If you have themes installed in the default location, you can right-click the desktop, create a New -> Shortcut named whatever you want, with the command line:
"C:\Program Files\Plus!\THEMES.EXE" /s C:\Program Files\Plus!\Themes\More Windows (high color).theme
and Windows will immediately apply the effects. Be sure to go to Start Menu -> Settings -> Control Panel -> Desktop Themes and save your current settings first.
Change the path as appropriate if your Themes.exe file is somewhere else. Note that quotes are necessary if there's a space (such as in Program Files).
Right-click the Explorer shortcut, select Properties, and in the Target line, add:
/n,/e,/select,c:\
to the end, so your Target line looks like this:
C:\WINDOWS\EXPLORER.EXE /n,/e,/select,c:\
Open Explorer in your choice of folders:
"explorer.exe /n, /e, c:\windows\favorites"
I use a few Packard Bell computers, and a nagging problem is getting the CD-ROM drive to work in DOS. I've only tested this on two computers, but it worked flawlessly. Your mileage may vary.
The path to individual files may be different on your computer, so modify these if you need to.
If you've installed Windows in the default location, C:\Windows, then you have a folder there called 'command.' Copy the file 'oakcdrom.sys' from your boot disk (Control Panel -- Add/Remove Programs -- Startup Disk) to c:\windows\command. If you want to copy it somewhere else, modify the path in c:\config.sys
Add the following line to your C:\autoexec.bat file:
c:\windows\command\mscdex /D:MSCD000
Add the following line to your C:\config.sys file:
Device = C:\windows\command\oakcdrom.sys /D:MSCD000
If it doesn't work, try substituting one of the other .sys files on the boot disk for the oakcdrom.sys file.
If you don't have an autoexec.bat or config.sys file, make them using Notepad.
To use the CD-ROM in Safe Mode, boot to DOS, change directory to c:\windows, and type:
win /d:m
If you have Windows Scripting Host installed, it will automatically run scripts with the extension .vbs or .js when they are clicked. Here's a quick message box example:
Response = MsgBox ("You just deleted C:\Windows\" + vbcrlf + "Your disk will be formatted when you shut down", vbokonly, "Oh, crap!")
Copy it, paste it into Notepad and save it with a .vbs extension.
First you define the message box text. This is two lines, with 'vbcrlf' being a line break. Next is the buttons to show, then the message box title.
Here's a simple, easily edited version:
MsgBox"Hello, Pun'kin!",2,"Yew shore dew have purty lips, boy..."
Change the 2 to other numbers for different button combinations.
WSH is installed by default in Win98, and can be downloaded for free from somewhere on the Microsoft website for earlier Windows editions. Good luck finding it.
Here's an ftp site that may help: http://borg.isc.ucsb.edu/ftproot/pub/microsoft/WinScripting/
Right-click the desktop and select New --> Shortcut and enter:
C:\Windows\Control.exe Sysdm.cpl,System,1
as the Command line and any name you want as the Name.
(Windows is not case sensitive, so C:\WINDOWS is the same as c:\windows)
To make your own pictures and/or html files available in the Desktop properties window for your desktop background, go to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\
and change the WallPaperDir value to your directory of choice.
To keep track of changes in a Notepad text file, type
.LOG
as the first line of the file. Every time it is opened, the
current time and date will be entered into it.
Right-click the desktop or in any folder and select New -- Shortcut
On the Command line, type or cut'n paste:
C:\WINDOWS\RUNDLL32.EXE User,ExitWindows
and name it whatever you want. It will prompt you to save any unsaved work, then shut Windows down.
Open regedit and navigate to
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Outlook Express,
create a new DWORD value called NoSplash, and setting the value to 00 00 00 01
This doesn't work with Outlook Express 5.
Go to
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\Shell
Create a New -- Key and name it
openas
Under that, create a New -- Key and name it
command
Double-click the Default value and enter this:
rundll32.exe shell32.dll,OpenAs_RunDLL %1
When you use this, be sure to uncheck the box "Always use this program to open this type of file" in the Open With... dialog, unless you want to change the file association. Or use the next tip to uncheck it automatically.
Note that if the file type isn't associated with anything, you'll have two 'open with...' commands.
Go to
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Unknown\shell\openas\command
double-click (Default) and add a space and a %2 after the existing line
Before: C:\WINDOWS\rundll32.exe shell32.dll,OpenAs_RunDLL %1
After: C:\WINDOWS\rundll32.exe shell32.dll,OpenAs_RunDLL %1 %2
Go to
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MenuOrder\Start Menu\&Programs\Menu
and delete the Order entry. (It will be recreated if you start dragging things around again, so there's no need to back it up before deleting it.) You can do the same with the other Order items in Accessories, Games, etc.
If you use Win98, of course you just right-click a menu item and select 'Sort by Name'.
Navigate to your /Windows/Sendto folder, right-click a blank spot and select New -- Text Document.
Rename the new text document:
Desktop as Shortcut.DESKLINK
and click Yes when it nags you about changing the extension
Open Notepad and enter:
[Shell]
Command=2
IconFile=explorer.exe,3
[Taskbar]
Command=ToggleDesktop
If you still have your Show Desktop shortcut, you can verify this by going to
C:\WINDOWS\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch
and using your handy little Send To Notepad(see below) extension to view it.
Change the IconFile line to point to your favorite icon, such as C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\Pifmgr.dll,36
Go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\Shell
and create a key called
Send To Notepad
or whatever you want to show on the menu, then under that, a new key called
Command
and change the (Default) value to
notepad.exe %1
If you don't use Notepad, include the full path to your text editor instead of just the filename.
If you don't have a key called Shell under \*\, create it. Most machines I've used only have \shellex
Go to HKCU\Control Panel\International, and create a new string value called
s1159
Double-click it and enter your text for the value data.
Create another string value, and name it
s2359
and put the same text as the s1159 string.
(I don't know the character limit, but I DO know it's long enough for Mr. Potato Head.)
To remove the colon ( : ) from the clock and make it show military time:
Go to HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\International
and add new strings with the values shown:
iTime -> "1"
iTLZero ->"1"
sTime -> ""
sTimeFormat -> "HHmm tt"
I don't know what the effect of combining these two would be...
To set Windows 95 to perform a constant refresh of file and folder views, go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/System/CurrentControlSet/Control/Update. In the right-hand pane, right-click on UpdateMode and select Modify. In the edit window, change the 01 to 00. You'll have to reboot your computer before the change takes effect.
Copying all the CAB (Windows 95 installation files) from the Win95 CD to your hard disk is a great way to save time when re-installing components or the whole OS, if you have the disk space available. You can make this even quicker by modifying the Registry to point to the CAB files during installation. Open the Registry Editor, drill down to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Current Version\Setup and single-click on the SETUP folder. Right-click on the SourcePath item and select Modify from the context menu. Enter the path of the folder that contains your CAB files. This also makes adding and removing programs, changing network settings, etc. much easier, because you won't have to insert the Windows CD every time. (My 133's slow down if I leave the CD in all the time.)
This is an especially handy tip if you add or remove a drive to your computer, or if you copy the contents of the CD to your hard drive.
(I tried this on a clean install of Win98, and it didn't work. Maybe it will for Win95?)
If you're installing Win95 on a system without a previous version of Windows installed, Win95 asks you to prove you have installed a previous version of DOS or Windows. If you don't have your old diskettes handy, here's how to get around the dialog: Open Notepad and save a document as WIN.CN_ (the final character is an underline). Put the WIN.CN_ file on a diskette - your boot diskette or Win95 Startup disk will do. When you reach the point in the installation where Win95 asks you to show it a previous version, put in the diskette with the WIN.CN_ file on it. The installation program will accept it as proof of a previous version.
When you change your color scheme (right click the desktop, select Properties, and click the Appearance tab), you'll notice some colors can't be changed. To fix that problem:
go to HKEY_USERS\.Default\Control Panel\Colors. Here you'll find all the screen elements. To change one, double-click on it and replace the current value with one of your sets of numbers. When things look the way you want them to, go back to the Appearance item and Save As a new scheme.
Notice you have to enter the values as red/green/blue numbers.
Especially cool ones to change are ButtonHilite and WindowFrame.
Save your current color scheme so you can go back to it after you're tired of the funky look.
Every font you install sucks up physical memory. Unless you have physical RAM to spare, I wouldn't suggest loading too much more than your commonly used fonts. So what do you do with the fonts you want to keep but not install? Put them in ANOTHER directory ("fontsOther" so you can find it beside the Fonts folder). When you want to use a particular font in a document/graphic, go to your "Other Fonts" folder, double-click on the font you want to use (and KEEP THE FONT OPEN), and launch the application in which you wish to use that font. The font should show up in your regular list as if it were installed the "normal" way. When you're done, you can close the font preview window and Windows is none-the-wiser.
This also fixes the problem of too many fonts. All fonts are stored in the Registry, and the Registry has a limit of 64k for each key...meaning 800 - 1000 fonts are all that can be stored without a shareware font manager program.
Control Panel.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}
Dial-Up Networking.{992CFFA0-F557-101A-88EC-00DD010CCC48}
Printers.{2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D}
Inbox.{00020D75-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}
My Computer.{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}
Recycle Bin.{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}
Network Neighborhood.{208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}
Briefcase.{85BBD920-42A0-1069-A2E4-08002B30309D}
Fonts.{BD84B380-8CA2-1069-AB1D-08000948F534}
InternetCache.{7BD29E00-76C1-11CF-9DD0-00A0C9034933}
Subscriptions.{F5175861-2688-11D0-9C5E-00AA00A45957}
Desktop.{00021400-0000-0000-0000-000000000046}
History.{FF393560-C2A7-11CF-BFF4-444553540000}
IE5 only:
Offline Web Pages.{8E6E6079-0CB7-11d2-8F10-0000F87ABD16}
To put one of these folders on the Start menu:
Highlight and copy the folder name and letter/number string, up to and including the } on the end. Right-click the Start button and select Explore. Right-click a blank area in the window and select New --- Folder. Paste the copied name in as the New Folder's name.
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}
To add Rename and Delete to the right-click context menu, go to the subkey:
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}\ShellFolder
and edit the Binary value to:
70 01 00 20
to add Rename and Delete to the right-click context menu.
If you don't see the Recycle bin at that key, try:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\CLASSES\CLSID\{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}
Note: Editing a binary value is a little more tricky than editing a string value. Export the key to safe place before trying it for the first time.
This one is from tipworld.com
To get better performance from a machine with 32 megs of memory or better, push the Windows key + Pause Break key to call up the System Properties box. Click the Performance tab, then the File System button. You'll see a Select Box under Settings labeled 'Typical role of this computer:'. Change that to 'Network server'. This will manage your memory better and give you a small performance boost. In Windows95b and up, you're all set to go. In earlier releases of Windows, you'll have to do this:
Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\FS Templates
Click on Server, and in the right-hand pane you'll see two entries called
NameCache and PathCache. Here are the values that you need to enter/modify
for each one of them:
1. For NameCache modify the numeric values to read:
a9 0a 00 00
2. For PathCache modify the numeric values to read:
40 00 00 00
These values are written to the wrong entries by default and you have to
manually fix them to get a boost in performance when setting your machine
to "Network Server". Because these values are written in wrong many people
see no difference in performance when changing to "Network Server". But
this Registry hack fixes it, and when you're done making these changes, go
set your system to "Network Server" and see if you notice any improvement
(you'll need to restart Windows for the changes to take effect).
Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer.
Right-click in the right pane. When the menu opens, choose New, DWORD
Value. Name the new value NoFavoritesMenu.
When the Edit DWORD Value dialog box opens, enter 1(one) and restart the computer. After you restart, you'll have no
Favorites folder in the Start menu.
If you decide you want the Favorites folder back, change the value back to 0(zero)
and click OK, or just delete it. Close RegEdit and restart the computer to get the
Favorites folder back into the Start menu.
For the Documents folder, follow the same procedure, except name the
new DWORD value: NoRecentDocsMenu
Others:
find = NoFind
log off username = NoLogOff
run = NoRun
shutdown = NoClose
The following are for the Settings item on the Start button. If you remove them all, you'll have no Settings item:
active desktop = NoSetActiveDesktop
control panel = NoSetFolders
folder options = NoFolderOptions
printers = NoSetPrinters
taskbar and start menu = NoSetTaskbar
windows update = NoWindowsUpdate
These are some others for Internet Explorer 5.01. They may work for earlier versions. If you've read this far, you've got a boot disk with CD access and a full backup, so dive right in! The NoFavoritesMenu is shown as removed from the start menu. You will probably only have one or two of these in your registry unless you got a branded version from Snap or somewhere. They add some or all of these to give themselves control over what you see.
REGEDIT4
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer]
"NoDriveTypeAutoRun"=hex:b5,00,00,00
"NoSaveSettings"=hex:00,00,00,00
"NoStartBanner"=hex:01,00,00,00
"NoLogoff"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Back"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Forward"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Stop"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Refresh"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Home"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Search"=dword:00000000
"Btn_History"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Favorites"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Folders"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Fullscreen"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Tools"=dword:00000000
"Btn_MailNews"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Size"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Print"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Edit"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Discussions"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Cut"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Copy"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Paste"=dword:00000000
"Btn_Encoding"=dword:00000000
"NoActiveDesktop"=dword:00000000
"NoActiveDesktopChanges"=dword:00000000
"NoInternetIcon"=dword:00000000
"NoNetHood"=dword:00000000
"NoDesktop"=dword:00000000
"NoFavoritesMenu"=dword:00000001
"NoFind"=dword:00000000
"NoRun"=dword:00000000
"NoSetActiveDesktop"=dword:00000000
"NoWindowsUpdate"=dword:00000000
"NoChangeStartMenu"=dword:00000000
"NoFolderOptions"=dword:00000000
"NoRecentDocsMenu"=dword:00000000
"NoRecentDocsHistory"=dword:00000000
"ClearRecentDocsOnExit"=dword:00000000
"NoClose"=dword:00000000
"NoSetFolders"=dword:00000000
"NoSetTaskbar"=dword:00000000
"NoTrayContextMenu"=dword:00000000
"NoFileMenu"=dword:00000000
"NoViewContextMenu"=dword:00000000
"EnforceShellExtensionSecurity"=dword:00000000
"LinkResolveIgnoreLinkInfo"=dword:00000000
"NoDrives"=dword:00000000
"NoNetConnectDisconnect"=dword:00000000
"NoDeletePrinter"=dword:00000000
"NoAddPrinter"=dword:00000000
"NoPrinterTabs"=dword:00000000
"
Each time you restart Windows, Microsoft's Welcome screen appears, displaying tips for beginners. Most people turn this screen off after a few weeks. Change the welcome-screen tips that ship with Windows--or add your own brilliant sayings--by editing the Registry. Go to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\explorer\Tips. Make sure the values in the key are numbered sequentially from zero forward. Windows 95 ships with 48 tips and NT comes with 50, but you can add as many as you like. Select Edit, New, String Value, then type in the number (48 for Windows 95 and 50 for NT, since the values start at 0). Double-click on the new string and type in its value--in this case the message or tip that you want to display.
By now you've customized the way Windows looks; now it's time to attack the way it sounds. Edit the Registry to force Windows to play sounds for specific events, like opening or closing an application and maximizing or minimizing windows. You can also set it to play a certain sound file when it displays a message box. For example, to play the sound C:\sound.wav every time you start Microsoft Paint, run the Registry Editor, and find the key:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\AppEvents\Schemes\Apps
Click on Edit, New, then Key, and type in MSPAINT (to match the name of the program). Next add a key under MSPAINT called Open, and a key under that called .Current. Double-click on the default value to set it to C:\windows\sound.wav or whatever. You'll see other applications with sounds events; use them as a guide.
Does your PC know who you are--really? Make sure that Windows has your name and company information correct,(or whatever your definition of 'correct' is) because many applications automatically pick up this info when you install them.
In the registry, find the key called HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\MS Setup (ACME)\User Info in the values DefName and DefCompany. Change these to reflect the correct information.
While you're at it, make sure that your name and company name appear correct in the rest of Windows. If you bought your PC with Windows preinstalled, the value may say something like ValuedCustomer. To check, start Windows Explorer, click on Help, About Windows. Navigate to the Registry key HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion and change the values called RegisteredOwner and RegisteredOrganization. (In NT, look at the key \Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion.)
To change the icon for your hard drive, create the following file in
notepad:
[autorun]
icon=C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\Pifmgr.dll,36
Notice it's two lines.
If your hard drive is C:
click Save As... and navigate to C:
and save it as autorun.inf
enclose it in quotes so Notepad won't put a .txt on the end of it
The path specified is the typical Windows path
yours may vary, but you'll have that dll file.
The 36 at the end is the number of the icon I chose.
(Icons in a file are numbered, starting at 0.)
To see the change, open Windows Explorer; click F5 if needed to refresh.
To preview your icon options, select an icon on your desktop, right-click and select
Properties, then Change Icon. You can also select any other .dll file in your computer, although most won't have icons.
The common Windows icons are in C:\Windows\System\shell32.dll
You can also point to a single icon. Using the example above:
[autorun]
icon=c:\windows\cursors\myicon.ico
Navigate to the folder whom's icon you want to change, right-click and select New -> Text Document, and rename it to:
desktop.ini
Here's a two line desktop.ini file pointing to an icon:
[.ShellClassInfo]
IconFile=c:\windows\cursors\icon.ico
Here's a three line desktop.ini file pointing to shell32.dll:
[.ShellClassInfo]
IconFile=C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\Pifmgr.dll
IconIndex=35
Now open a DOS prompt (Start Menu -> Programs -> MS-DOS Prompt) and type:
attrib +s <c:\path\to\foldername>
This makes it a system folder, which you can see by right-clicking and selecting 'Properties'. To remove the System folder attribute, enter:
attrib -s <etc>
at the DOS prompt.
Use the same Notepad procedures to make a .bat file; use any name you want, just make sure it ends with .bat. Type:
echo y| del \windows\recent\*.*
echo y answers "yes" to every "Do you want to delete..." question, deleting the document shortcuts
stored in C:\Windows\Recent
Or change the Recent to any other folder. This can be kinda dangerous, though...if you del C:\windows, re-read the top paragraph on this page before contacting me.
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\
and
HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\
and
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\
Check all the keys that start with "Run"
In regedit, go to:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\8.0\Word\Options
and create a New -- String value called LiveScrolling. Double-click it and change the value to 1 (one).
In Explorer, go to the View menu, Folder Options, File Types, select File folder...Edit...New....
Give it a name (the Action: line), then on the "Application used..." line, type:
C:\command.com /K cd "%1"
This can also be used at: Folder and Drive
You can create a .bat file to change the command
prompt, install DOSkey, or whatever, and call it with
c:\command.com /K c:\myDos.bat cd "%1"
You can also use special characters that will show
up in the pop-up menu, such as Alt+128 for a capital C.
(To create myDos.bat, open Notepad and enter:
doskey
prompt $p$g $$
cls
...see the prompt options by typing prompt /? in a DOS window.)
DOS window banner ads
Open c:\config.sys with Notepad and add:
Device=C:\WINDOWS\Command\Ansi.sys
adjusting to point to your own ansi.sys, of course.
Open c:\autoexec.bat with Notepad and add:
SET WINPMT=$e[s$e[f$e[0;316;41;1m$e[KKevin's Prompt -- Type Exit to close$_$e[0;40;37;1m$e[K$e[u$P$G
Replace: Kevin's Prompt -- Type Exit to close
with whatever you want, as long as it'll fit on the top row of the DOS window. Leave the first K...that's a tag. You can change other stuff in there if you have the patience to reboot after every change to see the effect. Note that the $p$g on the end is the prompt.
Also in autoexec.bat, you can add:
set dircmd= /p /o:gne
to automagically use the pause command in DOS windows
Change the /p to /w or whatever else you want; open a DOS prompt and type:
dir /?
to see your options.
In Explorer, go to the View menu, Folder Options, File Types, select File folder...Edit...New....
Give it a name, then on the "Application used..." line, type:
C:\Windows\Command.com /c dir /ong >prn
Adjust for your Windows directory.
Repeat for Folder and Drive
Type dir /? at a DOS prompt to see the options available, and adjust the /ong parameters to suit yourself.
To speed up menus, go to
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ControlPanel\Desktop
and add a new string called:
MenuShowDelay
The time is measured in milliseconds, so 1000 would be 1 second, and 0 is no delay.
If you have trouble with an out-of-control mouse, go to:
HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop
and add a new string called:
MenuShowDelay
change it to 65534 to make menus only respond to clicks
This will disable 'Single-click to Select'
When you click a menu, the list drops down aligned to the left of the menu name. To make it align with the right side, go to:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ControlPanel\Desktop
and add a new string called:
MenuDropAlignment
add enter a value of 1. (Change it to 0(zero) or delete the line to restore left alignment.)
Add a right-click menu item to all files from PC Magazine
You edit file type-specific context menus through Explorer. Select Options from the View menu, click the File Types tab, and select the file type from the list. Click Edit. Now you can edit, add, or remove context menu options. Note that for a few special file types, such as executable files (programs) and batch files, Explorer limits your ability to change the context menu options.
To add a menu choice for all files, start by associating it to a single file type. Chose Options from the View menu, click on the File Types page, select any file type, and press the Edit button. In the Edit File Type dialog, press the New . . . button and give your new action a distinctive name, say, ZZZNORK. Press the Browse . . . button and locate the application that should perform the action. When you have the command line entered correctly, press OK, press Close, and then press Close again. At this point you may want to right-click on a file of the chosen type and make sure the menu choice is working correctly.
Now run Regedit and search for ZZZNORK: Press Ctrl-F, enter ZZZNORK, check only the Keys check box, and press Find Next. You should find it under a key with a name formed like HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ FileTypeName\shell. Select Export from the Registry menu and export this branch to TEMP$$$$.REG. Delete the ZZZNORK key and close Regedit.
Open TEMP$$$$.REG in your favorite editor and change every occurrence of the file type name to * (a single asterisk). Change every occurrence of ZZZNORK to the name you want displayed for your new menu item. Save the file, then launch it. You've just added a menu item for all files. To add a menu item specifically for files whose types are not registered with the system, do exactly the same thing, but use the word Unknown in place of the asterisk.
Using .reg files
Here's an example using Outlook Express 4.x:
Type or cut'n paste the following into Notepad and save with a .reg extension. (Remove the two (BLANK_LINE_GOES_HERE)'s).
REGEDIT4
(BLANK_LINE_GOES_HERE)
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Outlook Express]
"NoSplash"=dword:00000001
(BLANK_LINE_GOES_HERE)
|
You shouldn't use a .reg file if you don't know what it's doing or if it even belongs there. ALWAYS look before you 'merge' a .reg file.
You can change the Frame Controls (the Minimize, Restore, and Close buttons on the top right of every window) using the freeware program Eppie Desktop:
Web (author) -- http://www.u.arizona.edu/~jepstein/
Web (program) -- http://www.u.arizona.edu/~jepstein/epdsk/
Icon and cursor notes
Internet notes
Internet Explorer Content Advisor help, detecting and deleting BackOrifice, y2k notes, keyboard shortcuts and Windows 98 source code
DMA stuff from Fred Langa:
langa.txt
Speeding up Internet Explorer
The ultimate customization: hacking explorer.exe
If you'd like, I have condensed versions of this page in redneck, jive, Cockney, or Swedish.
Unix: Activate NumLock at boot:
Add this to your rc.local file:
for tty in /dev/tty[1-9]*;
do
setleds -D +num<$tty>/dev/null
done
This worked under FreeBSD and RedHat Linux
bashrc.gz
My .bashrc file for RedHat Linux, ripped off almost verbatim from:
Sue's FreeBSD page
|
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Oops!
Some random stuff that got lost in the shuffle:
These are from Lockergnome:
They say that blinking is a sign of nervousness or lying, but I wonder if the researchers were blinking when they discovered that? You can speed up or slow down the rate at which your cursor blinks. Launch the Registry Editor (REGEDIT), and navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER > Control Panel > Desktop, then in the right-most panel, you should see a String Value named 'CursorBlinkRate' (if one doesn't exist, you can create one). Now, you can change the value to any number between 0 and 65535. The smaller the number, the faster your cursor will blink (and vice versa). You can also tweak the rate via the Keyboard applet in the Control Panel, but the range is severely limited.
It's not easy being blue; when you'd rather be playing in the snow, you're stuck inside -- with nothing constructive to do. For years now, the Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) has been haunting our PCs. Would you rather see the Magenta Screen of Death? What about Cyan? That's doable. Open up SYSTEM.INI and fly to the [386enh] section. Add two new values: 'MessageBackColor=' and 'MessageTextColor=' (without the quotes, but with the equal symbol). You'll need to use ONE hexadecimal "number" for each color; they are as follows: 0 (black), 1 (blue), 2 (green), 3 (cyan), 4 (red), 5 (magenta), 6 (yellow), 7 (white), 8 (gray), 9 (bright blue), A (bright green), B (bright cyan), C (bright red), D (bright magenta), E (bright yellow), F (bright white). I hope you never see another screen of death again.
MODEM MADNESS. If you're plagued, as I am, with frequent
disconnects, this might be worth a try. Click on
Start|Settings|Control Panel|Properties|Connection Tab|Advanced and in
the Extra Settings box, enter S10=50. This supposedly holds the modem
connection without a carrier for a period of 5 seconds, allowing
compensation for slight gaps of connect time. But then again, maybe
not.
This tweak is definitely one to pass along to friends. Windows 98 accesses your swap file (virtual memory) before it runs out of RAM (physical memory) -- which, from a user's point of view, is completely nuts. Virtual memory will always operate slower than physical memory, so why does Windows 98 insist on using both? Frankly, I don't know. According to article Q223294 in the Microsoft knowledge base, this new method is more efficient. Uh huh. Thank goodness they've posted a fix! Yes, if you have more than 64 megabytes of RAM and you're running Windows 98, you'll wanna give this a shot. In your SYSTEM.INI file, under the [386Enh] section, enter: "ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1" (without the quotes). Reboot, and I believe you'll find your system more responsive. Your mileage may vary!
I don't know where this came from. The underpants gnomes?
Old Pentium bug check:
Calculator -> View menu -> Scientific
(4195835/3145727)x3145727
The result should be 4195835
The buggy Pentium will show 4195579
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This page, and by golly, this website is...well...not exactly copyrighted...um...I should probably deny some of this......howsabout we stick with a standard legal notice
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If you're using Outlook Express, put e-mail into the Restricted Sites zone. You've been warned.
