If you have ever used Ubuntu Linux, then you know how easy it is to click on your user name and select to shutdown, reboot or logoff. But the shutdown options are not so easily available in Windows – be it Windows 7 or the new Windows 8. The task has been made specially difficult to pull off in Windows 8 – first of all open the Charms bar by moving your mouse near the right edge, click on the power icon and then click on one of the shutdown options. The free zebNet Shutdown Manager can make your life easy by making the shutdown options readily available in Windows 7 and Windows 8.
zebNet ShutDown Manager is a free program that enables you to manage all the power options of your computer with just a click. You can download it from the zebNet site. The download is around 2.6 megabytes in size. During the setup, it downloads some extra files from the internet and tries to install some software that is not needed for it to work. You should decline installing such software. After the installation, it places a power icon in your system tray (notification area) of Windows. You can click on the red colored power icon in your notification area and select an option from the menu that appears. There are options to log off, restart, sleep, hibernate and shutdown. A double click on the tray icon locks your computer to protect it from unauthorised access (similar to pressing Windows Logo Key + L).
If you want to customize zebNet ShutDown Manager, then you can open its settings by selecting Settings from the notification area popup menu of zebNet Shutdown Manager. The settings window has only two settings – option to automatically restart zebNet Shutdown Manager with Windows and to show a confirmation dialog before executing an action. The second option should always be selected as it prevents you from accidently clicking on a shutdown option and powering off your PC.
You can download zebNet ShutDown Manager from http://www.zebnet.co.uk/.