Windows XP Tips & Tricks

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Windows XP Tips & Tricks

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How to Remove Windows XP's Messenger

Theoretically, you can get rid of it (as well as a few other things). Windows 2000 power users should already be familiar with this tweak.

Fire up the Windows Explorer and navigate your way to the %SYSTEMROOT% \ INF folder. What the heck is that thingy with the percentage signs? It's a variable. For most people, %SYSTEMROOT% is C:\Windows. For others, it may be E:\WinXP. Get it? Okay, on with the hack! In the INF folder, open sysoc.inf (but not before making a BACKUP copy first). Before your eyes glaze over, look for the line containing "msmsgs" in it. Near the end of that particular line, you'll notice that the word "hide" is not so hidden. Go ahead and delete "hide" (so that the flanking commas are left sitting next to one another). Save the file and close it. Now, open the Add and Remove Programs applet in the Control Panel. Click the Add / Remove Windows Components icon. You should see "Windows Messenger" in that list. Remove the checkmark from its box, and you should be set. NOTE: there are other hidden system components in that sysoc.inf file, too. Remove "hide" and the subsequent programs at your own risk.

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Set the Search Screen to the Classic Look

When I first saw the default search pane in Windows XP, my instinct was to return it to its classic look; that puppy had to go. Of course, I later discovered that a doggie door is built into the applet. Click "Change preferences" then "Without an animated screen character." If you'd rather give it a bare-bones "Windows 2000" look and feel, fire up your Registry editor and navigate to:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Explorer \ CabinetState.

You may need to create a new string value labeled "Use Search Asst" and set it to "no".

[ekwikum]

New Sound Blaster Drivers

With the loads of problems reported by users with Soundblaster cards on Windows XP Creative has stepped up and offered drivers for at least some models of their Sound Blaster cards, but check your particular model closely. I have downloaded the SB128 drivers and my sound problems have been resolved..! So they do work.
http://www.creative.com/support/winxp/ (http://www.freepctech.com/www.creative.com/support/winxp/default.html)

[sadeek123]

ya very usefull information for us ...elakiri

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Upgrading to Windows XP

You can upgrade a computer that runs Windows 98, 98SE, or Me to Windows XP Home Edition. Those same versions, along with Windows NT Workstation 4.0 and Windows 2000 Professional, can be upgraded to Windows XP Professional.

(1).To ensure a smooth upgrade and avoid networking problems, follow these tips before starting the upgrade:
(2)Install all network cards. XP will detect them and automatically install the right drivers.
(3)Have your Internet connection available. The XP setup process will connect to a Microsoft server to download the latest setup files, including changes that have been made since XP was released.
Some programs are incompatible with XP and can cause networking problems. Un-install these programs. After the upgrade is complete and the network is working, re-install XP-compatible versions of these programs: Internet Connection Sharing, NAT, Proxy Server Anti-Virus Firewall.

[unicornx]

Thanks mate!

[Chooty malli]

nice thread
very useful
Thanks

[ekwikum]

Windows activation information

is in C:\Windows\System32\Wpa.dbl
Copy this file before you reinstall windows (i.e. clean install on a new hard drive) and you won't have to go through the annoying software activation/registration process (nay harassment).

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Cleanup Add/Remove Programs list is in:
HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uni nstall

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Enable Boot Defrag (places boot files together):
HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Dfrg\BootOptimizeFunction
(Change "Enable" key value to "Y")

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Speed up Disk Cleanup by disabling compression of old files:
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Exp lorer\VolumeCaches\Compress old files
Delete the value of the "(Default)" key (The value is: B50F5260-0C2111D2-AB56-00A0C9082678

[ekwikum]

IE – delete individual entry in the Auto-Complete drop-down list of the web address text box:
Open the list with the drop-down button (arrow) > highlight the item by using Down Arrow keyboard key > press Del

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Reset TCP/IP configuration to defaults:
Command Line = netsh int ip reset IPlog.txt
Netsh.exe is in C:\Windows\Sytem32, IPlog.txt is a log file of changed registry keys

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Speed up HDD by using DMA (Direct Memory Access) technology:
Device Manager > Primary IDE Controller > Primary (Secondary) IDE Channel > Advanced Settings > select "DMA if available".

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Lock Kernel in RAM (disable moving system code from RAM to HD virtual RAM cache):
HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management
Select "DisablePagingExecutive" key and change value from 0 to 1.

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Defrag

- Hidden Command Line Switch

Instructions - Go to "Start", "Run" and Type defrag c: -b to defragment the Boot and Application Prefetch information.

Notes - Windows XP will run this automatically every three days or so, during system idle periods. BootVis will evoke this when you run the "Optimize System" function. There is no need to manually run this unless you wish to immediately optimize a newly installed application's load time.

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IExpress

Hidden Install Creator

Instructions - Go to Start, Run, type iexpress - Source (http://www.microsoft.com/technet/prodtechnol/ie/ieak/techinfo/deploy/60/en/iexpress.mspx?mfr=true)

Notes - IExpress is a technology designed to simplify creation of a setup program. Using the step-by-step IExpress Wizard, you can create self-extracting files that automatically run the setup program contained inside. The setup program can be an .inf file or an executable program. IExpress technology automatically removes the setup files after installation, saving the user time and frustration.

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MS-DOS Editor

Hidden Text Editor

Instructions - Go to Start, Run, type edit - Source (http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/window-on-windows/?p=466)

Notes - Windows XP comes with another text editor besides Notepad - it's called the MS-DOS Editor, and it's commonly referred to simply as Edit. It has features similar to Notepad, as well as additional features such as the ability to work with multiple text files and change the background and text colors.

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Netmeeting

Hidden Internet Conference Application

Instructions - Go to Start, Run, type conf - Source (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/298327)

Notes - Windows XP is the last version of Microsoft Windows to include NetMeeting. NetMeeting delivers a complete Internet conferencing solution for all Windows users with multi-point data conferencing, text chat, whiteboard, and file transfer, as well as point-to-point audio and video.

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Notepad

Create a Log File

Instructions - Launch Notepad, Type .LOG on the first line, and then press Enter to move to the next line. On the File menu, click Save As, type a descriptive name for your file in the File name box, and then click OK. When you next open the file, note that the date and time have been appended to the end of the log, immediately preceding the place where new text can be added. You can use this functionality to automatically add the current date and time to each log entry. - Source (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/260563)

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Paint

Image Trails

Instructions - Open an image and hold down Shift then drag the image around to create an image trail.

10x Zoom

Instructions - Open an image and select the magnifying glass icon. Left-Click exactly on the line below the 8x.

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Private Character Editor

Hidden Font Editor

Instructions - Go to Start, Run, type eudcedit - Source (http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/app_start_character_editor.mspx?mfr=true)

Notes - You can use Private Character Editor to create unique letters and logos for your font library.

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Windows Chat

Hidden Windows Chat Program

Instructions - Go to Start, Run, type winchat - Source (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308232)

Notes - You can use Windows Chat on your computer to communicate with someone on another computer. Both computers must be connected to the same network (for example, a local area network [LAN] or the Internet). Also, each computer must be running a similar protocol, such as TCP/IP

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Windows Media Player 5.1

Hidden Windows Media Player

Instructions - Go to Start, Run, type mplay32

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Windows Media Player 6.4

Hidden Windows Media Player

Instructions - Go to Start, Run, type mplayer2 - Source (http://support.microsoft.com/KB/272487)

Notes - Windows Media Player 6.4 (Classic) is installed along with Windows Media Player 7. The only update is that it now supports the latest codecs.

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FreeCell

Instant Win

Instructions - Hold down Ctrl + Shift + F10 during game play. Then you will be asked if you want to Abort, Retry or Ignore. Choose Abort, then move any card to instantly win.

Hidden Game Modes

Instructions - In the "Game" menu choose "Select Game". Enter -1 or -2 to activate the hidden game modes.

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Hearts

Show All Cards

Instructions - Go to Start, Run, Type: 'Regedit', OK. Edit this registry key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Curre ntVersion\Applets\Hearts

Right click on the Hearts folder, select New, String Value and name it ZB. Right-click on ZB, select Modify and enter a Value Data of 42, OK and close Regedit. Start Hearts (not Internet Hearts). Once in a game Press Ctrl + Alt + Shift + F12 to show all the cards.

Background - This secret is a reference to Douglas Adams' book the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy. 'ZB' is the initials of the character Zaphod Beeblebrox, the Galactic President. '42' is the answer to The Ultimate Question Of Life, the Universe and Everything.

[ekwikum]

Minesweeper Game

Reveal Mines

Instructions - Minimize or close all running applications. Launch Minesweeper, then type xyzzy. Next hold down either shift key for one second. Now when you move the mouse cursor over a Minesweeper square you will see a tiny white pixel in the top left corner of your desktop screen. This pixel will change to black when your mouse moves over a mine. You may need to change you desktop background to a solid color other than white or black to see the pixel.

Stop Timer

Instructions - Launch Minesweeper and start a game so the timer starts counting, then press the Windows Key + D to show the desktop. Now when you select minesweeper from the taskbar you can continue playing with the timer stopped.

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Pinball

Extra Balls

Instructions - Type 1max at the start of a new ball to get extra balls.

Gravity Well

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

Instant Promotion

Instructions - Type rmax at the start of a new game to go up in ranks.

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Pinball

Skill Shot

Instructions - Launch the ball partially up 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 points
Second: 30,000 points
Third: 75,000 points
Fourth: 30,000 points
Fifth: 15,000 points
Sixth: 7,500 points

Test Mode

Instructions - Type hidden test at the start of a new ball to activate Test Mode. No notification will be given that this is activated but you can now left-click the mouse button and drag the ball around. While in test mode press the following keys for more secrets:

H - Get a 1,000,000,000 High Score
M - Shows the amount of system memory
R - Increases your rank in game
Y - Shows the Frames/sec rate

Unlimited Balls

Instructions - Type bmax at the start of a new ball. No notification will be given that this is activated but when a ball is lost a new ball will appear from the yellow wormhole indefinitely. Once this is activated you will be unable to activate other secrets without restarting the game.

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Solitaire

Instant Win

Instructions - Press Alt + Shift + 2 during game play to instantly win.

Draw single cards in a Draw Three game

Instructions - Hold down CTRL + ALT + SHIFT while drawing a new card. Instead of drawing three cards you will only draw one.

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Add/Remove

Hidden Uninstall Options

Instructions - Warning: Proceed at your own risk! Browse to C:\Windows\inf\ and make a backup copy of sysoc.inf. Then open the original file C:\Windows\inf\sysoc.inf in notepad. Go to "Edit" and select "Replace". In "Find what:" type ,hide and in "Replace with:" type , then select "Replace All", save and close the file. Go to the "Control Panel", "Add/Remove", select "Add/Remove Windows Components". You will now see many more Windows components to uninstall. Do not remove anything with no label or that you do not recognize or fully understand what it does. Doing so can break certain functionality in Windows.

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Control Panel

Hidden Control Panel Extensions

Instructions - Download and install TweakUI (http://download.microsoft.com/download/f/c/a/fca6767b-9ed9-45a6-b352-839afb2a2679/TweakUiPowertoySetup.exe), launch, go to "Control Panel" and check any item not selected, then "Apply" and "OK". You will now see the hidden control panel

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Device Manager

Hidden Devices

Instructions - Go to the "Control Panel", "System" icon, "Hardware" tab and select "Device Manager". Select "View" and Show hidden devices.

Phantom Devices

Instructions - Go to "Start", "Programs", "Accessories" and select "Command Prompt". At the command prompt, type "set devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices=1" and press Enter. At the command prompt, type "start devmgmt.msc" and press Enter. Select "View" and Show hidden devices. You can see devices that are not connected to the computer. - Source (http://support.microsoft.com/?id=315539)

Notes - When you close the command prompt window, Windows clears the "devmgr_show_nonpresent_devices=1" variable that you set and prevents phantom devices from being displayed when you select "Show hidden devices".

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MIDI Files

Hidden MIDI Files

Instructions - Browse to C:\Windows\Media and you will find 3 hidden MIDI files:

flourish.mid
onestop.mid
town.mid

Notes - "MIDI" stands for "Musical Instrument Digital Interface" - A compression format for encoding music.

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Music

Music from the Installer

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

Notes - "OOBE" stands for "Out-of-Box Experience".

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Shutdown

Display Hibernate Option on the Shut Down dialog

Instructions - Go to "Start", "Turn Off Computer..." and press either Shift key to change the "Stand By" button to "Hibernate

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Support Tools

Over 100 Windows XP Support Utilities are on the install CD

Instructions for Pre-SP2 users - If you do not have SP2 installed, put the original Windows XP CD in the CD-ROM Drive, run the D:\Support\Tools\setup.exe file.

Instructions for SP2 users - If you have SP2 installed, Download the Windows XP Service Pack 2 Support Tools (http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=49AE8576-9BB9-4126-9761-BA8011FABF38&displaylang=en) and install.

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Private Character Editor
This program is for designing icons and Characters(Alphapet)
Click :start
Then :run
type :EUDCEDIT

[ekwikum]

iExpress

This Program is for converting your files to EXECUTABLE files
Click : start
Then : run
type : iexpress

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Disk Cleanup
This program used for cleaning harddisk to offer space
Click : start
Then : run
type : cleanmgr

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Convert Your Hard Drive to NTFS

If your drive is using FAT16 or FAT32, you can gain performance by converting it to NTFS.

* Click on the Start
* Click Run
* Type cmd
* Enter
* Type CONVERT C: /FS:NTFS
* Enter

Follow the instructions and your drive will be converted to NTFS.

NOTE: NTFS drives can only be accessed by Windows 2000/NT/XP and Vista. Older versions of Windows are only compatible with FAT, FAT16 and FAT32

[ekwikum]

Remove Malware from your System

Spyware comes bundled with a lot of free software found on the Internet. It can slow your machine down to a crawl. Download and install [Only registered and activated users can see links. ] , start your computer in Safe Mode and give your machine a full scan for spyware.

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Disable Indexing Services

Indexing Services is a small little program that uses large amounts of RAM and can often make a computer endlessly loud and noisy. This system process indexes and updates lists of all the files that are on your computer. It does this so that when you do a search for something on your computer, it will search faster by scanning the index lists. If you don’t search your computer often, or even if you do search often, this system service is completely unnecessary.

To disable do the following:

* Click Start
* Click Settings
* Click Control Panel
* Double-click Add/Remove Programs
* Click the Add/Remove Window Components
* Uncheck the Indexing services
* Click Next
* Click OK

[ekwikum]

Reduce Visual Effects

Visual Effects can make Windows XP look good but displaying all the visual items can waste system resources.

* Click Start
* Right click My Computer
* Go to the Advanced tab in the Performance area
* Click Settings
* Choose "Adjust for best performance"

If you still want to keep the look of Windows XP, you can leave the last 3 check boxes selected. It is recommended that you do uncheck these boxes when installing a big or graphics heavy program (like the Adobe programs). Sometimes unchecking these will help rendering pictures, movies or listening music.

[ekwikum]

Speedup Folder Browsing

You may have noticed that everytime you open my computer to browse folders that there is a slight delay. This is because Windows XP automatically searches for network files and printers everytime you open Windows Explorer. To fix this and to increase browsing significantly:

* Open My Computer
* Click on Tools menu
* Click on Folder Options
* Click on the View tab
* Uncheck the Automatically search for network folders and printers check box
* Click Apply
* Click Ok
* Reboot your computer

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Improve Swapfile Performance

It basically makes sure that your PC uses every last drop of memory (faster than swap file) before it starts using the swap file.

* Click Start
* Click Run
* Type msconfig
* Enter
* Click on the System.ini tab
* Expand the 386enh tab by clicking on the plus sign
* Click on new
* In the blank box type ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
* Press Enter
* Restart your PC for the changes to take effect

[ekwikum]

Remove the Desktop Picture

Your desktop background consumes a fair amount of memory and can slow the loading time of your system. Removing it will improve performance.

* Right click on Desktop and select Properties
* Select the Desktop tab
* In the Background window select None
* Click Ok

[ekwikum]

Optimize Display Settings

Windows XP can look sexy but displaying all the visual items can waste system resources. To optimize the display settings:

* Click Start
* Click Settings
* Click Control Panel
* Double-click System
* Click Advanced tab
* In the Performance tab click Settings
* Leave only the following ticked:

1. Show shadows under menus
2. Show shadows under mouse pointer
3. Show translucent selection rectangle
4. Use drop shadows for icons labels on the desktop
5. Use visual styles on windows and buttons

[ekwikum]

Optimise Your Pagefile

If you give your pagefile a fixed size it saves the operating system from needing to resize the page file.

* Right click on My Computer and select Properties
* Select the Advanced tab
* Under Performance choose the Settings button
* Select the Advanced tab again and under Virtual Memory select Change
* Highlight the drive containing your page file and make the initial Size of the file the same as the Maximum Size of the file.

Windows XP sizes the page file to about 1.5X the amount of actual physical memory by default. While this is good for systems with smaller amounts of memory (under 512MB) it is unlikely that a typical XP desktop system will ever need 1.5 X 512MB or more of virtual memory. If you have less than 512MB of memory, leave the page file at its default size. If you have 512MB or more, change the ratio to 1:1 page file size to physical memory size.

[LKS007]

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How to Hide Folders without any Software (http://pc-tips-hacks.blogspot.com/2010/07/how-to-hide-folders-without-any.html)


(http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=3582765462397882899&postID=7713516573096904306)
In this post i want to show you a very simple, but really cool and pretty useful trick to keep folders hidden, and best of all, no software needed.

Its really easy... just follow these steps:

1. Create a new folder somewhere on your hard drive.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_F7GuXCzPQdY/TDaLNB4wEfI/AAAAAAAAELQ/q0o6VtsRd1g/s400/folder1.bmp (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_F7GuXCzPQdY/TDaLNB4wEfI/AAAAAAAAELQ/q0o6VtsRd1g/s1600/folder1.bmp)
2. When you name it hold down "Alt" and press "0160" this will create and invisible space so it will appears as if it has no name.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_F7GuXCzPQdY/TDaMJmIKeSI/AAAAAAAAELY/wp--QbS5QDw/s400/folder2.png (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_F7GuXCzPQdY/TDaMJmIKeSI/AAAAAAAAELY/wp--QbS5QDw/s1600/folder2.png)

3. Right click it and select "Properties" select the tab "coustimize" and select "change icon" scroll along and you should a few blanc spaces click on any one and click ok and save it.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_F7GuXCzPQdY/TDaMhbi1fJI/AAAAAAAAELg/f3XzDedeQMg/s400/folder3.png (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_F7GuXCzPQdY/TDaMhbi1fJI/AAAAAAAAELg/f3XzDedeQMg/s1600/folder3.png)
4. When you have saved the settings the folder will be invisible to hide all your personal files.

Do you have questions, comments, or suggestions? Feel free to post a comment!

[ekwikum]

TEMPORARILY DISABLE "RESTART NOW" DIALOG FROM XP'S AUTOMATIC UPDATES
Automatic Updates is a great feature. Your computer stays protected from threats without worrying about it… but if it's 3am and I'm trying to play a video game, the last thing I want is for the automatic updates to pop up and remind me every 5 minutes that I need to reboot, interrupting my game… Drives me crazy!
If you want to temporarily disable this popup message and delay rebooting, you can go about it one of two ways. I'm a command line junkie, so I just type this into a command prompt (make sure you use the quotes)
net stop "automatic updates"
Or you can open Control Panel \ Administrative Tools \ Services and click Stop on automatic updates.
Do not disable the automatic updates service, just stop it. The next time you start up your computer, it will restart.