Tweaks
How to assign or change drive letters
Do you use external USB memory devices and find Windows changing the drive letters? This is a common complaint and I posted about it in three years ago:
These days many systems are likely to be using USB external drives of one sort or the other. Also, hard drives have become very large and many systems [...]
Restore the Run line to the Vista start menu
The Start-Run line is very useful in Windows XP but Microsoft decided to more or less supersede it in Vista with the Start Search facility. The Run line is omitted from the Start menu in the default Vista configuration but it can be restored. There are still times when I want to use the Run [...]
Stop Windows XP update reboot nagging
We just went through the monthly Windows update process and I was reminded of something that annoys many PC users who use automatic update. After the update patches are installed, Windows wants to reboot and in XP will keep nagging you every 10 minutes until you do. You can tell it to reboot later but [...]
Windows Vista tweaking utility
Prior to Vista, Microsoft provided an unofficial utility called Tweakui that allowed for conveniently customizing a number of system settings. There is no Vista version of Tweakui but Ramesh Kumar has written a similar free utility called Ultimate Windows Tweaker that is available at The WinVista Club. I briefly mentioned this utility back in November [...]
Speed up disk cleanup
. I posted previously:
Windows XP comes with a useful utility called Disk Cleanup that helps to keep unnecessary temporary files from accumulating. (I discuss the details of using this utility at this link.) However, systems with NTFS disks often run into a problem with the utility being very slow or hanging for a long time. [...]
Adobe security problem and Internet Explorer add-ons
I want to mention that there are two different types of PDF reader involved in the security problem mentioned in the preceding post. One type is the software that is used to read PDF files on the desktop. This is the software that is used when you click on a PDF file that is already [...]
Change Windows automatic reboot
In many Windows PCs, the default setting is to automatically reboot after a system crash. That is not always convenient since you may want to try to decipher the error message on a Blue Screen of Death. Or sometimes, the automatic reboot may get you into an endless cycle of crashing and rebooting. Therefore, you [...]
Tips for the Firefox browser
Readers already know that I think the Firefox browser is preferable to Internet Explorer. Here are some links with tips or customizations for using Firefox:
25 essential Firefox add-ons for power users From TechRadar
Five Firefox Shortcuts You Need to Learn Right NowFrom PC World
Firefox 3: 8 Untold SecretsFrom ExtremeTech
Useful Firefox 3 Configuration Tweaks From Lifehacker
How to disable AutoPlay/AutoRun in Windows XP/Vista
Following up on the previous post, I am going to give some ways to disable the automatic running of portable media. Note that infected thumb drives have been the source of many recent malware outbreaks.
First, I will try to clear up some confusing Microsoft usage and explain some terms. Back when portable media meant CDs, [...]
Make Vista run your way
A lot of people complain about one thing or the other in Vista. However, in many cases you can configure Vista to run more to your liking. Here’s a collection of links where you can find out how to tweak Vista:
Vista Annoyances ResolvedAn extensive discussion at TweakGuides of Vista annoyances and what to do about [...]
A faster broadband connection
Many home PC users with broadband connections have not optimized their connection. There are a number of steps that might increase your connection speed and a good article on some of these is at NetworkWorld.
My own experience is that the one adjustment that many systems need is to change the RWIN setting. There is considerable [...]