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Archives: Tips

Hands-on instructions for making Windows (or Office) work smarter and faster.

Tip of the day: Get to know your power button

It used to be so simple: A power button was an on/off switch, period. But on modern personal computers, things are more complicated. Most PCs built in the 21st Century use a combination of motherboards and power switches designed to cooperate with the operating system. Typically, pressing the power button...

Tip of the day: Fix problems with your default browser

In yesterday's tip, I pointed out how to use the Set Program Access and Defaults utility to change your default browser. When you use this tool, the browser you specify appears at the top of the Start menu and should open whenever you click a link. In theory, that's true....

Tip of the day: Change your default browser

Internet Explorer is the default browser included with Windows XP. If you've chosen to use another browser - Firefox or Maxthon or Opera or Avant, for example - for everyday use, you can tell Windows that you want to use that browser as your default instead. To make the switch,...

Tip of the day: Build your own external hard drive

For comprehensive backups, every PC owner should have an external hard drive. You can find ready-made drives at high prices, but I find it's much cheaper and easier to build your own. If you can handle a screwdriver, you do this DIY project. You need two pieces: Any hard drive....

Tip of the day: Stop highlighting new Start menu shortcuts

When you install a new program that adds one or more shortcuts to the Start menu, Windows XP highlights the new Start menu shortcuts for a few days. This highlighting, which appears in orange by default, makes it easier to find the new items and makes you aware of added...

Tip of the day: Clear the most recently used files list

Windows keeps track of all the files you open from within Windows (by double-clicking a file in Windows Explorer, for instance). This can have privacy implications, and over time the %userprofile%\Recent folder, where shortcuts to all tracked files are stored, can get cluttered. To empty this folder, right-click the Start...

Tip of the day: Get to Windows management tools faster

In Windows XP Inside Out, we listed a bunch of command-line shortcuts that can take you to useful spots within the Windows interface, usually much faster than the point-and-click method. Instead of drilling down through the Start menu, just click Start, Run, type in one of the following commands, and press Enter. Here are a...

Tip of the day: It's OK to use a blank password

Let's say you have two accounts on your Windows XP computer: An everyday account, set up as a Limited User, and an account in the Administrators group that you use for system maintenance tasks. Your computer is in a secure location, and you're the only person with physical access to...

Tip of the day: Insert special characters anywhere, anytime

You're typing a note on your American English keyboard, and you need to enter a character that isn't represented by one of the available keys. Maybe it's an inverted exclamation point or question mark, used in Spanish, or an accented letter for a French word, or some sort of umlaut or...

Tip of the day: Get a second monitor

Bigger isn't always better. If you're lusting after a 20- or 21-inch monitor to replace the old one on your desk (especially if the old one is a CRT), let me offer a different suggestion: Get two smaller flat-panel monitors instead. The advantages of two monitors are overwhelming. You can actually open...

Tip of the day: Keep a clean desktop

Most people find it convenient to dump icons on the Windows desktop for easier access. Files, program shortcuts, downloads, Internet shortcuts. I have five folders and 23 individual icons on my desktop, and I suspect that's less than average. The trouble with all those icons is they're hard to get...

Tip of the day: Make a one-click shutdown shortcut

Windows XP includes a command called Shutdown that does much more than its name might suggest. Yes, you can use it to create a shortcut that you can then double-click to turn off your computer instantly. Just create a new shortcut and include this command in it, exactly as typed: shutdown...

Tip of the day: Customize the Places Bar in Office

Yesterday, I explained how to change the five icons that appear in the Places Bar in Windows common dialog boxes. If you use Microsoft Office, you can do a few extra tricks. First things first: Although the Open and Save As dialog boxes in Office programs (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and...

Tip of the day: Customize the Places Bar

In most Windows programs, when you choose Open or Save As from the File menu, you see a common dialog box that includes five icons in a vertical sidebar on the left side. The five choices are pretty logical, as you can see here: Click any of those links on...

Tip of the day: It's OK to enable UPnP

On the Windows XP Inside Out forums, a visitor asked: Does anybody know if there are any problems with allowing exceptions in Windows firewall for uPnP? UPnP is the Universal Plug and Play service. It's useful and perfectly safe. There was a security problem with UPnP that was discovered several...

Tip of the day: Change your picture on the Welcome screen and Start menu

Look at the top of the Start menu in Windows XP. See the picture to the left of your user name? It was assigned by default when you set up your user account. (You won't see a picture here if you use the Classic Start menu instead of the Windows XP-style...

Tip of the day: Customize your System Restore settings

System Restore is one of the most important - and most misunderstood - features in Windows XP. Used properly, it can save you hours of painful reconfiguration if you inadvertently install a bad driver or program. If you don't understand its inner workings, you're at a serious disadvantage. Carl Siechert,...

Tip of the day: Cope with uninstall problems

If a Windows program is giving you problems, one common troubleshooting tactic is to uninstall it, using the Add or Remove Programs option in Control Panel. What should you do if the pesky program isn't in the list of installed programs? Although it sounds paradoxical, sometimes the best solution is...

Tip of the day: Back up files by sending them to a CD

These days, virtually every PC has a writable CD drive. Your drive probably came with software that allows you to create audio CDs and perform specialized functions. If you use Windows XP, you don’t need third-party software to write files to a disk in your CD-R or CD-RW drive. Use this capability to...

Tip of the day: Delete a file permanently

When you delete a file, it hangs around longer than you think, and that can be bad news if your goal is to get rid of truly sensitive information. When you press the Delete key, Windows normally moves the deleted file to the Recycle Bin. You no longer see the...

Tip of the day: Listen to a podcast at warp speed

Windows Media Player has a well-hidden advanced playback control that allows you to vary the speed at which a media clip is played back. This feature, it turns out, is ideal for listening to broadcasts that emphasize the spoken word, such as podcasts and vlogs. This feature does much more...

Tip of the day: Put favorite programs (and more) on the Start menu

In Windows XP, the Start menu is divided into two columns. The left column, by default, contains links to your default browser and e-mail program. You can add shortcuts to this menu as well, giving you easy access to your favorite programs, file folders, drives, documents, and Web pages. To...

Tip of the day: Get the ultimate list of Microsoft keyboard shortcuts

You say you hate to take your hands off the keyboard to click the mouse? Then you'll love this master list of keyboard shortcuts covering a long, long list of Microsoft products, including Internet Explorer 6 and nearly every program in the Office 2000, Office XP, and Office 2003 families. If you use...

Tip of the day: Restore a lost window

Every so often, I discover that a window has decided it doesn't want to appear on my desktop anymore. Its taskbar button is still there, but clicking it doesn't bring the window to the foreground, and the right-click menu doesn't do any good either. In my case, this happens most...

Tip of the day: Use the Clipboard for quick, temporary backups

One of the most frustrating experiences any Windows user can have is to compose a lengthy comment in a Web-based form, only to click Send, have the server reject the submission, and lose all that effort. Here's a tip that can save at least some of the pain. Before you...

Tip of the day: Back up your entire user profile

A few weeks ago, I explained how to relocate the My Documents folder. I've had lots of positive feedback to that tip, so it seems like a good time to talk about (in my best Paul Harvey voice) the rest of your data. If you only back up your My...

Tip of the day: Cut the Recycle Bin down to size

By default, the Windows Recycle Bin sets aside 10 percent of the space on each disk partition in your system for storage of deleted files, up to a maximum of 3.99 GB. If you have a 400GB hard drive divided into four partitions, the Recycle Bin could be using up 16 gigabytes of storage....

Tip of the day: Use metadata to organize digital pictures

If you shoot lots of digital pictures, learn how to take advantage of information called metadata to keep track of extra details. Image metadata is nonpicture information that’s captured and stored within a picture file. Most digital cameras use the Exchangeable Image File (EXIF) format to store metadata when saving...

Tip of the day: Automatically resize columns in Windows Explorer

If you regularly use Explorer's Details view, here's a convenient keyboard shortcut you should know about. After opening an Explorer window in Details view, hold down the Ctrl key and press the Plus (+) key on the numeric keypad. This shortcut instantly and automatically resizes each column based on the...

Tip of the day: Download Windows updates or signed drivers

You're doing a fresh installation of Windows XP. Is there a way to download service packs and updates so that you don't have to go through a long, long update process before you can use your computer? Yes. In fact, this method is especially useful if the new computer has...

Tip of the day: Use favorite pictures for a screen saver

One of the options available on the Screen Saver tab of Windows XP's Display Control Panel is the My Pictures Slideshow. It's a great alternative to the bouncing Windows logo. Select this screen saver and click the Settings button to specify which pictures you want to use (hint: it helps to copy your...

Tip of the day: Learn to use environment variables

Environment variables contain information about the environment for the system and for the user who’s currently logged on. Knowing how to use these variables can save you time and keystrokes in batch files and shortcuts and at the command line. In addition, some programs use environment variables to determine where to store...

One more time: do not clean out your Prefetch folder!

Yet another Web site posted yet another "tip" today recommending that you clean out your Prefetch folder to improve performance of Windows. Arrrggghhh! I've written about this repeatedly (here and here and here, for instance), but the message doesn't seem to be spreading very fast. Maybe this quote from "Misinformation...

Tip of the day: Move your music, pictures, or video folders

In yesterday's tip, I explained how to move the My Documents folder. To move the default folders that Windows XP uses for music, pictures, or video, you use a slightly different technique: Select the folder you want to move (My Music, My Pictures, My Video), hold down the right mouse...

Tip of the day: Move the My Documents folder

The My Documents folder is the default location for your data files. If disk space is at a premium, you might choose to relocate this folder. For instance, if you add a second hard drive to your system, you might decide to use it exclusively for document sgorage. Here's how...

Frustrated by power supplies for your gadgets? Here are three easy fixes

The Your Tech Weblog (whose author really needs to provide some bio information) recently served up this mini-rant, which I found courtesy of Ernest Miller at Corante: My current tech pet peeve: gadget power adapters that aren't properly labeled. An iRiver AC adapter, for instance, should read "iRiver" somewhere on...

Tip of the day: Disabling "personalized" Office menus

Office XP and Office 2003 share a feature that is supposed to reduce clutter but instead increases confusion. I'm referring, of course, to the dreaded personalized menus and toolbars feature. Using default settings, Office menus and toolbars change dynamically as you use each program. If there isn't enough room on...

Sometimes there's a reason things are hidden

Marc Orchant passes along a tip from PC Magazine that explains how to edit the registry to add “Send” and “Copy” commands to Windows Explorer and concludes with this comment: After performing this tweak, you’ll have two new context menu commands: “Move to Folder” and “Copy to Folder”. Apparently this stuff...

Tip of the day: Enter international currency symbols in Office

Money makes the world go around, so why is there only one currency symbol (the dollar sign) on a standard U.S. keyboard? To enter an international currency symbol in Word, Excel, or PowerPoint (or in Outlook's message editor), you'll need to memorize its four-digit ANSI character code and enter that...

Tip of the day: My three favorite Excel shortcuts

You don't have to be an accountant to use Excel. It's an ideal tool for managing any kind of data that falls into a neat rows-and-columns format, including everything from simple lists to complex budget reconciliations. These are my three favorite Excel shortcuts that most people don't know about: Quick...

Tip of the day: Recover gracefully when an Office program crashes

If an Office XP or Office 2003 program (such as Word, Excel, or PowerPoint) stops responding to input, don't panic. And don't kill its entry in the Windows Task List. If you do that, you'll lose any unsaved work. Instead, take a deep breath and use a well-hidden tool that...

Tip of the day: Disable Word's annoying Overtype key

This week's tips are exclusively for Microsoft Office users. Sooner or later, everyone who uses Microsoft Word discovers that they've mysteriously shifted into a new editing mode, where positioning the insertion point in an existing block of text and then typing a few characters causes the new text to erase...

Tip of the day: Bookmark your favorite Registry locations

If you expect to be a Windows power user, you must muck about in the registry. (Mere mortals, of course, should avoid the Registry Editor like the plague. Seriously. One slip in the Registry Editor and you can render your system unbootable or worse.) For experienced Windows users, part of...

Tip of the day: Shut down, stand by, or hibernate without a mouse

What do you do if your mouse stops responding? How do you close all open programs and restart Windows without losing any data? The secret is to know these keyboard shortcuts, which bypass the mouse. They also come in handy if you have a notebook computer and want a fast...

Tip of the day: Get details about a program

Trying to figure out what a program file does can be a challenge. That's especially true when the file in question is one of many EXE and DLL files in a folder. When in doubt, right-click and choose Properties. For Windows program files and DLLs, the resulting dialog box contains...

Tip of the day: Move back to the last page

Your hands are on the keyboard and you want to quickly return to the previous page you were viewing in your browser window. Don't move your hand to the mouse - just press the Backspace key, which has the same effect as clicking the Back button on your browser's toolbar. (This...

Tip of the day: Get faster access to common Control Panel options

Some of the most useful Control Panel options have shortcuts that are readily accessible from the desktop or the Start menu, although you'd never know it by looking: Display - To open this dialog box and change any Display options, including screen saver settings and resolution, right-click any empty space...

Tip of the day: Save a tree with Print Preview

I'm on a crusade to encourage every Windows user to remove the Print button from the Internet Explorer toolbar. Why? Because more often than not, clicking the Print button causes you to waste paper by printing at least one more page than you really need. (Invariably, you'll get a blank...

Tip of the day: Stop wasting paper when printing Web pages

Sometimes you want to print just part of a Web page, but clicking the Print button spits out page after page of information you don't want or need. Here's an easy solution that works the same in Internet Explorer and Firefox: Use your mouse to select the text you want...

Tip of the day: Get your downloaded programs organized

If you're like most people, you store downloaded programs in a variety of locations-on the desktop, in the My Documents folder, or wherever the Save As dialog box happens to be pointing when you download a file. I recommend that you look for these downloaded program files on your hard...

Tip of the day: Show hidden files with a simple script

In its default settings, Windows Explorer conceals two types of files: those with the hidden attribute set, and those designated as system files. Some people, including my occasional writing partner Woody Leonhard, think you should always enable the display of hidden files. I don't agree - in general, I prefer...

Tip of the day: Keep your computer cool

Sometimes the cause of Windows problems isn't software at all. If you suddenly begin experiencing mysterious crashes, pay attention to when they occur. Overheating inside your computer case can cause memory chips, CPUs, and other heat-sensitive parts to stop functioning properly. If your computer consistently begins crashing a short time...

Tip of the day: A few Task Manager tricks

I've been posting Task Manager tips all week (here, here, here, and here), so I'll finish up with a few of my favorite tweaks and techniques for this valuable utility. First, I keep Task Manager running all the time. From the Options menu, I choose the Hide when minimized option,...

Tip of the day: Identify processes in the task list

Using Task Manager to identify a process that's taking more than its fair share of CPU or memory resources is a start, but what happens when you can't identify the specific process causing the problem? That's likely to occur if a system service starts to spin out of control. In...

Tip of the day: Use Task Manager to track memory usage

Yesterday I explained how to use Task Manager to monitor CPU performance. (For a refresher course on Task Manager, see Get to know Task Manager.) Today I explain how to use Task Manager to keep track of random access memory (RAM) usage....

Tip of the day: Monitor CPU performance with Task Manager

Is your system slowing down mysteriously? Slowdowns have a variety of causes, and you shouldn't jump to conclusions. When you notice performance becoming sluggish, the first thing you should do is open Task Manager and see if a process is using up more than its fair share of your CPU's...

Tip of the day: Get to know Task Manager

If you use Windows, you should know about Task Manager. This essential system utility allows you to keep track of which programs are running, kill a program or process that has stopped responding, monitor your system's performance, and keep track of how your system is using memory. The Task Manager...

Tip of the day: Create custom keyboard shortcuts

It's annoying to have to hunt around on the desktop or drill through cascading menus to find the programs you use every day. Why not assign keyboard shortcuts to those programs? As long as ou follow the rules, these shortcuts can be effective. This technique works only with Windows shortcuts,...

Tip of the day: Instantly maximize any window

Are you tired of trying to hit the tiny maximize/restore button in the top right corner of a window? There's an easier alternative: Double-click anywhere on the title bar. The entire title bar acts as an oversized toggle. Double-click to maximize the window; double-click again to restore the original window...

Tip of the day: Managing saved passwords and form data for Web sites

The AutoComplete feature in Internet Explorer allows you to save form data and user name/password combinations associated with Web pages. Firefox offers a similar feature with some important usability improvements. Today's tip tells you how to work with this feature in IE and Firefox....

Tip of the day: Apply or OK?

When you open a dialog box to change a setting in Windows or a Windows program, the buttons often include both OK and Apply. What's the difference? It's simple: Click Apply if you want to make the selected change without closing the current dialog box. This is the right choice...

Tip of the day: Take charge of AutoPlay

When you insert removable media (such as a CD or a flash memory card) into a drive, or when you attach a removable drive to your computer using a USB or Firewire connection, Windows XP checks its AutoPlay settings to see what to do next. That can be annoying if...

Tip of the day: Troubleshoot programs that start automatically

Windows XP includes a System Configuration Utility, Msconfig.exe, which is incredibly valuable and often misused. It allows you to see most of the programs that run at startup and selectively disable programs for troubleshooting purposes. To start the System Configuration Utility, type msconfig in the Run dialog box and press...

Tip of the day: Send a blind copy

Do you want to send a copy of an email message to someone without letting the main recipient know you're doing so? That's the primary purpose of the Bcc (blind courtesy copy) field, which is available in any Internet-standard e-mail program. It also comes in handy when you want to...

Tip of the day: Create an instant System Restore point

Today's tip is shamelessly stolen from Jerry Honeycutt, author of the definitive Microsoft Windows XP Registry Guide from Microsoft Press: You can script System Restore to make taking snapshots quicker and easier. Wouldn't you like to have a script sitting on your desktop that you can run before making changes...

Tip of the day: Create instant e-mail messages

You probably find yourself creating email messages to a handful of people more than others. If so, why not create a shortcut that lets you automatically begin a new message, addressed to that person, with just one mouse click? Right-click any empty space on the desktop, and choose New, Shortcut...

Tip of the day: Drop a file into an open window

One of the most efficient ways to open a file is to drag it directly from the desktop or an Explorer window and drop it in a program window that's already open. By using this technique instead of double-clicking, you control exactly which program opens the file. But what do...

Tip of the day: Protect yourself from unwanted ActiveX controls

WARNING: The following tip contains script code that makes changes to your Windows registry. Although I have tested this script and believe it performs as described, I am not responsible for any damage that may occur to your computer if you choose to download and run this script. The single...

Tip of the day: Manage saved passwords

Windows XP provides a secure system for storing sensitive data associated with Web pages you visit using Internet Explorer. This data store includes saved user names, passwords, and Web form data you “remember” using the AutoComplete feature in Internet Explorer. Occasionally, people ask me where this data is stored, assuming...

Tip of the day: Log out in a hurry

Think of this as the 21st Century equivalent of the "boss key." When you hear footsteps and you want to clear the contents of the screen right now, hold down the Windows logo key and tap L. In Windows XP, that shortcut takes you to the logon screen if you...

Debunking yet another bogus Windows tip

Updated 25-May-2005: Finally! Some authoritative input on this issue! Ryan Myers, a developer on Microsoft's Windows Client Performance Team, wrote a very informative blog post, "Misinformation and the Prefetch Flag," that clears up several of these issues. I've revised some remarks below in accordance with his entry. In today's tip...

Tip of the day: Don't clean out the Prefetch folder

At least once a week I run across some well-meaning soul who passes along a dubious tip designed to enhance the performance of Windows XP. According to these folks, you should clean out the Windows Prefetch folder regularly to improve your system's performance. They're wrong, because they don't understand how...

Tip of the day: Get to the root of an Explorer window

Normally, when you open Windows Explorer, the window opens in your My Documents folder, with all other drives and folders visible in the Folders pane on the left. But if you just want to work with the files in a single folder (with all its subfolders), don't forget the trick...

Tip of the day: Show or hide file name extensions

By default, Windows Explorer shows file extensions only for files that don't have an association with a program. That makes it awkward if you want to edit a file's extension. To make all file extensions visible for editing in Windows XP, open Windows Explorer and choose Tools, Folder Options. In the...

Tip of the day: Quick-pick files in Windows Explorer

When it's time to clean out a crowded directory, learn these file selection shortcuts for maximum efficiency: Hold down the Ctrl key and click to select or unselect files one at a time. Select one file, then hold down the Shift key and click on another file to select all files...

Tip of the day: Tweak your windows settings

The best of all Windows customizing utilities is free - and it comes from Microsoft. Tweak UI lets you adjust dozens of tiny settings without having to mess around with the registry. Microsoft has released several versions of Tweak UI through the years. The most recent one is version 2.10,...

Tip of the day: Four shortcuts that work in IE or Firefox

Here are four handy shortcuts that work identically in Internet Explorer and Firefox: Save a favorite Web site To add the current page to your list of Favorites (Internet Explorer) or bookmarks (Firefox), press Ctrl+D. You can move on to other pages, knowing that the location is saved for future reference. To recall...

Tip of the day: Give your taskbar twice as much room

This is one of my all-time favorite Windows tips, and it's one of the first customizations I make on a new computer. After you open more than three or four programs, you'll have trouble seeing which file or program goes with each taskbar button. Here's a great solution: increase the...

A new assortment of daily tips starts next week

Beginning Monday, April 4, you'll find a new daily tip feature on this site. I've already prepared the first week's worth and set them up to be served automatically every weekday, first thing in the morning. Yes, I know there are other Windows tips sites out there. My goal with this one...

Tune up your screen fonts

Last October, the Microsoft Typography group released a ClearType Tuner PowerToy. Don't assume that this is just for notebooks. Tweaking these settings in Windows XP really can make your screen more readable. There's a downloadable version, or you can use the online ClearType Tuner (because it uses an ActiveX control, the online version works...

How to troubleshoot the Blue Screen of Death

Trying to figure out what’s causing a Windows STOP error (more commonly known as the Blue Screen of Death, or BSOD) can be a challenge. One likely candidate is bad hardware; if the error messages are random and the shutdowns appear unpredictably, you should suspect a faulty power supply or bad RAM. Another common BSOD cause is a faulty device...

Block those Firefox popups!

My logs show a lot of people visiting this site looking for advice on how to stop Firefox pop-ups and pop-unders, which seem to have increased in frequency lately. Here’s an interesting bit of inside information from Asa Dotzler of the Mozilla Organization: A number of pundits and bloggers have been...

Protect yourself at hotspots

The Security Mentor has some interesting comments on the Windows Firewall that’s included with Windows XP SP2. He notes that, unlike the Internet Connection Firewall in SP1 and earlier, the Windows Firewall assumes that you want to trust all computers on your local network: So the built-in Windows firewall hides file...

Test your antivirus software

So, you want to show one of your kids or co-workers how your anti-virus software works. You don't need a live virus to trigger a virus alert. Instead, download a copy of the official antivirus test file from the European Institute for Computer Anti-Virus Research (EICAR). This is a simple text file...

The history of the Windows PowerToys

Raymond Chen wrote the original Tweak UI for Windows 95. In a post on his most excellent blog, The Old New Thing, he tells the history of the Windows PowerToys. It’s fun reading, especially given that this is the 10th anniversary of Windows 95. But I’m linking to it here...

From PowerPoint to your TV screen

My sister-in-law Teri asked last week if I knew how to get a PowerPoint presentation onto DVD. She had a 180–slide PowerPoint presentation (made by someone else for a friend's 50th wedding anniversary party), and they wanted to be able to pop a DVD into a player and watch the show on...

File association fixes

You install a program. You decide you don't like it. You uninstall it. But it changed your associations for a whole group of files, and now your original program doesn't work. What do you do? Visit Doug Knox's site and pick one of these handy-dandy downloadable Windows XP File Assocation...

Two smart things you can do for your data

I just got a call from a friend who had a hard drive crash. It appears his video card is toast, too, and this was the latest in a string of several hardware failures. He blames it on Mercury being in retrograde. I think there's a more rational explanation: bad...

The amazing hidden backup program

My brother-in-law is never afraid to ask a question. This week, he's concerned that his copy of Windows XP Home Edition is missing the backup program. Where is it? It’s on your Windows XP CD. From Windows XP Inside Out, Second Edition: If you're running Windows XP Home Edition, you...

Seven rules for e-mail

Andrew Tobias has come up with seven rules for e-mail that make excellent sense to me. I've excerpted them here; click the link and read the whole thing if you're curious. 1. If your entire message can fit on the subject line, put it on the subject line - followed...

Using the RunAs command

Aaron Margosis's WebLog has some excellent observations on what should be an obvious security precaution for Windows XP users. In a perfect world, you would run as a Limited user, logging in as Administrator only when you need to perform an administrative task. Windows even has a RunAs command you...

Be someone's computer hero

Scott Hanselman has a great suggestion. This holiday weekend (assuming you're in the U.S., that is), take a few minutes to clean up PCs that belong to your friends and relatives. (With their permission, of course!) His checklist is a good start: This holiday weekend, when you (computer person) visit...

Misinformation on AutoRun

Phillip Torrone of Engadget gets two things wrong in a post this morning, and because Boing Boing picked up his post, the misinformation is going to get amplified mightily. How-To Tuesday: Disable AutoRun on Windows! He says: Yes, this is a bit of a report from our post Monday, but...

The mysterious ~ on the desktop

I've been meaning to write about this for a while. Several times over the past year, I've worked on computers belonging to friends who are concerned that a file whose name is ~ (that's a plain ol' tilde) appears on the desktop. Is it a virus? Is it spyware? Nope....

Beware of Bogus XP Advice

This question appeared on a bulletin board recently: Someone suggested deleting the contents of the Prefetch directory in Windows XP on a weekly basis, to speed up the boot process. Is that good advice? The Internet has a way of taking questionable facts and giving them a life of their...

Messenger pop-ups revisited

A few weeks ago, I posted an article on this site, entitled Stop those pop-ups (part 2), describing how to get rid of those nasty, obnoxious, annoying pop-up windows that seem to be afflicting just about everyone with a computer running Windows XP. After checking in with some newsgroups, I'm...

Stop those pop-ups (part 2)

In the last few weeks, I've received an increasing number of messages from people asking about how they can stop annoying pop-up ads that appear on their PCs without any warning. These ads aren't like regular Web pop-ups. Instead, they look like dialog boxes, with the words "Windows Messenger" in...

Stop those pop-ups (part 1)

Is there ANYONE out there who actually has a positive thought about pop-up ads? I detest them, and I make a special point to avoid advertisers who use them. Thanks to my longtime pal Woody Leonhard, I can now recommend a great pop-up blocker for anyone who uses Internet Explorer....

Updating the Windows Tips collection (finally)!

I've been updating and rearranging my Windows Tips collection lately. These originally appeared on my About.com site in 2000 and 2001, and much of the information was outdated. They were also unnecessarily difficult to navigate, with each tip on its own page. I'm still updating the content, but hopefully the...