The Start screen browser, like nearly all apps, lets you tweak its settings to meet your particular needs. And, just as with all apps, opening the settings area begins with a trip to the Charms bar, described in these steps:
To set Google Chrome as your default Windows browser, take the following steps. Open your Google Chrome browser. Select the Chrome menu button, represented by three horizontal lines and located in the upper right-hand corner of the browser window. When the drop-down menu appears, select the Settings option. Understand the process. IOS does not allow you to change your default browser. The only way to set a different default browser is by jailbreaking your iOS device. This will void your warranty as is not recommended if this is the only thing you want to change.
Make Chrome Default Browser Windows 7
- Open your default apps: Original version: Click System Default apps. Creators Update: Click Apps Default apps. At the bottom, under 'Web browser,' click your current browser (typically Microsoft Edge). In the 'Choose an app' window, click Google Chrome. To easily open Chrome later, add a shortcut to your taskbar: On your computer, open Chrome.
- Windows 10 Select the Start button, and then type Default apps. In the search results, select Default apps. Under Web browser, select the browser currently listed, and then select Microsoft Edge or another browser.
Fetch the Charms bar by sliding your finger inward from the screen's right edge. Tap the Settings icon.
The Settings pane appears.
Tap the word Options near the top of the Settings pane.
The Options pane appears. The Internet Explorer app is built for speed rather than power, so it lets you change only these things:
Appearance: Head here, and a toggle switch lets you make the App bar stay put so you can always see the menus. The Zoom option's sliding bar lets you choose the magnification level to view sites. If you've set up the desktop to enlarge the screen by 125 percent, this bar will be set at 125. That's fine for most websites.
Home pages: Tap this section's Customize button to add your currently viewed site or sites to your Home page tabs. Those tabs will automatically load whenever you open the browser.
Reading view: This lets you customize the browser's Reading View to show text at your preferred size and font.
History: Don't want anybody to see websites you've browsed? Tap this section's Select button to delete cached images, cookies, browsing history, download history, and other items.
Passwords: Normally, the browser remembers your usernames and passwords, sparing you from typing them at every visit. This section lets people with perfect memories turn off that feature, as well as manage previously saved passwords.
Phone numbers: This feature lets you detect phone numbers on websites so you can dial them by using your Surface's built-in Skype program. How to decompress a file.
Fonts and Encoding: Helpful mainly to bilingual Surface owners, this area lets you change how the browser displays sites containing foreign languages.
Tap anywhere on the web page to close the Options pane and return to browsing.
Your changes to the Internet Explorer app's settings take place immediately.
Ever wondered how to change the default browser (the browser that opens when you click a link in an email or try to open an HTML file stored on your computer)?
It's quite easy actually.
Most Windows based computer systems come with Internet Explorer set as the default browser.
As you surf the internet and become a more experienced computer user you may find another web browser that you would like to try out. You may have downloaded and install it to try out first. When the new browser was being installed it might have asked if you wished to make it the default browser. You answered no at the time because you wanted to try it out first. Each time you opened the new browser it might have asked you if you wanted to make it the default browser and if you answered no, and clicked the don't ask me again the new browser will just open when activated. Now you have decided that yes, I want to use this browser as my default web browser. So what do you do?
Each browser will have a different way to set it as the default browser after installation. At the top of the browser window there is a menu with words (assuming you haven't hidden it) like File, Edit, View, Favorites, Tools and Help. Click each and a menu will appear. Look for something that refers to Preferences, Settings or Options and click it. Under this section of the browser you have to look for where it lets you set the browser as the default browser. There might be an checkbox beside '… should check to see if it is the default browser.' or just a button or checkbox to make the change.
Set Preferred Browser
Here's an example setting Firefox as the default web browser:
Change Default Browser to Firefox
- Open the Firefox web browser.
- From the top menu (toolbar) select Tools then Options.
Options window appears.
- In the top left of the Options window is a catagory called Advanced, click it.
The General tab should be selected.
- At the bottom of the General tab is a section called System Defaults. Within this section is a check box in front of Always check to see if Firefox is the default browser on startup. Click in that box to select.
- Click the Ok button at the bottom of the Options window.
The Options window will close.
- Close the browser.
- Find an email with a link to a website or a web page on your computer to test with. When you click the link in the email the Firefox browser will open. Likewise if you open an HTML page that is stored on your computer the Firefox browser will open.
The procedure would be similar in any of the browsers. Find the Preferences or Options section of the browser and have the browser check that it is the default browser or there will be an option to set it as the default web browser.
Locating the Default Browser Setting
Link Default Browser
Above we showed how to set Firefox as the default browser on a computer. Here's where the settings are located in some of the other major web browsers:
Internet Explorer
- Open the Firefox web browser.
- From the top menu (toolbar) select Tools then Options.
Options window appears.
- In the top left of the Options window is a catagory called Advanced, click it.
The General tab should be selected.
- At the bottom of the General tab is a section called System Defaults. Within this section is a check box in front of Always check to see if Firefox is the default browser on startup. Click in that box to select.
- Click the Ok button at the bottom of the Options window.
The Options window will close.
- Close the browser.
- Find an email with a link to a website or a web page on your computer to test with. When you click the link in the email the Firefox browser will open. Likewise if you open an HTML page that is stored on your computer the Firefox browser will open.
The procedure would be similar in any of the browsers. Find the Preferences or Options section of the browser and have the browser check that it is the default browser or there will be an option to set it as the default web browser.
Locating the Default Browser Setting
Link Default Browser
Above we showed how to set Firefox as the default browser on a computer. Here's where the settings are located in some of the other major web browsers:
Internet Explorer
Tools, Internet Options, Programs, checkbox near the bottom to for Internet Explorer to check if it is the default browser.
Opera
Tools, Preferences, Advanced, Programs, Check if Opera is default browser on start up.
There are tons of web browsers available. We can't cover them all here but hopefully you now have an idea on where to set the default browser for your computer.
Revised: January 31, 2012
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