PCTechNotes :: PC Tips, Tricks and Tweaks » windows xp

How to Show Quick Launch in Windows 7

slavezero — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 13:41:35 +0000

Ever wonder where did the quick launch go in Windows 7 and how you can access it it just like in previous versions of windows?. The Quick Launch bar is a customizable toolbar that lets you display the Windows desktop or start a program with a single click. You can add buttons to start your favorite programs. The Quick Launch toolbar was first introduce in Windows XP but it’s not available by default in Windows 7. It’s not removed on the new version of windows you just cannot easily use and show it easily the way it use to be in Windows XP. Follow the super easy steps below to get your quick launch toolbar back.

Right-click the taskbar, choose Toolbars / New Toolbar

In the folder selection dialog box, copy and paste the following string below and hit click Select Folder

%userprofile%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch

Right click on the taskbar then uncheck the “lock the taskbar” setting, and right-click on the divider. Make sure that “Show text” and “Show title” are disabled and the view is set to “small icons”.

Use the dividers arrange the toolbar ordering to your preference, and then lock the taskbar again.

Make your XP run faster by disabling unneeded services

slavezero — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 16:34:43 +0000

Did you know that you can still be able to squeeze out some more performance power just by simply disabling unneeded services on your Windows XP? Some people are asking me why am I still giving tips for Windows XP when there is Vista and the upcoming Windows 7, the quick answer is “I love XP” and there are still more people that chooses to stay with XP even the eye candy Vista is out there. Some reasons maybe it’s hard for them to use Vista, they don’t have the power to run the resources hungry Vista, compatibility issue or just really love XP. To all single user XP lovers I have here some list of services that you can disable without any ill effect to your system. This tip will not only make your XP system run a little bit faster it will also make your XP computing more safer.

To disable the services below, go to Control Panel –> Administrative Tools –> Services

Alerter

Clipbook

Computer Browser

Fast User Switching

Human Interface Access Devices

Indexing Service (Slows the hard drive down)

Messenger

Net Logon (unnecessary unless networked on a Domain)

Netmeeting Remote Desktop Sharing (disabled for extra security)

Remote Desktop Help Session Manager (disabled for extra security)

Remote Procedure Call Locator

Remote Registry (disabled for extra security)

Routing & Remote Access (disabled for extra security)

Server

SSDP Discovery Service (this is for the utterly pointless “Universal P’n’P”, & leaves TCP Port 5000 wide open)

TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper

Telnet (disabled for extra security)

Universal Plug and Play Device Host

Upload Manager

Windows Time

Wireless Zero Configuration (for wireless networks)

Workstation

How To Speed Up Disk Access by Disabling Windows XP Last Access Updating

slavezero — Fri, 17 Jul 2009 15:48:44 +0000

Do you know that you can speed up disk access in Windows XP by simply disabling the Last Access Updating? Windows XP updates files with the last access update time when they are opened by any application. This feature for me is not entirely useful. Disabling this will not also affect any applications from running smoothly instead this will help you speed up disk access. So it’s safe to disable this.

This will not dramatically speed up your computer but this will definitely help.

Here is the simple registry tweak to disable this.

1. Open your registry editor by going to Start –> Run then typing regedit

2. Navigate down to the following key

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\FileSystem

3. At the right hand pane, Create a new DWORD value, named NtfsDisableLastAccessUpdate and give it a value of 1.

4. Restart your comptuter for the tweak to take effect.

Quick Trick: How to Enable “No to All”

slavezero — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 15:29:12 +0000

Sometimes when you are copying or moving files or folders, your Windows XP gives you only four options Yes, Yes to All, No, and Cancel. But what if you have hundreds of files to move, it would take a lifetime clicking the No button. Don’t you just wish you have the fifth option which is No to All? well, here is a quick and simple trick to do that.

When the Confirm Folder/File Replace pops up, just hold down Shift key then click No and it’s done.

How to Fix “Internet Explorer cannot download filename from this particular webserver”

slavezero — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:59:30 +0000

A client came to my shop asking why he can’t download any files on his computer using Internet Explorer. I check his computer and his browser, all web pages loaded fine, I can even check mails, I can pretty much do everything online. However, when I try to download a file I received a message stating “Internet Explorer cannot download filename from this particular webserver”.

I tried installing Firefox and I successfully download the file. So the problem was definitely on Internet Explorer. I suggested to him that he use Firefox or other browser instead of IE. He refuses, what can I do he likes IE.

I started repairing his IE. It took me a lot of experiments trying to find the cause of the problem. After all those test I found out that the problem lies in the Temporary Internet Files folder. Sometimes the index.dat file can be damaged. If this happens, you need to delete the index.dat file and restart your computer. Below are the steps on how you delete the index.dat file.

1. Open Internet Explorer.

2. Click on Tools then Internet Options

3. On the General tab under Temporary Internet Files, click on Delete Files

4. Click Ok when it asks if you want to delete the files

5. Under the History section on the General tab, click Clear History, then click Ok

6. Close Internet Explorer

7. Log off the current user and Log onto another user account such as Administrator

8. Click on Start, Run then type CMD to open command prompt

9. Change directories to the Temporary Internet Files directory by typing the following command, substituting the correct drive letter and the word username with the correct user in Windows XP.

cd drive:\Documents and Settings\username\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5

Example: cd c:\Documents and Settings\Mark\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5

10. Type del index.dat then press Enter

11. Close the command prompt by typing exit and hitting enter

12. Restart your computer

You should now be able to download files using Internet Explorer.

Windows XP Secrets

slavezero — Mon, 25 May 2009 19:10:29 +0000

Do you know that there are lots of Windows applications, processes and other things that are still unknown to common users? well here are some Windows XP secrets that are worth a look and some you will find useful.

1. Application Secrets.

Hidden Command Line Switch on Defrag

Go to Start click on Run then Type defrag c: -b. This will defrag the Boot and Application Prefetch information. The same function BootVis is implementing

Image Trails on Paint

Open any image, To create an image trail just hold down Shift then drag the image around.

Paint 10 X zoom

Open any image, select the magnifying glass tool then Left-click exactly on the line below the 8 X.

2. OS Secrets.

Hidden Uninstall Options

Warning: Proceed at your own risk.

First thing you should do is to make a backup of sysoc.inf to do this just browse to C:\Windows\inf\ and make a backup copy.
Open the original file C:\Windows\inf\sysoc.inf using your notepad.
Go to Edit and select Replace. In Find what textbox type “hide” and in Replace box place “type”, then select Replace All, save and close the file.
Go to the control panel, choose Add/Remove, then select Add/Remove Windows Components. You will now see many more Windows components to uninstall.

As a safety precaution just leave or just do not remove anything that you don’t recognize or fully understand what it does. Doing so can break certain functionality of your Windows.

Hidden Control Panel Extensions Control Panel

Download and install Tweak UI,
Go to Control Panel and check any item not selected, then “Apply” and “OK”. You will now see the hidden control panel extensions.

Hidden Devices in Device Manager

Go to the control panel, Choose System, go to Hardware tab and select Device Manager. Select View and Show hidden devices.

Music from the Installer

Browse to C:\Windows\system32\oobe\images\title.wma and play

Display Hibernate Option on Shut Down dialog on Shutdown

Click on Start, click Turn Off Computer then press either Shift key to change Stand By button to Hibernate.

If you happen to know any Windows secrets that I missed on this topic please feel free add it up via comment or by sending me a message using my contact form and you will get your deserved credit.

How to Remove Windows XP/Vista Focus Rectangle

slavezero — Thu, 21 May 2009 17:27:02 +0000

Have you notice the dotted rectangle your around your icon or made a file selection. This dotted line is better known as focus rectangle. I know what you’re thinking–there’s nothing we can do to remove it. It seems that XP and Vista were born with it. But just like how doctors manage to separate a Siamese twin, there is a way to get rid of it.

To solve this problem we will use a small utility called Universal Focus Rectangle Remover. Unfortunately, This tool only works with 32-bit Vista and XP machines.

Installation Process (XP)

1. Download RemoveFocusRect.dll into your System32 directory. It is usually located at this path C:\Windows\System32

2. Click on Start then Run

3. Type in

regsvr32 RemoveFocusRect.dll

4. Restart your computer.

Installation Process (Vista)

1. Do XP installation process Step 1

2. Open your command prompt in administrator mode. you can do this by right clicking the command prompt and selecting “Run as administrator”

3. Type the following command

regsvr32 RemoveFocusRect.dll

4. Restart your computer and the focus rectangle will be gone

Uninstallation Process

To uninstall and bring back the focus rectangle just follow the steps above but you will type in this time

regsvr32 /u RemoveFocusRect.dll

Download Focus Rectangle Remover from Neowin.net

PCTechNotes Mirror Copy

How to Remove Shutdown Button on Logon Screen

slavezero — Wed, 20 May 2009 14:54:35 +0000

Having the shutdown button displayed on your Windows XP logon screen can be very inconvenient at times. Your kids or any people that are sharing your computer can accidentally turn off your computer and close all you programs. To prevent this from happening you can just easily disable the “Turn off computer” button.

You can do this in two ways. One is through the Administrative Tools and and second is by editing some registry value.

If you don’t own a Windows XP professional machine then editing the registry will be your only choice. But before you do that make sure that you make a backup of your registry.

Step 1: Disabling using the Local Policy Settings

1. Go to Control Panel

2. Click on Administrative Tools

3. Click on Local Security Policy

4. Under Local Security Settings Go to Local Policies then Security Options. Scroll down, look for “Shutdown: Allow system to be shut down without having to log on”

5. Double click “Shutdown: Allow system to be shut down without having to log on” then select “disabled”

Step 2: Registry Editing

1. Click on Start, Go to Run then type Regedit

2. Navigate to the following key:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies\system

3. Change the value of ‘shutdownwithoutlogon‘ to ’0′.

Windows XP Game Secrets

slavezero — Fri, 15 May 2009 12:00:46 +0000

I am in front of my computer for almost 10 hours a day, doing stuff in blogging and surfing the internet. But another thing that keeps me busy in front of my computer, is the game that I play here. I’ve always been a fan of Windows XP games. I will share to you some secrets that you can use in playing Windows XP games.

Enjoy these winning tricks.

FreeCell

Instant Win – During game play, Hold down Ctrl + Shift + F10 key. You will be asked if you want to Abort, Retry or Ignore. Choose Abort, then move any card to instantly win.

Hidden Game Modes – In the Game menu choose Select Game. Enter -1 or -2 to activate the hidden game modes.

Minesweeper

Reveal Mines – Type xyzzy. Next, hold down the shift key for one second. You will now see a tiny pixel located at the top left corner of your desktop screen when you move your cursor over to any Minesweeper squares. The pixel will change to black when you hover on a mine. It is important to change your desktop background to a solid color other than a black or white to be able to see the pixel.

Pinball

Extra Balls – Type lmax at the start of a new ball to get extra balls.

Gravity Well – Type gmax at the start of a new game to activate Gravity Well.

Instant Promotion – Type rmax at the start of a new game to go up in ranks.

Skill Shot – Partially launch the ball up to the chute past the third yellow light bar so it falls back down to get 75.000 points. There are six yellow light bars that are worth a varying amount of points :
First: 15.000
Second: 30.000
Third: 75.000
Fourth: 30.000
Fifth: 15.000
Sixth: 7.500

Test Mode – To activate test mode type hidden test at the start of a new ball. You will not be notified the test mode is activated but you can now drag the ball around using your left mouse button.

Unlimited Balls – Type bmax at the start of a new ball. You will not be notified for nay changes, it is automatically activated. Another ball will automatically appear when your ball is lost. Remember, once you activate this cheat you will not be able to activate other cheats without restarting the game.

Solitaire

Instant Win – Press Alt + Shift + 2 key during game play to instantly win.

Draw single cards in a Draw Three game – Hold down Ctrl + Alt + Shift while drawing a new card. Instead of drawing three cards you will only draw one.

How to Play XP 3D Pinball in Windows Vista

slavezero — Wed, 13 May 2009 15:21:52 +0000

Are you a Vista user who feels like degrading back to Windows XP because some of your favorite Windows XP games like 3D pinball are missing? if you miss the 3D Pinball and if you are really dying to play pinball without degrading to Windows XP… I have here a very simple way that will help Pinball make it through to the Vista world. Just follow these steps and you’re on!

Here are the simple steps to revive Pinball

1.A. If you still have a Windows Xp Machine Go to the Pinball directory “c:/Program Files/Windows NT”. Proceed to step 2.

1.B. If you don’t have a Windows XP computer you can Download Pinball here Proceed to step 2.

2. Copy/Extract the Pinball game folder and paste it to your Windows Vista game folder “C:/Program Files/Microsoft Games”

3. Your done … you can now enjoy again the game you love in Windows XP.