You can launch Local Group Policy Editor in Windows 8 using the Run dialog box

The effort of clicking the mouse, or pressing any single key to dismiss the lockscreen is so overwhelming as to render the at-a-glance notifications for the time, number of new messages, network notification etc unworthwhile. Not to mention the effort needed to remove that element of the interface. Jeez. Going out of your way to remove functionality that hardly represents a serious impediment seems a bit....well....stupid. Sorry.

Skipping the lock screen (and never having to look at the Metro interface) would be great. Of course, the big question will be whether the Group Policy Editor will be available in all editions of Win8, since it's not available in the Home Premium edition of other versions of Windows. Now, if Microsoft is smart, they'll put the Start Menu back in for the Desktop interface. It seems there are a lot of users that want it, and MS just isn't listening. And if they don't put it back in, and if the OEM's are smart, they'll only deploy Windows 8 on tablets, and just make it optional on notebooks and desktop machines. Or include a free downgrade to Windows 7.

I suspect I'd get used to using it if I'm forced to upgrade (e.g. if I have to buy a new machine, and only Win8 units are available), but I'll admit it - I'm an old fashioned die-hard. I still use DOS commands and batch files for a number of operations. They work faster, especially when processing a large number of files, because they don't have any interfacing to do, as opposed to windowed programs that have to update their UI while they're performing the operation.

...the article does do a good job of introducing the lay person to the local policies interface and subsequently act as a starting point for budding power-users to start their adventure in the land of GPOs, but frame it as such, don't fall on to the lame example used.

I have been trying to get rid of the Start Screen/Lock Screen, but when I type in gpedit.msc, it says that it cannot be found. Can anyone tell me how to get rid of the Start/Lock Screen, as well as the little bar that comes from the left when I move the cursor across the screen?

Thanks!

Does anyone know how to require control alt delete to login? This was a security feature that kept people from writing a mimic login screen to capture usernames and passwords.

Bill

On the desktop all you have to do is click a key to get rid of it. On a tablet however you must swipe it upwards, then you must find and touch the password box to bring up the virtual keyboard before you can start typing your password.