Friday, August 21, 2009
Saturday, August 15, 2009
IP ADDRESS STRUCTURE
Every station on a PSN (packet switched network) that is based on the TCP/IP
protocol (your computer is one, for example. Yes, we're referring to a host
that is connected to the net) must have an IP address, so it can be identified,
and information can be relayed and routed to it in an orderly fashion.
An IP address consists of a 32 bit logical address. The address is divided
into two fields:
1) The network address:
Assigned by InterNIC (Internet Network Information Center).
In fact most ISPs (internet service providers) purchase a number of addresses
and assign them individually.
2) The host address:
An address that identifies the single nodes throughout the network. It can be assigned
by the network manager, by using protocols for it such as DHCP, or the workstation itself.
[The IP networking protocol is a logically routed protocol, meaning that address 192.43.54.2
will be on the same physical wire as address 192.43.54.3 (of course this is not always true. It depends on the
subnet mask of the network, but all of that can fill a text of its own)
IP address structure:
---.---.---.---
^ ^
| |
network | host
Every " --- " = 8 bits.
The first bits ===> network address
The last bits ===> host address.
with 8 bits you can present from 0-255 . (binary=(2 to the power of 8)-1)
Example:
11000010.01011010.00011111.01001010 (binary)
194.90.31.74 (decimal)
IP address CLASSES :
We can classify IP addreses to 5 groups. You can distinguish them by comparing the "High Order" bits (the first four bits on the
left of the address):
type | model | target | MSB |addr.range |bit number| max.stations|
| | groups | | |net./hosts| |
------|--------|--------|-----|--------------|----------|-------------|
A |N.h.h.h | ALL | 0 | 1.0.0.0 | 24/7 | 16,777,214 |
| | ACCEPT | | to | | |
| | HUGE | | 127.0.0.0 | | |
| | CORPS | | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
|N.N.h.h | TO ALL | 10 | 128.1.00 | 16/14 | 65,543 |
B | | LARGE | | to | | |
| | CORPS | | 191.254.00 | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
|N.N.N.h |TO ALOT | 110 | 192.0.1.0 | 8/22 | 254 |
C | |OF | | to | | |
| |SMALL | | 223.225.254 | | |
| |CORPS | | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
D | NONE |MULTI-CA|1110 | 224.0.0.0 | NOT FOR | UNKNOWN |
| |ST ADDR.| | to | USUAL | |
| |RFC-1112| |239.255.255.255| USE | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
E | NOT FOR|EXPERIME|1,1,1,1| 240.0.0.0 |NOT FOR| NOT FOR USE|
| USE |NTAL | | to |USE | |
| |ADDR. | |254.255.255.255| | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
N=NETWORK , h=HOST .
Notice the address range 127.X.X.X.
These addresses are assigned to internal use to the network device, and are
used as an application tool only. For example: 127.0.0.1, the most common one,
is called the loopback address - everything sent here goes directly back to
you, without even traveling out on the wire.
Also, some IPs are reserved for VPNs - Virtual Private Networks. These are
local area networks over wide area networks that use the Internet Protocol to
communicate, and each computer inside the network is assigned with an IP
address. So, suppose a certain computer wants to send a data packet to
another host on the network with the IP 'x', but there's also another host on
the Internet that has the same IP - what happens now? So this is why you
cannot use these and other forms of reserved IPs on the Internet.
EXTRA:
Distinguishing different groups:
You have to compare the first byte on the left in the address as follows:
Type | First byte | MSB
| in decimal |
----------------------------
A | 1-127 | 0
----------------------------
B | 128-191 | 10
----------------------------
C | 192-223 | 110
----------------------------
D | 224-239 | 1110
----------------------------
E | 240-254 | 1111
----------------------------
NOTES: Yes, we know, we've left A LOT of things unexplained in this text.
With time, we will write more tutorials to cover these and other subjects. So
in the meantime, I suggest that you go to http://blacksun.box.sk, find the
tutorials page and see if there's anything else that's interesting to you.
And remember - we also have a message board, so if you have any questions,
feel free to post them there.
weird shit (newbie note):
1) Multicast: (copied from RFC 1112)
IP multicasting is the transmission of an IP datagram to a "host
group", a set of zero or more hosts identified by a single IP
destination address. A multicast datagram is delivered to all
members of its destination host group with the same "best-efforts"
reliability as regular unicast IP datagrams, i.e., the datagram is
not guaranteed to arrive intact at all members of the destination
group or in the same order relative to other datagrams.
The membership of a host group is dynamic; that is, hosts may join
and leave groups at any time. There is no restriction on the
location or number of members in a host group. A host may be a
member of more than one group at a time. A host need not be a member
of a group to send datagrams to it.
A host group may be permanent or transient. A permanent group has a
well-known, administratively assigned IP address. It is the address,
not the membership of the group, that is permanent; at any time a
permanent group may have any number of members, even zero. Those IP
multicast addresses that are not reserved for permanent groups are
available for dynamic assignment to transient groups which exist only
as long as they have members.
Internetwork forwarding of IP multicast datagrams(ip packets)is handled by
"multicast routers" which may be co-resident with, or separate from,
internet gateways. A host transmits an IP multicast datagram as a
local network multicast which reaches all immediately-neighboring
members of the destination host group. If the datagram has an IP
time-to-live greater than 1, the multicast router(s) attached to the
local network take responsibility for forwarding it towards all other
networks that have members of the destination group. On those other
member networks that are reachable within the IP time-to-live, an
attached multicast router completes delivery by transmitting the
datagram(ip packet) as a local multicast.
*if you donot understand the above do not worry, it is complicated and dry
but reread it and read it again get a dictionary if it helps.
Hacking is not easy.
2) MSB: Most Significent Bit:
In set numbers the first number on the left is the most important because it
holds the highest value as opposed to the LSB=> least significent bit, it
always holds the the smallest value.
protocol (your computer is one, for example. Yes, we're referring to a host
that is connected to the net) must have an IP address, so it can be identified,
and information can be relayed and routed to it in an orderly fashion.
An IP address consists of a 32 bit logical address. The address is divided
into two fields:
1) The network address:
Assigned by InterNIC (Internet Network Information Center).
In fact most ISPs (internet service providers) purchase a number of addresses
and assign them individually.
2) The host address:
An address that identifies the single nodes throughout the network. It can be assigned
by the network manager, by using protocols for it such as DHCP, or the workstation itself.
[The IP networking protocol is a logically routed protocol, meaning that address 192.43.54.2
will be on the same physical wire as address 192.43.54.3 (of course this is not always true. It depends on the
subnet mask of the network, but all of that can fill a text of its own)
IP address structure:
---.---.---.---
^ ^
| |
network | host
Every " --- " = 8 bits.
The first bits ===> network address
The last bits ===> host address.
with 8 bits you can present from 0-255 . (binary=(2 to the power of 8)-1)
Example:
11000010.01011010.00011111.01001010 (binary)
194.90.31.74 (decimal)
IP address CLASSES :
We can classify IP addreses to 5 groups. You can distinguish them by comparing the "High Order" bits (the first four bits on the
left of the address):
type | model | target | MSB |addr.range |bit number| max.stations|
| | groups | | |net./hosts| |
------|--------|--------|-----|--------------|----------|-------------|
A |N.h.h.h | ALL | 0 | 1.0.0.0 | 24/7 | 16,777,214 |
| | ACCEPT | | to | | |
| | HUGE | | 127.0.0.0 | | |
| | CORPS | | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
|N.N.h.h | TO ALL | 10 | 128.1.00 | 16/14 | 65,543 |
B | | LARGE | | to | | |
| | CORPS | | 191.254.00 | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
|N.N.N.h |TO ALOT | 110 | 192.0.1.0 | 8/22 | 254 |
C | |OF | | to | | |
| |SMALL | | 223.225.254 | | |
| |CORPS | | | | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
D | NONE |MULTI-CA|1110 | 224.0.0.0 | NOT FOR | UNKNOWN |
| |ST ADDR.| | to | USUAL | |
| |RFC-1112| |239.255.255.255| USE | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
E | NOT FOR|EXPERIME|1,1,1,1| 240.0.0.0 |NOT FOR| NOT FOR USE|
| USE |NTAL | | to |USE | |
| |ADDR. | |254.255.255.255| | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
N=NETWORK , h=HOST .
Notice the address range 127.X.X.X.
These addresses are assigned to internal use to the network device, and are
used as an application tool only. For example: 127.0.0.1, the most common one,
is called the loopback address - everything sent here goes directly back to
you, without even traveling out on the wire.
Also, some IPs are reserved for VPNs - Virtual Private Networks. These are
local area networks over wide area networks that use the Internet Protocol to
communicate, and each computer inside the network is assigned with an IP
address. So, suppose a certain computer wants to send a data packet to
another host on the network with the IP 'x', but there's also another host on
the Internet that has the same IP - what happens now? So this is why you
cannot use these and other forms of reserved IPs on the Internet.
EXTRA:
Distinguishing different groups:
You have to compare the first byte on the left in the address as follows:
Type | First byte | MSB
| in decimal |
----------------------------
A | 1-127 | 0
----------------------------
B | 128-191 | 10
----------------------------
C | 192-223 | 110
----------------------------
D | 224-239 | 1110
----------------------------
E | 240-254 | 1111
----------------------------
NOTES: Yes, we know, we've left A LOT of things unexplained in this text.
With time, we will write more tutorials to cover these and other subjects. So
in the meantime, I suggest that you go to http://blacksun.box.sk, find the
tutorials page and see if there's anything else that's interesting to you.
And remember - we also have a message board, so if you have any questions,
feel free to post them there.
weird shit (newbie note):
1) Multicast: (copied from RFC 1112)
IP multicasting is the transmission of an IP datagram to a "host
group", a set of zero or more hosts identified by a single IP
destination address. A multicast datagram is delivered to all
members of its destination host group with the same "best-efforts"
reliability as regular unicast IP datagrams, i.e., the datagram is
not guaranteed to arrive intact at all members of the destination
group or in the same order relative to other datagrams.
The membership of a host group is dynamic; that is, hosts may join
and leave groups at any time. There is no restriction on the
location or number of members in a host group. A host may be a
member of more than one group at a time. A host need not be a member
of a group to send datagrams to it.
A host group may be permanent or transient. A permanent group has a
well-known, administratively assigned IP address. It is the address,
not the membership of the group, that is permanent; at any time a
permanent group may have any number of members, even zero. Those IP
multicast addresses that are not reserved for permanent groups are
available for dynamic assignment to transient groups which exist only
as long as they have members.
Internetwork forwarding of IP multicast datagrams(ip packets)is handled by
"multicast routers" which may be co-resident with, or separate from,
internet gateways. A host transmits an IP multicast datagram as a
local network multicast which reaches all immediately-neighboring
members of the destination host group. If the datagram has an IP
time-to-live greater than 1, the multicast router(s) attached to the
local network take responsibility for forwarding it towards all other
networks that have members of the destination group. On those other
member networks that are reachable within the IP time-to-live, an
attached multicast router completes delivery by transmitting the
datagram(ip packet) as a local multicast.
*if you donot understand the above do not worry, it is complicated and dry
but reread it and read it again get a dictionary if it helps.
Hacking is not easy.
2) MSB: Most Significent Bit:
In set numbers the first number on the left is the most important because it
holds the highest value as opposed to the LSB=> least significent bit, it
always holds the the smallest value.
Making Bootable Floppy Disk to Boot into Windows
Many people are able to boot into an Operating System without any problems. But in one day, what if the boot files that include NTLDR, Boot.ini, and Ntdetect.com[/] file are corrupted due to virus infected, you are not able to boot into the OS. You will end up with reinstalling and repairing the OS in order to be able to boot into the OS again. Doing so will take you a lot of time. Therefore, in this tutorial, it will teach the user how to make the bootable floppy disc that can boot into Windows. So, when the user encounter the OS booting in the future due to boot files corruption, they are still able to boot into the OS and repair the OS bootup in less than a minute.
Pre-requites Tools
* A blank floppy disc
* A PC with running Windows 2000 series, Windows XP series, or 2003 series
Terminology & Explanation
(None)
Implementation
This tutorial and its procedure will guide the user on how he/she make the bootable floppy disc that can boot into Windows so that he/she is able to boot into Windows eventhough the Windows bootup is corrupted. All you have to do,
1-1) Go to [i]My Computer
1-2) Make sure that you unhide hidden system file in order for you to see the OS boot file
If you know how to unhide the hidden system, you can skip the following procedures to procedure # 2-1. Otherwise continue on with the following procedure.
1-3) Go to Tools menu, and choose Folder Options...
1-4) Go to the View tab
1-5) Under the Hidden files and folders, choose the option that says, "Show hidden files and folders"
1-6) Uncheck the checkbox that says, "Hide extensions for known file types"
1-7) Uncheck the checkbox that says, "Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)"
When the message box appears on the screen, just click the OK button to continue.
1-8 ) Click the OK button to continue
Now you should be able to see all the hidden files and the hidden system files.
2-1) Insert the blank floppy disc into the floppy drive
In order to be able to make the bootable floppy disc, you will have to first format it.
2-2) Go to Command Prompt (In Windows mode, that means Start -> Run -> cmd)
2-3) Change to A Drive (Floppy Drive) by typing the following in the Command Prompt and hit [Enter] key:
CODE
a:
2-4) After you change to A Drive in Command Prompt, format the floppy disc by typing the following in the Command Prompt and then press [Enter] key and follow the prompt:
CODE
format a:
Now the formatting floppy disc begins. When the formatting process completed,
2-5) Go back to My Computer
2-6) Go to the primary partition of the primary HDD (that means C Drive)
2-7) Copy all the following files from C Drive into A Drive (Floppy drive)
NTLDR
Boot.ini
Ntdetect.com
NTLDR, Boot.ini, and Ntdetect.com file are the boot files that are required to boot into the OS.
Once you copied those boot files into the A Drive (Floppy Drive), you just created the bootable floppy disc that can boot into Windows. Now you will have to verify it to see if booting from floppy disc works. Before you do that, it is recommended that you take the floppy disc out and set it to write-protected; therefore, your floppy disc is set to read-only. Doing that can prevent that any virus goes onto the floppy disc. After you do that, put that floppy back in.
3-1) Reboot the PC and enter the mobo BIOS setting
3-2) Verify the Boot Sequence to make sure that the Floppy Drive is set to first boot.
3-3) Save and exit the BIOS setting to reboot the system.
Once the system reboots, after the POST process, the system will boot from the floppy drive. If the system is able to boot from the floppy disc and enter to Windows, that means your bootable floppy disc for booting into Windows is working. Be sure that you label the floppy disc and put it in the safe place just for in case of that you need that to troubleshoot the Windows bootup in the future.
Benefical
* So that the user can enjoy the new method for troubleshooting the Windows bootup
* The user is able to boot into the OS by using that bootable floppy disc in case of that the Windows cannot bootup anymore due to the NTLDR is missing or corrupted error message.
* Users can spend their less time to troubleshoot and repair the Windows bootup. To repair the Windows bootup, boot from that bootable floppy drive, and then go to the C Drive (Active Partition from primary partition of primary HDD from My Computer applet. Then copy all bootup files from Floppy Disc into C Drive.
Pre-requites Tools
* A blank floppy disc
* A PC with running Windows 2000 series, Windows XP series, or 2003 series
Terminology & Explanation
(None)
Implementation
This tutorial and its procedure will guide the user on how he/she make the bootable floppy disc that can boot into Windows so that he/she is able to boot into Windows eventhough the Windows bootup is corrupted. All you have to do,
1-1) Go to [i]My Computer
1-2) Make sure that you unhide hidden system file in order for you to see the OS boot file
If you know how to unhide the hidden system, you can skip the following procedures to procedure # 2-1. Otherwise continue on with the following procedure.
1-3) Go to Tools menu, and choose Folder Options...
1-4) Go to the View tab
1-5) Under the Hidden files and folders, choose the option that says, "Show hidden files and folders"
1-6) Uncheck the checkbox that says, "Hide extensions for known file types"
1-7) Uncheck the checkbox that says, "Hide protected operating system files (Recommended)"
When the message box appears on the screen, just click the OK button to continue.
1-8 ) Click the OK button to continue
Now you should be able to see all the hidden files and the hidden system files.
2-1) Insert the blank floppy disc into the floppy drive
In order to be able to make the bootable floppy disc, you will have to first format it.
2-2) Go to Command Prompt (In Windows mode, that means Start -> Run -> cmd)
2-3) Change to A Drive (Floppy Drive) by typing the following in the Command Prompt and hit [Enter] key:
CODE
a:
2-4) After you change to A Drive in Command Prompt, format the floppy disc by typing the following in the Command Prompt and then press [Enter] key and follow the prompt:
CODE
format a:
Now the formatting floppy disc begins. When the formatting process completed,
2-5) Go back to My Computer
2-6) Go to the primary partition of the primary HDD (that means C Drive)
2-7) Copy all the following files from C Drive into A Drive (Floppy drive)
NTLDR
Boot.ini
Ntdetect.com
NTLDR, Boot.ini, and Ntdetect.com file are the boot files that are required to boot into the OS.
Once you copied those boot files into the A Drive (Floppy Drive), you just created the bootable floppy disc that can boot into Windows. Now you will have to verify it to see if booting from floppy disc works. Before you do that, it is recommended that you take the floppy disc out and set it to write-protected; therefore, your floppy disc is set to read-only. Doing that can prevent that any virus goes onto the floppy disc. After you do that, put that floppy back in.
3-1) Reboot the PC and enter the mobo BIOS setting
3-2) Verify the Boot Sequence to make sure that the Floppy Drive is set to first boot.
3-3) Save and exit the BIOS setting to reboot the system.
Once the system reboots, after the POST process, the system will boot from the floppy drive. If the system is able to boot from the floppy disc and enter to Windows, that means your bootable floppy disc for booting into Windows is working. Be sure that you label the floppy disc and put it in the safe place just for in case of that you need that to troubleshoot the Windows bootup in the future.
Benefical
* So that the user can enjoy the new method for troubleshooting the Windows bootup
* The user is able to boot into the OS by using that bootable floppy disc in case of that the Windows cannot bootup anymore due to the NTLDR is missing or corrupted error message.
* Users can spend their less time to troubleshoot and repair the Windows bootup. To repair the Windows bootup, boot from that bootable floppy drive, and then go to the C Drive (Active Partition from primary partition of primary HDD from My Computer applet. Then copy all bootup files from Floppy Disc into C Drive.
Performance Increase Through My Computer
1: Start > Right Click on My Computer and select properties.
2: Click on the "Advanced" tab
3: See the "Perfomance" section? Click "Settings"
4: Disable all or some of the following:
Fade or slide menus into view
Fade or slide ToolTips into view
Fade out menu items after clicking
Show Shadows under menus
Slide open combo boxes
Slide taskbar buttons
Use a background image for each folder type
Use common tasks in folders
There, now Windows will still look nice and perform faster
2: Click on the "Advanced" tab
3: See the "Perfomance" section? Click "Settings"
4: Disable all or some of the following:
Fade or slide menus into view
Fade or slide ToolTips into view
Fade out menu items after clicking
Show Shadows under menus
Slide open combo boxes
Slide taskbar buttons
Use a background image for each folder type
Use common tasks in folders
There, now Windows will still look nice and perform faster
Definitions
0-Day - Latest software releases.
0-Sec - Same as above, although the period of time between ripping a game or application and it appearing on a warez site is even shorter.
Ace File - The first file in a series of compressed archives (the one you double click on to decompress all the files at once).
Active List - Similar to a mailing list, but uses ICQ to send instant messages to subscribers.
Alpha - Software receives this label when it is in the very early stages of development. Usually full of bugs, so don't touch it with a barge pole.
Anti-Leech - A system which uses cgi scripts to prevent people stealing links and then taking the credit for uploading the files.
Appz - Short for applications. For example Flash 5 or GoLie 5.5.
ASF File - The worst quality movie file format (still pretty good though), much smaller in size than dat or mpg.
Banner Site - Password and username restricted FTP site. To get the correct login details you must click on several banners.
Beta - Refers to an almost finished piece of software that is released to the public for bug testing.
BSA - An acronym for Business Software Alliance, an organisation who are responsible for enforcing anti-piracy litigation. Similar groups in charge of controlling software "theft" include the SIIA, SPA and ELSPA.
BSOD - Many people read about BSODs on bulletin boards and think that they're being insulted, but there is no need to get paranoid. It is actually an acronym for "Blue Screen Of Death". These can occur for a multitude of reasons (old Bill likes to keep us guessing!) and are the bane of PC user's lives.
Bulletin Board - A virtual meeting place on the web similar to a chat room except that it isn't in real time. One person leaves a message then others come along, read it and add a reply. Each new discussion is called a new topic or thread and has it's own link. Whenever a new topic is created the older topics are pushed one place downwards in the list. When someone replies to an older topic it is brought back to the top of the list.
C?? File - File extension that indicates that a file is part of an .ace or .rar series of compressed files.
Cgi Scripts - These are referrers which are used in url’s. When you click on a link with a ?cgi reference you are directed to a sponsor’s website or an anti-leech protected file.
Cookie - A tiny text file (usually less than 1kb), which is stored on your hard drive when you visit a web site. These are used to remember who you are so that you can access members only areas on the site without having to type in a password every time or to retain your personalised settings so that they are available the next time you visit.
Courier - Someone who is involved in the logistics of delivering new releases directly from the release groups themselves to FTP sites.
Crack - A tiny executable file that is used to transform a shareware program into the full version. Also used to remove any copy protection from the main executable of games (this will already have been done in "ripped" warez games).
CRC Error - These can occur when you try to decompress a file that has become corrupt during the downloading process, usually as a result of too much resuming.
Credits - The amount of data you are permitted to download from a ratio site. The more credits you have the more software you are allowed to download.
DAP - A quick way of referring to "Download Accelerator Plus", a free download manager that claims to speed up file transfers by up to three hundred per cent. It works by making multiple connections to the same file and is paid for by revolving advertising banners.Also supports resume.
DAT File - File format used for movies, identical in quality and size to mpg as far as I can tell.
DC - The lazy way of referring to the Dreamcast, Sega's latest console incarnation.
Decompression - Unpacking many files that have been stored in a single archive.
Distro - A concise means of referring to a distribution FTP site. These are huge storage areas which act as a springboard for the transfer of new releases. Their whereabouts are never public disclosed to aid their survival rate. You can think of them as the initial source from which warez emanates.
Direct Downloads - Links to actual files rather than other warez sites or pages. These are usually gathered together from many different sites and put on one page for your convenience.
DivX - Movies ripped from a DVD using the DivX video codecs. Can be played back using Media Player.
DIZ File - Short for description. Very brief text file found in warez archives stating the title of the software, the number of files that makes up the set and the group who released it.
Download (or DL) - Copying files from a web server or FTP site to your computer using a modem.
Emulator - An application that simulates another computer system or console using your PC.
FAQ - Stands for Frequently Asked Questions.
FAW - Abbreviation for "Files Anywhere", a popular, free web storage service.
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) - The method used to transfer files from one computer to another using a modem.
Filler - Refers to a person who uploads stuff to pub for others to download.
Flaming - A general net term for "verbally" attacking someone. This can be done via email, bulletin board, chat room or any medium which involves communication across the web.
Freedrive - Virtual hard drive storage area on the web. Free to join and anything and everything can be uploaded or downloaded.
Freeware - Unrestricted software that is downloaded from the net and is completely free to use. Often paid for using advertising.
FTP Client / Browser - A program used to access, upload and download data from FTP sites.
FXP - File eXchange Protocol - This refers to server to server transfer. You can transfer files from one pub to another using very little of your own bandwidth. This is by far the best means for distributing large files, only problem is that a very limited number of FXP capable pubs exist.
Gamez - Pretty self-explanatory this one.
Getright - One of the best download managers available.
Gold - A piece of software is said to have gone gold when the final version is complete and it is ready to ship to the public.
Gozilla - Another excellent download manager.
Hacking - Gaining access to a remote computer without the authorisation to do so. Usually for the purposes of stealing confidential information or the malicious destruction of data.
Hammering - Repeatedly trying to access an FTP site using an FTP client or download manager.
HTTP - Stands for "Hypertext Transfer Protocol". The method you use to view a web page. Always comes before the address of a website in your Url bar.
ICQ - Derives from the term "I Seek You" and is used for real time chat and transferring files over the internet.
IP - 32 bit binary number identifying the position of a computer on the Internet - similar to the URL. The URL is usually easier to remember as it is alpha based rather than numerical.
IP Range - usually referred to when talking about scanning a particular range of ip addresses. They can be broken down into A, B, and C ranges - AAA.BBB.CCC.xxx. Usually an entire B range will be scanned at a time.
IRC - Stands for "Instant Relay Chat". Used for real time chat and transferring files over the Internet.
ISO - An exact copy of an original CD, all the multimedia bits and pieces are uncut and therefore they are extremely large and awkward to download.
Java - Html scripts used to add functionality to or bring web pages alive. These include animation (such as the title graphic on my main page), menus, chat rooms, buttons, pop ups and so on.
KBps - Kilobytes per second - This is what most transfer speed are referring to. One Byte is comprised of 8 Bits.
Kbps - Kilobits per second - This is what most modem speeds are referring to. Why? Probably to make them look faster. Divide by 8 to get KBps.
Key Generator - A tiny executable program that is capable of creating a serial number from a specified username. These are specific to particular applications or utilities, so a serial number created with one key generator will only work for the program for which the key generator was developed.
Lamer - An annoying and overused general derogatory term used to insult/put down anyone and everything.
Leeching - Downloading files without giving anything back in return or copying other people’s links.
Mirror - An exact copy of a web site that is stored on a different server. Using multiple locations for warez sites allows the site to be accessed using a different address if the main site is deleted.
Modchip - Very common website sponsor found on warez sites. They don’t mind their banners being used on illegal software sites because their products are one of the “grey areas” of the law. Modchips are small pieces of electronic circuitry which allow copied games to be played on your Playstation. If a Playstation has been fitted with a Modchip it is said to have been "chipped".
MP3 File - Compressed music file format. Average track size is between 3 and 4 meg compared to 40-ish meg in wav format.
MPG File - The best quality and largest movie file format.
Multi Web Space Faker - A tool used to create lots of free web space accounts simultaneously.
Name Zero - An organisation that offers free website domain names. The main drawbacks are that you have to put up with a very bulky banner residing at the bottom of your page and the fact that you never actually own your chosen address.
NFO File - Short for info or information. Basic text file containing all the important details relating to a particular release, such as number of files, release date, copy protection system, installation instructions etc.
Nuked - A release is said to be nuked if it is completely unplayable. Usually when this happens another group re-releases the particular game, although fixes do sometimes follow on to rescue the game from trash can.
OEM - An acronym for Original Equipment Manufacturer. OEM software products are repackaged versions of the full retail product. They are often re-branded to suit the needs of the particular vender and are much more reasonable priced because they lack excessive packaging and a hard copy of the manual.
OST - Not strictly a warez term this one, but one that you are likely to come across while searching for MP3 music. It stands for original soundtrack (movie music).
Patch - We all know games and applications aren't perfect. When they are released we would hope that they have been thoroughly tested for bugs and incompatibility problems, but you can guarantee that many of these will still slip through the quality control net. Once the program is released to the general public, the bug reports start to flood in. A patch is a downloadable executive file which takes these reports into account and attempts to incorporate all the fixes for these known problems. A patch can resolve incompatibility problems, prevent crashes or improve the performance of a piece of software.
Piracy - The replication and distribution of videos or computer software.
Pop-ups - Irritating browser windows that open automatically when you visit a warez site. Usually contain voting portals or porn sites.
Port - A port is a term used when referring to FTP sites and is an essential extension of the address used to access them. If the port number of an FTP site isn't specified the default setting of 21 will automatically be used.
Pron - A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away someone posted a request for porn on a bulletin board, only, because of a typing error what he ended up asking for was "pron". Since then this has become a bit of a running joke and so it is now deliberately misspelt.
Proxy - A third party server which acts as an anonymous go between whenever you request a web page or contact a remote server. The message from your computer is first sent through the proxy server before being relayed to the final destination so that it appears as though the request has come from the IP address of the proxy server rather than you. Used when you wish to maintain your privacy on the net or speed up your connection (much more detailed info on this subject in the "more tips" section).
Psx - A quick way of referring to the Sony Playstation.
Pub - A free for all FTP site where anonymous access is permitted. They are usually used for transferring large files to many people because of their high speeds.
Pub Scanner - Someone who scours the net for anonymous access FTP sites which permit the creation and deletion of files. These are then exploited by uploading software for others to share.
Pub Stealer - Someone who posts the IP address of a public FTP site which they themselves have not built. Some pub stealers justify this by claiming that the elitism of private FXP groups discriminates against those people who do not have access, yet others simply post other people's work to try to claim the credit for themselves. Either way though, pub stealers are despised by the FXP groups and praised by those who would otherwise not have access to them.
Rar File - The first file in a series of compressed archives (the one you double click on to decompress all the files at once). Usually decompressed using a program called Winrar.
Release Groups - A group of people who are involved in cracking and / or ripping software and then repackaging it into easily downloadable segments.
Ratio - Two numbers separated by a semi-colon. Indicates how much data you must upload to an FTP site before you are permitted to download anything.
Reg File - Tiny file that adds essential configuration details into the registry.
Resume - The ability to stop and start downloading / uploading a file whenever you choose without having to start from the beginning again.
Rip - Software that has had all the non-essential gubbins removed to reduce its size. Videos and music are always the first casualties.
Raped - A release is branded with this term if it has been damaged beyond repair during the ripping process.
RM File - Shorthand for Real Media, a file format used to encode video sequences, which can only be played back using the "Real Player". Video clips produced using this format are not of the highest quality, but do have the advantage of a small file size.
ROM - Games which are designed for other platforms, but are played on the PC using an emulator.
Serial - A valid username and password that is saved as a basic text file and is used to register a shareware program and therefore remove all the restrictions.
Shareware - Try before you buy software downloaded from the net.
Spam - Unsolicited junk e-mail. Supposedly stands for "Stupid Person's Annoying Message".
Sponsor - To make some money webmasters can place adverts on their sites. Each time you click on these adverts or banners they get paid a few cents for bringing potential customers to the sponsors website.
Surfer Friendly (SF) - Surfer friendly sites supposedly have no blind links, pop-ups or porn banners. Don't be fooled by this label though as some sites will tell you fibs to get you to visit them.
Sys Op - The person who has the responsibility for running the computer from which an FTP site has been established. When warez is uploaded to public FTP sites and then suddenly goes "Missing In Action" you can often lay the blame at the door of the Sys Op who has an obligation to make sure his/her server stays within the boundaries of the law (i.e. warez free).
Tag / Tagged - This generally refers to the tagging of a pub. A FXP group uses a directory structure to claim it as their own. A general rule is that if a tag is 2 weeks old and not in use it has been abandoned.
Top List - Chart which lists in rank order the best warez sites. Worked out on the basis of votes.
Trading - Swapping warez, file for file via FTP, ICQ etc. Not usually approved of by the real warez community who believe that warez should be freely distributed. To put it simply, it is not the "warez way".
Trainer - A small, executable program which sits in your taskbar while you play a game. Hotkeys are associated with cheat commands so that when they are pressed you are given extra ammo, weapons, lives or the ability to toggle between invincible/mortal modes etc etc.
Trojans - Nasty virus like attachments which can be merged with executable files. These are tiny so are unlikely to arouse suspicion. When run they allow a hacker to access your computer and wreak havoc. Can occasionally be found in warez files.
UBB - Shorthand for Ultimate Bulletin Board, currently the most popular script used for creating warez bulletin boards.
UBB Hacks - This term falsely gives the impression that something destructive or malicious is involved, but when you hear people talking about a hack in the context of bulletin boards they are simply referring to code which helps to improve the functionality of a board. For example a "thread hack" would effect the way in which individual threads look and operate.
Undeletable Pub - An anonymous access, public FTP site where the permission attributes are set to allow uploads and downloads, but do not permit deletion.
Unzip - Unpacking or decompressing many files that have been stored in a single archive. Technically only used when talking about zip files.
Upload - Copying files from your computer to a web server or FTP site using a modem.
URL - Stands for "Uniform Resource Locator". The web site address you type into your browser.
VCD - Stands for Video Compact Disc. Basically these are huge movie files which can be viewed with the latest version of Media Player.
Voting - Members of the warez scene are very keen to reach the number one slot of top lists such as Voodoo, Top 60 etc. and will therefore encourage you to vote for their site to improve their position and get the credit they deserve (or not as the case may be!).
Warez - "Pirated" Full version software that is uploaded to the internet and is available for free download.
Warez Board - Bulletin board used by the warez community to share links and discuss anything related to warez.
Winace - Another utility used for decompressing all the common archive formats. Not great in my opinion. See below for a better one.
Wingate - Similar to a proxy in that they are used to hide your identity, except all information actually passes through the Wingate, if you have a slow Wingate you get slow download/upload speeds. Wingates are also used to force FXP transfer on pubs that do not normally accept FXP, again all data passes through the Wingate so you need one that is fast for it to be useful.
Winrar - Utility used for decompressing .rar files and much more.
Winzip - An essential tool used to decompress warez files.
Zip - A common compression format used to store warez.
0-Sec - Same as above, although the period of time between ripping a game or application and it appearing on a warez site is even shorter.
Ace File - The first file in a series of compressed archives (the one you double click on to decompress all the files at once).
Active List - Similar to a mailing list, but uses ICQ to send instant messages to subscribers.
Alpha - Software receives this label when it is in the very early stages of development. Usually full of bugs, so don't touch it with a barge pole.
Anti-Leech - A system which uses cgi scripts to prevent people stealing links and then taking the credit for uploading the files.
Appz - Short for applications. For example Flash 5 or GoLie 5.5.
ASF File - The worst quality movie file format (still pretty good though), much smaller in size than dat or mpg.
Banner Site - Password and username restricted FTP site. To get the correct login details you must click on several banners.
Beta - Refers to an almost finished piece of software that is released to the public for bug testing.
BSA - An acronym for Business Software Alliance, an organisation who are responsible for enforcing anti-piracy litigation. Similar groups in charge of controlling software "theft" include the SIIA, SPA and ELSPA.
BSOD - Many people read about BSODs on bulletin boards and think that they're being insulted, but there is no need to get paranoid. It is actually an acronym for "Blue Screen Of Death". These can occur for a multitude of reasons (old Bill likes to keep us guessing!) and are the bane of PC user's lives.
Bulletin Board - A virtual meeting place on the web similar to a chat room except that it isn't in real time. One person leaves a message then others come along, read it and add a reply. Each new discussion is called a new topic or thread and has it's own link. Whenever a new topic is created the older topics are pushed one place downwards in the list. When someone replies to an older topic it is brought back to the top of the list.
C?? File - File extension that indicates that a file is part of an .ace or .rar series of compressed files.
Cgi Scripts - These are referrers which are used in url’s. When you click on a link with a ?cgi reference you are directed to a sponsor’s website or an anti-leech protected file.
Cookie - A tiny text file (usually less than 1kb), which is stored on your hard drive when you visit a web site. These are used to remember who you are so that you can access members only areas on the site without having to type in a password every time or to retain your personalised settings so that they are available the next time you visit.
Courier - Someone who is involved in the logistics of delivering new releases directly from the release groups themselves to FTP sites.
Crack - A tiny executable file that is used to transform a shareware program into the full version. Also used to remove any copy protection from the main executable of games (this will already have been done in "ripped" warez games).
CRC Error - These can occur when you try to decompress a file that has become corrupt during the downloading process, usually as a result of too much resuming.
Credits - The amount of data you are permitted to download from a ratio site. The more credits you have the more software you are allowed to download.
DAP - A quick way of referring to "Download Accelerator Plus", a free download manager that claims to speed up file transfers by up to three hundred per cent. It works by making multiple connections to the same file and is paid for by revolving advertising banners.Also supports resume.
DAT File - File format used for movies, identical in quality and size to mpg as far as I can tell.
DC - The lazy way of referring to the Dreamcast, Sega's latest console incarnation.
Decompression - Unpacking many files that have been stored in a single archive.
Distro - A concise means of referring to a distribution FTP site. These are huge storage areas which act as a springboard for the transfer of new releases. Their whereabouts are never public disclosed to aid their survival rate. You can think of them as the initial source from which warez emanates.
Direct Downloads - Links to actual files rather than other warez sites or pages. These are usually gathered together from many different sites and put on one page for your convenience.
DivX - Movies ripped from a DVD using the DivX video codecs. Can be played back using Media Player.
DIZ File - Short for description. Very brief text file found in warez archives stating the title of the software, the number of files that makes up the set and the group who released it.
Download (or DL) - Copying files from a web server or FTP site to your computer using a modem.
Emulator - An application that simulates another computer system or console using your PC.
FAQ - Stands for Frequently Asked Questions.
FAW - Abbreviation for "Files Anywhere", a popular, free web storage service.
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) - The method used to transfer files from one computer to another using a modem.
Filler - Refers to a person who uploads stuff to pub for others to download.
Flaming - A general net term for "verbally" attacking someone. This can be done via email, bulletin board, chat room or any medium which involves communication across the web.
Freedrive - Virtual hard drive storage area on the web. Free to join and anything and everything can be uploaded or downloaded.
Freeware - Unrestricted software that is downloaded from the net and is completely free to use. Often paid for using advertising.
FTP Client / Browser - A program used to access, upload and download data from FTP sites.
FXP - File eXchange Protocol - This refers to server to server transfer. You can transfer files from one pub to another using very little of your own bandwidth. This is by far the best means for distributing large files, only problem is that a very limited number of FXP capable pubs exist.
Gamez - Pretty self-explanatory this one.
Getright - One of the best download managers available.
Gold - A piece of software is said to have gone gold when the final version is complete and it is ready to ship to the public.
Gozilla - Another excellent download manager.
Hacking - Gaining access to a remote computer without the authorisation to do so. Usually for the purposes of stealing confidential information or the malicious destruction of data.
Hammering - Repeatedly trying to access an FTP site using an FTP client or download manager.
HTTP - Stands for "Hypertext Transfer Protocol". The method you use to view a web page. Always comes before the address of a website in your Url bar.
ICQ - Derives from the term "I Seek You" and is used for real time chat and transferring files over the internet.
IP - 32 bit binary number identifying the position of a computer on the Internet - similar to the URL. The URL is usually easier to remember as it is alpha based rather than numerical.
IP Range - usually referred to when talking about scanning a particular range of ip addresses. They can be broken down into A, B, and C ranges - AAA.BBB.CCC.xxx. Usually an entire B range will be scanned at a time.
IRC - Stands for "Instant Relay Chat". Used for real time chat and transferring files over the Internet.
ISO - An exact copy of an original CD, all the multimedia bits and pieces are uncut and therefore they are extremely large and awkward to download.
Java - Html scripts used to add functionality to or bring web pages alive. These include animation (such as the title graphic on my main page), menus, chat rooms, buttons, pop ups and so on.
KBps - Kilobytes per second - This is what most transfer speed are referring to. One Byte is comprised of 8 Bits.
Kbps - Kilobits per second - This is what most modem speeds are referring to. Why? Probably to make them look faster. Divide by 8 to get KBps.
Key Generator - A tiny executable program that is capable of creating a serial number from a specified username. These are specific to particular applications or utilities, so a serial number created with one key generator will only work for the program for which the key generator was developed.
Lamer - An annoying and overused general derogatory term used to insult/put down anyone and everything.
Leeching - Downloading files without giving anything back in return or copying other people’s links.
Mirror - An exact copy of a web site that is stored on a different server. Using multiple locations for warez sites allows the site to be accessed using a different address if the main site is deleted.
Modchip - Very common website sponsor found on warez sites. They don’t mind their banners being used on illegal software sites because their products are one of the “grey areas” of the law. Modchips are small pieces of electronic circuitry which allow copied games to be played on your Playstation. If a Playstation has been fitted with a Modchip it is said to have been "chipped".
MP3 File - Compressed music file format. Average track size is between 3 and 4 meg compared to 40-ish meg in wav format.
MPG File - The best quality and largest movie file format.
Multi Web Space Faker - A tool used to create lots of free web space accounts simultaneously.
Name Zero - An organisation that offers free website domain names. The main drawbacks are that you have to put up with a very bulky banner residing at the bottom of your page and the fact that you never actually own your chosen address.
NFO File - Short for info or information. Basic text file containing all the important details relating to a particular release, such as number of files, release date, copy protection system, installation instructions etc.
Nuked - A release is said to be nuked if it is completely unplayable. Usually when this happens another group re-releases the particular game, although fixes do sometimes follow on to rescue the game from trash can.
OEM - An acronym for Original Equipment Manufacturer. OEM software products are repackaged versions of the full retail product. They are often re-branded to suit the needs of the particular vender and are much more reasonable priced because they lack excessive packaging and a hard copy of the manual.
OST - Not strictly a warez term this one, but one that you are likely to come across while searching for MP3 music. It stands for original soundtrack (movie music).
Patch - We all know games and applications aren't perfect. When they are released we would hope that they have been thoroughly tested for bugs and incompatibility problems, but you can guarantee that many of these will still slip through the quality control net. Once the program is released to the general public, the bug reports start to flood in. A patch is a downloadable executive file which takes these reports into account and attempts to incorporate all the fixes for these known problems. A patch can resolve incompatibility problems, prevent crashes or improve the performance of a piece of software.
Piracy - The replication and distribution of videos or computer software.
Pop-ups - Irritating browser windows that open automatically when you visit a warez site. Usually contain voting portals or porn sites.
Port - A port is a term used when referring to FTP sites and is an essential extension of the address used to access them. If the port number of an FTP site isn't specified the default setting of 21 will automatically be used.
Pron - A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away someone posted a request for porn on a bulletin board, only, because of a typing error what he ended up asking for was "pron". Since then this has become a bit of a running joke and so it is now deliberately misspelt.
Proxy - A third party server which acts as an anonymous go between whenever you request a web page or contact a remote server. The message from your computer is first sent through the proxy server before being relayed to the final destination so that it appears as though the request has come from the IP address of the proxy server rather than you. Used when you wish to maintain your privacy on the net or speed up your connection (much more detailed info on this subject in the "more tips" section).
Psx - A quick way of referring to the Sony Playstation.
Pub - A free for all FTP site where anonymous access is permitted. They are usually used for transferring large files to many people because of their high speeds.
Pub Scanner - Someone who scours the net for anonymous access FTP sites which permit the creation and deletion of files. These are then exploited by uploading software for others to share.
Pub Stealer - Someone who posts the IP address of a public FTP site which they themselves have not built. Some pub stealers justify this by claiming that the elitism of private FXP groups discriminates against those people who do not have access, yet others simply post other people's work to try to claim the credit for themselves. Either way though, pub stealers are despised by the FXP groups and praised by those who would otherwise not have access to them.
Rar File - The first file in a series of compressed archives (the one you double click on to decompress all the files at once). Usually decompressed using a program called Winrar.
Release Groups - A group of people who are involved in cracking and / or ripping software and then repackaging it into easily downloadable segments.
Ratio - Two numbers separated by a semi-colon. Indicates how much data you must upload to an FTP site before you are permitted to download anything.
Reg File - Tiny file that adds essential configuration details into the registry.
Resume - The ability to stop and start downloading / uploading a file whenever you choose without having to start from the beginning again.
Rip - Software that has had all the non-essential gubbins removed to reduce its size. Videos and music are always the first casualties.
Raped - A release is branded with this term if it has been damaged beyond repair during the ripping process.
RM File - Shorthand for Real Media, a file format used to encode video sequences, which can only be played back using the "Real Player". Video clips produced using this format are not of the highest quality, but do have the advantage of a small file size.
ROM - Games which are designed for other platforms, but are played on the PC using an emulator.
Serial - A valid username and password that is saved as a basic text file and is used to register a shareware program and therefore remove all the restrictions.
Shareware - Try before you buy software downloaded from the net.
Spam - Unsolicited junk e-mail. Supposedly stands for "Stupid Person's Annoying Message".
Sponsor - To make some money webmasters can place adverts on their sites. Each time you click on these adverts or banners they get paid a few cents for bringing potential customers to the sponsors website.
Surfer Friendly (SF) - Surfer friendly sites supposedly have no blind links, pop-ups or porn banners. Don't be fooled by this label though as some sites will tell you fibs to get you to visit them.
Sys Op - The person who has the responsibility for running the computer from which an FTP site has been established. When warez is uploaded to public FTP sites and then suddenly goes "Missing In Action" you can often lay the blame at the door of the Sys Op who has an obligation to make sure his/her server stays within the boundaries of the law (i.e. warez free).
Tag / Tagged - This generally refers to the tagging of a pub. A FXP group uses a directory structure to claim it as their own. A general rule is that if a tag is 2 weeks old and not in use it has been abandoned.
Top List - Chart which lists in rank order the best warez sites. Worked out on the basis of votes.
Trading - Swapping warez, file for file via FTP, ICQ etc. Not usually approved of by the real warez community who believe that warez should be freely distributed. To put it simply, it is not the "warez way".
Trainer - A small, executable program which sits in your taskbar while you play a game. Hotkeys are associated with cheat commands so that when they are pressed you are given extra ammo, weapons, lives or the ability to toggle between invincible/mortal modes etc etc.
Trojans - Nasty virus like attachments which can be merged with executable files. These are tiny so are unlikely to arouse suspicion. When run they allow a hacker to access your computer and wreak havoc. Can occasionally be found in warez files.
UBB - Shorthand for Ultimate Bulletin Board, currently the most popular script used for creating warez bulletin boards.
UBB Hacks - This term falsely gives the impression that something destructive or malicious is involved, but when you hear people talking about a hack in the context of bulletin boards they are simply referring to code which helps to improve the functionality of a board. For example a "thread hack" would effect the way in which individual threads look and operate.
Undeletable Pub - An anonymous access, public FTP site where the permission attributes are set to allow uploads and downloads, but do not permit deletion.
Unzip - Unpacking or decompressing many files that have been stored in a single archive. Technically only used when talking about zip files.
Upload - Copying files from your computer to a web server or FTP site using a modem.
URL - Stands for "Uniform Resource Locator". The web site address you type into your browser.
VCD - Stands for Video Compact Disc. Basically these are huge movie files which can be viewed with the latest version of Media Player.
Voting - Members of the warez scene are very keen to reach the number one slot of top lists such as Voodoo, Top 60 etc. and will therefore encourage you to vote for their site to improve their position and get the credit they deserve (or not as the case may be!).
Warez - "Pirated" Full version software that is uploaded to the internet and is available for free download.
Warez Board - Bulletin board used by the warez community to share links and discuss anything related to warez.
Winace - Another utility used for decompressing all the common archive formats. Not great in my opinion. See below for a better one.
Wingate - Similar to a proxy in that they are used to hide your identity, except all information actually passes through the Wingate, if you have a slow Wingate you get slow download/upload speeds. Wingates are also used to force FXP transfer on pubs that do not normally accept FXP, again all data passes through the Wingate so you need one that is fast for it to be useful.
Winrar - Utility used for decompressing .rar files and much more.
Winzip - An essential tool used to decompress warez files.
Zip - A common compression format used to store warez.
Some Tips And Tricks For Your Windows XP
STOP NOISE IN COPYING AUDIO CD
When using 3rd party burning software (eg, Nero Burning Rom) to copy audio CD,some noise may be heard at the end of each track. To prevent this,try the following method:
1. Enter System Properties\device manager
2. Select IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers
3. Double click on thee CD writer IDE channel
4. Select advance setting
5. Change the transfer mode to 'PIO Only'
6. Restart Computer
DISABLING THE 'UNSIGNED DRIVER' DIALOGS
This option wll disable the screen wich keeps popping up when you try to install 'digitally unsigned drivers'. Normally you can choose to continue the install anyways, but I have had situations where you cannot continue the install.. very annoying.. This is how to fix it:
Click Start - Run
then type: gpedit.msc
then hit enter.
Browse the folder tree to the following location:
User Configuration - Administrative Templates - System
now right-click Code signing for Device drivers and select Properties.
On the Settings tab, either select
- enable, and then select ignore from the appearing listbox..
- or click the disable option. Click apply and Ok and your set!
Alternatively especially for XP Home users:
Open "System" properties (Windows key + pause or Right click 'My Computer' - properties or Control Panel - System).On the Hardware tab click the "Driver Signing" button. In the dialogue that comes up choose "Ignore" to install the new driver anyway.
DMA MODE ON IDE DEVICES VIEWS
Just like Windows 2000, Windows XP still fails to set the DMA mode correctly for the IDE device designated as the slaves on the primary IDE and secondary IDE channels. Most CD-ROMS are capable of supporting DMA mode, but the default in XP is still PIO. Setting it to DMA won't make your CD-ROM faster, but it will consume less CPU cycles. Here's how:
1. Open the Device Manager. One way to do that is to right click on "My Computer", select the Hardware tab, and Select Device Manager.
2. Expand "IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers" and double-click on "Primary IDE Channel"
3. Under the "Advanced Settings" tab, check the "Device 1" setting. More than likely, your current transfer mode is set to PIO.
4. Set it to "DMA if available".
Repeat the step for the "Secondary IDE Channel" if you have devices attached to it. Reboot.
RESTORING MEDIA PLAYER
To restore Windows Media Player insert the the XP CD into the CD drive (if it autostarts click exit). Open a command window and type the following :
rundll32.exe setupapi,InstallHinfSection InstallWMP7 132 c:\windows\inf\wmp.inf
RESTORING ACCESS TO CD ROM'S
If you removed CD Burning software, or for some other mystical reason, can not longer access your CD ROM's, in most cases following registry keys needs to be deleted: Locate and delete the UpperFilters and LowerFilters values under the following key in the registry:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\{4D36E965-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}
DELETING THE INDEX.DAT
Del "C:\Documents and Settings\aeon\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\index.dat"
CONTROL PANEL ON THE DESKTOP.
On The Desktop, Right Click Your Mouse Then Choose "New | Folder". Name The Folder As "ControlPanel. {21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}" Without The "Quote Things. And Now You Can Access The Control Panel More Faster Then Before.
CHANGING INTERNET EXPLORER ICON NAME.
Open Registry Editor Then Go To : "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\CLSID". You Can See A Few Key Below It.
Now Go To This Key {871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}, Double Click At The Default Value On The Right, Enter Whatever Name You Like.
REMOVING USERNAME IN THE STARTMENU
Open Registry Editor Then Go To : "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer".
On The Right, Make A New Entry With Right Click On Your Mouse Then Choose "New | DWORD Value" Change The Entry's Name Into "NoUserNameInStartMenu", Double Click In The New Entry And Fill The "Value Data" With "1". Press OK, Exit From The Registry Editor. Restart Your Computer.
INTERNET EXPLORER LIGHTING-FAST STARTUP.
Isn't it annoying when you want to go to a new website, or any other site but your homepage, and you have to wait for your 'home' to load? This tweak tells Internet Explorer to simply 'run', without loading any webpages. (If you use a 'blank' page, that is still a page, and slows access. Notice the 'about:blank' in the address bar. The blank html page must still be loaded..). To load IE with 'nothing' [nothing is different than blank]:
1. Right-click on any shortcut you have to IE
[You should create a shortcut out of your desktop IE icon, and delete the original icon]
2. Click Properties
3. Add ' -nohome' [with a space before the dash] after the endquotes in the Target field.
4. Click OK
Fire up IE from your modified shortcut, and be amazed by how fast you are able to use IE!
INTERNET EXPLORER SPEED UP.
Edit your link to start Internet Explorer to have -nohome after it. For Example: "C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\IEXPLORE.EXE" -nohome
This will load internet explorer very fast because it does not load a webpage while it is loading. If you want to go to your homepage after it is loaded, just click on the home button.
SPEED UP BROWSING WITH DNS CATCH.
when you connect to a web site your computer sends information back and forth, this is obvious. Some of this information deals with resolving the site name to an IP address, the stuff that tcp/ip really deals with, not words. This is DNS information and is used so that you will not need to ask for the site location each and every time you visit the site. Although WinXP and win2000 has a pretty efficient DNS cache, you can increase its overall performance by increasing its size. You can do this with the registry entries below:
************begin copy and paste***********
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Dnscache\Parameters]
"CacheHashTableBucketSize"=dword:00000001
"CacheHashTableSize"=dword:00000180
"MaxCacheEntryTtlLimit"=dword:0000fa00
"MaxSOACacheEntryTtlLimit"=dword:0000012d
************end copy and paste***********
make a new text file and rename it to dnscache.reg. Then copy and paste the above into it and save it. Then merge it into the registry.
START IEXPLORER WITH EMPTY BLUE SCREEN.
Set your default page to about:mozilla and IE will show a nice blue screen upon startup.
SPEED UP DETAILED VIEW IN WINDOWS EXPLORER.
If you like to view your files in Windows Explorer using the "Details" view here is a tweak to speed up the listing of file attributes: Viewing files in Windows Explorer using the "Details" mode shows various attributes associated with each file shown. Some of these must be retrieved from the individual files when you click on the directory for viewing. For a directory with numerous and relatively large files (such as a folder in which one stores media, eg: *.mp3's, *.avi's etc.)
Windows Explorer lags as it reads through each one. Here's how to disable viewing of unwanted attributes and speed up file browsing:
1. Open Windows Explorer
2. Navigate to the folder which you wish to optimize.
3. In "Details" mode right click the bar at the top which displays the names of the attribute columns.
4. Uncheck any that are unwanted/unneeded.
Explorer will apply your preferences immediately, and longs lists of unnecessary attributes will not be displayed. Likewise, one may choose to display any information which is regarded as needed, getting more out of Explorer.
WEB PAGES SLOWS DOWN, FIX.
The tweak is simple. Beside the QoS and others around the Internet for the new XP OS, I found out that native drivers sometimes slow you down (cable and xDSL users). So if you have applied all tweaks and you are still having slow downs try reinstalling your NICs drivers. The difference is noticeable. My web pages now load almost instantly where they used to take even a minute!
FIX IE 6 SLOWDOWNS AND HANGS.
1. Open a command prompt window on the desktop (Start/Run/command).
2. Exit IE and Windows Explorer (iexplore.exe and explorer.exe, respectively, in Task Manager, i.e - Ctrl-Alt-Del/Task Manager/Processes/End Process for each).
3. Use the following command exactly from your command prompt window to delete the corrupt file:
C:\>del "%systemdrive%\Documents and Settings\%username%\Local
Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\index.dat"
4. Restart Windows Explorer with Task Manager (Ctrl-Alt-Del/Task Manager/Applications/New Task/Browse/C:\Windows\explorer.exe[or your path]) or Shutdown/Restart the computer from Task Manager.
SPEED UP WEB BROWSING.
Iv'e personally found a dramatic increase in web browsing after clearing the Windows XP DNS cache. To clear it type the following in a command prompt: ipconfig /flushdns.
ALLOW MORE THAN 2 SIMULTANEOUS DOWNLOADS ON IEXPLORER 6.
This is to increase the the number of max downloads to 10.
1. Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).
2. Locate the following key in the registry:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings
3. On the Edit menu, click Add Value , and then add the following registry values:
"MaxConnectionsPer1_0Server"=Dword:0000000a
"MaxConnectionsPerServer"=Dword:0000000a
4. Quit Registry Editor.
IPV6 INSTALLATION FOR WINDOWS XP.
This protocol is distined to replace the Internet Protocal Version 4 used by Internet Explorer it uses hexadecimal ip addresses instead of decimal example (decimal ip 62.98.231.67) (hexadecimal IP 2001:6b8:0:400::70c)
To install To install the IPv6 Protocol for Windows XP:
Log on to the computer running Windows XP with a user account that has local administrator privileges. Open a command prompt. From the Windows XP desktop, click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command Prompt. At the command prompt, type: ipv6 install
For more information on IPv6, visit the site below:
CODE
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/techinfo/administration/ipv6/default.asp
ANOTHER WAY TO FIX IEXPLORER 6 SLOW PAGES LOADED.
Here's an easier way to get to index.dat file as addresse in another tweak submitted here.
1. click on Internet Explorer
2. go to to your root dir (usually C:)
3. open Documents and Settings folder
4. open "your username folder"
5. open UserData
6. **close IE if you have it open**
rename index.dat to index.old
logoff and log back on (don't need to restart) open up IE and go to a web page or site that always seemed to load slowly. It should load a lot more quickly now. NOTE. Always rename or backup .dat or other system files before deleting.
EASY WAY TO ADD THE ADMINISTRATOR USER TO THE WELCOME SCREEN.
Start the Registry Editor Go to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows NT \ CurrentVersion \ Winlogon \ SpecialAccounts \ UserList \
Right-click an empty space in the right pane and select New > DWORD Value Name the new value Administrator. Double-click this new value, and enter 1 as it's Value data. Close the registry editor and restart.
DRIVE ICONS.
To set the icon of any drive (hard disk, cd rom or anything else) with a letter (C:\ etc.), run REGEDIT (Start -> Run -> regedit)
Navigate to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
If one doesn't already exist, create a new KEY called "DriveIcons". Under this key, create a new key with the letter of your drive. I.e. C for your C:\ drive.
To change the icon for that drive, create a key inside that one called DefaultIcon and set the path of (Default) to the location of your icon
eg C\DefaultIcon\ then (Default) = D:\Documents\C Drive Icon.ico
To change the name of that drive, create a key in the drive letter one (eg C\) called DefaultLabel and set the (Default) to what you want the drive to be called. This is useful if you want to assign a long name to the floppy drive.
CHANGING OEM REGISTRATIONS.
Have you used someone's new Hewlet Packard with their OEM version of Windows XP? You've seen that HP has their own icon in the Start Menu, underneath Run, that goes to their Help Site. Now, you can have your icon that does anything you want (website, program, etc) and says anything you want. Basically, you are "branding" Windows XP (Home or Pro), great for if you are a computer builder and sell them, or you just want to make Windows XP your own. It involves Regedit.
1. Start up Notepad and creat a new registry file (*.reg) and copy and paste the following into it:
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
@="YOUR COMPANY NAME"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\DefaultIcon]
@="YOUR ICON HERE"
00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,68,00,70,00,6c,00,69,00,\
6e,00,6b,00,2e,00,69,00,63,00,6f,00,00,00
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\InProcServer32]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,73,00,68,00,\
64,00,6f,00,63,00,76,00,77,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,00,00
"ThreadingModel"="Apartment"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance]
"CLSID"="{3f454f0e-42ae-4d7c-8ea3-328250d6e272}"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance\InitPropertyBag]
"CLSID"="{13709620-C279-11CE-A49E-444553540000}"
"method"="ShellExecute"
"Command"="YOUR TITLE HERE"
"Param1"="YOUR FUNCTION HERE"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
@=""
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\MayChangeDefaultMenu]
@=""
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:00000000
2. Edit where it says YOUR ICON HERE to a path to an icon (ex. c:\\icon.ico), it must be 24x24 pixels and in *.ico format. Use double back slash for path names.
3. Edit both places where it says YOUR TITLE HERE to what you want it to say in the Start Menu (ex. Elranzer Homepage).
4. Edit where it says YOUR FUNCTION here to what you want it to do when you click it, it can be anything... your website, a local HTML document, a program, a Windows funtion, whatever your imagination can provide (ex. http://www.shareordie.com).
5. Save this file as brand.reg, double-click it to enterin your information, and refresh Explorer (log off/on) to see it in the Start Menu!! This works in both Home and Professional (and probably 64-Bit Professional) Editions!
ORIGINAL WALLPAPERS.
This is more of a fun tweak than it is useful. Go to run, type regedit press ok. when that comes up go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER>Control Panel>Desktop
Now find the orginalwallpaper, right click and select modify.In the text box type the path to the file you want to be your orginal desktop wallpaper.
DELETING My eBooks AND SPECIALS FOLDER IN MY DOCUMENTS.
Click Start, then Run and type: regsvr32 /u mydocs.dll
then delete them.
DISABLE WINDOWS PICTURE AND FAX VIEWER.
By default, Windows XP opens all picture files (gif,jpg,...) with the included Windows Picture and Fax Viewer no matter what other picture viewers you have installed. To disable the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer, unregister shimgvw.dll. This can be done from command prompt: regsvr32 /u shimgvw.dll
REMOVE PAST ITEMS ICONS IN TASKBAR.
Some times When you check your TasKbar properties or when you hide or unhide icons you can see old icons from Uninstalled or old programs you dont have anymore. This Tweak will help you how to get rid of this problem Thanks to leobull of Xperience.or How To clear the Past Items or Icons list in the TaskBar, perform the following steps:
1.Open Regedit Navigate to:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\TrayNotify
2.Delete the IconStreams and PastIconsStream values
3.Open Task Manager, click the Processes tab, click Explorer.exe , and then click End Process .
4.In Task Manager, click File , click New Task , type explorer , and then click OK .
LOCKING COMPUTERS.
To lock a computer in XP, as you probably know, you press "L" while holding down "Windows Logo" key on your keyboard. However, if you would like to lock a computer remotely, for example via "Remote Administrator", you don't have this ability. What you can do instead, is to create a shortcut on remote computer's desktop where Target %windir%\System32\rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation Start In %windir%
ADMINISTRATOR IN WELCOME SCREEN.
When you install Windows XP an Administrator Account is created (you are asked to supply an administrator password), but the "Welcome Screen" does not give you the option to log on as Administrator unless you boot up in Safe Mode.
First you must ensure that the Administrator Account is enabled:
1 open Control Panel
2 open Administrative Tools
3 open Local Security Policy
4 expand Local Policies
5 click on Security Options
6 ensure that Accounts: Administrator account status is enabled Then follow the instructions from the "Win2000 Logon Screen Tweak" ie.
1 open Control Panel
2 open User Accounts
3 click Change the way users log on or log off
4 untick Use the Welcome Screen
5 click Apply Options
You will now be able to log on to Windows XP as Administrator in Normal Mode.
BUGFIXES.
This is a strange bug in Windows XP Pro but it can and does happen to everyone. When you open the My Computer screen and your Documents folder is missing but all the other users folders are there try this tweak.
STEP 1:
START > RUN > REGEDIT > HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE / Software / Microsoft / Windows / Current Version / Explorer / DocFolderPaths
Once you click the DocFolderPaths folder you should see all the user's folders.
STEP 2:
Add a new string value
Value Name: your user name
Value Data: the path to your docs folder ( ex. C:\Documents and Settings\your docs folder )
Exit Registry editor and open my computer, your docs folder should now be visable.
MOUSE POINTERS.
It seems that even without pointer precision disabled, the mouse under XP is still influenced by an acceleration curve. This is especially noticeable in games. To
completely remove mouse acceleration from XP, you will need to go into the registry and adjust the SmoothmouseXYCurve values. Here is how its done.
1. Click Start button
2. Select Run
3. Type 'regedit' in the open textbox
4. Open the tree 'HKEY_CURRENT_USER', select control panel, then select mouse
5. Right clicking, modify the SmoothMouseXCurve and SmoothMouseYCurve hexidecimal values to the following:
SmoothMouseXCurve:
00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00
00,a0,00,00,00,00,00,00
00,40,01,00,00,00,00,00
00,80,02,00,00,00,00,00
00,00,05,00,00,00,00,00
SmoothMouseYCurve:
00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00
66,a6,02,00,00,00,00,00
cd,4c,05,00,00,00,00,00
a0,99,0a,00,00,00,00,00
38,33,15,00,00,00,00,00
If done correctly, you will notice you are holding a markedly more responsive mouse.
HIDDEN WINDOWS XP ICONS.
Windows XP Pro and Home contains icons for folders and files that cannot normally be seen, you can select to view hidden files from the folder options menu, but there are still some that remain hidden.
You can set windows to view these files as normal hidden files, so that when you use the view hidden files and folders toggle from the folder options menu that these will be turned on/off along with the normal hidden files.
These files are usually system files and should not be altered/deleted unless you really know what you are doing, if you don't yet still wish to change them I might suggest that you create back-ups of your system first.
I will personally accept no responsibility for any damage caused by using this tweak. To view the hidden files you need to open up regedit, if you are not sure how to do this, select run from the start menu and type in 'regedit' without the apostrophe's. In the regedit window, expand out the groups by clicking on the '+' next to the name in the left hand column of regedit, and navigate to the below address.
HKEY_CURRENT_USER \SOFTWARE \MICROSOFT \WINDOWS \CURRENTVERSION \EXPLORER \ADVANCED
when you have clicked the advanced folder on the left pane, look down the list at the titles in the right hand pane, one of those titles is 'ShowSuperHidden'
double click the title and in the window that appears set the value to equal 1 to show the super hidden files and 0 to hide them.
XP HOME ADVANCED FILE PERMISSIONS.
This is actually an addition to my previous post entitled "Get XP Pro file security with XP Home". In the aforementioned post I outlined how to access
*Advance file Permissions* on NTFS file systems for XP Home simply by booting into *Safe Mode*, rt-clicking any file or folder, and navigating to the *Security tab*. This gives the user the ability to allow or deny read, write, execute, read & write, display contents, full-control, iheritance, and take ownership permissions, with many more options available to apply to different users and groups stored on the computer. Well, you don't have to do this in *Safe Mode* (XP Home). Although it is a little less intuitive, you can simply go to your command prompt - Start>All Programs>Accessories>Command Prompt. Now type "cacls" in the window (without the quotes). This gives you the ability to add, remove or modify file permissions on files and folders through the command prompt. Type "cacls /?" for help on different options and variables. You do not need to be in safe mode to use this so it makes it a little quicker than using the safe mode security tab GUI. Remember - this only applies to NTFS. Here also is a very useful link to find a lot of extras and tweaks straight from the horse's mouth - the Microsoft Resource Center. You will find a lot of very useful web-based extra's here, most of them left unknowing to the general public - such as, "Online Crash Analysis" - a site that looks like Windows Update but you can upload your crash "dump logs" (when you get those system or application crash error reports). Microsoft will then analyze the log file and tell you some more info about WHY the system crashed (ie. faulty hardware/software/conflicts, etc).
FLASHGET :BYPASSING 8 MAX SIMULTANEOUS JOBS.
Users of Flash get will notice that the maximum number of file splits is 8. This number can be increased by the tweak below:
1. Run regedit.
2. Navigate to [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\JetCar\JetCar\General\]
3. Right Click -> Add String Value.
4. Name as MaxSimJobs -> Set the value as what ever number you want.
After a restart you should be able to download with more file splits.
OUTLOOK EXPRESS WINDOWS TITLE TWEAKS.
Change the window title of Outlook Express to anything you want!
In regedt32 and navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Identities\{EE383506-901D-43C6-8E40-9A61901DF7CC}\Software\Microsoft\Outlook Express\5.0. Add a new string key called WindowTitle and make its value the desired window title. Then close the registry editor, and restart Outlook Express (if it's running.) Your new title now shows up in the title bar!
WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER 9.
When installing WMP 9 it leaves a watersign on your desktop. You can easily remove this with: regedit:
HKey_Local_Machine\SOFTWARE\microsoft\system certificates\CA\certificates\FEE449EE0E3965A5246F00E87FDE2A065FD89D4
HKey_Local_Machine\software\microsoft\system certificates\ROOT\certificates\2BD63D28D7BCD0E251195AEB519243C13142EBC3
Remove both lines and restart computer.
CHANGING THE WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER TITLEBAR.
This is a per-user tweak. Open RegEdit.
Browse to the following key:
HKEY_USERS\S-1-5-21-xxxxxxxxx-xxxxxxxxx-xxxxxxxxxx-xxxx\Software\Policies\Microsoft\WindowsMediaPlayer
(the x's will vary from computer to computer , it's the key without the "_Classes" at the end) Create the following String, "TitleBar" , the value of this will now become the TitleBar of Windows Media Player.
AUTO DELETE TEMPORARY FOLDER.
First go into gpedit.msc
Next select -> Computer Configuration/Administrative Templates/Windows Components/Terminal Services/Temporary Folder
Then right click "Do Not Delete Temp Folder Upon Exit"
Go to properties and hit disable. Now next time Windows puts a temp file in that folder it will automatically delete it when its done! Note from Forum Admin: Remember, GPEDIT (Group Policy Editor) is only available in XP Pro.
CLEANUP STARTUP ITEMS IN MSCONFIG.
Do you ever uninstall programs and they are still listed under startup items in msconfig? Personally, I found myself with 30 such items from old installs. Microsoft leaves you no way to clean up this list, but have no fear, I have figured it out for you.
1. Open MSconfig and click on the startup items tab
2. Open Regedit and naviate to HKLM/Software/Microsoft/Sharedtools/MSconfig/startupreg
3. Compare the list of registry keys under startup reg with their counterparts in msconfig.
4. Delete the keys which are no longer valid.
5. Voila! You've cleaned up msconfig.
REMOVING SERVICES DEPENDENCIES.
This will allow you to disable a service or uninstall it from your system without effecting another service that depends on it. Here's how you do it
1. After you have set your services the way you want them and you have disabled/uninstalled something that another services depends on, run "regedit"
2. Under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\find the service that will not function, do to another service being disabled/uninstall (found in ControlSet001\Services, ControlSet002\Services, and CurrentControlSet\Services)
3. Once you have found the service right-click on the string value, "DependOnService,"and modify
4. You should now see a list of services that it is dependent on. Simply delete the service that you have disabled/uninstalled
5. Restart your computer and your ready to go Disclaimer REMEMBER TO BACKUP YOU REGISTRY FIRST I'm not totaly sure if this will have any negative effects on your system. I used this method after uninstalling "Netbios over Tcpip" from my system completely, so that my Dhcp service would function and I have had NO negative effects on my system.
ANOTHER WAY TO DELETE HIDDEN DEVICES.
You can view and delete or modify hidden devices by:
1. Openning Device Manager. (I usually right-click on My Computer, select Properties, select the Hardware tab, then select Device Manager.)
2. Select View and check "Show hidden devices"
3. Hidden devices will appear below with the others and can be modified.
HOW TO GET "My Briefcase" IN WINDOWS XP.
go to C:\WINDOWS\system32\dllcache. look for a file named "syncapp".
double click it. an icon should appear on your desktop that says "My Briefcase". double click it. it will come up with this window that tells you how to use it.
TURN NUMLOCK ON AT LOGON.
NumLock does not toggle on by default (system-wide), even if you have it set in your PC's BIOS, because of XP's multi-user functionality. Guess Microsoft doesn't know everyone actually turns it on, which should be reason enough for what acts as "default"...
Anyway, you can hack the Windows Registry to change this behavior, or run a script at logon to turn NumLock on.
1. To enable NumLock through the Registry:
* Open Windows' Registry Editor (START > RUN, type "REGEDIT").
*. Navigate to HKEY_USERS\.Default\Control Panel\Keyboard.
*. Change the value for InitialKeyboardIndicators from 0 to 2.
2. To enable NumLock using a script, see this MS Knowledgebase article for complete instructions:
CODE
http://support.microsoft.com/directory/article.asp?ID=KB;EN-US;Q262625
Option 1 is the quicker method, but if you have more than one user on your system and one or more don't want NumLock on (stranger things have been known of), then option 2 is the way to go since it allows you to only attach the script to specific users.
FREE DISK SPACE BY DELETING RESTORE POINTS.
Start button-all programs-accessories-system tools-cleanup-more options. You will have the option of deleting your restore points.When your done creat one
restore point as a back up.
HOW TO REAL GET RID OF UNNECESSARY SOFTWARE
to uninstall things like msn messenger and other hidden installs thru add remove programs, do this: find sysoc.inf (you might have to enable "show hidden files" and "show hidden/protected system folders" in explorer) and open it in notepad replace all ",hide" with "," (both with out quotes) which is easiest to do with the replace all command under edit then in add/remove programs under add/remove windows compnents and whole new list of things to uninstall and add are now listed (such as internet explorer)
HAVING PROGRAMS RUN WHEN WINDOWS LOADS SLOWS DOWN YOUR STARTUP.
There are two ways do disable programs that may be in your startup (like icq, messanger,) The easiest is to do the following:
1. start --> run --> msconfig
2. Click on the "startup" tab (furthest right)\
3. Unclick any items you don't want to load when windows starts.
The second is by deleting registry entrys, this can be done the following way:
1. Start --> run --> regedit
2. Navigate to : HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
3. Delete any entry's that you don't want to load up
TURN OFF INDEXING TO SPEED UP XP.
Windows XP keeps a record of all files on the hard disk so when you do a search on the hard drive it is faster. There is a downside to this and because the computer has to index all files, it will slow down normal file commands like open, close, etc. If you do not do a whole lot of searches on your hard drive then I suggest turnning this feature off:
1. Control Panel
2. Administrative Tools
3. Services
4. Disable Indexing Services
HALF LIFE AND WINDOWS XP.
1. How to recover from incompatible drivers
Before you install new drivers set a system restore point. Start>All programs>Accessories>system tools>system restore
After your new drivers don't work reset your computer. Press F8 repeatedly as soon as the BIOS screen disappears, and before the Windows XP screen appears. Select safe mode. Use system restore again to undo your mess.
2. Video Drivers
The NVidia drivers that come with XP do not allow you to run Half Life in OpenGL. Update to the newest drivers.
Despite the fact that they are not official drivers, 22.50 was the only set which worked
3. Sound Drivers
Use windows update to update Creative drivers.
4. Fixing screen flicker
Windows XP defaults to 60Hz for games. A fix is available here:
CODE
http://www.fileplanet.com/dl/dl.asp?/planetquake/ztn/nvreffix-setup.exe
Select "set: ev ery resolution to monitor's maximum supported rate"
5. Fixing lag
If you are having trouble with lag, try disabling the windows XP firewall. Go to control panel>network connections. Select connection, right click, properties, advanced, untick the firewall.
6. Mouse
You can improve your mouse smoothness for games.
Control panel>mouse>hardware>properties>advanced
Change the sample rate to a higher one, eg. 200
REGISTRY METHOD FOR REMOVING STARTUP ITEMS.
I prefer to use MSCONFIG selective startup to troubleshoot. To remove entries for good, open the registry:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RUN and HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RUN
Delete entries of unwanted startup daemons and tray procedures.
DISPLAY MESSAGE ON STARTUP.
Start regedit, if you are unfamiliar with regedit please see our FAQ.
Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
Modify the key legalnoticecaption with what you want to name the window.
Modify the key legalnoticetext with what you want the window to say. Restart.
REMOVE THE DEFAULT IMAGE VIEWER IN WINDOWS ME/XP.
This tweak works in Windows Me/XP, I have not try it in Windows NT/2000 yet, because i don't have that OS, you can try it if you have.
*This tweak does not work in Windows 95/98
To remove the Windows default Image Viewer, first:
Click Start Menu
Select Run menu
Type "cmd", (for Windows Me, type "command")
Then type "regsvr32 /u shimgvw.dll" to unregister this dll. This will stop it from previewing any picture that it support, e.g. JPEG, Bitmap, GIF....
* Before perform this tweak, make sure that you have the alternative Image Viewer installed in you windows e.g. ACDsee, FireGraphics... because once you do this tweak without that application, you can't open and view your image anymore! So, to undo it, type "regsvr32 shimgvw.dll" in command prompt.
SPEED UP BOOT BY DISABLING UNUSED PORTS.
You may have tried many tweaks like modifying windowsXP start-up applications, prefetches, unload DLLs method,etc. And yes those methods do work for me.
I have just accidentally found out another way to give you an extra boost in windowsXP's boot performance. This is done by disabling your unused devices in
Device Manager. for example, if you don't have input devices that are connected to one of your USBs or COM ports, disabling them will give you an extra perfromance boost in booting. Go to Control Panel -> System -> Hardware tab -> device manager Disable devices that you don't use for your PC and then restart.
CLEAR UNWANTED ENTRIES FROM ADD/REMOVE PROGRAMS.
Run the Registry Editor (REGEDIT).
Open HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Uninstall Remove any unwanted keys under "Uninstall."
CLICKING * .AVI FILES ON EXPLORER CAUSING 100% CPU USAGE.
Well windows seem to have a REALLY big problem when it comes to reading AVI files. It seems that when you click on an AVI file in explorer, it'll try to read the entire AVI file to determine the width,height, etc. of the AVI file (this is displayed in the Properties window). Now the problem with Windows is that if you have a broken/not fully downloaded AVI file that doesnt contain this info, Windows will scan the entire AVI file trying to figure out all these properties which in the process will probably cause 100% CPU usage and heavy memory usage. To solve this problem all you have to do is the following:
1. Open up regedit
2. Goto HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.avi\shellex\PropertyHandler
3. Delete the "Default" value which should be "{87D62D94-71B3-4b9a-9489-5FE6850DC73E}"
Voila! Please not that this will no longer provide you with the windows properties displaying the AVI file information such as width, height, bitrate etc. But its a small price to pay for saving you resources.
NOTE: Please use caution when using regedit. Improper usage may cause windows to behave imcorrectly. Also, I cannot be held resposible. Backup your registry first.
CD ROM STOPS AUTOPLAYING/AUTORUN.
And the AutoPlay Tab has disappeared in My Computer, Devices With Removable Storage, Right Click on CDROM, Properties.
Solution: The service: "Shell Hardware Detection" has been set to Manual or Disabled. Go to Control Panel, Administrative Tools, Services. Return this service to "Automatic".
SHUTDOWN XP FASTER 1.
Like previous versions of windows, it takes long time to restart or shutdown windows xp when the "Exit Windows" sound is enabled. to solve this problem you
must disable this useless sound. click start button then go to settings -> control panel -> Sound,Speech and Audio devices -> Sounds and Audio Devices -> Sounds, then under program events and windows menu click on "Exit Windows" sub-menu and highlight it.now from sounds you can select,choose "none" and then click apply and ok. now you can see some improvements when shutting down your system.
SHUTDOWN XP FASTER 2.
Start Regedit.
Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SYSTEM/CurrentControlSet/Control.
Click on the "Control" Folder.
Select "WaitToKillServiceTimeout"
Right click on it and select Modify.
Set it a value lower than 2000 (Mine is set to 200).
EASIEST WAY TO DELETE PREFETCH.
1. Open notepad.exe, type del c:\windows\prefetch\*.* /q (without the quotes) & save as "delprefetch.bat" in c:\
2. From the Start menu, select "Run..." & type "gpedit.msc".
3. Double click "Windows Settings" under "Computer Configuration" and double click again on "Startup" in the right window.
4. In the new window, click "add", "Browse", locate your "delprefetch.bat" file & click "Open".
5. Click "OK", "Apply" & "OK" once again to exit.
6. Reboot your computer.
SPEED UP MENU DISPLAY.
When using the start menu the you will notice a delay between different tiers of the menu hierarchy. For the fastest computer experience possible I recommend changing this value to zero. This will allow the different tiers to appear instantly. Start Regedit. If you are unfamiliar with regedit please refer to our FAQ on how to get started.
Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop
Select MenuShowDelay from the list on the right.
Right on it and select Modify.
Change the value to 0.
Reboot your computer.
16 COLOUR ICONS.
If you select 16bit mode for graphics your icons will revert to using 8bit (16 color) icons. Yuck! Change the following registry setting to:
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\WindowMetrics] "Shell Icon BPP"="16" "Shell Icon Size"="32" Setting the BPP to 16bit will yield 65565 colors for icons.
DE-CRYPT ENCRYPTED FILES ON WINDOWS XP.
1. Login as Administrator
2. Go to Start/Run and type in cmd and click OK.
At the prompt type cipher /r:Eagent and press enter
This prompt will then display:
Please type in the password to protect your .PFX file:
Type in your Administrator password
Re-confirm your Administrator password
The prompt will then display
Your .CER file was created successfully.
Your .PFX file was created successfully.
The Eagent.cer and Eagent.pfx files will be saved in the current directory that is shown at the command prompt. Example: The command prompt displays
C:\Documents and Settings\admin> the two files are saved in the admin folder. (For security concerns, you should house the two files in your Administrator folder or on a floppy disk).
3. Go to Start/Run and type in certmgr.msc and click OK. This will launch the Certificates Manager. Navigate to Personal and right click on the folder and select All Tasks/Import. The Certificate Import Wizard will appear. Click Next. Browse to the C:\Documents and Settings\admin folder. In the Open dialog box, change the Files of Type (at the bottom) to personal Information Exchange (*.pfx,*.P12). Select the file Eagent.pfx and click Open. Click Next. Type in your Administrator password (leave the two checkboxes blank) and click Next. Make sure the Radio button is active for the first option (Automatically select the certificate store based on the type of certifcate). Click Next. Click Finish. (You'll receive a message that the import was successful). To confirm the import, close Certificates Manager and re-open it. Expand the Personal folder and you will see a new subfolder labeled Certificates. Expand that folder and you will see the new entry in the right side column. Close Certificate Manager.
4. Go to Start/Run and type in secpol.msc and click OK. This will launch the Local Security Policy. Expand the Public Key Policies folder and then right click on the Encrypted File System subfolder and select Add Data Recovery Agent... The Wizard will then display. Click Next. Click the Browse Folders... button. Browse to the C:\Documents and Settings\admin folder. Select the Eagent.cer file and click Open. (The wizard will display the status User_Unknown. That's ok). Click Next. Click Finish. You will see a new entry in the right side column. Close the Local Security Policy.
You, the Administrator are now configured as the default Recovery Agent for All Encrypted files on the Local Machine.
To Recover Encrypted files: Scenario #1
If you have completed the above steps BEFORE an existing user encrypted his/her files, you can log in to your Administrator account and navigate to the encrypted file(s). Double click on the file(s) to view the contents.
Scenario #2
If you have completed the above steps AFTER an existing user has already encrypted his/her files, you must login to the applicable User's User Account and then immediately logout. Next, login to your Administrator account and navigate to the encrypted file(s). Double click on the file(s) to view the contents.
*Warning Do not Delete or Rename a User's account from which will want to Recover the Encrypted Files. You will not be able to de-crypt the files using the steps outlined above.
DUMP FILES TWEAK & DISABLE DR.WATSON.
"Dump file. A dump file stores data from memory during a system crash and can be helpful when diagnosing problems, but like a swap file, it can also expose a lot of sensitive, unencrypted data. To prevent Windows from creating the file, go to Control Panel | System. Click on the Advanced tab and then the Settings button on the Startup and Recovery pane. Set the drop-down menu under Write debugging information to (none). "Similarly, the debugging program Dr. Watson saves information when applications crash. To disable it, go to:
HKEY_local_machine\software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\ AeDebug and set the Auto string to 0. Then use Windows Explorer to go to Documents and Settings\All Users\Shared Documents\DrWatson. Delete User.dmp and Drwtsn32.log, the insecure logs the program creates." Heed related advice from 'microsoft' regarding 'Disable Dr.Watson' first before the preceding Dr. Watson advice (go Google search.) Back up with System Restore, and go ahead. As cautious as I am, I have gladly applied these tweaks, and followed related microsot advice on Dr. Watson.
Precaution: Backups All Of Your Data Before Tweaking, Not All Of The Tips I've Mentioned Above Were Tested. I Don't Responsible For Any Damages. Happy Experiments
When using 3rd party burning software (eg, Nero Burning Rom) to copy audio CD,some noise may be heard at the end of each track. To prevent this,try the following method:
1. Enter System Properties\device manager
2. Select IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers
3. Double click on thee CD writer IDE channel
4. Select advance setting
5. Change the transfer mode to 'PIO Only'
6. Restart Computer
DISABLING THE 'UNSIGNED DRIVER' DIALOGS
This option wll disable the screen wich keeps popping up when you try to install 'digitally unsigned drivers'. Normally you can choose to continue the install anyways, but I have had situations where you cannot continue the install.. very annoying.. This is how to fix it:
Click Start - Run
then type: gpedit.msc
then hit enter.
Browse the folder tree to the following location:
User Configuration - Administrative Templates - System
now right-click Code signing for Device drivers and select Properties.
On the Settings tab, either select
- enable, and then select ignore from the appearing listbox..
- or click the disable option. Click apply and Ok and your set!
Alternatively especially for XP Home users:
Open "System" properties (Windows key + pause or Right click 'My Computer' - properties or Control Panel - System).On the Hardware tab click the "Driver Signing" button. In the dialogue that comes up choose "Ignore" to install the new driver anyway.
DMA MODE ON IDE DEVICES VIEWS
Just like Windows 2000, Windows XP still fails to set the DMA mode correctly for the IDE device designated as the slaves on the primary IDE and secondary IDE channels. Most CD-ROMS are capable of supporting DMA mode, but the default in XP is still PIO. Setting it to DMA won't make your CD-ROM faster, but it will consume less CPU cycles. Here's how:
1. Open the Device Manager. One way to do that is to right click on "My Computer", select the Hardware tab, and Select Device Manager.
2. Expand "IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers" and double-click on "Primary IDE Channel"
3. Under the "Advanced Settings" tab, check the "Device 1" setting. More than likely, your current transfer mode is set to PIO.
4. Set it to "DMA if available".
Repeat the step for the "Secondary IDE Channel" if you have devices attached to it. Reboot.
RESTORING MEDIA PLAYER
To restore Windows Media Player insert the the XP CD into the CD drive (if it autostarts click exit). Open a command window and type the following :
rundll32.exe setupapi,InstallHinfSection InstallWMP7 132 c:\windows\inf\wmp.inf
RESTORING ACCESS TO CD ROM'S
If you removed CD Burning software, or for some other mystical reason, can not longer access your CD ROM's, in most cases following registry keys needs to be deleted: Locate and delete the UpperFilters and LowerFilters values under the following key in the registry:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class\{4D36E965-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318}
DELETING THE INDEX.DAT
Del "C:\Documents and Settings\aeon\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\index.dat"
CONTROL PANEL ON THE DESKTOP.
On The Desktop, Right Click Your Mouse Then Choose "New | Folder". Name The Folder As "ControlPanel. {21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}" Without The "Quote Things. And Now You Can Access The Control Panel More Faster Then Before.
CHANGING INTERNET EXPLORER ICON NAME.
Open Registry Editor Then Go To : "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\CLSID". You Can See A Few Key Below It.
Now Go To This Key {871C5380-42A0-1069-A2EA-08002B30309D}, Double Click At The Default Value On The Right, Enter Whatever Name You Like.
REMOVING USERNAME IN THE STARTMENU
Open Registry Editor Then Go To : "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer".
On The Right, Make A New Entry With Right Click On Your Mouse Then Choose "New | DWORD Value" Change The Entry's Name Into "NoUserNameInStartMenu", Double Click In The New Entry And Fill The "Value Data" With "1". Press OK, Exit From The Registry Editor. Restart Your Computer.
INTERNET EXPLORER LIGHTING-FAST STARTUP.
Isn't it annoying when you want to go to a new website, or any other site but your homepage, and you have to wait for your 'home' to load? This tweak tells Internet Explorer to simply 'run', without loading any webpages. (If you use a 'blank' page, that is still a page, and slows access. Notice the 'about:blank' in the address bar. The blank html page must still be loaded..). To load IE with 'nothing' [nothing is different than blank]:
1. Right-click on any shortcut you have to IE
[You should create a shortcut out of your desktop IE icon, and delete the original icon]
2. Click Properties
3. Add ' -nohome' [with a space before the dash] after the endquotes in the Target field.
4. Click OK
Fire up IE from your modified shortcut, and be amazed by how fast you are able to use IE!
INTERNET EXPLORER SPEED UP.
Edit your link to start Internet Explorer to have -nohome after it. For Example: "C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\IEXPLORE.EXE" -nohome
This will load internet explorer very fast because it does not load a webpage while it is loading. If you want to go to your homepage after it is loaded, just click on the home button.
SPEED UP BROWSING WITH DNS CATCH.
when you connect to a web site your computer sends information back and forth, this is obvious. Some of this information deals with resolving the site name to an IP address, the stuff that tcp/ip really deals with, not words. This is DNS information and is used so that you will not need to ask for the site location each and every time you visit the site. Although WinXP and win2000 has a pretty efficient DNS cache, you can increase its overall performance by increasing its size. You can do this with the registry entries below:
************begin copy and paste***********
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\Dnscache\Parameters]
"CacheHashTableBucketSize"=dword:00000001
"CacheHashTableSize"=dword:00000180
"MaxCacheEntryTtlLimit"=dword:0000fa00
"MaxSOACacheEntryTtlLimit"=dword:0000012d
************end copy and paste***********
make a new text file and rename it to dnscache.reg. Then copy and paste the above into it and save it. Then merge it into the registry.
START IEXPLORER WITH EMPTY BLUE SCREEN.
Set your default page to about:mozilla and IE will show a nice blue screen upon startup.
SPEED UP DETAILED VIEW IN WINDOWS EXPLORER.
If you like to view your files in Windows Explorer using the "Details" view here is a tweak to speed up the listing of file attributes: Viewing files in Windows Explorer using the "Details" mode shows various attributes associated with each file shown. Some of these must be retrieved from the individual files when you click on the directory for viewing. For a directory with numerous and relatively large files (such as a folder in which one stores media, eg: *.mp3's, *.avi's etc.)
Windows Explorer lags as it reads through each one. Here's how to disable viewing of unwanted attributes and speed up file browsing:
1. Open Windows Explorer
2. Navigate to the folder which you wish to optimize.
3. In "Details" mode right click the bar at the top which displays the names of the attribute columns.
4. Uncheck any that are unwanted/unneeded.
Explorer will apply your preferences immediately, and longs lists of unnecessary attributes will not be displayed. Likewise, one may choose to display any information which is regarded as needed, getting more out of Explorer.
WEB PAGES SLOWS DOWN, FIX.
The tweak is simple. Beside the QoS and others around the Internet for the new XP OS, I found out that native drivers sometimes slow you down (cable and xDSL users). So if you have applied all tweaks and you are still having slow downs try reinstalling your NICs drivers. The difference is noticeable. My web pages now load almost instantly where they used to take even a minute!
FIX IE 6 SLOWDOWNS AND HANGS.
1. Open a command prompt window on the desktop (Start/Run/command).
2. Exit IE and Windows Explorer (iexplore.exe and explorer.exe, respectively, in Task Manager, i.e - Ctrl-Alt-Del/Task Manager/Processes/End Process for each).
3. Use the following command exactly from your command prompt window to delete the corrupt file:
C:\>del "%systemdrive%\Documents and Settings\%username%\Local
Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\index.dat"
4. Restart Windows Explorer with Task Manager (Ctrl-Alt-Del/Task Manager/Applications/New Task/Browse/C:\Windows\explorer.exe[or your path]) or Shutdown/Restart the computer from Task Manager.
SPEED UP WEB BROWSING.
Iv'e personally found a dramatic increase in web browsing after clearing the Windows XP DNS cache. To clear it type the following in a command prompt: ipconfig /flushdns.
ALLOW MORE THAN 2 SIMULTANEOUS DOWNLOADS ON IEXPLORER 6.
This is to increase the the number of max downloads to 10.
1. Start Registry Editor (Regedt32.exe).
2. Locate the following key in the registry:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings
3. On the Edit menu, click Add Value , and then add the following registry values:
"MaxConnectionsPer1_0Server"=Dword:0000000a
"MaxConnectionsPerServer"=Dword:0000000a
4. Quit Registry Editor.
IPV6 INSTALLATION FOR WINDOWS XP.
This protocol is distined to replace the Internet Protocal Version 4 used by Internet Explorer it uses hexadecimal ip addresses instead of decimal example (decimal ip 62.98.231.67) (hexadecimal IP 2001:6b8:0:400::70c)
To install To install the IPv6 Protocol for Windows XP:
Log on to the computer running Windows XP with a user account that has local administrator privileges. Open a command prompt. From the Windows XP desktop, click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, and then click Command Prompt. At the command prompt, type: ipv6 install
For more information on IPv6, visit the site below:
CODE
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/techinfo/administration/ipv6/default.asp
ANOTHER WAY TO FIX IEXPLORER 6 SLOW PAGES LOADED.
Here's an easier way to get to index.dat file as addresse in another tweak submitted here.
1. click on Internet Explorer
2. go to to your root dir (usually C:)
3. open Documents and Settings folder
4. open "your username folder"
5. open UserData
6. **close IE if you have it open**
rename index.dat to index.old
logoff and log back on (don't need to restart) open up IE and go to a web page or site that always seemed to load slowly. It should load a lot more quickly now. NOTE. Always rename or backup .dat or other system files before deleting.
EASY WAY TO ADD THE ADMINISTRATOR USER TO THE WELCOME SCREEN.
Start the Registry Editor Go to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows NT \ CurrentVersion \ Winlogon \ SpecialAccounts \ UserList \
Right-click an empty space in the right pane and select New > DWORD Value Name the new value Administrator. Double-click this new value, and enter 1 as it's Value data. Close the registry editor and restart.
DRIVE ICONS.
To set the icon of any drive (hard disk, cd rom or anything else) with a letter (C:\ etc.), run REGEDIT (Start -> Run -> regedit)
Navigate to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
If one doesn't already exist, create a new KEY called "DriveIcons". Under this key, create a new key with the letter of your drive. I.e. C for your C:\ drive.
To change the icon for that drive, create a key inside that one called DefaultIcon and set the path of (Default) to the location of your icon
eg C\DefaultIcon\ then (Default) = D:\Documents\C Drive Icon.ico
To change the name of that drive, create a key in the drive letter one (eg C\) called DefaultLabel and set the (Default) to what you want the drive to be called. This is useful if you want to assign a long name to the floppy drive.
CHANGING OEM REGISTRATIONS.
Have you used someone's new Hewlet Packard with their OEM version of Windows XP? You've seen that HP has their own icon in the Start Menu, underneath Run, that goes to their Help Site. Now, you can have your icon that does anything you want (website, program, etc) and says anything you want. Basically, you are "branding" Windows XP (Home or Pro), great for if you are a computer builder and sell them, or you just want to make Windows XP your own. It involves Regedit.
1. Start up Notepad and creat a new registry file (*.reg) and copy and paste the following into it:
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
@="YOUR COMPANY NAME"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\DefaultIcon]
@="YOUR ICON HERE"
00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,68,00,70,00,6c,00,69,00,\
6e,00,6b,00,2e,00,69,00,63,00,6f,00,00,00
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\InProcServer32]
@=hex(2):25,00,53,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,52,00,6f,00,6f,00,74,00,25,\
00,5c,00,73,00,79,00,73,00,74,00,65,00,6d,00,33,00,32,00,5c,00,73,00,68,00,\
64,00,6f,00,63,00,76,00,77,00,2e,00,64,00,6c,00,6c,00,00,00
"ThreadingModel"="Apartment"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance]
"CLSID"="{3f454f0e-42ae-4d7c-8ea3-328250d6e272}"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\Instance\InitPropertyBag]
"CLSID"="{13709620-C279-11CE-A49E-444553540000}"
"method"="ShellExecute"
"Command"="YOUR TITLE HERE"
"Param1"="YOUR FUNCTION HERE"
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers]
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}]
@=""
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\shellex\MayChangeDefaultMenu]
@=""
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{2559a1f6-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=dword:00000000
2. Edit where it says YOUR ICON HERE to a path to an icon (ex. c:\\icon.ico), it must be 24x24 pixels and in *.ico format. Use double back slash for path names.
3. Edit both places where it says YOUR TITLE HERE to what you want it to say in the Start Menu (ex. Elranzer Homepage).
4. Edit where it says YOUR FUNCTION here to what you want it to do when you click it, it can be anything... your website, a local HTML document, a program, a Windows funtion, whatever your imagination can provide (ex. http://www.shareordie.com).
5. Save this file as brand.reg, double-click it to enterin your information, and refresh Explorer (log off/on) to see it in the Start Menu!! This works in both Home and Professional (and probably 64-Bit Professional) Editions!
ORIGINAL WALLPAPERS.
This is more of a fun tweak than it is useful. Go to run, type regedit press ok. when that comes up go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER>Control Panel>Desktop
Now find the orginalwallpaper, right click and select modify.In the text box type the path to the file you want to be your orginal desktop wallpaper.
DELETING My eBooks AND SPECIALS FOLDER IN MY DOCUMENTS.
Click Start, then Run and type: regsvr32 /u mydocs.dll
then delete them.
DISABLE WINDOWS PICTURE AND FAX VIEWER.
By default, Windows XP opens all picture files (gif,jpg,...) with the included Windows Picture and Fax Viewer no matter what other picture viewers you have installed. To disable the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer, unregister shimgvw.dll. This can be done from command prompt: regsvr32 /u shimgvw.dll
REMOVE PAST ITEMS ICONS IN TASKBAR.
Some times When you check your TasKbar properties or when you hide or unhide icons you can see old icons from Uninstalled or old programs you dont have anymore. This Tweak will help you how to get rid of this problem Thanks to leobull of Xperience.or How To clear the Past Items or Icons list in the TaskBar, perform the following steps:
1.Open Regedit Navigate to:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\TrayNotify
2.Delete the IconStreams and PastIconsStream values
3.Open Task Manager, click the Processes tab, click Explorer.exe , and then click End Process .
4.In Task Manager, click File , click New Task , type explorer , and then click OK .
LOCKING COMPUTERS.
To lock a computer in XP, as you probably know, you press "L" while holding down "Windows Logo" key on your keyboard. However, if you would like to lock a computer remotely, for example via "Remote Administrator", you don't have this ability. What you can do instead, is to create a shortcut on remote computer's desktop where Target %windir%\System32\rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation Start In %windir%
ADMINISTRATOR IN WELCOME SCREEN.
When you install Windows XP an Administrator Account is created (you are asked to supply an administrator password), but the "Welcome Screen" does not give you the option to log on as Administrator unless you boot up in Safe Mode.
First you must ensure that the Administrator Account is enabled:
1 open Control Panel
2 open Administrative Tools
3 open Local Security Policy
4 expand Local Policies
5 click on Security Options
6 ensure that Accounts: Administrator account status is enabled Then follow the instructions from the "Win2000 Logon Screen Tweak" ie.
1 open Control Panel
2 open User Accounts
3 click Change the way users log on or log off
4 untick Use the Welcome Screen
5 click Apply Options
You will now be able to log on to Windows XP as Administrator in Normal Mode.
BUGFIXES.
This is a strange bug in Windows XP Pro but it can and does happen to everyone. When you open the My Computer screen and your Documents folder is missing but all the other users folders are there try this tweak.
STEP 1:
START > RUN > REGEDIT > HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE / Software / Microsoft / Windows / Current Version / Explorer / DocFolderPaths
Once you click the DocFolderPaths folder you should see all the user's folders.
STEP 2:
Add a new string value
Value Name: your user name
Value Data: the path to your docs folder ( ex. C:\Documents and Settings\your docs folder )
Exit Registry editor and open my computer, your docs folder should now be visable.
MOUSE POINTERS.
It seems that even without pointer precision disabled, the mouse under XP is still influenced by an acceleration curve. This is especially noticeable in games. To
completely remove mouse acceleration from XP, you will need to go into the registry and adjust the SmoothmouseXYCurve values. Here is how its done.
1. Click Start button
2. Select Run
3. Type 'regedit' in the open textbox
4. Open the tree 'HKEY_CURRENT_USER', select control panel, then select mouse
5. Right clicking, modify the SmoothMouseXCurve and SmoothMouseYCurve hexidecimal values to the following:
SmoothMouseXCurve:
00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00
00,a0,00,00,00,00,00,00
00,40,01,00,00,00,00,00
00,80,02,00,00,00,00,00
00,00,05,00,00,00,00,00
SmoothMouseYCurve:
00,00,00,00,00,00,00,00
66,a6,02,00,00,00,00,00
cd,4c,05,00,00,00,00,00
a0,99,0a,00,00,00,00,00
38,33,15,00,00,00,00,00
If done correctly, you will notice you are holding a markedly more responsive mouse.
HIDDEN WINDOWS XP ICONS.
Windows XP Pro and Home contains icons for folders and files that cannot normally be seen, you can select to view hidden files from the folder options menu, but there are still some that remain hidden.
You can set windows to view these files as normal hidden files, so that when you use the view hidden files and folders toggle from the folder options menu that these will be turned on/off along with the normal hidden files.
These files are usually system files and should not be altered/deleted unless you really know what you are doing, if you don't yet still wish to change them I might suggest that you create back-ups of your system first.
I will personally accept no responsibility for any damage caused by using this tweak. To view the hidden files you need to open up regedit, if you are not sure how to do this, select run from the start menu and type in 'regedit' without the apostrophe's. In the regedit window, expand out the groups by clicking on the '+' next to the name in the left hand column of regedit, and navigate to the below address.
HKEY_CURRENT_USER \SOFTWARE \MICROSOFT \WINDOWS \CURRENTVERSION \EXPLORER \ADVANCED
when you have clicked the advanced folder on the left pane, look down the list at the titles in the right hand pane, one of those titles is 'ShowSuperHidden'
double click the title and in the window that appears set the value to equal 1 to show the super hidden files and 0 to hide them.
XP HOME ADVANCED FILE PERMISSIONS.
This is actually an addition to my previous post entitled "Get XP Pro file security with XP Home". In the aforementioned post I outlined how to access
*Advance file Permissions* on NTFS file systems for XP Home simply by booting into *Safe Mode*, rt-clicking any file or folder, and navigating to the *Security tab*. This gives the user the ability to allow or deny read, write, execute, read & write, display contents, full-control, iheritance, and take ownership permissions, with many more options available to apply to different users and groups stored on the computer. Well, you don't have to do this in *Safe Mode* (XP Home). Although it is a little less intuitive, you can simply go to your command prompt - Start>All Programs>Accessories>Command Prompt. Now type "cacls" in the window (without the quotes). This gives you the ability to add, remove or modify file permissions on files and folders through the command prompt. Type "cacls /?" for help on different options and variables. You do not need to be in safe mode to use this so it makes it a little quicker than using the safe mode security tab GUI. Remember - this only applies to NTFS. Here also is a very useful link to find a lot of extras and tweaks straight from the horse's mouth - the Microsoft Resource Center. You will find a lot of very useful web-based extra's here, most of them left unknowing to the general public - such as, "Online Crash Analysis" - a site that looks like Windows Update but you can upload your crash "dump logs" (when you get those system or application crash error reports). Microsoft will then analyze the log file and tell you some more info about WHY the system crashed (ie. faulty hardware/software/conflicts, etc).
FLASHGET :BYPASSING 8 MAX SIMULTANEOUS JOBS.
Users of Flash get will notice that the maximum number of file splits is 8. This number can be increased by the tweak below:
1. Run regedit.
2. Navigate to [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\JetCar\JetCar\General\]
3. Right Click -> Add String Value.
4. Name as MaxSimJobs -> Set the value as what ever number you want.
After a restart you should be able to download with more file splits.
OUTLOOK EXPRESS WINDOWS TITLE TWEAKS.
Change the window title of Outlook Express to anything you want!
In regedt32 and navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Identities\{EE383506-901D-43C6-8E40-9A61901DF7CC}\Software\Microsoft\Outlook Express\5.0. Add a new string key called WindowTitle and make its value the desired window title. Then close the registry editor, and restart Outlook Express (if it's running.) Your new title now shows up in the title bar!
WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER 9.
When installing WMP 9 it leaves a watersign on your desktop. You can easily remove this with: regedit:
HKey_Local_Machine\SOFTWARE\microsoft\system certificates\CA\certificates\FEE449EE0E3965A5246F00E87FDE2A065FD89D4
HKey_Local_Machine\software\microsoft\system certificates\ROOT\certificates\2BD63D28D7BCD0E251195AEB519243C13142EBC3
Remove both lines and restart computer.
CHANGING THE WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER TITLEBAR.
This is a per-user tweak. Open RegEdit.
Browse to the following key:
HKEY_USERS\S-1-5-21-xxxxxxxxx-xxxxxxxxx-xxxxxxxxxx-xxxx\Software\Policies\Microsoft\WindowsMediaPlayer
(the x's will vary from computer to computer , it's the key without the "_Classes" at the end) Create the following String, "TitleBar" , the value of this will now become the TitleBar of Windows Media Player.
AUTO DELETE TEMPORARY FOLDER.
First go into gpedit.msc
Next select -> Computer Configuration/Administrative Templates/Windows Components/Terminal Services/Temporary Folder
Then right click "Do Not Delete Temp Folder Upon Exit"
Go to properties and hit disable. Now next time Windows puts a temp file in that folder it will automatically delete it when its done! Note from Forum Admin: Remember, GPEDIT (Group Policy Editor) is only available in XP Pro.
CLEANUP STARTUP ITEMS IN MSCONFIG.
Do you ever uninstall programs and they are still listed under startup items in msconfig? Personally, I found myself with 30 such items from old installs. Microsoft leaves you no way to clean up this list, but have no fear, I have figured it out for you.
1. Open MSconfig and click on the startup items tab
2. Open Regedit and naviate to HKLM/Software/Microsoft/Sharedtools/MSconfig/startupreg
3. Compare the list of registry keys under startup reg with their counterparts in msconfig.
4. Delete the keys which are no longer valid.
5. Voila! You've cleaned up msconfig.
REMOVING SERVICES DEPENDENCIES.
This will allow you to disable a service or uninstall it from your system without effecting another service that depends on it. Here's how you do it
1. After you have set your services the way you want them and you have disabled/uninstalled something that another services depends on, run "regedit"
2. Under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\find the service that will not function, do to another service being disabled/uninstall (found in ControlSet001\Services, ControlSet002\Services, and CurrentControlSet\Services)
3. Once you have found the service right-click on the string value, "DependOnService,"and modify
4. You should now see a list of services that it is dependent on. Simply delete the service that you have disabled/uninstalled
5. Restart your computer and your ready to go Disclaimer REMEMBER TO BACKUP YOU REGISTRY FIRST I'm not totaly sure if this will have any negative effects on your system. I used this method after uninstalling "Netbios over Tcpip" from my system completely, so that my Dhcp service would function and I have had NO negative effects on my system.
ANOTHER WAY TO DELETE HIDDEN DEVICES.
You can view and delete or modify hidden devices by:
1. Openning Device Manager. (I usually right-click on My Computer, select Properties, select the Hardware tab, then select Device Manager.)
2. Select View and check "Show hidden devices"
3. Hidden devices will appear below with the others and can be modified.
HOW TO GET "My Briefcase" IN WINDOWS XP.
go to C:\WINDOWS\system32\dllcache. look for a file named "syncapp".
double click it. an icon should appear on your desktop that says "My Briefcase". double click it. it will come up with this window that tells you how to use it.
TURN NUMLOCK ON AT LOGON.
NumLock does not toggle on by default (system-wide), even if you have it set in your PC's BIOS, because of XP's multi-user functionality. Guess Microsoft doesn't know everyone actually turns it on, which should be reason enough for what acts as "default"...
Anyway, you can hack the Windows Registry to change this behavior, or run a script at logon to turn NumLock on.
1. To enable NumLock through the Registry:
* Open Windows' Registry Editor (START > RUN, type "REGEDIT").
*. Navigate to HKEY_USERS\.Default\Control Panel\Keyboard.
*. Change the value for InitialKeyboardIndicators from 0 to 2.
2. To enable NumLock using a script, see this MS Knowledgebase article for complete instructions:
CODE
http://support.microsoft.com/directory/article.asp?ID=KB;EN-US;Q262625
Option 1 is the quicker method, but if you have more than one user on your system and one or more don't want NumLock on (stranger things have been known of), then option 2 is the way to go since it allows you to only attach the script to specific users.
FREE DISK SPACE BY DELETING RESTORE POINTS.
Start button-all programs-accessories-system tools-cleanup-more options. You will have the option of deleting your restore points.When your done creat one
restore point as a back up.
HOW TO REAL GET RID OF UNNECESSARY SOFTWARE
to uninstall things like msn messenger and other hidden installs thru add remove programs, do this: find sysoc.inf (you might have to enable "show hidden files" and "show hidden/protected system folders" in explorer) and open it in notepad replace all ",hide" with "," (both with out quotes) which is easiest to do with the replace all command under edit then in add/remove programs under add/remove windows compnents and whole new list of things to uninstall and add are now listed (such as internet explorer)
HAVING PROGRAMS RUN WHEN WINDOWS LOADS SLOWS DOWN YOUR STARTUP.
There are two ways do disable programs that may be in your startup (like icq, messanger,) The easiest is to do the following:
1. start --> run --> msconfig
2. Click on the "startup" tab (furthest right)\
3. Unclick any items you don't want to load when windows starts.
The second is by deleting registry entrys, this can be done the following way:
1. Start --> run --> regedit
2. Navigate to : HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
3. Delete any entry's that you don't want to load up
TURN OFF INDEXING TO SPEED UP XP.
Windows XP keeps a record of all files on the hard disk so when you do a search on the hard drive it is faster. There is a downside to this and because the computer has to index all files, it will slow down normal file commands like open, close, etc. If you do not do a whole lot of searches on your hard drive then I suggest turnning this feature off:
1. Control Panel
2. Administrative Tools
3. Services
4. Disable Indexing Services
HALF LIFE AND WINDOWS XP.
1. How to recover from incompatible drivers
Before you install new drivers set a system restore point. Start>All programs>Accessories>system tools>system restore
After your new drivers don't work reset your computer. Press F8 repeatedly as soon as the BIOS screen disappears, and before the Windows XP screen appears. Select safe mode. Use system restore again to undo your mess.
2. Video Drivers
The NVidia drivers that come with XP do not allow you to run Half Life in OpenGL. Update to the newest drivers.
Despite the fact that they are not official drivers, 22.50 was the only set which worked
3. Sound Drivers
Use windows update to update Creative drivers.
4. Fixing screen flicker
Windows XP defaults to 60Hz for games. A fix is available here:
CODE
http://www.fileplanet.com/dl/dl.asp?/planetquake/ztn/nvreffix-setup.exe
Select "set: ev ery resolution to monitor's maximum supported rate"
5. Fixing lag
If you are having trouble with lag, try disabling the windows XP firewall. Go to control panel>network connections. Select connection, right click, properties, advanced, untick the firewall.
6. Mouse
You can improve your mouse smoothness for games.
Control panel>mouse>hardware>properties>advanced
Change the sample rate to a higher one, eg. 200
REGISTRY METHOD FOR REMOVING STARTUP ITEMS.
I prefer to use MSCONFIG selective startup to troubleshoot. To remove entries for good, open the registry:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RUN and HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RUN
Delete entries of unwanted startup daemons and tray procedures.
DISPLAY MESSAGE ON STARTUP.
Start regedit, if you are unfamiliar with regedit please see our FAQ.
Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
Modify the key legalnoticecaption with what you want to name the window.
Modify the key legalnoticetext with what you want the window to say. Restart.
REMOVE THE DEFAULT IMAGE VIEWER IN WINDOWS ME/XP.
This tweak works in Windows Me/XP, I have not try it in Windows NT/2000 yet, because i don't have that OS, you can try it if you have.
*This tweak does not work in Windows 95/98
To remove the Windows default Image Viewer, first:
Click Start Menu
Select Run menu
Type "cmd", (for Windows Me, type "command")
Then type "regsvr32 /u shimgvw.dll" to unregister this dll. This will stop it from previewing any picture that it support, e.g. JPEG, Bitmap, GIF....
* Before perform this tweak, make sure that you have the alternative Image Viewer installed in you windows e.g. ACDsee, FireGraphics... because once you do this tweak without that application, you can't open and view your image anymore! So, to undo it, type "regsvr32 shimgvw.dll" in command prompt.
SPEED UP BOOT BY DISABLING UNUSED PORTS.
You may have tried many tweaks like modifying windowsXP start-up applications, prefetches, unload DLLs method,etc. And yes those methods do work for me.
I have just accidentally found out another way to give you an extra boost in windowsXP's boot performance. This is done by disabling your unused devices in
Device Manager. for example, if you don't have input devices that are connected to one of your USBs or COM ports, disabling them will give you an extra perfromance boost in booting. Go to Control Panel -> System -> Hardware tab -> device manager Disable devices that you don't use for your PC and then restart.
CLEAR UNWANTED ENTRIES FROM ADD/REMOVE PROGRAMS.
Run the Registry Editor (REGEDIT).
Open HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Uninstall Remove any unwanted keys under "Uninstall."
CLICKING * .AVI FILES ON EXPLORER CAUSING 100% CPU USAGE.
Well windows seem to have a REALLY big problem when it comes to reading AVI files. It seems that when you click on an AVI file in explorer, it'll try to read the entire AVI file to determine the width,height, etc. of the AVI file (this is displayed in the Properties window). Now the problem with Windows is that if you have a broken/not fully downloaded AVI file that doesnt contain this info, Windows will scan the entire AVI file trying to figure out all these properties which in the process will probably cause 100% CPU usage and heavy memory usage. To solve this problem all you have to do is the following:
1. Open up regedit
2. Goto HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\.avi\shellex\PropertyHandler
3. Delete the "Default" value which should be "{87D62D94-71B3-4b9a-9489-5FE6850DC73E}"
Voila! Please not that this will no longer provide you with the windows properties displaying the AVI file information such as width, height, bitrate etc. But its a small price to pay for saving you resources.
NOTE: Please use caution when using regedit. Improper usage may cause windows to behave imcorrectly. Also, I cannot be held resposible. Backup your registry first.
CD ROM STOPS AUTOPLAYING/AUTORUN.
And the AutoPlay Tab has disappeared in My Computer, Devices With Removable Storage, Right Click on CDROM, Properties.
Solution: The service: "Shell Hardware Detection" has been set to Manual or Disabled. Go to Control Panel, Administrative Tools, Services. Return this service to "Automatic".
SHUTDOWN XP FASTER 1.
Like previous versions of windows, it takes long time to restart or shutdown windows xp when the "Exit Windows" sound is enabled. to solve this problem you
must disable this useless sound. click start button then go to settings -> control panel -> Sound,Speech and Audio devices -> Sounds and Audio Devices -> Sounds, then under program events and windows menu click on "Exit Windows" sub-menu and highlight it.now from sounds you can select,choose "none" and then click apply and ok. now you can see some improvements when shutting down your system.
SHUTDOWN XP FASTER 2.
Start Regedit.
Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SYSTEM/CurrentControlSet/Control.
Click on the "Control" Folder.
Select "WaitToKillServiceTimeout"
Right click on it and select Modify.
Set it a value lower than 2000 (Mine is set to 200).
EASIEST WAY TO DELETE PREFETCH.
1. Open notepad.exe, type del c:\windows\prefetch\*.* /q (without the quotes) & save as "delprefetch.bat" in c:\
2. From the Start menu, select "Run..." & type "gpedit.msc".
3. Double click "Windows Settings" under "Computer Configuration" and double click again on "Startup" in the right window.
4. In the new window, click "add", "Browse", locate your "delprefetch.bat" file & click "Open".
5. Click "OK", "Apply" & "OK" once again to exit.
6. Reboot your computer.
SPEED UP MENU DISPLAY.
When using the start menu the you will notice a delay between different tiers of the menu hierarchy. For the fastest computer experience possible I recommend changing this value to zero. This will allow the different tiers to appear instantly. Start Regedit. If you are unfamiliar with regedit please refer to our FAQ on how to get started.
Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop
Select MenuShowDelay from the list on the right.
Right on it and select Modify.
Change the value to 0.
Reboot your computer.
16 COLOUR ICONS.
If you select 16bit mode for graphics your icons will revert to using 8bit (16 color) icons. Yuck! Change the following registry setting to:
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\WindowMetrics] "Shell Icon BPP"="16" "Shell Icon Size"="32" Setting the BPP to 16bit will yield 65565 colors for icons.
DE-CRYPT ENCRYPTED FILES ON WINDOWS XP.
1. Login as Administrator
2. Go to Start/Run and type in cmd and click OK.
At the prompt type cipher /r:Eagent and press enter
This prompt will then display:
Please type in the password to protect your .PFX file:
Type in your Administrator password
Re-confirm your Administrator password
The prompt will then display
Your .CER file was created successfully.
Your .PFX file was created successfully.
The Eagent.cer and Eagent.pfx files will be saved in the current directory that is shown at the command prompt. Example: The command prompt displays
C:\Documents and Settings\admin> the two files are saved in the admin folder. (For security concerns, you should house the two files in your Administrator folder or on a floppy disk).
3. Go to Start/Run and type in certmgr.msc and click OK. This will launch the Certificates Manager. Navigate to Personal and right click on the folder and select All Tasks/Import. The Certificate Import Wizard will appear. Click Next. Browse to the C:\Documents and Settings\admin folder. In the Open dialog box, change the Files of Type (at the bottom) to personal Information Exchange (*.pfx,*.P12). Select the file Eagent.pfx and click Open. Click Next. Type in your Administrator password (leave the two checkboxes blank) and click Next. Make sure the Radio button is active for the first option (Automatically select the certificate store based on the type of certifcate). Click Next. Click Finish. (You'll receive a message that the import was successful). To confirm the import, close Certificates Manager and re-open it. Expand the Personal folder and you will see a new subfolder labeled Certificates. Expand that folder and you will see the new entry in the right side column. Close Certificate Manager.
4. Go to Start/Run and type in secpol.msc and click OK. This will launch the Local Security Policy. Expand the Public Key Policies folder and then right click on the Encrypted File System subfolder and select Add Data Recovery Agent... The Wizard will then display. Click Next. Click the Browse Folders... button. Browse to the C:\Documents and Settings\admin folder. Select the Eagent.cer file and click Open. (The wizard will display the status User_Unknown. That's ok). Click Next. Click Finish. You will see a new entry in the right side column. Close the Local Security Policy.
You, the Administrator are now configured as the default Recovery Agent for All Encrypted files on the Local Machine.
To Recover Encrypted files: Scenario #1
If you have completed the above steps BEFORE an existing user encrypted his/her files, you can log in to your Administrator account and navigate to the encrypted file(s). Double click on the file(s) to view the contents.
Scenario #2
If you have completed the above steps AFTER an existing user has already encrypted his/her files, you must login to the applicable User's User Account and then immediately logout. Next, login to your Administrator account and navigate to the encrypted file(s). Double click on the file(s) to view the contents.
*Warning Do not Delete or Rename a User's account from which will want to Recover the Encrypted Files. You will not be able to de-crypt the files using the steps outlined above.
DUMP FILES TWEAK & DISABLE DR.WATSON.
"Dump file. A dump file stores data from memory during a system crash and can be helpful when diagnosing problems, but like a swap file, it can also expose a lot of sensitive, unencrypted data. To prevent Windows from creating the file, go to Control Panel | System. Click on the Advanced tab and then the Settings button on the Startup and Recovery pane. Set the drop-down menu under Write debugging information to (none). "Similarly, the debugging program Dr. Watson saves information when applications crash. To disable it, go to:
HKEY_local_machine\software\Microsoft\WindowsNT\CurrentVersion\ AeDebug and set the Auto string to 0. Then use Windows Explorer to go to Documents and Settings\All Users\Shared Documents\DrWatson. Delete User.dmp and Drwtsn32.log, the insecure logs the program creates." Heed related advice from 'microsoft' regarding 'Disable Dr.Watson' first before the preceding Dr. Watson advice (go Google search.) Back up with System Restore, and go ahead. As cautious as I am, I have gladly applied these tweaks, and followed related microsot advice on Dr. Watson.
Precaution: Backups All Of Your Data Before Tweaking, Not All Of The Tips I've Mentioned Above Were Tested. I Don't Responsible For Any Damages. Happy Experiments
Steps to Clean Install XP
If the above instructions for configuring your system to boot from CD
or you have acquired the necessary boot floppy/floppies; you can now
boot the computer and follow the on screen prompts. Have your Product Key
available, typical install is around 30 minutes. If setup seems to hang,
wait at least 10 minutes + before restarting system. You should experience
momentary screen blackouts.
1. Power on the computer. Press the Pause/Break key as soon as you see
text on the screen. [If you currently are running in an OS of any flavor,
insert XP CD and restart computer. Skip to #3 if system is configured
to boot from CD.]
2. Insert XP CD into CD drive. Press ENTER to resume booting from the XP CD.
(BIOS must support booting from CD and boot order must be set so CD
boots before hard drive. If computer does not support booting from CD
go to 2a for floppy install).
2a. Floppy install: Boot from Win98/Me/Special XP install floppy
disk with smartdrv.exe added to the boot disk; or the Win XP set
of 6 floppy disks.
3. Look for message "booting from CD" usually located at the bottom of
the screen. If you have a factory splash screen, press ESC to unload
it.
3a. Floppy install: From the A Prompt; A:\type: smartdrv.exe. then
press ENTER. If you are using the XP boot floppy setup disks skip
to step #5.
4. Press any Key when you see the prompt to "Press Any Key"
4a. Floppy install: CD to the location of the CD-ROM drive with the
XP setup files; CD to the i386 folder where you will type: winnt.exe
to start setup.
5. Setup will start copying files, if you need to install any third
- party or RAID drivers press F6 at this time. the copying of files
can take awhile.
6. Next you will get the option to repair or enter setup, choose to
enter setup. Press ENTER. To see images full size, place mouse cursor
over image and click/double click or press the left button and open.
7. Press F8 if you agree to the license.
8. Setup will scan for previous Windows installations
9. If you are using the upgrade version of XP on a computer without
any version of Windows currently installed, this is where you will
replace the XP CD with your qualifying CD, XP setup will scan the
qualifying CD and instruct you to replace it with the XP CD to continue
XP setup; otherwise, you will not see this screen. Clean install
qualifying media can be any of the following Win NT3.51, 4.0, 2000,
Win 95, 98, Me. 10. Choose the location to install.
10a If this is a clean hard drive, you can choose to create a
partition in the un-partitioned space. At this point, you can allow
Setup to use all the space or set a size for the partition.
10b If the hard drive or partition has a previous installation of
XP you want to remove, choose to delete the partition by pressing
"D". You will then be prompted to create a new partition in the
empty space. This will remove all data from the delete space.
10c If you intend to use multiple partitions, or dual boot, this is
where you specify the size of the boot partition and or setup
location for XP. If you are planning to dual boot XP, I would
create a small 100 meg DOS partition for the first primary partition,
then an 8 to 10 gig partition for XP. You can partition and format
the remaining space after XP is setup from Disk Manager. If you do not
intend to dual boot, you can either use all the un-partitioned space,
or create an 8 to 10 gig partition for XP and leave the rest free to
partition later.
Note: If a fat32 partition larger than 32 gigabyte is desired, the
hard drive or partition will need to be created before running XP
setup. XP will not create a fat 32 partition larger than 32 gig, but
will support one previously created.
11. Choose the file system from this screen. If dual booting and you
created the small 100 meg partition, make it a fat partition. NTFS is
configured at the optimal file size during the initial setup. See this
link for more on NTFS
12. If you have more that one partition or hard drive on your system,
make sure you are formatting the correct partition/drive.
13. Select F to continue.
14. Setup will show a progress box and reboot when copying files is
complete.
15. When you see the "Press any Key to Reboot" do not Press any Key.
If CD boots anyway, remove CD and reboot.
16. From this point, you will follow the on screen prompts.
17. If you live outside the US, you will probably need to modify the
default settings.
18. Personalize your XP Enter your Name and Organization.
19. Enter the Product Key. The Key is located on the back of the CD folder
in the Retail versions, and on a holographic label with the OEM
versions purchased with a piece of hardware. Write this key down and
secure it in a safe place in case the original is misplaced destroyed
through natural causes or stupidity. 8-)
20. Choose a name for the computer, this should be a unique name for
the computer, especially if it is to be connected to a network. In Pro,
you are given the option of creating a password or leaving it blank.
21. Set your Time Zone and Time and Date.
22. Setup will scan for network.
23. If detected you will have the choice to choose a typical
configuration or custom. Choose typical if you are unsure.
24. For home you will choose your workgroup, if a network is already
established and you intend to connect to it, use the existing
workgroup name, otherwise, I suggest using the default.
25. For Pro, the same goes for Pro as suggested for Home, but you will
have the choice to join a Domain, if you do not have a Domain or do
not know leave blank.
26. Setup will continue and reboot when completed ignore the "Press
Any Key".
27. The loading XP window will now display after reboot.
28. You will see a change display settings, say yes, and accept the
setting if you can see the screen after accepting.
29. You will see a welcome screen, press next and unfortunately you
have to wait for the dialog to finish.
30. Set up you internet or network connection.
31. This is the Activate, Register screen. You must activate within
30 days of installing XP, but you do not ever have to register,
Registration is completely optional and if you do not register, no
personal information will be transmitted during activation. If you
register, then activation will transmit that information along with
the activation. The first Activation is usually done over the internet
if the computer is connected to the internet, otherwise, it can be
accomplished by copying the alphanumeric string from the activation
screen and make a phone call to the on screen supplied phone number.
The activation center will then give you a slightly longer number to
input into for activation. I suggest you do not activate immediately
in case you need to make hard ware changes, or install to a different
system within the thirty days, and you will be reminded on boot up
until you do.
Blaster worm warning: Do not immediately activate over the internet
when asked, enable the XP firewall before connecting to the internet.
You can activate after the firewall is enabled.
Control Panel - Network Connections. Right click the connection you
use, Properties, and there is a check box on the Advanced page.
32. Setup users screen. Set at least one user for yourself or the person
that will be using the computer.
33. Thank You
34. Logon to XP and apply Service Pack and Critical updates from Windows
Update before installing any software or hardware.
35. Install your anti-virus software.
36. Install all applications and setup your email.
37. Restore from Files and Settings transfer after reinstalling all
applications.
or you have acquired the necessary boot floppy/floppies; you can now
boot the computer and follow the on screen prompts. Have your Product Key
available, typical install is around 30 minutes. If setup seems to hang,
wait at least 10 minutes + before restarting system. You should experience
momentary screen blackouts.
1. Power on the computer. Press the Pause/Break key as soon as you see
text on the screen. [If you currently are running in an OS of any flavor,
insert XP CD and restart computer. Skip to #3 if system is configured
to boot from CD.]
2. Insert XP CD into CD drive. Press ENTER to resume booting from the XP CD.
(BIOS must support booting from CD and boot order must be set so CD
boots before hard drive. If computer does not support booting from CD
go to 2a for floppy install).
2a. Floppy install: Boot from Win98/Me/Special XP install floppy
disk with smartdrv.exe added to the boot disk; or the Win XP set
of 6 floppy disks.
3. Look for message "booting from CD" usually located at the bottom of
the screen. If you have a factory splash screen, press ESC to unload
it.
3a. Floppy install: From the A Prompt; A:\type: smartdrv.exe. then
press ENTER. If you are using the XP boot floppy setup disks skip
to step #5.
4. Press any Key when you see the prompt to "Press Any Key"
4a. Floppy install: CD to the location of the CD-ROM drive with the
XP setup files; CD to the i386 folder where you will type: winnt.exe
to start setup.
5. Setup will start copying files, if you need to install any third
- party or RAID drivers press F6 at this time. the copying of files
can take awhile.
6. Next you will get the option to repair or enter setup, choose to
enter setup. Press ENTER. To see images full size, place mouse cursor
over image and click/double click or press the left button and open.
7. Press F8 if you agree to the license.
8. Setup will scan for previous Windows installations
9. If you are using the upgrade version of XP on a computer without
any version of Windows currently installed, this is where you will
replace the XP CD with your qualifying CD, XP setup will scan the
qualifying CD and instruct you to replace it with the XP CD to continue
XP setup; otherwise, you will not see this screen. Clean install
qualifying media can be any of the following Win NT3.51, 4.0, 2000,
Win 95, 98, Me. 10. Choose the location to install.
10a If this is a clean hard drive, you can choose to create a
partition in the un-partitioned space. At this point, you can allow
Setup to use all the space or set a size for the partition.
10b If the hard drive or partition has a previous installation of
XP you want to remove, choose to delete the partition by pressing
"D". You will then be prompted to create a new partition in the
empty space. This will remove all data from the delete space.
10c If you intend to use multiple partitions, or dual boot, this is
where you specify the size of the boot partition and or setup
location for XP. If you are planning to dual boot XP, I would
create a small 100 meg DOS partition for the first primary partition,
then an 8 to 10 gig partition for XP. You can partition and format
the remaining space after XP is setup from Disk Manager. If you do not
intend to dual boot, you can either use all the un-partitioned space,
or create an 8 to 10 gig partition for XP and leave the rest free to
partition later.
Note: If a fat32 partition larger than 32 gigabyte is desired, the
hard drive or partition will need to be created before running XP
setup. XP will not create a fat 32 partition larger than 32 gig, but
will support one previously created.
11. Choose the file system from this screen. If dual booting and you
created the small 100 meg partition, make it a fat partition. NTFS is
configured at the optimal file size during the initial setup. See this
link for more on NTFS
12. If you have more that one partition or hard drive on your system,
make sure you are formatting the correct partition/drive.
13. Select F to continue.
14. Setup will show a progress box and reboot when copying files is
complete.
15. When you see the "Press any Key to Reboot" do not Press any Key.
If CD boots anyway, remove CD and reboot.
16. From this point, you will follow the on screen prompts.
17. If you live outside the US, you will probably need to modify the
default settings.
18. Personalize your XP Enter your Name and Organization.
19. Enter the Product Key. The Key is located on the back of the CD folder
in the Retail versions, and on a holographic label with the OEM
versions purchased with a piece of hardware. Write this key down and
secure it in a safe place in case the original is misplaced destroyed
through natural causes or stupidity. 8-)
20. Choose a name for the computer, this should be a unique name for
the computer, especially if it is to be connected to a network. In Pro,
you are given the option of creating a password or leaving it blank.
21. Set your Time Zone and Time and Date.
22. Setup will scan for network.
23. If detected you will have the choice to choose a typical
configuration or custom. Choose typical if you are unsure.
24. For home you will choose your workgroup, if a network is already
established and you intend to connect to it, use the existing
workgroup name, otherwise, I suggest using the default.
25. For Pro, the same goes for Pro as suggested for Home, but you will
have the choice to join a Domain, if you do not have a Domain or do
not know leave blank.
26. Setup will continue and reboot when completed ignore the "Press
Any Key".
27. The loading XP window will now display after reboot.
28. You will see a change display settings, say yes, and accept the
setting if you can see the screen after accepting.
29. You will see a welcome screen, press next and unfortunately you
have to wait for the dialog to finish.
30. Set up you internet or network connection.
31. This is the Activate, Register screen. You must activate within
30 days of installing XP, but you do not ever have to register,
Registration is completely optional and if you do not register, no
personal information will be transmitted during activation. If you
register, then activation will transmit that information along with
the activation. The first Activation is usually done over the internet
if the computer is connected to the internet, otherwise, it can be
accomplished by copying the alphanumeric string from the activation
screen and make a phone call to the on screen supplied phone number.
The activation center will then give you a slightly longer number to
input into for activation. I suggest you do not activate immediately
in case you need to make hard ware changes, or install to a different
system within the thirty days, and you will be reminded on boot up
until you do.
Blaster worm warning: Do not immediately activate over the internet
when asked, enable the XP firewall before connecting to the internet.
You can activate after the firewall is enabled.
Control Panel - Network Connections. Right click the connection you
use, Properties, and there is a check box on the Advanced page.
32. Setup users screen. Set at least one user for yourself or the person
that will be using the computer.
33. Thank You
34. Logon to XP and apply Service Pack and Critical updates from Windows
Update before installing any software or hardware.
35. Install your anti-virus software.
36. Install all applications and setup your email.
37. Restore from Files and Settings transfer after reinstalling all
applications.
10 Fast and Free Security Enhancements
Before you spend a dime on security, there are many precautions you can take that will protect you against the most common threats.
1. Check Windows Update and Office Update regularly (_http://office.microsoft.com/productupdates); have your Office CD ready. Windows Me, 2000, and XP users can configure automatic updates. Click on the Automatic Updates tab in the System control panel and choose the appropriate options.
2. Install a personal firewall. Both SyGate (_www.sygate.com) and ZoneAlarm (_www.zonelabs.com) offer free versions.
3. Install a free spyware blocker. Our Editors' Choice ("Spyware," April 22) was SpyBot Search & Destroy (_http://security.kolla.de). SpyBot is also paranoid and ruthless in hunting out tracking cookies.
4. Block pop-up spam messages in Windows NT, 2000, or XP by disabling the Windows Messenger service (this is unrelated to the instant messaging program). Open Control Panel | Administrative Tools | Services and you'll see Messenger. Right-click and go to Properties. Set Start-up Type to Disabled and press the Stop button. Bye-bye, spam pop-ups! Any good firewall will also stop them.
5. Use strong passwords and change them periodically. Passwords should have at least seven characters; use letters and numbers and have at least one symbol. A decent example would be f8izKro@l. This will make it much harder for anyone to gain access to your accounts.
6. If you're using Outlook or Outlook Express, use the current version or one with the Outlook Security Update installed. The update and current versions patch numerous vulnerabilities.
7. Buy antivirus software and keep it up to date. If you're not willing to pay, try Grisoft AVG Free Edition (Grisoft Inc., w*w.grisoft.com). And doublecheck your AV with the free, online-only scanners available at w*w.pandasoftware.com/activescan and _http://housecall.trendmicro.com.
8. If you have a wireless network, turn on the security features: Use MAC filtering, turn off SSID broadcast, and even use WEP with the biggest key you can get. For more, check out our wireless section or see the expanded coverage in Your Unwired World in our next issue.
9. Join a respectable e-mail security list, such as the one found at our own Security Supersite at _http://security.ziffdavis.com, so that you learn about emerging threats quickly and can take proper precautions.
10. Be skeptical of things on the Internet. Don't assume that e-mail "From:" a particular person is actually from that person until you have further reason to believe it's that person. Don't assume that an attachment is what it says it is. Don't give out your password to anyone, even if that person claims to be from "support."
1. Check Windows Update and Office Update regularly (_http://office.microsoft.com/productupdates); have your Office CD ready. Windows Me, 2000, and XP users can configure automatic updates. Click on the Automatic Updates tab in the System control panel and choose the appropriate options.
2. Install a personal firewall. Both SyGate (_www.sygate.com) and ZoneAlarm (_www.zonelabs.com) offer free versions.
3. Install a free spyware blocker. Our Editors' Choice ("Spyware," April 22) was SpyBot Search & Destroy (_http://security.kolla.de). SpyBot is also paranoid and ruthless in hunting out tracking cookies.
4. Block pop-up spam messages in Windows NT, 2000, or XP by disabling the Windows Messenger service (this is unrelated to the instant messaging program). Open Control Panel | Administrative Tools | Services and you'll see Messenger. Right-click and go to Properties. Set Start-up Type to Disabled and press the Stop button. Bye-bye, spam pop-ups! Any good firewall will also stop them.
5. Use strong passwords and change them periodically. Passwords should have at least seven characters; use letters and numbers and have at least one symbol. A decent example would be f8izKro@l. This will make it much harder for anyone to gain access to your accounts.
6. If you're using Outlook or Outlook Express, use the current version or one with the Outlook Security Update installed. The update and current versions patch numerous vulnerabilities.
7. Buy antivirus software and keep it up to date. If you're not willing to pay, try Grisoft AVG Free Edition (Grisoft Inc., w*w.grisoft.com). And doublecheck your AV with the free, online-only scanners available at w*w.pandasoftware.com/activescan and _http://housecall.trendmicro.com.
8. If you have a wireless network, turn on the security features: Use MAC filtering, turn off SSID broadcast, and even use WEP with the biggest key you can get. For more, check out our wireless section or see the expanded coverage in Your Unwired World in our next issue.
9. Join a respectable e-mail security list, such as the one found at our own Security Supersite at _http://security.ziffdavis.com, so that you learn about emerging threats quickly and can take proper precautions.
10. Be skeptical of things on the Internet. Don't assume that e-mail "From:" a particular person is actually from that person until you have further reason to believe it's that person. Don't assume that an attachment is what it says it is. Don't give out your password to anyone, even if that person claims to be from "support."
Install Xp From Dos
If XP will not install from the CD or if you have a new drive with no operating system on
it yet try these:
Install Windows XP from the hard drive with Windows 98 already installed:
Boot Windows 98
Insert the XP CD into your CD reader
Explore Windows XP through My Computer
Copy i386 folder to C:\
Go into C:\i386 folder and double click on winnt32.exe to launch the setup from the hard drive
Install Windows XP from DOS (ie. no OS on a new hard drive):
Boot with a Windows 98 Start Up disk
Insert the Windows 98 CD into the CD reader
Run smartdrv.exe from the Win98 directory on the windows 98 CD (file caching)
Type cd.. to back up to the root directory
Insert Windows XP CD into the CD reader
Copy the i386 folder to C:\
Go into C:\i386 folder on C: and type winnt.exe to launch the setup from the hard drive.
it yet try these:
Install Windows XP from the hard drive with Windows 98 already installed:
Boot Windows 98
Insert the XP CD into your CD reader
Explore Windows XP through My Computer
Copy i386 folder to C:\
Go into C:\i386 folder and double click on winnt32.exe to launch the setup from the hard drive
Install Windows XP from DOS (ie. no OS on a new hard drive):
Boot with a Windows 98 Start Up disk
Insert the Windows 98 CD into the CD reader
Run smartdrv.exe from the Win98 directory on the windows 98 CD (file caching)
Type cd.. to back up to the root directory
Insert Windows XP CD into the CD reader
Copy the i386 folder to C:\
Go into C:\i386 folder on C: and type winnt.exe to launch the setup from the hard drive.
Keyboard Shortcuts, Microsoft Word
CTRL and A Selects all in the current document.
CTRL and B Bold text.
CTRL and C Copies the item or text to the Clipboard and can be pasted using CTRL and V.
CTRL and D Displays the Font dialogue box.
CTRL and E Centre Alignment.
CTRL and F Displays the Find dialog box, to search the current document.
CTRL and G Displays the Go to dialog box, to go to a specific location in the current document.
CTRL and H Displays the Replace dialogue box.
CTRL and I Italic text.
CTRL and J Full Justification.
CTRL and K Create Hyperlink
CTRL and L Left Alignment
CTRL and M Tab
CTRL and N Creates a new document.
CTRL and O Displays the Open File dialogue box.
CTRL and P Displays the Print dialog box.
CTRL and R Right Alignment.
CTRL and S Displays the Save dialog box.
CTRL and U Underline text
CTRL and V Pastes the copied item or text from the Clipboard into the current position in the document.
CTRL and X Cuts the item or text selected to the Clipboard.
CTRL and Y Redo the last undone action.
CTRL and Z Undoes the last action.
CTRL and ENTER Insert Page Break.
CTRL and F2 Show Print preview.
CTRL and F4 Closes the active document window.
CTRL and F6 Opens the next document window.
Keyboard Shortcuts Result in Microsoft Word
F1 key Get help or use the Office assistant.
SHIFT and F1 Key Context sensitive help.
F2 Key Move text or image.
SHIFT and F2 Key Copy Text.
F3 Key Insert an autotext entry.
SHIFT and F3 Key Change the case of the selected text.
F4 Key Perform last action again.
SHIFT and F4 Key Perform a Find or Go to action again.
F5 Key Displays the Go to dialogue box, from here you can also Find and Replace.
SHIFT and F5 Key Move to a previous revision.
F6 Key Go to the next frame or pane.
SHIFT and F6 Key Go to the previous frame or pane.
F7 Key Launch the Spell checker.
SHIFT and F7 Key Launch the Thesaurus.
F8 Key Extend the current selection.
SHIFT and F8 Key Shrink the current selection.
F9 Key Update the selected fields.
SHIFT and F9 Key Switch between a field code and it's result.
F10 Key Activate the menu bar.
SHIFT and F10 Key Display a Shortcut Menu. Same as right clicking.
F11 Key Go to the next field.
SHIFT and F11 Key Go to the previous field.
F12 Key Save file As, equivalent to tools menu.
SHIFT and F12 Key Save document, equivalent to tools menu
CTRL and B Bold text.
CTRL and C Copies the item or text to the Clipboard and can be pasted using CTRL and V.
CTRL and D Displays the Font dialogue box.
CTRL and E Centre Alignment.
CTRL and F Displays the Find dialog box, to search the current document.
CTRL and G Displays the Go to dialog box, to go to a specific location in the current document.
CTRL and H Displays the Replace dialogue box.
CTRL and I Italic text.
CTRL and J Full Justification.
CTRL and K Create Hyperlink
CTRL and L Left Alignment
CTRL and M Tab
CTRL and N Creates a new document.
CTRL and O Displays the Open File dialogue box.
CTRL and P Displays the Print dialog box.
CTRL and R Right Alignment.
CTRL and S Displays the Save dialog box.
CTRL and U Underline text
CTRL and V Pastes the copied item or text from the Clipboard into the current position in the document.
CTRL and X Cuts the item or text selected to the Clipboard.
CTRL and Y Redo the last undone action.
CTRL and Z Undoes the last action.
CTRL and ENTER Insert Page Break.
CTRL and F2 Show Print preview.
CTRL and F4 Closes the active document window.
CTRL and F6 Opens the next document window.
Keyboard Shortcuts Result in Microsoft Word
F1 key Get help or use the Office assistant.
SHIFT and F1 Key Context sensitive help.
F2 Key Move text or image.
SHIFT and F2 Key Copy Text.
F3 Key Insert an autotext entry.
SHIFT and F3 Key Change the case of the selected text.
F4 Key Perform last action again.
SHIFT and F4 Key Perform a Find or Go to action again.
F5 Key Displays the Go to dialogue box, from here you can also Find and Replace.
SHIFT and F5 Key Move to a previous revision.
F6 Key Go to the next frame or pane.
SHIFT and F6 Key Go to the previous frame or pane.
F7 Key Launch the Spell checker.
SHIFT and F7 Key Launch the Thesaurus.
F8 Key Extend the current selection.
SHIFT and F8 Key Shrink the current selection.
F9 Key Update the selected fields.
SHIFT and F9 Key Switch between a field code and it's result.
F10 Key Activate the menu bar.
SHIFT and F10 Key Display a Shortcut Menu. Same as right clicking.
F11 Key Go to the next field.
SHIFT and F11 Key Go to the previous field.
F12 Key Save file As, equivalent to tools menu.
SHIFT and F12 Key Save document, equivalent to tools menu
Keyboard ShortCuts
Getting used to using your keyboard exclusively and leaving your mouse behind will make you much more efficient at performing any task on any Windows system. I use the following keyboard shortcuts every day:
Windows key + R = Run menu
This is usually followed by:
cmd = Command Prompt
iexplore + "web address" = Internet Explorer
compmgmt.msc = Computer Management
dhcpmgmt.msc = DHCP Management
dnsmgmt.msc = DNS Management
services.msc = Services
eventvwr = Event Viewer
dsa.msc = Active Directory Users and Computers
dssite.msc = Active Directory Sites and Services
Windows key + E = Explorer
ALT + Tab = Switch between windows
ALT, Space, X = Maximize window
CTRL + Shift + Esc = Task Manager
Windows key + Break = System properties
Windows key + F = Search
Windows key + D = Hide/Display all windows
CTRL + C = copy
CTRL + X = cut
CTRL + V = paste
Also don't forget about the "Right-click" key next to the right Windows key on your keyboard. Using the arrows and that key can get just about anything done once you've opened up any program.
Keyboard Shortcuts
[Alt] and [Esc] Switch between running applications
[Alt] and letter Select menu item by underlined letter
[Ctrl] and [Esc] Open Program Menu
[Ctrl] and [F4] Close active document or group windows (does not work with some applications)
[Alt] and [F4] Quit active application or close current window
[Alt] and [-] Open Control menu for active document
Ctrl] Lft., Rt. arrow Move cursor forward or back one word
Ctrl] Up, Down arrow Move cursor forward or back one paragraph
[F1] Open Help for active application
Windows+M Minimize all open windows
Shift+Windows+M Undo minimize all open windows
Windows+F1 Open Windows Help
Windows+Tab Cycle through the Taskbar buttons
Windows+Break Open the System Properties dialog box
acessability shortcuts
Right SHIFT for eight seconds........ Switch FilterKeys on and off.
Left ALT +left SHIFT +PRINT SCREEN....... Switch High Contrast on and off.
Left ALT +left SHIFT +NUM LOCK....... Switch MouseKeys on and off.
SHIFT....... five times Switch StickyKeys on and off.
NUM LOCK...... for five seconds Switch ToggleKeys on and off.
explorer shortcuts
END....... Display the bottom of the active window.
HOME....... Display the top of the active window.
NUM LOCK+ASTERISK....... on numeric keypad (*) Display all subfolders under the selected folder.
NUM LOCK+PLUS SIGN....... on numeric keypad (+) Display the contents of the selected folder.
NUM LOCK+MINUS SIGN....... on numeric keypad (-) Collapse the selected folder.
LEFT ARROW...... Collapse current selection if it's expanded, or select parent folder.
RIGHT ARROW....... Display current selection if it's collapsed, or select first subfolder.
Type the following commands in your Run Box (Windows Key + R) or Start Run
devmgmt.msc = Device Manager
msinfo32 = System Information
cleanmgr = Disk Cleanup
ntbackup = Backup or Restore Wizard (Windows Backup Utility)
mmc = Microsoft Management Console
excel = Microsoft Excel (If Installed)
msaccess = Microsoft Access (If Installed)
powerpnt = Microsoft PowerPoint (If Installed)
winword = Microsoft Word (If Installed)
frontpg = Microsoft FrontPage (If Installed)
notepad = Notepad
wordpad = WordPad
calc = Calculator
msmsgs = Windows Messenger
mspaint = Microsoft Paint
wmplayer = Windows Media Player
rstrui = System Restore
netscp6 = Netscape 6.x
netscp = Netscape 7.x
netscape = Netscape 4.x
waol = America Online
control = Opens the Control Panel
control printers = Opens the Printers Dialog
Windows key + R = Run menu
This is usually followed by:
cmd = Command Prompt
iexplore + "web address" = Internet Explorer
compmgmt.msc = Computer Management
dhcpmgmt.msc = DHCP Management
dnsmgmt.msc = DNS Management
services.msc = Services
eventvwr = Event Viewer
dsa.msc = Active Directory Users and Computers
dssite.msc = Active Directory Sites and Services
Windows key + E = Explorer
ALT + Tab = Switch between windows
ALT, Space, X = Maximize window
CTRL + Shift + Esc = Task Manager
Windows key + Break = System properties
Windows key + F = Search
Windows key + D = Hide/Display all windows
CTRL + C = copy
CTRL + X = cut
CTRL + V = paste
Also don't forget about the "Right-click" key next to the right Windows key on your keyboard. Using the arrows and that key can get just about anything done once you've opened up any program.
Keyboard Shortcuts
[Alt] and [Esc] Switch between running applications
[Alt] and letter Select menu item by underlined letter
[Ctrl] and [Esc] Open Program Menu
[Ctrl] and [F4] Close active document or group windows (does not work with some applications)
[Alt] and [F4] Quit active application or close current window
[Alt] and [-] Open Control menu for active document
Ctrl] Lft., Rt. arrow Move cursor forward or back one word
Ctrl] Up, Down arrow Move cursor forward or back one paragraph
[F1] Open Help for active application
Windows+M Minimize all open windows
Shift+Windows+M Undo minimize all open windows
Windows+F1 Open Windows Help
Windows+Tab Cycle through the Taskbar buttons
Windows+Break Open the System Properties dialog box
acessability shortcuts
Right SHIFT for eight seconds........ Switch FilterKeys on and off.
Left ALT +left SHIFT +PRINT SCREEN....... Switch High Contrast on and off.
Left ALT +left SHIFT +NUM LOCK....... Switch MouseKeys on and off.
SHIFT....... five times Switch StickyKeys on and off.
NUM LOCK...... for five seconds Switch ToggleKeys on and off.
explorer shortcuts
END....... Display the bottom of the active window.
HOME....... Display the top of the active window.
NUM LOCK+ASTERISK....... on numeric keypad (*) Display all subfolders under the selected folder.
NUM LOCK+PLUS SIGN....... on numeric keypad (+) Display the contents of the selected folder.
NUM LOCK+MINUS SIGN....... on numeric keypad (-) Collapse the selected folder.
LEFT ARROW...... Collapse current selection if it's expanded, or select parent folder.
RIGHT ARROW....... Display current selection if it's collapsed, or select first subfolder.
Type the following commands in your Run Box (Windows Key + R) or Start Run
devmgmt.msc = Device Manager
msinfo32 = System Information
cleanmgr = Disk Cleanup
ntbackup = Backup or Restore Wizard (Windows Backup Utility)
mmc = Microsoft Management Console
excel = Microsoft Excel (If Installed)
msaccess = Microsoft Access (If Installed)
powerpnt = Microsoft PowerPoint (If Installed)
winword = Microsoft Word (If Installed)
frontpg = Microsoft FrontPage (If Installed)
notepad = Notepad
wordpad = WordPad
calc = Calculator
msmsgs = Windows Messenger
mspaint = Microsoft Paint
wmplayer = Windows Media Player
rstrui = System Restore
netscp6 = Netscape 6.x
netscp = Netscape 7.x
netscape = Netscape 4.x
waol = America Online
control = Opens the Control Panel
control printers = Opens the Printers Dialog
Partitioning your HardDisk
Partitioning involves creating logical units on your hard drive that are then addressed as different drive letters. Not only does it help to organize your data (program files on one drive, games on another, documents on another) but also to speed up your PC. This is so because the drive head has to move a lesser distance for accessing data within one partition. You can also have different filesystems and OSs on the same hard drive.
Partitioning can be done using ‘fdisk’ in DOS/Windows 9x or ‘disk management’ in Windows 2000/ NT/XP. We will describe the procedure for fdisk, since disk management is GUI driven and the basics otherwise remain the same. While several other commercial packages like Partition Magic are available, these utilities (fdisk, computer management) are bundled with their respective OSs. You need a bootable floppy with fdisk.exe, format.com, and sys. com utilities. Before starting, decide how many partitions you want to create and their sizes. You can create one primary and one extended partition using the DOS fdisk. The extended partition can then have multiple logical partitions. Boot your machine using the bootable disk, and do the following.
Run fdisk. The utility will show you a numbered menu from where you can create, view, or delete partitions
The utility first asks you whether you want to enable large disk support. Type Y (for yes) and press enter if your hard-drive capacity is more than 4 GB. Large disk support creates a FAT32 partition, which can be greater than 2 GB
Select the first option from fdisk menu to create a primary partition. Specify the partition size in megabytes or percentage size when prompted for it
Similarly, create an extended partition. Extended partitions by themselves do not appear as drive letters. Instead, logical partitions must be created in them, which are then assigned drive letters
Exit fdisk and reboot the computer
Fdisk automatically assigns drive letters to all the partitions. You’ll need to format each partition in order to use it. Use format.com for the same
Your hard drive is now ready for taking an OS.
Partitioning can be done using ‘fdisk’ in DOS/Windows 9x or ‘disk management’ in Windows 2000/ NT/XP. We will describe the procedure for fdisk, since disk management is GUI driven and the basics otherwise remain the same. While several other commercial packages like Partition Magic are available, these utilities (fdisk, computer management) are bundled with their respective OSs. You need a bootable floppy with fdisk.exe, format.com, and sys. com utilities. Before starting, decide how many partitions you want to create and their sizes. You can create one primary and one extended partition using the DOS fdisk. The extended partition can then have multiple logical partitions. Boot your machine using the bootable disk, and do the following.
Run fdisk. The utility will show you a numbered menu from where you can create, view, or delete partitions
The utility first asks you whether you want to enable large disk support. Type Y (for yes) and press enter if your hard-drive capacity is more than 4 GB. Large disk support creates a FAT32 partition, which can be greater than 2 GB
Select the first option from fdisk menu to create a primary partition. Specify the partition size in megabytes or percentage size when prompted for it
Similarly, create an extended partition. Extended partitions by themselves do not appear as drive letters. Instead, logical partitions must be created in them, which are then assigned drive letters
Exit fdisk and reboot the computer
Fdisk automatically assigns drive letters to all the partitions. You’ll need to format each partition in order to use it. Use format.com for the same
Your hard drive is now ready for taking an OS.
WINDOWS XP HIDDEN APPS
To run any of these apps go to Start > Run and type the executable name (ie charmap).
WINDOWS XP HIDDEN APPS:
=========================================
1) Character Map = charmap.exe (very useful for finding unusual characters)
2) Disk Cleanup = cleanmgr.exe
3) Clipboard Viewer = clipbrd.exe (views contents of Windows clipboard)
4) Dr Watson = drwtsn32.exe (Troubleshooting tool)
5) DirectX diagnosis = dxdiag.exe (Diagnose & test DirectX, video & sound cards)
6) Private character editor = eudcedit.exe (allows creation or modification of characters)
7) IExpress Wizard = iexpress.exe (Create self-extracting / self-installing package)
8) Microsoft Synchronization Manager = mobsync.exe (appears to allow synchronization of files on the network for when working offline. Apparently undocumented).
9) Windows Media Player 5.1 = mplay32.exe (Retro version of Media Player, very basic).
10) ODBC Data Source Administrator = odbcad32.exe (something to do with databases)
11) Object Packager = packager.exe (to do with packaging objects for insertion in files, appears to have comprehensive help files).
12) System Monitor = perfmon.exe (very useful, highly configurable tool, tells you everything you ever wanted to know about any aspect of PC performance, for uber-geeks only )
13) Program Manager = progman.exe (Legacy Windows 3.x desktop shell).
14) Remote Access phone book = rasphone.exe (documentation is virtually non-existant).
15) Registry Editor = regedt32.exe [also regedit.exe] (for hacking the Windows Registry).
16) Network shared folder wizard = shrpubw.exe (creates shared folders on network).
17) File siganture verification tool = sigverif.exe
18) Volume Contro = sndvol32.exe (I've included this for those people that lose it from the System Notification area).
19) System Configuration Editor = sysedit.exe (modify System.ini & Win.ini just like in Win98! ).
20) Syskey = syskey.exe (Secures XP Account database - use with care, it's virtually undocumented but it appears to encrypt all passwords, I'm not sure of the full implications).
21) Microsoft Telnet Client = telnet.exe
22) Driver Verifier Manager = verifier.exe (seems to be a utility for monitoring the actions of drivers, might be useful for people having driver problems. Undocumented).
23) Windows for Workgroups Chat = winchat.exe (appears to be an old NT utility to allow chat sessions over a LAN, help files available).
24) System configuration = msconfig.exe (can use to control starup programs)
25) gpedit.msc used to manage group policies, and permissions
WINDOWS XP HIDDEN APPS:
=========================================
1) Character Map = charmap.exe (very useful for finding unusual characters)
2) Disk Cleanup = cleanmgr.exe
3) Clipboard Viewer = clipbrd.exe (views contents of Windows clipboard)
4) Dr Watson = drwtsn32.exe (Troubleshooting tool)
5) DirectX diagnosis = dxdiag.exe (Diagnose & test DirectX, video & sound cards)
6) Private character editor = eudcedit.exe (allows creation or modification of characters)
7) IExpress Wizard = iexpress.exe (Create self-extracting / self-installing package)
8) Microsoft Synchronization Manager = mobsync.exe (appears to allow synchronization of files on the network for when working offline. Apparently undocumented).
9) Windows Media Player 5.1 = mplay32.exe (Retro version of Media Player, very basic).
10) ODBC Data Source Administrator = odbcad32.exe (something to do with databases)
11) Object Packager = packager.exe (to do with packaging objects for insertion in files, appears to have comprehensive help files).
12) System Monitor = perfmon.exe (very useful, highly configurable tool, tells you everything you ever wanted to know about any aspect of PC performance, for uber-geeks only )
13) Program Manager = progman.exe (Legacy Windows 3.x desktop shell).
14) Remote Access phone book = rasphone.exe (documentation is virtually non-existant).
15) Registry Editor = regedt32.exe [also regedit.exe] (for hacking the Windows Registry).
16) Network shared folder wizard = shrpubw.exe (creates shared folders on network).
17) File siganture verification tool = sigverif.exe
18) Volume Contro = sndvol32.exe (I've included this for those people that lose it from the System Notification area).
19) System Configuration Editor = sysedit.exe (modify System.ini & Win.ini just like in Win98! ).
20) Syskey = syskey.exe (Secures XP Account database - use with care, it's virtually undocumented but it appears to encrypt all passwords, I'm not sure of the full implications).
21) Microsoft Telnet Client = telnet.exe
22) Driver Verifier Manager = verifier.exe (seems to be a utility for monitoring the actions of drivers, might be useful for people having driver problems. Undocumented).
23) Windows for Workgroups Chat = winchat.exe (appears to be an old NT utility to allow chat sessions over a LAN, help files available).
24) System configuration = msconfig.exe (can use to control starup programs)
25) gpedit.msc used to manage group policies, and permissions
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