How do I disable split screen for opening links?

Anonymous
2013-10-21T19:00:24+00:00

I am running Win 8.1 on a TABLET.  I have about 9 inches of screen real estate to work with.

If I click a link in, say, the Mail app, it will launch IE in 50/50 mode with the existing mail app (which then rearranges itself to only show the single message I was looking at).

This is not at all helpful.  This gives me a four inch web browser, which isn't big enough to see clearly at all.  The controls are all too close together to operate by touch, etc.  I am then forced to manually drag to expand the IE window to full screen.  Unfortunately, the control to do this is also rather small, and I usually miss the first two times.  It typically takes me about 10-15 seconds between clicking a link in email and being able to read the corresponding web page.

Windows 8 handled this correctly.  I would like to revert to the behavior of always opening apps in full screen mode.  How can I accomplish this?

I know it should be possible.  If I hold the tablet in portrait mode, the annoying split window thing does not happen.  (It's not natural for me to hold it this way all the time.)

Is there a registry setting or something for "Always open new apps in full screen mode"?

Windows for home | Previous Windows versions | Accessibility

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  2. Anonymous
    2014-08-16T16:39:48+00:00

    Just wanted to add another voice to this request.

    Its seems pretty obvious that whether or not to automatically go split screen should be a user-configurable option.

    Please give us that option!

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  3. Anonymous
    2014-02-16T05:39:56+00:00

    my current work-around for this annoying issue

    go to control panel

    go to internet options

    go to programs tab

    under opening internet explorer choose 'always in ie on the desktop'

    also check the checkbox option direct below that 'open ie tiles on the desktop'

    keep ie full screen on the desktop but minimized to the task bar when not in use

    then clicking a link in metro windows mail will open that link full screen in ie on the desktop.

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  4. Anonymous
    2014-02-14T04:24:46+00:00

    If not Microsoft, at least some third party app. I would pay to be able to turn off split screen..

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  5. Anonymous
    2014-02-12T17:09:39+00:00

    I don't know how to disable it.  But if you move your cursor to the top of the new app till it turns into the hand, you can double-click and it will make the app full screen.  If you double-click the hand again, it will go back to split-screen.

    Thanks, it helps but it's still jacked up (when I swipe back to the mail app for instance, it stays at half the screen size, I have to double click everytime to make it full screen).

    I still hate that automatic split/snap so hard that I had to come back to this thread to complain. Let me be full screen all the time it's simple I never want to be half and half, I am a whole milk man. Wait.

    It was great in 8 and I don't understand the need to kill a feature that works beautifully with modern apps, on laptops or tablets. At least make it an option. I really don't get it. You can't handle full screen? Stay on the desktop or 7.

    Please someone tell me it's being fixed forever.

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