Windows 8.1 disable Charms Bar?

Is your kiosk application using the Surface Pro's screen as the input device, or are you using the Microsoft Touch Cover or Type Cover?

The Surface Pro will be the interface device.  We'll only connect the Type Cover from time to time for administrative purposes...for visitors/users of the kiosk, it will be the bare Surface Pro.

(The kiosk functionality would ideally be like the new "Assigned Access" mode in 8.1 terms of locking out edge swipes, etc.  Though Assigned Access unfortunately applies only to apps from the MS Store, and not custom programs...)

-Brad

Gotcha. I thought you might be using one of the Microsoft keyboards, in which case I would've recommended that you disable the touchpad's "Edge Swipes" feature. As you probably know, this feature is hard-coded into the Synaptics touchpad driver, and it does not respect Win8/Start8's Hot Corner- and Charms-related settings.

Just for kicks 'n giggles, have you tried disabling Edge Swipes to see if it has any effect on how the touchscreen handles them?

Ah, good thought.  But on the Surface, I don't see the additional tab in "Mouse Properties" that might allow disabling Edge Swipes.  (I'm using this site as a reference for how to turn off edge swipes -- maybe there are other ways, but this is what I've found online):

http://www.eightforums.com/tutorials/20992-touchpad-edge-swipes-enable-disable-windows-8-a.html

If that's the main way of turning off edge swipes, I'm not sure that will work with Surface and it's keyboard.  The step that trips me up is that additional touchpad properties tab, which I don't see...(I wonder if I got another keyboard from another vendor if that would allow me to disable?  Hmmm...)

Do you know if this feature (disable charms bar swipe) is part of Start8? Thanks!

-Brad

After doing some more checking on this topic, I really doubt that disabling Edge Swipes for the touchpad will have any effect on the touchscreen swipe behavior anyway.

I came across some questions from others about how to do this (mainly other kiosk developers), but no real answers.

The only other promising thing I found was an article called Disabling Windows 8 Edge Gestures. Unfortunately, I think the registry setting for Gesture Filters is only supported by Windows Embedded 8, not "regular" Windows 8. I suppose you could try it and see if it works.

Good luck!

JohnB

This worked for me:

Control Panel.

Mouse.

Device Settings.

Settings.

Uncheck "Enable Edge Swipes"

Steve