Ultimate Windows Extra

 

WINDOWS ME

Creating favorites in the registry  (posted 01/22/03)

If you spend a lot of time making configuration changes in the registry, you're going to love the new Registry Editor's Favorites feature in Windows Me. When you're editing a registry key that you may want to return to in the future, just pull down the Favorites menu, select the Add To Favorites command, and give the Favorite a name in the Add To Favorites dialog box. Now, when you return to the Registry Editor at a later date, you can return to the same spot in the registry by pulling down the Favorites menu and selecting the shortcut.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Keeping track of your Internet connection speed   (posted 01/07/03)

If you're like most people, you want to know how fast your Internet connection is when you're surfing the net. Fortunately, Windows ME's System Monitor now contains counters that allow you to track your Internet connection speed. When you're connected to the Internet, you can load System Monitor from the Programs | Accessories | System Tools menu. Once you have System Monitor up and running, you can configure it to monitor your Internet connection speed by pulling down the Edit menu and selecting the Add Item command. Choose the  Dial-Up Adapter in the Category panel and Connection Speed in the Item panel and then click OK. Now, use the buttons on the toolbar to configure System Monitor to use a Line, Bar or Numeric chart to display the connection speed.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Connect your computers with the Home Networking Wizard    (posted 09/04/02)

If you have more than one computer in your home, you can use Windows Me's Home Networking Wizard to connect your computers and other devices, such as printers, to a network. By taking advantage of the Home Networking Wizard, you can share an Internet connection with all of the computers on your home network, work on files stored on any computer on the network from any other computer, share printers from any computer, and play multi-player games. 

Before running the Home Networking wizard, make sure your network hardware is installed and working properly. This includes the cables used to connect your computers together and the NIC (or Network Interface Card) used to physically connect your computer to the network. If you're sharing an Internet connection, ensure that the modems, wireless modems, Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN), Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), and cable modems are all working properly as well.

Once you've done this, you can launch the Windows Me Home Networking Wizard by clicking the Start button and choosing Programs Accessories | Communications | Home Networking Wizard. Windows Me's Home Networking Wizard walks you through the process of setting up and customizing file, printer, and Internet sharing on a Windows Me machine connected to any peer-to-peer network. The wizard optionally creates a disk that can be used to install the Windows Me network software on other computers that you want to include on the same network, even if the other computers are running Windows 95 or 98. Follow the prompts in the wizard and you'll have your home network up and running in no time.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Enabling AutoRun in Windows Me   (posted 08/13/02)

Windows Me doesn't have the AutoRun feature (which enables your CD-ROMs to launch automatically once you insert them in the CD-ROM drive) because of an error in a registry value, but if you'd like to save some loading time, you can enable AutoRun by editing the registry to fix the problematic value.

Open the registry by clicking the Start button, choosing the Run command, and typing regedit in the Open text box. Navigate to the following key: HKEY_ CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\Current Version\Policies\Explorer, and in the right pane, double-click on the the NoDriveTypeAutoRun value. Its data should read FF 00 00 00. Delete those four numbers and enter 95 00 00 00, and then click OK. You may need to restart Windows Me, but the AutoRun feature for your CD-ROM drive will now be enabled.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Updating Accessibility settings in the Help And Support Center   (posted 07/23/02)

In a previous tip we showed you how to configure Windows Me's Accessibility Options to make it easier to use your computer if you have mobility, visual, or auditory impairments. However, after configuring these options, you'll notice that Windows Me's Help And Support Services pages still display the normal fonts, size, colors, and contrast settings, instead of your customized settings. This occurs because the Help And Support Center uses Microsoft Internet Explorer for the user interface, which uses separate tools for customized settings of colors, fonts, and accessibility.

To remedy this problem, all you need to do is configure Internet Explorer to ignore the settings specified on the Web pages. Open Internet Explorer, and then choose Tools | Internet Options. On the General property sheet, click the Accessibility button, and in the Formatting panel, select the three check boxes (Ignore Colors Specified On Web Pages, Ignore Font Styles On Web Pages, and Ignore Font Sizes Specified On Web Pages), and then click OK.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Take a Windows Me tour  (posted 06/04/02)

One of the new features in Windows Me is the inclusion of several dozen tours and tutorials to help you get acquainted with the operating system. The tours and tutorials cover a wide range of subject areas, including the Home Networking tour, The Playing Games tour, and the Scanners And Cameras Tour.

All you need to do to begin your Windows Me expedition is click the Start button and choose Help to open the Help And Support Center. At the top of the Help And Support Center, click on the
Tours & Tutorials link and you're on your way to becoming an experienced Windows Me user.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Scanning images with Windows Me  (posted 05/29/02)

If you're new to Windows Me, chances are you're just learning about the wealth of photo-related features contained in the OS that can help you with your digital images.

Windows Me includes Windows Image Acquisition (WIA) technology that makes it easy for you to scan images and download them onto your computer. If you have a WIA-enabled scanner with a USB (Universal Serial Bus) connection, you're ready to go. Check your scanner's documentation to see whether it's WIA-enabled, and then connect your WIA-enabled scanner to your computer by using the USB cable. Windows Me will automatically recognize your scanner.

Next, place the image that you want to scan face down on the scanner. Double-click on the My Computer icon on your desktop, and then double-click on the icon representing your scanner. When the Scanner And Camera Wizard launches, click Next. Your scanner will create a preview image, and then the Wizard will display the preview image surrounded by dotted lines. The lines surround the area that will be scanned. Drag the lines to change the size of the area to be scanned (for example, to crop the picture). Then, adjust the image quality by selecting the image type or by clicking the Adjusting The Quality Of The Scanned Picture button, and then click Next. Type the name of the picture, choose the file format, and then click Finish. Your image will now be scanned into your computer.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Determining if a file is protected with System File Protection  (posted 05/21/02)

If you want to determine if a particular file is being protected by System File Protection, you can do so using this method:

First, navigate to the \Windows\System\SFP\ folder on your hard drive and double-click on the Sfpdb.sfp file. In the Open With dialog box, select WordPad, and make sure that the Always Use This Program To Open These Files check box is deselected, and then click OK. WordPad will now open on your screen.

Now, choose Edit | Find, and in the Find What text box, type the name of the file you want to check for SFP protection, and then click Find Next. If the file is found, the file is protected by the SFP feature. If you receive a message informing you that WordPad has finished searching the entire document without finding the file, the file in question is not protected.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Display detailed error messages   (posted 05/15/02)

Windows Me error messages often do not reveal component and register information by default. When an error occurs, you see a dialog box that may say something such as "IEXPLORE has caused an error in <unknown>. IEXPLORE will now close." However, detailed information on the error can be viewed. Follow this simple tip to display detailed error messages in Windows Me.

While the message stating that there has been an error is still visible on your screen, press [Alt][D]. This displays the error message details for review. If the error has already occurred, or if you weren't able to press [Alt][D], you can still access the error report.

All you have to do is right-click on the My Computer icon, and select Explore from the shortcut menu. Next, open the C:\Windows directory and locate and double-click on the Faultlog.txt file. You can now examine the entries for the error details, while keeping in mind that the Faultlog.txt entries are automatically entered at the time they occur, and the time and date the error occurs is logged. The most recent error will appear as the bottom entry.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Enabling Universal Plug and Play   (posted 05/07/02)

By default, Windows Me does not have Universal Plug and Play enabled. When this feature is installed on your computer, anytime a Universal Plug and Play device is detected, it can streamline the process of component installation, so it's advisable to install it.

To install the Universal Plug and Play feature, click the Start button and choose Settings | Control Panel. Double-click on the Add/Remove Programs icon, and then select the Windows Setup tab. Select the Communications component, and then click the Details button. Scroll down in the Components list box and select the Universal Plug And Play option. Click OK twice, and make sure your windows ME CD is in your CD-ROM drive so you can install the component.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Installing MS Backup  (posted 05/01/02)

Microsoft doesn't include MS Backup as an option for you to install during the setup phase of Windows Me, and you won't even find it in Add/Remove Programs Properties dialog box. However, if you're a fan of this utility, which enables you to create a duplicate copy of all of the data on your hard disk and then archive it on another storage device, such as a hard disk or a tape, you can still install it, provided you have the Windows Me CD-ROM.

Open Windows Explorer and navigate to the ADD-ONS\MSBackup\ folder on the Windows Me CD. Double-click on the msbexp.exe file to install MS Backup. The shortcut to MS Backup can be found in the Programs |  Accessories | System Tools submenu.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Stay informed with System File Protection  (posted 04/23/02)

System File Protection (SFP), a feature first introduced to Windows in Windows 2000 in the form of Windows File Protection (WFP), is included in Me to prevent the replacement of certain monitored or protected system files. By preventing the replacement of essential system files, file version mismatches can be avoided. SFP runs in the background of Windows Me, so you'll never see it at work.

SFP monitors a database of protected files, while having access to the same files on a hidden location on the hard disk. If one of the protected files is deleted or replaced by an older version (or a version not approved by Microsoft), SFP will copy the original version of the file from the hidden location.

This process takes place without your knowing it; however, there is a way to configure SFP to give you pop-up notification when it's acting to protect your files. All you need to do is edit the registry.

First, open the Registry Editor by clicking the Start button, choosing Run, and typing regedit in the Open text box. Go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\SystemFileProtection,

and then double-click on the ShowPopups value. In the Edit DWORD Value dialog box, change the Value Data from 0 to 1, close the dialog box, and then close the Registry Editor and restart Windows. You'll now be notified with a pop-up box each time SFP is keeping your system files from harm.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Monitoring SFP's work  (posted 04/16/02)

In a previous tip we showed you how to enable pop-up notification each time Windows Me's System File Protection feature protected system file deletion or replacement on your computer. In this tip, we'll show you where you can find out exactly what files have been replaced by the feature.

SFP maintains a log of all protected files that have been replaced. The log file, Sfplog.txt, can be found in the C:\Windows\System\SFP folder. If there are any entries in the log file (other than the log entry that is added when Windows Me first starts), then SFP has had to protect some files. You can use this log to determine if a pattern exists in how your system files are being replaced and troubleshoot the faulty process that is resulting in this activity.

Any files that have been protected by SFP will be locatedin the Filelist.xml file, which is found in C:\Windows\System\Restore\.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Quickly gather clips  (posted 04/09/02)

Putting together a movie in Windows Movie Maker can be a time-consuming and often tedious process, but you'll be happy to know that you can gather clips more quickly by selecting multiple clips in the Collections area and then dragging them to the storyboard or timeline.

Hold down the [Ctrl] key and then click each clip that you want to add to your project in the Collections area. Drag the selected clips to the storyboard or timeline. The clips appear in your project in the order they appear in the collections area. You can rearrange the clips in your project by dragging them to the desired location on the storyboard or timeline.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Troubleshooting hibernation  (posted 03/26/02)

In a previous tip, we showed you how to place your computer into hibernation mode, which saves everything in computer memory on your hard disk, and then turns off your monitor and hard disk. But what happens if you've configured your system to go into hibernation mode and it doesn't work?

Luckily, Windows Me includes a file called nohiber.txt located in your Windows folder. This file will appear if your computer does not hibernate as it is supposed to and will contain information as to why this problem is occurring. Best of all, in most cases a suggestion will be offered as to how to fix the problem and use hibernation again.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Quickly launching Search in Windows Me  (posted 03/19/02)

You can quickly and easily launch Search from Windows Explorer by selecting the folder or drive that you want to search and pressing  [Ctrl]E or [Ctrl]F to open the Search Explorer bar.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Create JPEG wallpaper without enabling Active Desktop  (posted 02/26/02)

If you'd like to use Windows Me's default images located in the My Pictures folder as your wallpaper, but your video adapter doesn't have the necessary memory to use Active Desktop, you'll be pleased to learn that we've found a workaround to enable you to use the images without enabling Active Desktop.

The sample pictures included in the My Pictures folder are JPEG files, which require Active Desktop to be enabled in order to be displayed as wallpaper. Active Desktop requires more video memory to display JPEG images than the default Windows background does, so if your display adapter doesn't have an excess of available video RAM you won't be able to use the images. However, follow this procedure to use the sample images without Active Desktop.

First, open the My Pictures folder, right-click on a sample image, and then select Open With | Paint. In Paint, choose File | Save As and from the Save As Type box, select one of the bitmap (BMP) options, type a name for the file, and then click OK. Close Paint, and then right-click on the desktop, and choose Properties. In the Display Properties dialog box, select the Background tab, select the sample image that you saved as a bitmap file, and then click OK. The image will now appear as your wallpaper.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Manually put your computer in Standby mode  (posted 02/26/02)

If your computer has been set up by the manufacturer to support the Standby power option, you can preserve your Windows Me computer's resources by manually placing it into Standby mode, following a simple procedure to configure your Power button to serve as a Standby switch. A word of caution: You must save your work before you put your computer into the Standby mode. While your computer is in the Standby mode, unsaved information in your computer's memory can't be saved to the computer's hard disk. If your computer experiences an interruption in its power supply, all of the unsaved information stored in your computer's memory is lost.

Click the Start button and then choose Settings | Control Panel. Double-click on the Power Options icon, and in the Power Options Properties dialog box, select the Advanced tab. In the When I Press The Power Button On My Computer panel, select the Standby option. Then click Apply and OK and press the Power button on your computer to put it in Standby mode.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Print pictures from the My Pictures folder  (posted 01/29/02)

If don't want to waste time opening each of your digital photographs or other images before printing them, you can print them directly from Windows Me's My Pictures folder without ever even opening them by using the Image Preview window. This is a definite time-saver when you need to print multiple photographs but don't want to open
each of them individually beforehand.

In the My Pictures folder in Windows Explorer, select the picture you want to print. A thumbnail of the picture will appear in the Image Preview window, to the left of the file list. In the Image Preview window, click the Print button. In the Printing Better Pictures dialog box, click Yes if you'd like to see the windows Me help information on printing pictures. Otherwise, click No. In the Print dialog box, click OK.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Windows Me System Restore Update  (posted 01/22/02)

In previous tips we showed you how to use and configure the System Restore feature to return a computer experiencing problems to a point in time before the problems occurred. However, Windows Me System Restore feature has a bug in it that may cause the feature to date-stamp checkpoints that are made after September 8, 2001
incorrectly. This problem occurs because the algorithm used to calculate the checkpoint file name does not work after September 8, 2001. Attempts to restore your system to a point in time made after September 8, 2001 may generate an error message that says "Restoration was unsuccessful."

For more information about this update and to download the update Microsoft has released to fix this problem, read the Knowledge Base article found at:

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q290/7/00.ASP?FR=1

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Enable Direct Memory Access (DMA)  (posted 01/15/02)

Direct Memory Access, or memory access that doesn't involve your system's microprocessor, isn't enabled by default for your hard disk and CD-ROM in Windows Me. Enabling DMA has a definite benefit for your system because it will use significantly less CPU time when sending data to and from these devices, so it's to your advantage to enable it.

Open Control Panel and double-click on the System icon. Select the Device Manager tab and then double-click on your hard drive or CD-ROM to view its properties. Select the Settings tab, and then select the DMA option. You'll receive an Unsupported Hardware Alert message box that informs you that DMA may not be compatible with your devices, but click OK to enable the option anyway. If you notice problems using your CD-ROM or hard drive, you can always return to this dialog box and deselect the DMA option. After you click OK, restart your computer. You should notice a definite increase in the speed with which data is transferred to and from your hard drive and CD-ROM. 

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Viewing the Scheduled Tasks icon  (posted 01/08/02)

Unlike Windows 98, Windows Me doesn't display the Scheduled Tasks icon in the System Tray by default. If you'd like to be reminded of your scheduled tasks by having this icon in your Windows Me System Tray, follow this simple registry-editing procedure.

Open the registry by typing regedit in the Run dialog box's Open text box. Then, navigate to:

HKEY_Local_Machine\Software\Microsoft\Plus!\System Agent

Right-click in the right pane of the windows and choose New | DWORD Value.  Name the new value EnableTrayIcon and press [Enter]. Then double-click on the value to open the Edit DWORD Value dialog box, and in the Value Data text box, type 1. Exit
the registry and reboot Windows. The Scheduled Tasks icon should now appear in the System Tray.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)  

Undo a system restoration  (posted 12/27/01)

In a previous tip, we showed you how to use Windows Me's System Restore feature to create a restore point to return your operating system to proper working order. However, if you've accidentally restored your computer to an incorrect restore point, there is a way to undo your last system restoration.

You can either undo your last restoration, or you can choose restoration points prior to the last restoration. Click Start, and then choose Programs | Accessories | System Tools | System Restore. To undo your last restoration, select the Undo My Last Restoration option.  Close any open programs, and then click Next. To roll back your operating system to another restore point, select the Restore My Computer To An Earlier Time option and follow the prompts on your screen to select a restore point made before your last restoration. 

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Display system-protected files  (posted 12/18/01)

By default, Windows Me doesn't display the system-protected files, such as the contents of the Restore folder, in order to protect these files from being accidentally deleted or corrupted. Even if you've chosen to display hidden files by selecting the Show Hidden Files And Folders option in the Folder Options dialog box, you will still not be able to view the protected system files.

To be able to view these files in Windows Explorer or My Computer, choose Tools | Folder Options, and select the View tab. Under Advanced Settings, uncheck Hide Protected Operating System Files. In the Warning dialog box, click Yes, and then in the Folder Options dialog box, click Apply and OK. You'll now be able to view all Windows Me's operating system files. 

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Quickly restart Windows Me  (posted 12/11/01)

Have you ever wished you could reboot Windows Me without taking up so much time? If you're ever in a hurry and you need to quickly reboot Windows Me, here's how to do it without having to wait through the lengthy BIOS tests.

Click the Start button and then choose Shut Down. In the Shut Down Windows dialog box, select the Restart option. Now hold down the [Shift] key and click OK. Windows Me will now reboot much more quickly because it will bypass the BIOS tests necessary in a normal boot sequence. 

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Access Control Panel applets from the Start menu  (posted 12/04/01)

If you need frequent access to the Control Panel and dislike having to first spend time in opening the Control Panel's dialog box, you'll like this tip, which shows you how to add all the Control Panel's applets to a submenu on the Start menu.

First, click on the Start button and choose Settings | Taskbar And Start Menu. Select the Advanced tab, and in the Start Menu And Task Bar list box, scroll down and select the Expand Control Panel option and click Apply and then click OK. The next time you need to access a Control Panel applet, you'll be able to do so directly from the Start menu by clicking the Start button and choosing Settings | Control Panel and selecting the applet from the submenu. 

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Customize your photo screen saver's options   (posted 11/27/01)

In a previous tip we showed you how to make your digital images into a screen saver using Windows Me's My Pictures screen saver.  If the photos in your screen saver don't look quite like you'd like them to look, we'll now show you how to customize the display of this screen saver when it appears on your screen.

First, open the Display Properties dialog box and on the Screen Saver tab, verify that My Pictures Screen Saver appears in the Screen Saver dropdown list. Now click the Settings button. In the My Pictures Screen Saver options dialog box, you can make the pictures in the screen saver change more or less often by adjusting the first slider. You can also make the pictures appear smaller or larger by adjusting the second slider. Finally, you can have Windows Me stretch the smaller pictures, show file names in the screen saver, use transition effects between the photos, and allow a user to scroll through the pictures using the keyboard by selecting the options at the bottom of the dialog box. With a few adjustments, your photo screen saver will soon appear exactly as you'd like it to.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Create a photo screensaver  (posted 11/21/01)

Have you ever wanted to make a personalized screensaver from all those digital images you've saved in Windows Me's My Pictures folder? Follow this simple procedure to create a photo screensaver for your computer or to share with friends.

Windows Me includes a My Pictures Screen Saver option on the Screen Saver tab of the Display Properties dialog box. The content of this screen saver is generated automatically from the pictures you've stored in your My Pictures folder. And since Windows Me includes several default images in this folder, you don't even need to have any of your own photos to take advantage of the My Pictures screen saver.

Simply right-click on the desktop and choose Properties from the shortcut menu.  Select the Screen Saver tab, and from the Screen Saver dropdown list, select My Pictures Screen Saver. If your images are stored in a location other than the My Pictures folder, click the Settings button and in the My Pictures Screen Saver Options dialog box, click the Browse button and navigate to the folder where your pictures are stored. Click OK to close the My Pictures Screen Saver Options dialog box, and in the Display Properties dialog box, click Apply and then OK. The next time your screen saver appears, you'll see your own images appear on the screen!

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

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WINDOWS 98

Transferring dial-up information between computers   (posted 02/18/03)

When you first buy a new computer, you can spend hours customizing it exactly as you had your previous computer and transferring all pertinent information and settings from your old system to your new one. Entering all your Dial-Up Networking settings for your Internet connection takes a while, and repeating the same information on your new system is a waste of time. If you regularly use more than one computer to connect to the Internet, you don't have to enter all the information twice. You can transfer the Dial-Up Networking (DUN) settings stored in your Dial-Up Networking folder to another computer.

First, open the Dial-Up Networking folder by clicking the Start button and then choosing Programs | Accessories | Communications | Dial-Up Networking. Then, drag the icon for the setting you wish to transfer to a floppy disk, or, if your computers are networked, drop it onto the other computer's desktop.  Then, you'll need to re-enter your user name and password information on the other computer. You can ensure that this works correctly by enabling the settings for user name and password. Open the Dial-Up Networking dialog box once again, and then choose Connections | Settings, and then select the Prompt For Information Before Dialing checkbox. Second, you'll need to select the other computer's modem for the connection by right-clicking the connection, selecting Properties, and then selecting the modem from the Connect Using dropdown menu. That's all there is to it!

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Inspecting the properties   (posted 02/11/03)

As you know, to view the properties of a particular file or folder, all you need to do is to right-click on it and choose Properties from the shortcut menu. But we recently discovered a quicker way to accomplish this.

Just hold down the Alt key and double-click on the folder or file whose properties you'd like to view. The Properties dialog box appears immediately.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Creating shortcuts in the Network Neighborhood  (posted 01/22/03)

If you're connected to a network, chances are good that you have shortcuts to various network resources on your desktop. However, you can cut down on desktop clutter and keep your network shortcuts more organized if you place them in the Network Neighborhood. Keep in mind that you can't copy the existing network shortcuts from your desktop to the Network Neighborhood -- you must create new network shortcuts.

To do so, connect to a network resource, use the right mouse button to drag a folder, file, computer or even a printer icon to the Network Neighborhood icon. When you drop the icon, Windows 98 displays the Shortcut dialog box. To continue, click Yes. Now, when you need to quickly connect to network resources, you can easily find them in the Network Neighborhood. Then, you can rename the shortcuts with a more descriptive title.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Using the keyboard as a drag-and-drop alternative   (posted 01/13/03)

If you're more of a keyboard user than a mouse user and if you don't like to use the right mouse button to drag files and drop files, you can still bring up the context menu once you've dragged your file to its new destination.

All you need to do is hold down [Ctrl] and [Shift] keys, and then click on the file with your left mouse button to select it and drag the file to wherever you want it. At the end of the drag, the context menu will appear and you'll have the same menu choices available to you as you did when you were using the right mouse button to drag and drop files.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Shut down Windows from the keyboard: Part 3  (posted 01/06/03)

In a previous tip, we showed you how to shut down Windows using the keyboard by pressing [Ctrl][Esc] to display the Start menu and then press [U] to display the Shut Down Windows dialog box.

Here's another keyboard shortcut to shut down or restart Windows. All you need to do is to press the [Windows] key on your keyboard to display the Start menu, and then press the [U] key to display the Shut Down Windows dialog box. Press the [S] key to shut down Windows or the [R] key for to restart Windows.

This tip was submitted by Robert Stone

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Applying different settings to the same printer  (posted 11/04/02)

If you routinely print two kinds of documents, each requiring its own printer settings, you've probably found it cumbersome to have to re-enter all the printer properties every time you change documents.  For example, let's say you print your resume or meeting agenda in Portrait view, but print your monthly budget in Landscape view. An easy solution to this time-consuming problem is to install the same printer twice, but with different names and settings. This way, you can simply select the printer (which is actually the group of print settings) that corresponds to the settings you need for your particular print job you like the next time you want to print something.

To install a printer with new print settings, click the Start button, and then choose Settings | Printers and double-click on the Add Printer icon. Install the printer as you normally would. When you come to the screen where you name your printer, name it something that differentiates it from your default printer and lets you know about the different printer settings you're applying; for example, Osprey-Landscape. When you finish, right-click on your new printer and select Properties. Enter the print settings for your new printer icon and click OK. Now, when you want to print using the new print settings, you can just select the name from your program's Print dialog box.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Implement faster ISP connections   (posted 08/05/02)

When you create a dial-up networking connection to connect to your Internet Service Provider (ISP), one of the default settings configures the connection to log on to the network. However, most ISPs don't use this setting and having it enabled can add up to 60 seconds to your connection time.

Fortunately, you can disable this setting by opening the Dial-up Networking folder, right-clicking on your connection and selecting Properties from the shortcut menu. Next, select the Server Types tab and clear the Log On To Network check box. Then verify that you can still connect to your ISP. You should be saving time in your connection in no time.

Password-protect your screen saver    (posted 07/22/02)

Screen savers not only lengthen the lifespan of your monitor, but they also stop nosy coworkers from checking out what you're working on while you're away from your desk. That is, unless they can get close enough to bump your mouse and then your screen saver disappears and your work is exposed. Having a password-protected screen saver can help you avoid this scenario.

First, right-click the desktop and select Properties to open the Display Properties dialog box. Select the Screen Saver tab, and then select the Password Protected check box, then click the Change button and enter a password twice. Click OK and you'll see a dialog box telling you the password has been changed. Click OK two more times.

The next time your screen saver comes on and anyone (including you) tries to get past it, you'll have to enter a password before you can gain access to your work.

Keyboard alternatives to right-click submenu   (posted 06/10/02)

Right-clicking on a Web page or Web page link is an invaluable navigational tool to use to speed your browsing in Microsoft Internet Explorer 5 and higher. When you right-click on a link, for instance, and you'll see options to open the link in a new window or to add the link to the Favorites menu. However, there's also a way to open this very same menu without ever right-clicking your mouse.

To open this menu from the keyboard, press [Shift][F10]. Once the menu appears, select the underlined letter from any of the menu items to launch that command. You may find using keyboard commands in this way helpful when your mouse isn't working, when you want to avoid mousing, or when you're working on an unfamiliar laptop with a keyboard or touchpad you find difficult to use.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Saving temporary documents to the desktop  (posted 06/03/02)

When you're working with temporary documents, you may not want to save them on your hard drive lest you forget about them and they end up wasting hard drive space. Rather, save those temporary documents to the desktop instead so you'll be more likely to remember to delete them later on.

You can do so quickly in Windows 98 by taking advantage of the View Desktop button on the toolbar of most Save As dialog boxes. Just click the View Desktop button and then click the Save button.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Disabling animated windows and menus   (posted 05/28/02)

As you know, by default Windows 98 is configured to use animated windows and menus. This means that the when you minimize and maximize windows as well as open menus, Windows 98 uses special effects to create the illusion that the windows and menus explode on to the screen.

While this special effects magic is very cool, it takes time and resources. If you want to see how much, simply disable this feature. To do so, access the Control Panel and open the Display Properties dialog box. Now, select the Effects tab and clear the Animate Windows, Menus And Lists check box in the Visual Effects panel.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Encrypt Backup files with a password   (posted 05/20/02)

If you back up files using Microsoft Backup, you might want to protect your backups with a password to ensure that others can't access your information.

To encrypt a backup file with a password, select the file from the Backup Job dropdown list and click the Options button. Click on the Password tab and check the Protect This Backup With A Password check box. Enter and confirm your password and click OK. Be sure to choose a password that you'll remember because there will be no way to access this password information without it. You won't need to enter your password the next time you back up this same file--you'll only need it if and when you want to restore the backup data.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Hiding the clock   (posted 05/13/02)

If you find yourself glancing at your PC's clock every other minute as you count down the minutes until lunchtime, you might want to consider hiding the timekeeper to keep your productivity up! Follow this simple procedure to remove the clock from your system tray.

First, right-click on a blank area of your taskbar and choose Properties. Select the Taskbar Options tab, and then deselect the Show Clock check box. Click Apply, and then click OK. Your clock will then be removed from your system tray.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Quickly return to the Start menu    (posted 05/06/02)

Have you ever installed a new application whose setup window covers your whole screen, including your taskbar and Start menu? If this has ever happened to you and you've needed quick access to your system's Start menu, never fear. Here's a quick tip to have the Start menu reappear instantly.

All you have to do is press [Ctrl][Esc]. Your Start menu will immediately appear, giving you access to your computer once again.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Accessing accurate file size information  (posted 04/29/02)

If you've ever used the status bar at the bottom of your Windows Explorer window to check out the file size of an individual file or grouping of files and become frustrated when you can't access this information when you've selected a folder, check out this tip for getting file information no matter what you have selected.

To check out the amount of disk space occupied by a group of selected files and folders, simply right-click on the selected group and choose Properties from the shortcut menu. On the General property sheet, you'll see the accurate disk space for the selected grouping of files and folders, as well as any files contained within the folders.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Canceling a print job  (posted 04/22/02)

Have you ever sent a group of documents to the printer and then realized you don't need one of them printed? If you want to save some paper (and some trees in the process), you can cancel a print job from your printer queue, which is the list of everything printing or waiting to be printed.

Click the Start button, and then choose Settings | Printers, and then double-click your printer's icon to open the queue. Right-click on the document whose printing you'd like to cancel and choose Cancel Printing. The document disappears from the list. If it was in the process of printing, choosing this command stops the document in its tracks. If it hasn't started printing yet, it never will.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Bypass the Delete File confirmation   (posted 04/15/02)

If you're tired of having to click Yes in the Confirm File Delete dialog box each time you delete a file, why not prevent the dialog box from appearing?

Simply right-click on the Recycle Bin and select Properties from the shortcut menu.On the Global property sheet, deselect the Display Delete Confirmation Dialog Box option, and then click Apply and OK.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Saving temporary documents to the desktop  (posted 04/08/02)

When you're working with temporary documents, you may not want to save them on your hard drive lest you forget about them and they end up wasting hard drive space. Rather, save those temporary documents to the desktop so you'll remember to delete them when you're finished using them.

You can do so quickly in Windows 98 by taking advantage of the View Desktop button on the toolbar of most Save As dialog boxes. When you're saving a temporary file, simply click the View Desktop button and then click the Save button.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Increase the size of the Recycle Bin   (posted 04/01/02)

By default, Windows will store up to 10% of the total size of your hard drive in the Recycle Bin. However, even if you have a large hard drive, 10% can amount to very little. For example, if you have a 1.99 GB hard drive, 10% is only around 200 MB. If you have the space to spare and you want to increase your Recycle Bin's storage capacity, follow this simple procedure.

First, right-click on the Recycle Bin on your desktop and choose Properties from the shortcut menu. Select the Global tab, and then verify that the Use One Setting For All Drives option is selected. Next, move the slider from the 10% default setting to 50% (or another setting of your choosing). In our example scenario, this would store up to .99 GB in the Recycle Bin. You'll need to reboot your computer for this change to take effect.

This tip was submitted by Darrin Christie

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Compress your hard drive to gain space  (posted 03/25/02)

If you're like most people, you've run out of space on your hard drive and have had to delete numerous files and folders from time to time. However, if you find this process tedious, you're in luck because Windows 98 gives you a quick and easy way to regain valuable space if you're using the NTFS file system.

First open My Computer, and right-click on your C: drive and choose Properties from the shortcut menu. Select the Compression tab (this tab will not be visible if you're using the FAT32 file system). You will have two options for compressing your hard drive: Compress Drive or Create New Drive. To create another partition on your system, click Create New Drive and follow the directions on your screen. If your disk has been compressed in the past, you will be shown details on what's been compressed, along with options for customizing how the data is compressed. Click Compress Drive to compress your hard disk and free up space for later use.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Removing Online Services to free up disk space (posted 02/13/02)

As you know, when you install Windows 98 on your system, the installation procedure installs several starter files that allow you to easily connect to and sign up for a nationally provided online service. Once you've selected an online service, you can save about 1 MB of hard drive space by removing these starter files.

To do so, open Control Panel and double-click on the Add/Remove Programs icon. In the Add/Remove Program Properties dialog box, select the Windows Setup tab and from the Components list box, select Online Services. Then click Details and clear the check boxes of the services you don't want. To complete the operation, click Apply, and then click OK.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Speed up your programs  (posted 1/21/02)

Windows 98 includes an improved Disk Defragmenter, which gathers the program files that you use most often and moves them to faster parts of the hard disk. This enables your programs to start faster.

To ensure that Disk Defragmenter is set up properly, click the Start button and choose Programs | Accessories | System Tools | Disk Defragmenter. In the Select Drive dialog box, click Settings, and make sure that the Rearrange Program Files So My Programs Start Faster option is selected. If this option is deselected, Windows
98 will arrange all the files on your system in a contiguous unit and your program files aren't optimized for the fastest possible startup.  Click OK twice to start the process.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Renaming your Quick Launch toolbar icons

When you hover your mouse pointer over the icons on the Quick Launch toolbar, you see the names assigned to the items as pop-up ToolTips. If you've added items to the Quick Launch toolbar using drag-and-drop, the ToolTip box will read Shortcut to [item]. You can remove the words Shortcut to and replace them with Launch or simply delete them altogether. When you do, the ToolTip is cleaner and takes up less space. To make this change, launch Windows Explorer or My Computer and access the C:\Windows\Application Data\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch folder. You can then easily rename the shortcuts by selecting them and pressing [F2].

Use the Show Desktop button

As you use Windows 98 day-to-day, it's easy to forget about the little things-like the Show Desktop button. When you need to access the desktop, don't minimize all your open windows one by one-click the Show Desktop button. When you're finished on the desktop, click the Show Desktop button again to return all the windows to the way they were.

Canceling a drag-and-drop operation

Have you ever started dragging a file from one location to another and then discovered that you grabbed the wrong file? If so,  chances are that you dragged the file back to it original location in order to cancel the operation. While this technique works, there's a quicker way to cancel a drag-and-drop operation--just press [Esc]. When you do, the operation is immediately cancelled.

ZD Tips™ and ZD Journals Weekly Buzz is a trademark of Ziff-Davis Inc. Copyright (C) 1999 Ziff-Davis Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part, in any form or medium, without express written permission of Ziff-Davis is prohibited. For additional ZD Journals online information, access ZD Journals on the Internet (http://www.zdjournals.com).

Unlocking the Windows folder in Web view (posted 2/15/00)

If you're using Web view to view your folders, you've encountered what we call the childproof lock that Windows 98 places on the Windows folder. This lock shows up in the form of a warning message in the Windows folder when you attempt to access it. To bypass this, all you need to do is click the Show Files link. When you do, you can see all the files and subfolders contained in the Windows folder.

This feature is designed to prevent novice users from accidentally deleting crucial system files. However, if you're confident that you're not going to be accidentally deleting files, you can disable the childproof lock.

To do so, from the Start menu, select Find/File Or Folders to launch the Find utility, then search for the file folder.htt. When Find returns the results, select the folder.htt file in the Windows folder and rename it folder.out.

To create a standard Web view file for the Windows folder, pull down the View menu and select the Customize This Folder command. When you see the Customize This Folder wizard appear, simply click the Next button twice to create a default Web view file. When Notepad opens and displays the contents of the new, standard Web view file, simply close Notepad and then click the Finish button to end the Customize This Folder wizard.

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Quickly opening folders (posted 2/1/00)

When you want to quickly open folders, you might want to use the Run dialog box. For most local files, you need the full DOS path, but you can skip that step when opening a folder under the Windows hierarchy. For example, you can open the SendTo, System, or Start Menu folder by typing just the name in the Run dialog box and pressing [Enter]. (Use quotation marks if the name includes a space.) To instantly open a folder view of everything on the desktop, open the Run dialog box and type desktop. To browse the root directory of your C: drive, type \.

Protecting your system with the Registry Checker (posted 1/15/00)

Windows 98 provides many utilities that allow you to keep your system in tip-top condition. For example, ScanDisk keeps your hard drive error-free, Disk Defragmenter keeps your files organized, and Disk Cleanup reduces the amount of unnecessary clutter on your hard drive. Chances are, you're familiar with these utilities and use them all the time. However, there are several other Windows 98 utilities that are extremely beneficial to the survival of your system yet are relatively unknown to the average Windows 98 user. One of these utilities is the Registry Checker.

To learn all about the Registry Checker, see the FREE article "Unveiling an essential utility: the Registry Checker" on the Inside Microsoft Windows 98 Web site at
http://www.zdjournals.com/w98/9908/w989983.htm

Duplicating files in the same folder (posted 1/5/00)

As you know, it's a real pain to make a copy of a file by first copying it to another folder, renaming it, and then moving it back. Have you ever wished you could copy and rename a file within the same folder? Fortunately, we've discovered several tricks that you can use to make a copy of a file within the same folder.

First, you can right-click on the file you want to make a copy of and select the Copy command from the shortcut menu. Then, right- click on the folder background and select Paste from the shortcut Menu. You'll then see a duplicate of the file with the words Copy of preceding the filename. At this point, you can rename the file by pressing [F2] and typing the new name.

Second, you can right-click on the file and drag it slightly to the right or left and then release it. When you do, a special shortcut menu appears and you can choose the Copy Here command. Again, you'll see a duplicate of the file with the words Copy of preceding the filename.

Third, you can duplicate the file by selecting it, pulling down the Edit menu, and choosing the Copy command. Then, pull down the Edit menu and select the Paste command.

Fourth, you can duplicate the file by using the toolbar. To do so, select the file, click the Copy button, and then click the Paste button.

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Using the Lasso technique to speed file management (posted 12/1999)

As you probably know, you can use the [Shift] key to simultaneously select multiple adjacent files in both My Computer and Windows Explorer. To do so in Windows Explorer, you simply click on the first file in the group, then hold down the [Shift] key as you click on the last file. Windows Explorer will select those two files and all the ones in between.

Well, did you know that you could make the same selection without using the [Shift] key--or touching your keyboard? A lesser-known alternative allows you to select a group of adjacent files by clicking and dragging a box around them with your mouse. When you release your mouse button, Windows Explorer selects all files within the box. We call this the lasso technique.

Using the [Spacebar] for page up and down in your browser (posted 12/1/99)

When you're reading information on a long Web page, there are several ways that you can scroll through the page:

* You can use your mouse and the scroll bars
* You can use the [Page Down] and [Page Up] keys
* If you have a mouse with a wheel, you can use the wheel

However, there's another way to scroll through a long Web page. You can use the [Spacebar] to scroll down a page and [Shift] [Spacebar] to scroll up the page. This alternate methods nice for touch typists.

Create email on the fly with a special shortcut (posted 11/15/99)

If you want to be able to quickly create an email message without having to launch Outlook Express, right-click on the desktop and select New | Shortcut from the pop up menu. When you see the Create Shortcut wizard, type "C:\Program Files\Outlook Express\Msimn.Exe" /mailurl:%1 in the command Line text box and click Next. Then, name the shortcut Quick Message and click Finish. You can then drag the shortcut to the Quick Launch menu. Now, when you want to quickly create a new message, just click the Quick Message icon.

If you want to differentiate the Quick Message icon from the Outlook Express icon, right-click the Quick Message icon and select Properties from the shortcut menu. Now, click the change Icon button and select one of the other email icons in the Change Icon dialog box.

Removing the Log Off item from the Start menu (posted 11/1/99)

If you're the only one who uses your computer and you're not on a network, you can reduce the clutter on the Start menu by removing the Log Off item from the Start menu. To do so, launch the Registry Editor by typing Regedit in the Run dialog box and open the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ \Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies \ Explorer folder. Next, pull down the Edit menu, select the New | DWORD Value command, and name the value NoLogOff. Now, press [Enter] twice to enable the new name and to open the Edit DWORD Value dialog box. Once the Edit DWORD Value dialog box appears, type 1 in the Value Data text box, click OK and close the Registry Editor. To complete the operation, restart your system.

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Shut down Windows 98 fast! (posted 10/10/99)

As you may know, when you want to shut down Windows 98, you have to go through several steps. First you have to click the Start
button and select the Shut Down command. When the Shut Down Windows dialog box appears, you have to select the Shut Down The Computer option and then click Yes. That's four steps.

Fortunately, we've discovered a way to shut down Windows 98 in one simple double-click. To implement this technique, launch the Create Shortcut wizard by right clicking on the desktop and selecting the New/Shortcut command from the shortcut menu. Once the Create Shortcut wizard loads, type:

c:\windows\rundll.exe user.exe,exitwindows

in the Command Line text box,. (Make sure that there isn't a space between the comma and the exitwindows parameter otherwise the command won't work.) To continue, click Next.

When the next page appears, type Shut Down Windows 98 NOW! in the Select a Name For the Shortcut text box and click Finish. Now, when you're ready to shut down Windows 98, close all your applications as you normally would, and then just double-click the new Shut Down Windows 98 NOW! icon windows icon.

Creating a Windows 98 startup disk (posted 9/15/99)

Did you create a Windows 98 startup disk when you were prompted to do so during the Windows 98 installation procedure? If you did, do you know where that disk is right now? If you answered "No" to either of these questions, you really should take a few moments to create a Windows 98 startup disk. Fortunately, doing so is easy. To begin, open Control Panel and double-click the Add/Remove Programs icon. Once the Add/Remove Programs Properties sheet appears, click the Startup Disk tab. Now, insert a blank, high-density floppy disk into drive A and your Windows 98 CD into the CD-ROM drive. Then, click the Create Disk button.

Once you've created your Windows 98 startup disk, you should test it to make sure that it boots your system correctly and provides you with access to your CD-ROM drive. To do so, simply restart your system with the disk in drive A. Once your system restarts, you'll see the Microsoft Windows 98 Startup Menu. At this point, select the first item on the menu--Start The Computer With CD-ROM Support. When you do, you'll see several messages on your screen as the commands in the startup files execute. If the generic CD-ROM driver is working correctly, you'll eventually see a message that informs you that the MSCDEX program is loading.

If you can't access your CD-ROM drive, chances are that your system has one of the IDE (Integrated Drive Electronics) CD-ROM drives that doesn't work with Windows 98's generic, real-mode IDE CD-ROM driver. As such, you'll need to check out the "How to Modify the Windows Startup Disk with Other Device Drivers," Microsoft's Personal Online Support site at http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q188/1/27.asp.

Using Windows 98's FAT32 will improve hard drive access (9/1/99)

Is your hard drive larger than 512MB? If so, is it using the new FAT32 file system? To find out, open My Computer, right-click on your hard drive icon, and select Properties from the shortcut  menu. When you see the Properties dialog box, locate the File System tag near the top of the dialog box. If it lists FAT, then you need to convert it to FAT32. Fortunately, converting your hard drive to FAT32 is easy with Windows 98's Drive Converter utility, which you'll find on the Programs/Accessories/System Tools submenu. The Drive Converter utility uses a wizard interface to walk you through the entire procedure.

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Keeping your system in great shape with Disk Defragmenter (posted 8/15/98)

One of the most important things that you can do to keep your system running at peak performance is to regularly defragment your hard drive with the Windows 98 Disk Defragmenter utility. This utility performs two major tasks. Of course, it reorganizes your hard drive such that the pieces of your files are in contiguous order so that they can load faster. In addition, Windows 98's Disk Defragmenter utility will move the files that you use most frequently to the beginning of the hard drive where they'll load faster. You can assure that Disk Defragmenter runs regularly by configuring the Maintenance Wizard to run the utility. 

For more information on configuring the Maintenance Wizard, see the article "Scheduling System Maintenance with the Maintenance Wizard" in the November issue of Inside Microsoft Windows 98. If you're a subscriber, you can access this article in the back issue section of our Web site at http://www.zdjournals.com/w98/s_w98/9811/w9898b7.htm

Renaming your Quick Launch toolbar icons (posted 5/12/99)

When you hover your mouse pointer over the icons on the Quick Launch Toolbar, you see the names assigned to the items as pop up tool tips. If you've added items to the Quick Launch Toolbar using drag-and-drop, the tool tip box will say Shortcut to [item]. You can remove the words "Shortcut to" and replace them with "Launch" or simply delete them altogether. When you do, the tool tip is cleaner and takes up less space. To make this change, launch Windows Explorer or My Computer and access the c:\windows\application\microsoft\internet explorer\quick launch folder. You can then easily rename the shortcuts.

One view for all your folders (posted 4/25/99)

With Windows 98 it's a breeze to set global view options for all open folders because you can do so from any open folder window. Just open a  folder window and select the viewing options that you want to apply to all  folders. Then, select Folder Options from the View menu and click the View  tab. In the Folder Views panel click the Like Current Folder button, click  Yes to confirm, and then click OK to close the Folder Options dialog box. You'll see the changes the next time you open a new folder window.

Cleaning up (posted 3/12/99)

One of Windows 98's handiest utilities is the Disk Cleanup tool, which is designed to help you free up hard disk space. While Disk Cleanup automatically starts when the available free space falls below a 3% threshold, you can run it at any time. To do so click Start/Programs/Accessories/System Tools/Disk Cleanup. When Disk Cleanup launches you'll see a Files To Remove list box that contains four check-boxes: Temporary Internet Files, Downloaded Program Files, Recycle Bin, and Temporary files. (You may find other check boxes on your particular system.) Simply select the check boxes you want and click OK.

If you click the More Options tab, you'll see two more choices-- Windows setup and Installed program --that allow you to easily remove unneeded Windows components or application programs.

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Instant access to the Internet (posted 2/15/99)

If you're like most people in today's Internet-centric world, you probably keep your Internet browser running in the background on your work PC all day long. That way it's ready and waiting when you want to quickly access your favorite Web site. Unfortunately, your browser is also sucking up valuable system resources and slowing down the other applications that you need to perform your daily tasks. So, rather than bog down your system by having your browser running when you're not using it, why not create an Address toolbar that you can place anywhere on your desktop? Doing so is easy: just right-click on your taskbar and select Toolbars | Address from the shortcut menu. The Address toolbar instantly appears on your taskbar, but you can move it to any place on your desktop by clicking and dragging it. If you want the Address toolbar to always be in view, right-click on it and select Always On Top from the shortcut menu.

Unscrambling the taskbar icons (posted 1/15/99)

Sometimes when you change screen resolutions in Windows 98, your application icons on the taskbar can get scrambled. When this happens, place your mouse pointer on the vertical bar just to the right on the Start button and, when your cursor turns into a double-headed arrow, right-click. When the shortcut menu appears, select the Refresh command. Your application icons on the taskbar will then return to normal.

Searching the Internet from Find (posted 12/30/98)

If you want to quickly and easily search the Internet, you can open the Find menu and select the On the Internet command. When you do, you immediately connect to Microsoft's Search the Web site. Once you connect to this site, you can easily conduct your search by selecting from five main search engines and dozens of specialized search sites.

Uncovering multimedia properties (posted 12/10/98)

Have you ever wondered how many minutes a MID or WAV file will play? Fortunately, you can find out easily. To do so, just right-click on the file and select Properties from the shortcut menu. Once the file's properties sheet appears, click the Details tab and check out the Media Length field. You can then click Preview tab and listen to the sound clip.

The desktop version of the My Documents folder
(posted 11/20/98)

When you install Windows 98 for the first time, you'll notice that there is now a My Documents folder icon on the desktop in addition to the one on the Start menu. While the desktop version appears to be an actual folder, it really isn't. It's actually a special type of shortcut, called a shell extension shortcut, that points to the My Documents folder in the root directory. If you'd rather use My Documents from the Start menu, you can easily delete the desktop version and still be able to access its contents from the Start menu. To do so, simply right-click the My Documents icon and select the Remove from Desktop command from the shortcut menu. You'll then be prompted to confirm the operation.

If you later decide that you'd like to be able to access the My Documents folder from the desktop, replacing the icon is just as easy. To do so, right click on the desktop, select the New command and choose the My Documents Folder on Desktop command to create a new shell extension shortcut.

Windows 95

Using the Windows Key

If your keyboard has the Windows key (a key with the Windows logo on it usually found between the [Alt] and [Ctrl] keys), you have access to additional keyboard shortcuts in Windows. Here are a few shortcuts you can use.

Open the Start menu
Press the [Windows] key

Minimize all windows
[Windows]M or [Windows]D

Undo Minimize all windows
[Shift][Windows]M

Cycle through the taskbar icons
[Windows][Tab]

Open the Find: All Files dialog box
[Windows]F

Open Windows Explorer
[Windows]E

Open the Run dialog box
[Windows]R

Open the Help window
[Windows Key][F1]

Display the Systems Properties dialog box
[Windows][Break]

This tip was contributed by Paul Cohen.

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Taking out the trash

Many email clients offer "safety net" features that prevent them from permanently deleting messages from your system. When you delete a message, the safety feature moves the message to a special folder named "Deleted Items," "Trash" or something similar so that you can recover it if you later decide you'd like to keep it. However, you may not want to keep a record of discarded messages, especially if they're confidential correspondences or useless spam. These safety net features can usually be overridden if you'd prefer not to use them, causing emails to be permanently deleted. For example, in Outlook Express, you can press [Shift][Delete] to bypass the "Deleted Items" folder. The trouble with this process is that accidental deletions aren't insured-- once you've deleted the message, it's gone. To offer a type of "middle
ground" between these two deletion processes, many email clients are equipped with a feature that empties the "Deleted Items" folder upon exit. For instance, to set this option in Outlook Express, selecting Tools | Options from the menu bar, click on the Maintenance tab, select the Empty Messages From The Deleted Items Folder On Exit check box, and then click OK. While the email program is running, your deleted messages are retained in the special "Deleted Items" folder, where you can recover them if necessary. However, when you close the program, any deleted messages being stored in the "Deleted Items" folder are permanently deleted from your system. The locations of these types of message deletion options vary from program to program, but they're usually easy to find.

This tip contributed by Tom Hogg chogg@columbus.rr.com

Copyright (c) 2001  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

What's going on behind the logo?

Have you ever wondered what's happening behind the scenes while you're looking at the Windows 98 startup logo? If you have, you can easily find out by pressing the [Esc] button when the logo appears. In doing so, you'll see the Windows 98 boot process being narrated by a lot of rapidly scrolling text. If you want to really take it all in, you can temporarily stop the boot process by pressing the [Pause] key on your
keyboard. Then, just press any key on your keyboard to get things rolling again

Copyright (c) 2000  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Sending email on the fly

Are there a couple of people you email continually--perhaps a friend  or a colleague? If so, you can save time by creating a desktop shortcut that creates preaddressed messages using your default email client. Just right-click on a clear area of the Windows desktop and select New/Shortcut from the shortcut menu. In the Command Line text box, type mailto: followed by an email address (mailto:int@elementkjournals.com, for example). Click Next and type a name in the Select A Name For The Shortcut text box. Click Finish, and the new shortcut appears on your desktop. When you double-click on the shortcut, your default email client opens with the address you specified in the To: text box. Simply complete and send the preaddressed message as you normally would.

Copyright (c) 2000  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

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Removing Online Services to free up disk space  

As you know, when you install Windows 98 on your system, the installation procedure install several starter files that allow you to easily connect to and sign up for a nationally provided online service. Once you've selected an online service, you can save about 1MB of hard drive space by removing these starter files. To do so, open Control Panel, double-click on the Add/Remove Program icon, and select the Windows Setup tab. Then, select Online Services, click Details and then clear the check boxes of the services you don't want. To complete the operation,
click Apply, and then click OK.

Copyright (c) 2000  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Minimizing with Minimal Mouse Movement

Ever wonder why the Minimize and Close buttons are at the *top* of an application window, making you mouse around to get to them (a real pain even at 640x480)? Me too, but I discovered this by accident:

To quickly minimize an open application without navigating your cursor to the small target in the upper left or right corner of the application window, instead mouse to and click on the item on the taskbar. Voila, minimized.

To quickly close open applications, use ALT+F4, or right-click on  the item in the taskbar, and choose Close. Sure beats mousing to File|Exit or one of those left/right corners....

Copyright (c) 2000  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Understanding the mysterious Mscreate.dir files (posted 2/15/00)

You may have noticed a bunch of 0-byte hidden files called Mscreate.dir in various folders on your system and wondered what these files and where they come from? You probably also have wondered if you can safely delete them. Here's the scoop:

Mscreate.dir files are special files that let Microsoft applications remove all appropriate folders during an uninstall operation. When you install a Microsoft application, such as Office 97, the Setup program creates one of these innocuous files in each folder it places on your hard disk. If you later run Setup in maintenance or uninstall mode, it looks for the Mscreate.dir files to determine whether it can delete the folder.

If you delete these files now and someday run Setup in uninstall mode, Setup won't delete the empty folder. Since these hidden files don't take up any hard disk space and are important to the uninstall procedure, we suggest you leave them where they are.

Copyright (c) 2000  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

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Fast Find

Sometimes simple tricks are the most useful. If you want to search for a file and you know roughly where it is, just right-click on the folder it's in and select Find from the Context menu. Find will search the folder and all the subfolders within, based on the search criteria you specify.

Copyright (c) 2000  Element K Content LLC Inc.  All rights reserved.  For additional EK Journals online information, access EK Journals on the Internet (http://www.elementkjournals.com)

Customizing Web view background

When you pull down the View menu in either My Computer or Windows
Explorer and select the As Web Page command, you know that Windows 98
automatically uses a cloud image for the background of the Web view.
However, if you'd like to use your own image for that Web view
background here's what you need to do:

1.  Open either My Computer or Windows Explorer and access the
C:\Windows\Web folder.

2.  Locate and rename the file Wvleft.bmp.

3.  Open Paint, press [Ctrl]-E and type 242 and 600 in the Width
and Height text boxes respectively.

4.  Create your image and save it in the C:\Windows\Web folder
as Wvleft.bmp.

Quickly saving files to the Desktop from the Save As dialog box (posted 11/15/99)

When you create and save a file that you only intend to keep  temporarily, chances are that you save it to the Desktop, so that you can quickly and easily delete it when you're finished with it. You can expedite this procedure by using the View Desktop button in the Save As dialog box. Once you create the file and click the Save button, you'll see the Save As dialog box. At this point, simply click the View Desktop button, name the file, and click the Save button.

Close all your applications at the same time (posted 10/20/99)

When you're done working on your computer for the day, you probably close each open application one-by-one. If so, chances are that you've wished that you could close all you open applications at the same time. Fortunately, we recently unearthed a hidden technique that will allow you to do so. To begin, hold down the [Ctrl] key and click on each application button on your taskbar. When you do, you'll notice that each button remains selected. Once you've selected all the application buttons on the taskbar, right-click on any one of them and select the Close command from the shortcut menu. When you do, all your applications will close. If you have any application in which an open file hasn't yet been saved, that application will prompt you to save the file.

Maximize a window using the title bar (posted 10/10/99)

On your bad mousing days, do you have trouble clicking on the Maximize button? A quick way to maximize an application window is to double-click on the title bar. (Don't double-click on the buttons, though.)

If the window is maximized and you double-click on the title bar, the window will be restored to its last size. This gives you the same result as using the Restore button in the title bar.

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Using all upper-case file and folder names (posted 10/1/99)

Would you like to use like to use all uppercase letters for some of your folder and file names? If so, you've noticed that when try to name a folder or file with all uppercase letters, Windows 98 renames it using only an initial uppercase letter. To change this behavior, launch My Computer, pull down the View menu, and select the Folder Options command. When the Folder Option dialog box appears, select the View tab. Now, locate the Files And Folders branch in the Advanced Settings list box and select the Allow All Uppercase Names check box. Once you click OK, all the folders and files that were originally named with all uppercase letters will immediately be displayed as such. You can now use any combination of upper- and lowercase letters for all new folders or files that you create.

Find Your Path - I (posted 9/15/99)

By default, Windows 95 hides from you the paths of files and folders. If you want the full paths spelled out on your window title bars (the colored area at the top of all open file and folder windows), double-click on My Computer, select View/Options, click on the View tab and select "Display the full MS-DOS path in the title bar."

Find Your Path - II (posted 9/15/99)

Here's another trick for finding out the path of a file: Launch the Run command dialog (Start/Run), clear the Open box by hitting the Backspace key, and then drag and drop the file of your choice into the Open box. Windows will type the full path of the file into the box.

Fast Network Properties (posted 6/26/99)

Most people get at their Network Properties by launching Control Panel, then double-clicking on the Network icon. There's a faster way: Right-click on the Network Neighborhood icon and select Properties.

Enlarge Your Pointers (posted 5/12/99)

It's easy to miss Win95's pointer schemes. But if you want bigger pointers and cursors, here's the easiest way to get them. Just double-click on the Mouse item in the Control Panel, click on the Pointers tab, then click on the drop-down Scheme menu. Choose from 3-D, Animated Hourglasses, Large and Extra Large pointer schemes.

Y2000 Dates (posted 4/25/99

Changing the date format in Regional Settings in your Windows environment will save you a lot of headaches as you get closer to Year 2000 by removing any ambiguity on what a 2 character date represents. Here's how to do it.

1. Select Start.

2. Select Control Panel from the Start Menu.

3. Double click on Regional Settings from the Control Panel Menu.

4. In Regional Settings, select the Date Tab.

5. The Short Date format defaults to m/d/yy. Change the Short Date format to mm/dd/yyyy, the select OK.

Your date format will now default to a 4 character year for Windows applications. For example you can type is 1/1/00 in an Excel spreadsheet, and it will automatically format to a 4 character year. In Excel 5.0 1/1/00 = 1/1/1900, Excel 97 1/1/00 = 1/1/2000. This is helpful, especially if you're working with different versions of Excel, Access, etc.

Give it a try! Also feel free to distribute this e-mail to others that might be interested in this. I've had my PC setup with the mm/dd/yyyy short date format now for over 3 months and it works great!

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Create a rescue disk to use if you need to emergency boot your computer (posted 4/1/99)

Did you create a rescue disk when you installed Windows 95? If not, or if you can longer locate it, you may want to make sure that you have one on hand, in case a technical problem (usually a problematic new program which you just installed) prevents your computer from booting. Here's how in Windows 95:

1.  Click on Start.

2.  Select Settings, Control Panel, Add/Remove Programs.

3.  Select the Startup Disk tab, put floppy in A:

4.  Select Create Disk.

5.  Store floppy in a convenient and safe place.

A Simple Tip (posted 3/5/99)

We get so accustomed to using the mouse sometimes that we can forget even the simplest tip. Don't forget, whenever you need help, the most basic single-key shortcut you can perform is to press [F1]. When you do, the Project Assistant will appear and you may type a search criterion directly into the text bar. While the Assistant is available to you, you may right click the mouse on its image and see a pop-up menu of options affecting its display. The Assistant is entertaining and helpful. Don't forget how easy it is to summon.

Solve the Hidden Title Bar Problem (posted 2/15/99)

Sometimes a title bar (that bar at the top of every window) disappears off the top of your screen. You can't use your mouse to move the window down because the mouse can't reach the title bar. There's an easy way to take care of this by using the keyboard. Here's how:

1. Click on any area of the window to make it active.

2. Press and hold Alt, then press the Spacebar (this will open a menu that appears when you click on the window's upper left corner).

3. Press M for Move.

4. Press and hold the Down arrow on your keyboard until the window is in full view on your screen.

5. Press Enter to let go of the window.

Now that pesky title bar is where you can reach it, and you may use the mouse to move it around from there.

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Character Map Helps You Type Special Characters (posted 2/1/99)

Character Map is an accessory program included with Windows 95, that shows you the complete character set of each font on your system. You'll find Character Map invaluable when you need to place a character such as the copyright or registered trademark symbol into a document, as well as for generating accented letters for correctly typing foreign words. Character Map will also let you place other ANSI characters that are not available via the standard typewriter keys of your computer's keyboard.

Character Map is not installed in Windows 95 by default, but your computer manufacturer may have included it anyway. To check:

1. Click the Start button.

2.  Move the mouse over Programs.

3.  Select Accessories.

4.  If Character Map is listed there, then it is installed on your system.

If Character Map is not installed, you can go to the Add/Remove Programs control panel, click on the Windows Setup tab, highlight the Accessories option, then click the Details button. Check the Character Map check box, and click the Apply button. If the installation files are on your hard drive, the application will install. You may be asked to insert your Windows 95 CD if the files are not on your hard drive.

To Use Character Map:

1.  Click the Start button
2.  Move the mouse over Programs
3.  Select Accessories
4.  If Character Map is listed there, then it is installed on your system.
5.  From the drop-down list select the font you want to see.
6.  Click and hold down the left mouse button over a character to see a bigger view of it.
7.  Double-click a character to add it to the Characters To Copy text box.
8.  Click Copy to copy the selected character to the Clipboard.
9.  Switch to another application and Paste the character by using the Paste command on the application's Edit menu.

The above instructions are good, but there's a quicker way to produce those special characters in most Windows 95 programs. You may notice that the panel in the lower right corner of the Character Map window will show you which keyboard characters you will have to depress to create that character each time you click on a character in the grid. For example, the copyright symbol can be created with the keystroke combination ALT+ 0169. That means you hold down the ALT key, and press 0-1-6-9 on the numeric keypad (not the numbers across the top of your keyboard. Then release the ALT key and the character will appear in your document.

Create a screensaver shortcut in Windows 95 (posted 1/15/99)

For those who deal with highly confidential information, privacy can become a major concern. You can save your work from prying eyes by creating a shortcut key that will activate your screensaver immediately. To do so you must first create a shortcut to your current screensaver on your desktop. Right-click on your desktop and select New/Shortcut. Next, click on the Browse button and under the Files of type list select All Files. Locate the .SCR file in the WINDOWS\SYSTEM folder that corresponds to your current screen saver and click Open. Finally, click on the Next button, accept the default name for the shortcut, and click Finish. In order to create a keyboard shortcut, right-click the screen saver icon on your desktop, select Properties and click the Shortcut tab. Place your cursor in the Shortcut key text box and type the letter that you would like associated with this shortcut. Windows 95 will automatically place a [Ctrl] + [Alt] in front of the letter. Finally, select the Apply button and then the OK button. You may now immediately activate your screen saver at any time by using the keyboard shortcut or by double clicking on the shortcut on your desktop.

Adding the other editor to Windows 95 (posted 12/31/98)

Did you know that Windows 95 comes with another text editor besides Notepad? This other text editor has features similar to those in Notepad, yet it offers features the Notepad doesn’t have; such as the ability to work with multiple text files and to change the background and text colors. Of course, the text editor that we’re talking about is the MS-DOS Editor, which is commonly referred to simply as Edit. While Edit is a DOS-based application, you can easily configure it to work just like a Windows application. To do so, use My Computer or Windows Explorer to locate the Edit.com file in the \Windows\Command folder. When you do, right-click the file, drag it to your desktop, and select the Create Shortcut(s) Here command from the context menu. Once Windows 95 creates the shortcut, right-click the shortcut icon and select the Properties command from the context menu. When, the properties sheet appears, select the Program tab and choose the Close on exit check box. To finish, click OK. Now, you can simply double-click the shortcut to launch Edit and when you’re done using it, you can close it simply by clicking the close button in the upper right corner or by using the Exit command on the File menu

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Speed Up Printing (posted 12/10/98)

The new printing architecture in Windows 95 can print files almost twice as fast as Windows 3.1 if you spool your print job in a special data format known as EMF (Extended Metacode Format).

To take advantage of this feature:

1.  Open the Printers folder (Start/Settings/Printers).

2.  Use a single RIGHT MOUSE click on your main printer's icon to see the context menu.

3.  Choose Properties from the drop down menu.

4.  Click on the Spool Settings button in the Details tab.

5.  You can then adjust the data format to EMF on the drop down menu.

6.  Apply your changes, and click the OK button.

You may want to set up a benchmark test. Before applying this change, see how long it takes to print a page of text. Write down your results. Then apply the above procedure and perform the test again.

Gotta Split (posted 11/20/98)

When you're working with Project '98 in Gantt Chart view, or any other view that includes a split bar, you'll often find yourself adjusting the split. Here's a trick for lining things up just so. Drag the split bar into position near the grid line you wish to match up with. Then double-click on the split bar and it will jump into place, aligned perfectly over the grid line.

Removing Unwanted Fonts From Your System (posted 10/30/98)

Did you ever go to select a font in your application, only to find oodles and oodles of font names to scroll through just to find the one font you want to use? How much time do you waste scrolling though all those unwanted fonts?

When you install programs onto your Windows 95 computer, the application you are loading often installs fonts into the C:\Windows\Fonts directory. The more programs you install, the more unmanageable the Fonts folder becomes. Most of these fonts you'll never use, and they take up valuable disk space, as well as clog up the Font menu of all your other Windows application making it harder to find the fonts you DO want to use.

To get rid of the fonts you don't want, do the following:

1.  Click the Start button.

2.  Choose Settings/Control Panel.

3.  In the Control Panel window, double-click the Fonts folder.

4.  Find the fonts you want to remove and double-click on its icon to preview the font to make sure that this is the font you wish to discard.

5.  When you're sure the font is one you want to delete, close the
preview window and press the Delete key on your keyboard. Confirm the deletion.

6.  Repeat the steps above for other unwanted fonts.

WARNING:Do not remove any of the following fonts!

- Times New Roman
- Arial
- Courier New
- System
- Symbol
- Wingdings
- Any font whose name begins with "MS"
- Any font whose name begins with the name of another software manufacturer (for example, "LotusWP Times")

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Installing New Software Using The Software Wizard (posted 10/15/98)

If you open the control panel in Windows 95, you will see an icon that says "Add/Remove Programs." When clicked, this will launch the Software Wizard.

You will be presented with a tabbed selection that allows you to perform several different functions including Install/Uninstall software, Windows Setup which assists you in adding and removing Windows 95 components, and Start Up Disk which steps you through creating a bootable floppy disk with Windows 95 on it to start your computer in case of an emergency.

When you want to install new software, use the Install button and the Software Wizard will scan a mounted floppy disk or CD-ROM volume searching for either a SETUP.EXE or INSTALL.EXE file. If it doesn't find one, use the "BROWSE" button to locate the installation program anywhere on your computer, then click the "FINISH" button and the Wizard will complete the software installation for you and even create a Start Button/Progams shortcut for you.

If the program bears the "Designed For Windows 95" logo, then the program will add an entry to the scrolling list box. You can use this list to cleanly remove the application from your system. Select the application, then click the ADD/REMOVE button. The program's uninstall routine will run and safely remove almost all traces of the program from your system.

Send To 'SEND TO' (posted 9/25/98)

If you use the Send To menu a lot, put a shortcut to the SendTo folder into the SendTo folder. Whenever you want to put a Send To destination on your context menu, just use the Send To function.

Create Your Rescue Disk (posted 9/5/98)

1.  Insert a blank (empty) formatted floppy disk in your floppy drive.

2.  Open your Control Panel, accessing it through My Computer, or through Start, Settings.

3.  Double click on Add/Remove Programs.

4.  Open the Startup Disk tab, and click on Create Disk.

5. Allow Windows 95 to create your bootable floppy disk.

These files will be copied:
io.sys, msdos.sys, command.com, attrib.exe, chkdsk.exe, edit.com, edit.hlp, fc.exe, fdisk.exe, format.exe, mem.exe, more.com, mscdex.exe msd.exe scandisk.exe scandisk.ini, setver.exe, sys.com, xcopy.exe

Add Additional Files And Test It Out

6.  The above files may not be sufficient. For maximum security and effectiveness, open your c: drive, and copy these files from your root c: drive to your rescue disk: autoexec.bat config.sys.

7.  Also, open your Widows 95 directory, and copy these files to  your rescue disk: the ini files - win.ini system.ini your Windows 95 registry files - system.dat user.dat.

8.  When done, label it as your bootable floppy disk.

9.  For extra security, make TWO bootable rescue disks.

10.  Test them out. Turn off your computer, then place your rescue disk in your floppy drive, wait 30 seconds, then turn on your computer again. You should be able to boot into Windows 95. 

Enter in the SAFE mode to troubleshoot further.

NOTE: To view the steps in our normal boot process, open and read the bootlog.txt file in your root drive. Be careful not to alter it as you read it!

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Crash 101: What to do when your mouse and screen freeze (posted 8/15/98)

You're working in a program, and suddenly something goes wrong. Your mouse is frozen. Your screen is frozen. You can't close the program or get to SHUTDOWN. What do you do? First of all, DON'T turn off your computer. You have many more alternatives before flipping off the power switch and risking damaging your programs.

Here are the steps to take, in order:

Save and close your documents:

1. If you're working on a document, try to save it by using the control, s command if your program supports that standard SAVE command. Usually, you can then control, F4 to close your file.

2.  OR hold down the alt key, and press F to open the file menu. Use your arrow keys to navigate down to SAVE, then press enter. Use your arrow keys then to select CLOSE and close your file.

3.  If you want to save more than one document, you can usually press ALT, W to open your window menu, then use your arrow keys to switch to the next document and repeat the above procedure

Alternative #1 for closing programs:

1.  Try to close the program by holding down alt, then pressing F4.

2.  OR, hold down alt, then F, then your arrow keys to navigate down to your program's file, close menu. Then press Enter.

3.  Hold down alt, and slowly press tab to navigate through your other open programs. Close each of them using the above procedure. (You might also try to save any open documents as you do so.)

Alternative #2 for closing programs:

1.  Hold down control, then ALT, then Delete.

2.  Use your arrow keys to choose the programs you wish to close, then when each is selected, press e on your keyboard to end task.

Shutting down OR restarting Windows 95:

1.  TO SHUTDOWN: From step #2 above, press S to shutdown your computer.

2.  TO RESTART OR SHUTDOWN: Hold control, then escape to open your START MENU. If you wish to shutdown, press Y for yes. To restart, use your arrow keys or type R to restart, then press ENTER or type Y for yes.

IF none of the above alternatives work:

1.  PRESS the RESTART or RESET button on your computer (NOT the power switch) to exit and restart Windows 95. If you can't re-enter Windows 95, you may have to enter in the SAFE mode and troubleshoot - perhaps de-installing the offending program. But that's another tip.

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To start a program from the taskbar (posted 8/1/98)

For an easy way to start frequently used programs, you can put a shortcut to a program in the Quick Launch portion of your taskbar.

Right-click an empty area on the taskbar, click Toolbars, and then make sure that Quick Launch is selected.

From My Computer or Windows Explorer, drag a program file (a file with an .exe extension) onto the Quick Launch portion of the taskbar.

The icon for that program is now next to the other Quick Launch icons on the taskbar.

Turn Off the CD-ROM Autorun (posted 7/15/98)

When a Windows 95-aware CD-ROM is inserted into the CD-ROM drive, Windows 95 automatically launches the program contained on the disk, whether you want it to or not. Similarly the audio CD player pops up whenever you insert an audio CD and starts playing it immediately. This is cute the first or second time, but soon gets infuriating. What's worse, is that if you double-click on the your CD icon in My Computer, the Autorun fires up, instead of a folder window as you'd expect. This is especially irritating on slower computers, where you have to wait for what seems like an eternity for it to load some ridiculous welcome screen. Follow the following instructions to disable Autorun:

Solution #1:

1.  Right-click on the My Computer icon.

2.  Choose the Device Manager tab.

3.  Open the CD-ROM branch, and select the entry for your CD-ROM drive.

4.  Click Properties, and then choose the Settings tab.

5.  Un-check the Auto insert notification check box.

6.  Click OK, and then OK again. You'll have to restart Windows for this change to take effect.

Solution #2:

Because of new features in TweakUI, one of Microsoft's PowerToys, this can now be truly disabled by turning off the Play audio CDs automatically and Play data CDs automatically options in the Paranoia tab.

Hiding Shared Resources
(posted 7/1/98)

When you share a resource on your peer-to-peer network, you'll probably want to protect it with a password. This safeguard alone usually provides adequate security, but there's always the chance that an intruder could guess the password.

Fortunately, you can improve security by making your shares invisible. That way, interlopers won't even know there's a resource for which they might want to guess the password. This trick is easy-just make sure the last character of your share name is a dollar sign. The hidden share option doesn't prevent users who know that resources are available from using them. Windows 95 lets you secretly share both printers and folders.

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Find Fast 97 can be a drag on overall system performance (posted 5/17/98)

If you've installed Office 97 on your system, you may notice your hard disk burst into a frenzy of activity at regular intervals and perform slowly. The activity is generated by the Find Fast utility. This feature creates and manages an index that Office applications such as Word and Excel use to launch full-text searches from the File Open dialog box. By default, Find Fast is configured to run every two hours, which is usually too often for most casual Office users. To set a less frequent schedule, first open Control Panel and double-click the Find Fast icon. Then, pull down the Index menu and select the Update Interval... command. Now, enter a more reasonable time span, such as every 24 hours.

Open a File with Another Program (posted 4/25/98)

If a file has an association with it (for example, it automatically opens with Notepad when double-clicked), you can open it with another application by right-clicking on the file while holding the SHIFT key. Choose Open with... from the popup menu and select a new program from the list or browse by choosing Other. (See the next tip for another, more permanent and much easier solution in the long-run.)

Add "Open with [selected application]" to a File's Right-Click Menu
(posted 4/25/98)

This tip will modify a file's right-click menu, allowing you to right-click on a file to painlessly open it with another select program. It is especially useful if you often find yourself opening a file with another program. Click on My Computer, select View from the menu bar, then go to Options. Select the File Types tab. From the list, select the file type that you want to add an option to (for example, a "Text Document" which normally opens with Notepad.exe). Click Edit, then select New in the next dialog box. Type the action you want, in this example "open with Wordpad." Using Browse, navigate your hard drive until you find the desired application (e.g. wordpad.exe). Select the program and click Open. Click OK until you've closed the remaining three dialog boxes. Now try it out! Right-click on a file normally opened with Notepad and you will have an option to "open with Wordpad." Highlight the option and click!

Add an Item to the "Send To" Right-Click Menu (posted 4/14/98)

If you right-click on a file and highlight Send To, the default choices are usually limited to the floppy drive and a mail recipient, for example. To add additional items to this menu or delete existing ones, open Explorer and go to the Windows folder. You will see a SendTo folder, containing the items currently available. To remove an item, simply delete it. To add an item, create a shortcut to the item (right-click a program and choose Create Shortcut) and place it in the SendTo folder. Some examples of possible additions are:

Removing Items from the Add/Remove Programs Box (posted 4/7/98)

So you've removed a program from your system, but the name still shows up on the list of Add/Remove Programs from the Control Panel? How to get rid of this small annoyance? Get the FREE Powertoy, Tweak UI, from Microsoft! Among other things, Tweak UI will eliminate any of these entries. Plus, it has many other useful features, including Paranoia settings, increased popup menu speed, and much more to tweak your system. Don't want Tweak UI? (God knows why not...) OK, then select Run in the Start menu, type "regedit" and click OK. Using the tree hierarchy, go to HKEY_LOCAL MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall. Highlight the folder for the program you want to remove from the Add/Remove box and delete it using a right-click, then Delete. Exit the Registry Editor and that's it!

Restart Windows 95 instead of your entire system (posted 3/15/98)

Press and hold the shift key while clicking START - SHUTDOWN - RESTART THE COMPUTER.

UNDO (posted 3/1/98)

CTRL+Z is the undo key in every Microsoft product running in Windows (all versions).

 

How to partition and format a hard disk in Windows XP

View products that this article applies to.

This article was previously published under Q313348
 

This article describes how to partition and format a hard disk with Microsoft Windows XP. Learn about your partitioning and formatting options, what to consider before you partition or format your hard disk, and how to partition and format your hard disk. Additionally, this article contains links to resources that can help you troubleshoot if problems occur.

IN THIS TASK

INTRODUCTION

This step-by-step article describes how to partition and format a hard disk with Windows XP.

Before you can install an operating system, you must first create a primary partition on the first physical hard disk (Disk 0) on your computer, and then format a file system on that partition. This partition is named the System partition. Alternatively, you can create a separate partition for the operating system on any physical hard disk. This is named the startup partition. The System partition on Disk 0 can also be used as a startup partition

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MORE INFORMATION

Options for partitioning and formatting your hard disk

You can use the Microsoft Windows XP Setup program or the Fdisk and Format tools to partition and format System and startup partitions.

For additional information about how to use Fdisk and Format to partition and format your hard disk, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

255867 How to use the Fdisk tool and the Format tool to partition or to repartition a hard disk

If your computer is already running Windows XP, and you want to create partitions other than the System or the startup partitions, you can use the Windows XP Disk Management tools.

For additional information about how to use the Windows XP Disk Management tools to partition and format your hard disk, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

309000 How to use Disk Management to configure basic disks in Windows XP

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Important things to consider before you partition and format your hard disk

Consider the following questions before you partition and format your hard disk:

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How to partition and format your hard disk by using the Windows XP Setup program

Important If you follow these steps on a hard disk that is not empty, all the data on that hard disk is permanently deleted. We recommend that you back up your hard disk before you follow these steps.

To partition and format your hard disk by using the Windows XP Setup program:

  1. Insert the Windows XP CD-ROM into your CD-ROM drive or DVD-ROM drive, or insert the first Windows XP Setup disk into the floppy disk drive, and then restart the computer.

    Note To start your computer from the Windows XP CD-ROM (or from the startup disk), your computer must be configured to start from the CD-ROM drive, the DVD-ROM drive, or the floppy disk drive. In some cases, you may have to modify your computer's BIOS settings to set this configuration. For information about how to configure your computer to start from the CD-ROM drive, the DVD-ROM drive, or the floppy disk drive, see the documentation that is included with your computer, or contact the computer manufacturer.
  2. If you are starting the computer from the Windows XP CD-ROM, select any options that are required to start the computer from the CD-ROM drive if you are prompted to do this.

    Note If your hard disk controller requires a third-party original equipment manufacturer (OEM) driver, press F6 to specify the driver.

    For additional information about how to use F6 to supply a third-party OEM device driver while the Windows Setup program is running, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

    314859 Limited OEM driver support is available with F6 during Windows XP Setup

    If you are starting from the Windows XP Setup disks, insert each of the additional disks when you are prompted, and then press ENTER to continue after you insert each disk.

  3. At the Welcome to Setup page, press ENTER.
  4. Press F8 to accept the Windows XP Licensing Agreement.
  5. If an existing Windows XP installation is detected, you are prompted to repair it. To bypass the repair, press ESC.
  6. All the existing partitions and the unpartitioned spaces are listed for each physical hard disk. Use the ARROW keys to select the partition or the unpartitioned space where you want to create a new partition. Press D to delete an existing partition, or press C to create a new partition by using unpartitioned space. If you press D to delete an existing partition, you must then press L (or press ENTER, and then press L if it is the System partition) to confirm that you want to delete the partition. Repeat this step for each of the existing partitions that you want to use for the new partition. When all the partitions are deleted, select the remaining unpartitioned space, and then press C to create the new partition.

    Note If you want to create a partition where one or more partitions already exist, you must first delete the existing partition or partitions, and then create the new partition.
  7. Type the size in megabytes (MB) that you want to use for the new partition, and then press ENTER, or just press ENTER to create the partition with the maximum size.
  8. Repeat Steps 4 and 5 to create additional partitions if you want them.
  9. If you want to install Windows XP, use the ARROW keys to select the partition where you want to install Windows XP, and then press ENTER. If you do not want to format the partition and install Windows XP, press F3 two times to quit the Windows Setup program, and then do not follow the remaining steps. In this case, you must use a different utility to format the partition.
  10. Select the format option that you want to use for the partition, and then press ENTER. You have the following options:
    • Format the partition by using the NTFS file system (Quick)
    • Format the partition by using the FAT file system (Quick)
    • Format the partition by using the NTFS file system
    • Format the partition by using the FAT file system
    • Leave the current file system intact (no changes)

    The option to leave the current file system intact is not available if the selected partition is a new partition. The FAT file system option is not available if the selected partition is more than 32 gigabytes (GB). If the partition is larger than 2 GB, the Windows Setup program uses the FAT32 file system (you must press ENTER to confirm). If the partition is smaller than 2 GB, the Windows Setup program uses the FAT16 file system.

    Note If you deleted and created a new System partition, but you are installing Windows XP on a different partition, you will be prompted to select a file system for both the System and startup partitions.

  11. After the Windows Setup program formats the partition, follow the instructions that appear on the screen to continue. After the Windows Setup program is completed, you can use the Disk Management tools in Windows XP to create or format more partitions.

    For additional information about how to use the Windows XP Disk Management tools to partition and format your hard disk, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

    309000 How to use Disk Management to configure basic disks in Windows XP

 

 

SYNTAX

Formats a disk for use with MS-DOS.

FORMAT drive: [/V[:label]] [/Q] [/F:size] [/B | /S] [/C]
FORMAT drive: [/V[:label]] [/Q] [/T:tracks /N:sectors] [/B | /S] [/C]
FORMAT drive: [/V[:label]] [/Q] [/1] [/4] [/B | /S] [/C]
FORMAT drive: [/Q] [/1] [/4] [/8] [/B | /S] [/C]

  /V[:label] Specifies the volume label.
  /Q Performs a quick format.
  /F:size Specifies the size of the floppy disk to format (such as 160, 180, 320, 360, 720, 1.2, 1.44, 2.88).
  /B Allocates space on the formatted disk for system files.
  /S Copies system files to the formatted disk.
  /T:tracks Specifies the number of tracks per disk side.
  /N:sectors Specifies the number of sectors per track.
  /1 Formats a single side of a floppy disk.
  /4 Formats a 5.25-inch 360K floppy disk in a high-density drive.
  /8 Formats eight sectors per track.
  /C Tests clusters that are currently marked "bad."