Windows 8 is a new operating system from Microsoft that many people are switching to. However, there are some things you may want to do before you make the switch, such as remove Windows 8, understand Linux file permissions, and disable scan and fix popups in Windows. To remove Windows 8, first open the Start screen and type “windows update.” Click on the “Windows Update” icon that appears on your desktop. On the next screen, click on “Install updates.” After the updates have been installed, click on “Restart now.” When your computer restarts, you will be prompted to choose between using Windows 8 or Windows 7. If you want to use Windows 7 instead of Windows 8, click on “Use my original copy of windows 7.” If you want to use a different operating system such as Linux or Mac OS X instead of Windows 8, first install an operating system onto your computer. After your operating system has been installed, delete all of the files related to Windows 8 from your computer by following these steps:

  1. Open File Explorer and navigate to C:\Windows\System32\Wbem\Repository\Packages. 2) Right-click on any file that has a .msi extension and select “Delete package contents.” 3) Right-click on any file that has a .cab extension and select “Delete package contents.” 4) Right-click on any file that has a .exe extension and select “Delete program contents.” 5) Click on the empty space inside of C:\Windows\System32. 6) Restart your computer. After your computer has restarted, reinstall all of the software that you deleted in step 1-5. 7) Install Windows 8 onto your computer. Once installation is complete, follow steps 1-6 again. To understand Linux file permissions, open a terminal window by pressing Ctrl+Alt+T in windows 10 or by clicking Start > All Programs ..

You have questions and we have answers; once a week we round up a handful of reader questions and share the answers with everyone. This week we’re looking at removing Windows 8 from a dual installation, understanding Linux file permissions, and disabling the Scan and Fix popup in Windows.

How Can I Remove Windows 8?

Dear Windows 7,

I took Windows 8 for a spin. It was fun ‘n all but now I’m ready to nuke it and get ride of the boot loader so I can just boot straight into Windows 7 again. The problem? I have no idea how to fix the boot loader. What do I do? I have Windows 7 and Windows 8 installed on two separate drives.

Sincerely,

Windows 7 4 Ever

Getting rid of Windows 8 is straight forward in your case: when you’re in Windows 7 just format the drive you used for Windows 8. As for the repairing the boot loader to get rid of Windows 8, we’ll refer you to our guide on using EasyBCD to edit your boot menu here. If you have no other operating systems (earlier version of Windows, Linux, etc.) that you wish to boot into, you could also do a repair of the Master Boot Record with your Windows 7 disk to get back to that straight-into-Windows boot—read about that here.

What’s the Deal with Linux File Permissions?

Dear Linux Newb,

New Linux user here! I’ve gotten a few file permission errors and I’m curious what that’s all about? So far it hasn’t crippled my use of Linux in anyway but I like knowing as much as I can about the computer I’m using. What’s the deal? Do you guys have a crash course in file permission or a web site I can look at?

Sincerely,

Linux Newb

You’re certainly not the first person to begin their adventures with a *nix-based system like OS X or Linux and wonder exactly what the heck all these file permissions are about. To help clear up the confusion we have an explainer guide that covers everything from basic file permissions to operating as a super user.

How Can I Stop that Annoying Scan and Fix Popup?

Dear Popup Raging,

Every freaking time I plug in my Kindle, iPad, or phone, Windows freaks out and wants to “scan and fix” the device. What the heck? I don’t need it to fix anything. How can I disable this popup? I don’t want anything to pop up. No scan and fix, no auto play, I just want to plug in my stuff in peace!

Sincerely,

Popup Raging

Although the popup, in theory, is meant to alert you that there is a problem with the drive’s file system or that it was unmounted properly, the warning is largely useless because of the frequency with which we unplug devices (like our phones) without properly unmounting them. Ideally we would unmount our drives properly every time, but realistically most people just unplug their phone and go. To banish the annoying popup warning forever, check out this guide here.