday for the meeting.

2. Remind me of the Superbowl.

3. Change my 9am to 10:30.

Easter Eggs

Using Cortana becomes even more fun with the help of Easter Eggs! These are things you could ask or tell Cortana which would give really humorous and interesting answers!

Here are the best ones you should try:

1. Do you like Google Now?

2. Can you dance?

3. Who’s better: You or Siri?

4. Are you awake?

5. I hate you.

Switching Cortana Off

If you’re tired of Cortana or don’t need her help anymore, you can simply turn the function off by going to Settings, and then choosing turn Cortana off.