TIPS and TRICK

Error Code 80073712

2009-01-19T21:07:00.000+07:00

You may experience Windows Vista error code 80073712 (or 0x80073712)when you try to use Windows Update. This error can occur when the windows update files are corrupt.

To fix this, run the following command from the run window (Press WINDOWS KEY + R):

Code:

chkdsk c: /f

This will scan and fix and errors, but will require your PC to be rebooted in the process.

Once you are back in Windows, copy the Vista setup CD to a directory on your hard drive. From here, run the installation and choose "update". This will install Vista over the top of the current installation and fix any corrupt files.

It is recommended that you make a backup of any important data, as if this last step is performed incorrectly or goes wrong then you may lose your files.

Windows host process Rundll32 has stopped working

2009-01-19T21:06:00.001+07:00

Some Windows Vista users have been getting an error stating "Windows host process (rundll32) has stopped working". If you have the Nero burning software installed, it could be this that is causing the problem.

Browse to the following directory using Windows Explorer:

C:\Program Files\Common Files\Ahead\DSFilter\

Then rename the following items (if they exist) from .ax to .old, as this will prevent them from being accessed:

NeVideo.ax
NeroVideoProc.ax
lmpgspl.ax

This will prevent some of the Nero codecs from rendering video thumbnails, which is most likely the cause of the problem.

Repair Corrupt Vista Files

2009-01-19T21:05:00.003+07:00

Some Windows Vista errors are caused by corrupt system files causing instabilities, but troubleshooting these problems manually can be almost impossible. Thankfully, Vista includes a "System File Checker" application that will verify the integrity of core system files.

There are 2 types of scan, a verification and a scan/repair mode. The former will only check the files without repairing them automatically, the latter will fix any errors it finds.

To begin, load the command prompt by starting "cmd" from the run box (Press WINDOWS KEY + R to access this):

Then, type in one of the following commands (followed by the enter key) depending on the type of scan you wish to perform:

sfc /verifyonly - To verify any corrupt files only.
sfc /scannow - To verify and fix any corrupt files.

This will then start the scan and inform you of any files that require fixing:

How to fix Generic Host Process for Win32 Services Error

2008-12-03T18:58:00.002+07:00

Are you using Windows XP SP2 and encountering Generic Host Process for Win32 Services Error? Don’t worry. We do have several solutions to fix this nagging error.

For Windows XP SP2, the Generic Host Process error can potentially occur on any system and at any time. Most would have received this error message, shortly after system startup. But this error actually occurs during the previous system shutdown. According to microsoft, this error occurs in windows XP sp2, if security update 873333 (MS05-012) had been installed. Microsoft also claims, that this problem only occurs in Microsoft Windows XP Service Pack 2(SP2), but it does provide fixes for windows server 2003 and windows 2000. Microsoft had earlier issued security update 873333 (MS05-012), to fix a Vulnerability in OLE and COM, that could allow remote code execution.

Symptoms for Generic Host Process for Win32 Services Error:

E-mail messages that include file attachments would not display file names, when the file name contains double-byte character set (DBCS) characters and the file name is longer than 42 characters.However, this problem can only be noticed when the e-mail message format is Rich Text.
All applications that implements the IMallocSpy debugging interface may experience heap corruption. For example, you may be browsing the internet and would suddenly experience a halt in all your Network activity.Though you might see the Internet connected icon in the tray, you may not able to browse
You encounter error messages about faulting netapi32.dll and svchost.exe
You also receive error messages that state “Your PC has recovered from a serious problem”

Thus this Generic Host Process for Win32 Services Error is a broad issue.microsoft has a patch for this issue.You may download the patch KB894391, to fix this issue.

Alternatively you can do windows update manually (Note that the above patch solution and the following windows update solution works only on PC/computer running genuine Windows and not pirated versions):

Go to the start menu
Right click “My computer”
Click “properties” then the “automatic updates” tab
Choose “turn off automatic updates”
Restart your computer
Go back to start menu and in all programs go to “windows update” you have to be connected to the internet
Manually update windows
Turn your automatic updates back on

You can also try the following solutions to fix this error:

Solution 2:

Go to Run and type regedit
Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE >> SYSTEM >> CurrentControlSet >> Services >> Browser >> Parameters
Find the key IsDomainMaster
Set its value to False
Restart the computer

Solution 3:

Go to Run and type cmd
Type ‘netsh’ in command console then press enter
Then type ‘winsock’ and press enter and then type reset
Restart the computer

Does the above three solutions, help to fix the Generic Host Process for Win32 Services Error? You can also explore another registry solution to fix generic host error.

How to repair Windows XP/2000 if you are unable to boot into WindowsIs your system unable to boot into Windows XP/2000 or even Safe Mode? Whether you

2008-11-19T13:50:00.002+07:00

Is your system unable to boot into Windows XP/2000 or even Safe Mode? Whether you get a blue screen or XP/2000 just hangs, then this information is for you. This will allow you to repair your Windows XP/2000 installation (hopefully) without having to losing your data or settings.

Indications:

May allow Windows to load properly if there are critical driver, software or registry problems which have rendered the system unbootable. (Blue screens, hanging, errors etc..)
May repair/reinstall missing Windows components or solve otherwise quirky behavior
May allow drive to be installed on another system or motherboard with different chipset
May allow you to install new motherboards or make other large hardware changes that XP may not readily accept with PnP.

Note: The system repair function will remove any updates you have previously installed that are not included on the CD. Drivers will also be reverted to their original XP versions, as well as some settings (Including by not limited to network & performance settings). It may be necessary to reactivate your Windows XP as well.

Step 1: Determine the problemFirst, figure out what CAUSED the problem. Often times, when Windows is rendered unbootable, there is a good reason. This can often be due to hardware failure (bad hard disk, memory or CPU for example). In these cases, the system repair function will not work. System repair will only repair your software.

I strongly recommend you run a disk utility on your hard drive before performing a system repair. You can find more information about disk utilities here:
http://www.techspot.com/vb/showthrea...&threadid=7602

Memory can also cause these problems. A good memory test can be found here: http://www.memtest.org

Step 2: Begin the repair process

You must boot from your XP or 2000 CD. Please make sure it is the same version of Windows that is currently installed on your computer (ex. XP Home cannot repair XP Professional). Place the CD in your CDROM and start your computer. Newer versions will work as well (ie. Windows XP Pro SP2 CD will work on an older WinXP Pro SP1 installation)

Before the Windows logo appears, you will be asked to press any key to boot from CD, so do just that.

If you are unable to boot from the XP/2000 CD, then please check the last step in this short guide.

Step 3: System repair steps

A blue screen will appear and will begin loading XP setup from the CD.

RAID/SCSI/Unsupported UDMA users:
You will be prompted to "press F6 to install any third party SCSI or RAID drivers". Most users will not have to press F6, but if you are running RAID, SCSI or unsupported ATA controllers, then you need your controller drivers on a floppy disk. If you are unsure whether you have RAID/SCSI, then simply let the CD load without pressing F6.

Once completed, you will be confronted with "Windows Setup". You will be asked to setup up Windows, or repair Windows with the recovery console. Choose the FIRST option, NOT recovery console.

Choose F8 to continue.

Next, Windows Setup will find existing Windows XP/2000 installations. You will be asked to repair an existing XP installation or install a fresh copy of Windows XP/2000.

If no installations are found, then you will not be given the option to repair. This may happen if the data or partition on your drive is too corrupted.

That should be it. Windows XP/2000 will appear to be installing itself for the first time, but it will retain all of your data and settings. Just follow the prompts, have your CD-KEY handy and hope for the best!

How to Restore a Windows XP system to a previous State using System Restore

2008-11-04T19:07:00.010+07:00

If Windows XP will start:

Log on to Windows as an Administrator.
Click Start, point to All Programs - Accessories - System Tools - System Restore.
On the Welcome to System Restore page, click Restore my computer to an earlier time, and click Next.
Or type or paste the following command in the Start - Run box then press Enter.

%systemroot%\system32\restore\rstrui.exe

This command can be used at the Safe Mode Command Prompt also.

On the Select a Restore Point page, click on a bold date on the calendar pryer to the day of the problem stated. There may also be a restore point for an earlier time on the same day. Try to use a restore point as close as possible to a time just before the problem started. If the problem persists, an earlier restore point can be used.

On the Confirm Restore Point Selection page, click Next. System Restore restores the previous Windows XP configuration, and then restarts the computer.

If Windows will not start in normal mode:
System Restore can be run form Safe Mode or Safe Mode Command Prompt.

Warning: When restoring a system from Safe Mode or from the Command Prompt an Undo restore point will NOT be created!

The Best Methods To Backup Hard Drives

2008-10-13T15:32:00.003+07:00

Do you have trouble thinking of the best methods to backup your hard drives?

Well, hard drive backup does make for an interesting topic – so that’s why this article is here.

In this article, we’ll look at three of the best methods to backup hard drives and give you peace of mind, knowing your precious data is safe and sound. Let's get started right away ...

There are various methods to backup hard drives

Method 1: Create A Drive Image

The first approach to hard drive backup is to use a good backup software to create a disk image. Why is this one of the best methods to backup hard drives? Well, because it is a tried and tested method and all the big corporations use this approach as the standard.

A drive image is nothing but a detailed representation of every bit and byte in your hard disk. Once you create a drive image, you’re free to restore it to any hard drive you want. PC just crashed? No problem. Restore the drive image into a new hard drive. I like to create a drive image just after installing a clean version of Windows XP. This allows me to restore and revert to a clean hard disk image in case some virus or malware affects my PC.

Norton Ghost is one of the best products in the industry for creating a drive image. I’ve used it since the days of DOS, and it has proven time and again to be at the top of its game. The latest version supports Windows XP and incremental backups – meaning you can create on drive image snapshot and keep adding changes to it.

Acronis True Image is a competing product which has garnered many awards too. I haven’t tried it out, but I certainly will, since many people have raved about its performance and ease-of-use.

Method 2: Backup To Another Hard Drive, CD or DVD

Another ‘best method’ to backup hard drives is to use another hard drive. What do I mean by another hard drive? Well, you can simply copy your existing important data to another hard disk in desktop PC. Another approach is to get an external portable hard drive and copy your stuff there.

Of course, you should understand that there are risks. The second hard drive that you backup to may also fail. Some alternatives are to use CD and DVD media for backups as they are much less likely to fail compared to hard drives.

Method 3: Use An Online Backup Service

Using an online backup service is also fast becoming one of the best methods to backup hard drives. Essentially, these services allow you to store gigabytes of data online for a fee.

The huge advantage of online backup services is that they are resilient to disaster and theft. If you were to backup stuff on your own, then in the event of disaster or theft, you lose everything. Online backup services, however, have huge, clustered servers that are designed to withstand such calamities.

The downside of online backup services would be the cost. However, these are fast coming down.

How To Fix A Slow Computer

2008-10-13T15:20:00.001+07:00

There are few things in life that are as frustrating as when your computer is grinding along at the speed of a snail. Just a few short years ago we didn't really have this problem, which was before the computer really came into existence in most homes. The problem of slow running computers is not a frustration that most of us have to deal with ever day. Think about when you call someone about some business dealings on the phone, how many times have they told you to wait because their computer is running slow? Here are the most common reasons why your computer is running slowly and how to fix them.

1. Spyware Troubles - These little invasive programs are such a problem that a new word needed to be added to the dictionary when they came into existence. It doesn't matter if you call them spyware or scumware or just a plain ole' pain in the butt, these programs spring popups into your face, slow your computer to a crawl, and cause you to bang your head on the desk repeatedly. Fortunately there are a lot of programs out there for you to download that will help you to remove this scourge from your computer, and keep it at bay.

2. Too Much Running at One Time - Sometimes you shoot yourself in the foot, so to speak. If your system tray (the area near the clock on your computer) is so packed with icons that it looks like Grand Central Station at quitting time then you may be running too many programs at one time. Try right clicking on some of those icons to see what they are and if it's possible that you could live without them.

Keeping your computer clean is pretty much a full time job if you try to do it yourself. Search and find some great software that will clean your computer and help keep it running smoothly, and that means that there is one less thing in life to frustrate you.

Wipe out spyware, adware, popups, repair your registry and be happy with your computer again. http://www.computerfixers.info/

How to Retrieve Deleted Data From Your Computer

2008-09-30T11:28:00.001+07:00

Are you looking to find out how to retrieve deleted data? It's quite simple, once you realize a few fundamental facts. See, when we delete a file, whether we mean to or accidentally, and then we empty the recycle bin, we tend to think it's lost and gone forever. The actual fact is that it's simply irretrievable by our operating system, yet nonetheless it is still there on our hard drive, right where we left it. This is why we need to utilize certain software programs to fish it out of hiding.

Now, in learning how to retrieve deleted data, we also need to understand that while our deleted file still resides somewhere on our hard drive, it can get partially overwritten by other files we write, programs we download, or images that we may wish to store on our computers. This is usually no problem for data retrieval software, as most of these types of software programs can rebuild the small parts and areas that can get overwritten.

Using these software programs is how to retrieve deleted data in the best way because you no longer need to have the hacking skills of those brilliant computer geeks out there - these software programs are like having your very own computer hacker, only without the geeky part. There's no need to keep it fed with Twinkies and Jolt cola, you just make a few clicks with your mouse, and sit back with a cup of coffee while it works it's magic to bring back that which was lost. This is how to retrieve deleted data in the easiest way.

Want to know which 'Restore Deleted Files' Software does the best job? I've reviewed my top 3 programs at http://www.choosereviews.com/restoredeletedfiles

How to Recover Deleted Emails and Restore Them Completely

2008-09-30T11:24:00.001+07:00

Restoring Deleted Emails

If you delete an email, it hasn't really gone anywhere. Even if you've emptied your recycle bin or the "Trash" folder in your Inbox - the email still isn't deleted. It's just that your computer system now has no way to figure out where it is. But it's there, still on your hard drive. By using special email recovery tools you can recover deleted emails because these programs identify these 'missing' files and can bring them back to life.

Now the bad news.

Act Quickly and Increase Your Chances

The bad news is you have to act quickly. You only have a small time-frame in which to try to attempt to recover your lost email. Every minute that you waste and continue to use the drive for anything that isn't related to recovering your emails, you severely decrease your chances of successful email recovery. Why?

Well, because your hard drive is constantly overwriting files to make space for new information you put into it. If your hard drive is full and there is not much space or memory available - it is highly probable that the email has already been overwritten and deleted - permanently.

Other Problems with Recovering Deleted Emails

Not all deleted or lost emails go to "Trash" folder. If you have suffered a computer crash or hardware failure or your operating system is corrupted in some way, then it is unlikely that emails you have deleted can be recovered.

Also, if you haven't opened the email at all or it hasn't been deleted the usual way due to file corruption, you probably will have less of a chance to recover and restore the email in its entirety.

Nothing to Lose

Recover deleted email programs search and locate the emails that you have deleted. You can search by entering a specific keyword for example. Then, you can choose to preview the email to see it's contents and if it's been recovered in its original state by the program. You can also select to scan for what ever email program you are using (and need to recover) - either web based emails such as Hotmail, Yahoo and Gmail or Outlook Express.

Best bit is this. Most of these email recovery programs are free to download. When they start scanning your hard drive looking for the deleted email and then manage to find it and when you are completely satisfied that that's your missing email - then you can then proceed to purchase the software.

In essence, you have nothing to lose (if the email is not there - it's not there) and everything to gain.

Well, at least you can get your deleted email back.

Office 2007 Settings

2008-09-29T10:12:00.003+07:00

Word 2007

To access Word Options (settings), click on the Office Button, then at the bottom right corner, click Word Options

Common settings in Word

Popular settings

Popular settings contains the preferences that most Word users would like to manipulate.

Overtype Mode (Enable Insert Key)

Overtype mode allows a user to insert and overwrite text in a document by pushing the insert key. Overtype mode can then be turned off by pushing the insert key again. *Note: There is no notification that overtype mode is activated.

To enable Overtype Mode: Click Office Button, then Word Options, select Advanced from the left side of the menu, then check Use Insert Key to control Overtype Mode.

Autocorrect Options

Autocorrect options allows Word 2007 users to control how their computer automatically inserts text into a document. Users can specify custom text replacment where a simple combination of character would insert a generic sentence into a document or comment box.

To use Autocorrect options: Click Office Button, then Word Options, select Proofing from the left side, then click Autocorrect Options

Once on the Autocorrect screen, there are two columns on the bottom, one for a string of text (orange box) and another with the text to replace (green box). In a document, when you type the the text in the orange box, it will be replaced with the text from the green box. When finished, make sure to click the Add button so your string is saved.

Default save settings

When working with other users that don't have Office 2007, it is useful if your Office application would save in a format that is compatable with everyone else in your office.

To change the default save settings: Click Office Button, then Word Options, select Save from the menu on the left side, and at the top select the default save format.

Excel 2007

To access Excel Options (settings), click on the Office Button, then at the bottom right corner, click Excel Options

Common settings in Excel

Popular Settings

Popular settings contains the preferences that most Word users would like to manipulate.

Default save settings

When working with other users that don't have Office 2007, it is useful if your Office application would save in a format that is compatable with everyone else in your office.

To change the default save settings: Click Office Button, then Excel Options, select Save from the menu on the left side, and at the top select the default save format.

Outlook 2007

To access Outlook options, in the main Outlook window select Tools and then Options

More information about converting between file formats can be found on Microsoft's Office 2007 training page.

Saving files in Office 2007

2008-09-29T10:08:00.001+07:00

Using Save

Saving files in Office 2007 is a simple process. Just click on the Office Button, and select Save from the menu. This will save your document in the default location with the default file format. For a Word 2007 document, the save location would be My Documents and the extention will be .docx

Using Save As

To use Save As, click on the office button and move your cursor to the Save As option. Once you have Save As selected you will notice that more options available. Clicking Save As will provide a dialogue box in which you can specify the location and file name.

If you choose the other options, you will be provided with a list of options to choose from. Selecting Save As Word 97-2003 Document will result in a file saved with the .doc file extension.

Selecting Save As PDF of XPS will allow you to publish the document in the specified format. *PDF/XPS plugin required for this action.

Microsoft Office 2007 File Formats

With the new version of Microsoft Office 2007 come new file formats. First and foremost, many users wonder why a new format was created. Here are a few reasons:

Increased security in Office documents
Reduced chances of file corruption
Reduced file size of up to 75%
To support new features implemented in Office 2007

Here is a small table to compare the old file format extensions with the new ones:

Application	Microsoft Office 2007	Microsoft Office 2003
Word	.docx, .dotx, .docm, dotm	.doc, .dot
PowerPoint	.pptx, .potx, .pptm, .potm	.ppt, .pot
Excel	.xlsx, .xltx, .xlsm, .xltm	.xls, .xlt

When working with other users who may not have Microsoft Office 2007, keep the following information in mind:

Office 2007 users can open files from Office 95-2003
When opening and working with legacy file types, Office will open in Compatability Mode and save the files as the same format they were opened in. (Word 97 files will be saved as Word 97 files)
New documents/presentations/workbooks will be saved in the Office 2007 format by default. To save in a different format, use Save As
When Office 2003 users try to open Office 2007 documents, they will be prompted to install the Microsoft Office Compatability Pack. The compatability pack allows Office 2003 users to open, edit, and save Office 2007 documents, presentations, and workbooks.

More information about the file formats can be found on Microsoft's Office 2007 training page.

Microsoft Office 2007: Working with the ribbon

2008-09-29T09:54:00.001+07:00

The ribbon, shown below, is the primary form of navigation in the Microsoft Office 2007 system. Although the ribbon may seem unfamiliar at first, a few minutes working with it will reveal that the ribbon is an efficient way to navigate your favorite Office applications.

To understand the ribbon, it is important to recognize its three main components. The ribbon is comprised of the following three components:

Tabs - Core tasks you use in each program. Each Office 2007 application has different tabs for each application. The tabs for Word 2007 are highlighted below in orange.

Groups - Sets of related commands on the ribbon. For example, the font group contains all of the commands related to manipulating the size and style of fonts. The font group in Word 2007 is shown below and highlighted in orange.

Commands - Commands can be a button, menu, or textbox where information can be entered. The commands are the most basic component of the ribbon and usually do one specific function. The paste and bold commands in Word 2007 are shown below highlighted in orange.

In addition to the three components listed above, the ribbon also has other components that comprise it. These other components are more options and commands on demand.

More options are represented by a small icon in the lower right hand corner of groups on the ribbon. This button will typically open a dialogue box with options and commands that were not on the ribbon. The image below shows the more options button for the font group.

Commands on demand are additional tabs that show up on your ribbon when you need them. Examples of these are the picture tools, graph tools, and chart tools. These tools will only show up when working with the said item. For example, to access the picture tools, you must insert an image into the document. The picture tools will appear at the end of the tab list.

More information about the ribbon can be found on Microsoft's Office 2007 training page.

2008-09-28T15:20:00.004+07:00

My Computer Won't Shut Down Itself After Installing XP

2008-09-28T14:07:00.001+07:00

There are a number of users who are noticing that their PC will no longer automatically power down/shut off without pressing the power off button on the computers unlike in Windows Me/95/2000. There could be a number of reasons for this - but the main one seems to be that ACPI is not enabled on the computer or in Windows XP. Here is how to try that out:

Click - Start - Control Panel - Performance and Maintenance - Power Options Tab
Then click APM - Enable Advanced Power Management Support

20 things you didn't know about Windows XP

2008-09-28T14:06:00.001+07:00

You've read the reviews and digested the key feature enhancements and operational changes. Now it's time to delve a bit deeper and uncover some of Windows XP's secrets.

1. It boasts how long it can stay up. Whereas previous versions of Windows were coy about how long they went between boots, XP is positively proud of its stamina. Go to the Command Prompt in the Accessories menu from the All Programs start button option, and then type 'systeminfo'. The computer will produce a lot of useful info, including the uptime. If you want to keep these, type 'systeminfo > info.txt'. This creates a file called info.txt you can look at later with Notepad. (Professional Edition only).

2. You can delete files immediately, without having them move to the Recycle Bin first. Go to the Start menu, select Run... and type 'gpedit.msc'; then select User Configuration, Administrative Templates, Windows Components, Windows Explorer and find the Do not move deleted files to the Recycle Bin setting. Set it. Poking around in gpedit will reveal a great many interface and system options, but take care -- some may stop your computer behaving as you wish. (Professional Edition only).

3. You can lock your XP workstation with two clicks of the mouse. Create a new shortcut on your desktop using a right mouse click, and enter 'rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation' in the location field. Give the shortcut a name you like. That's it -- just double click on it and your computer will be locked. And if that's not easy enough, Windows key + L will do the same.

4. XP hides some system software you might want to remove, such as Windows Messenger, but you can tickle it and make it disgorge everything. Using Notepad or Edit, edit the text file /windows/inf/sysoc.inf, search for the word 'hide' and remove it. You can then go to the Add or Remove Programs in the Control Panel, select Add/Remove Windows Components and there will be your prey, exposed and vulnerable.

5. For those skilled in the art of DOS batch files, XP has a number of interesting new commands. These include 'eventcreate' and 'eventtriggers' for creating and watching system events, 'typeperf' for monitoring performance of various subsystems, and 'schtasks' for handling scheduled tasks. As usual, typing the command name followed by /? will give a list of options -- they're all far too baroque to go into here.

6. XP has IP version 6 support -- the next generation of IP. Unfortunately this is more than your ISP has, so you can only experiment with this on your LAN. Type 'ipv6 install' into Run... (it's OK, it won't ruin your existing network setup) and then 'ipv6 /?' at the command line to find out more. If you don't know what IPv6 is, don't worry and don't bother.

7. You can at last get rid of tasks on the computer from the command line by using 'taskkill /pid' and the task number, or just 'tskill' and the process number. Find that out by typing 'tasklist', which will also tell you a lot about what's going on in your system.

8. XP will treat Zip files like folders, which is nice if you've got a fast machine. On slower machines, you can make XP leave zip files well alone by typing 'regsvr32 /u zipfldr.dll' at the command line. If you change your mind later, you can put things back as they were by typing 'regsvr32 zipfldr.dll'.

9. XP has ClearType -- Microsoft's anti-aliasing font display technology -- but doesn't have it enabled by default. It's well worth trying, especially if you were there for DOS and all those years of staring at a screen have given you the eyes of an astigmatic bat. To enable ClearType, right click on the desktop, select Properties, Appearance, Effects, select ClearType from the second drop-down menu and enable the selection. Expect best results on laptop displays. If you want to use ClearType on the Welcome login screen as well, set the registry entry HKEY_USERS/.DEFAULT/Control Panel/Desktop/FontSmoothingType to 2.

10. You can use Remote Assistance to help a friend who's using network address translation (NAT) on a home network, but not automatically. Get your pal to email you a Remote Assistance invitation and edit the file. Under the RCTICKET attribute will be a NAT IP address, like 192.168.1.10. Replace this with your chum's real IP address -- they can find this out by going to www.whatismyip.com -- and get them to make sure that they've got port 3389 open on their firewall and forwarded to the errant computer.

11. You can run a program as a different user without logging out and back in again. Right click the icon, select Run As... and enter the user name and password you want to use. This only applies for that run. The trick is particularly useful if you need to have administrative permissions to install a program, which many require. Note that you can have some fun by running programs multiple times on the same system as different users, but this can have unforeseen effects.

12. Windows XP can be very insistent about you checking for auto updates, registering a Passport, using Windows Messenger and so on. After a while, the nagging goes away, but if you feel you might slip the bonds of sanity before that point, run Regedit, go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/Advanced and create a DWORD value called EnableBalloonTips with a value of 0.

13. You can start up without needing to enter a user name or password. Select Run... from the start menu and type 'control userpasswords2', which will open the user accounts application. On the Users tab, clear the box for Users Must Enter A User Name And Password To Use This Computer, and click on OK. An Automatically Log On dialog box will appear; enter the user name and password for the account you want to use.

14. Internet Explorer 6 will automatically delete temporary files, but only if you tell it to. Start the browser, select Tools / Internet Options... and Advanced, go down to the Security area and check the box to Empty Temporary Internet Files folder when browser is closed.

15. XP comes with a free Network Activity Light, just in case you can't see the LEDs twinkle on your network card. Right click on My Network Places on the desktop, then select Properties. Right click on the description for your LAN or dial-up connection, select Properties, then check the Show icon in notification area when connected box. You'll now see a tiny network icon on the right of your task bar that glimmers nicely during network traffic.

16. The Start Menu can be leisurely when it decides to appear, but you can speed things along by changing the registry entry HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Control Panel/Desktop/MenuShowDelay from the default 400 to something a little snappier. Like 0.

17. You can rename loads of files at once in Windows Explorer. Highlight a set of files in a window, then right click on one and rename it. All the other files will be renamed to that name, with individual numbers in brackets to distinguish them. Also, in a folder you can arrange icons in alphabetised groups by View, Arrange Icon By... Show In Groups.

18. Windows Media Player will display the cover art for albums as it plays the tracks -- if it found the picture on the Internet when you copied the tracks from the CD. If it didn't, or if you have lots of pre-WMP music files, you can put your own copy of the cover art in the same directory as the tracks. Just call it folder.jpg and Windows Media Player will pick it up and display it.

19. Windows key + Break brings up the System Properties dialogue box; Windows key + D brings up the desktop; Windows key + Tab moves through the taskbar buttons.

20. The next release of Windows XP, codenamed Longhorn, is due out late next year or early 2003 and won't be much to write home about. The next big release is codenamed Blackcomb and will be out in 2003/2004.

Make your Folders Private

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•Open My Computer
•Double-click the drive where Windows is installed (usually drive (C:), unless you have more than one drive on your computer).
•If the contents of the drive are hidden, under System Tasks, click Show the contents of this drive.
•Double-click the Documents and Settings folder.
•Double-click your user folder.
•Right-click any folder in your user profile, and then click Properties.
•On the Sharing tab, select the Make this folder private so that only I have access to it check box.

Note

•To open My Computer, click Start, and then click My Computer.
•This option is only available for folders included in your user profile. Folders in your user profile include My Documents and its subfolders, Desktop, Start Menu, Cookies, and Favorites. If you do not make these folders private, they are available to everyone who uses your computer.
•When you make a folder private, all of its subfolders are private as well. For example, when you make My Documents private, you also make My Music and My Pictures private. When you share a folder, you also share all of its subfolders unless you make them private.
•You cannot make your folders private if your drive is not formatted as NTFS For information about converting your drive to NTFS

Search For Hidden Or System Files In Windows XP

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The Search companion in Windows XP searches for hidden and system files differently than in earlier versions of Windows. This guide describes how to search for hidden or system files in Windows XP.

Search for Hidden or System Files By default, the Search companion does not search for hidden or system files. Because of this, you may be unable to find files, even though they exist on the drive.

To search for hidden or system files in Windows XP:
Click Start, click Search, click All files and folders, and then click More advanced options.

Click to select the Search system folders and Search hidden files and folders check boxes.

NOTE: You do not need to configure your computer to show hidden files in the Folder Options dialog box in Windows Explorer to find files with either the hidden or system attributes, but you need to configure your computer not to hide protected operating system files to find files with both the hidden and system attributes. Search Companion shares the Hide protected operating system files option (which hides files with both the system and hidden attributes) with the Folder Options dialog box Windows Explorer.

Install Windows XP Home Edition Backup software

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Computers, like any appliance, can break down or fail. To protect your important files from computer failure, you should make backup copies of your files. Each edition of Microsoft Windows XP—except Windows XP Home Edition—includes Windows Backup, a program that helps you save your files to an external disk. If you use Windows XP Home Edition, you can manually install Windows Backup.

To manually install Windows Backup

1.	Insert your Windows XP CD into your CD drive. If Windows XP Setup does not appear after several seconds, open My Computer, right-click your CD drive, and then click AutoPlay.
2.	In the Welcome to Microsoft Windows XP window, click Perform additional tasks.
3.	Click Browse this CD.
4.	Double-click VALUEADD, double-click MSFT, and then double-click NTBACKUP to open the \VALUEADD\MSFT\NTBACKUP folder.
5.	In the NTBACKUP folder, double-click NTBACKUP.
6.	After setup is complete, click Finish.

You can now start Windows Backup by clicking Start, pointing to All Programs, pointing to Accessories, pointing to System Tools, and then clicking Backup.

Set up your computer so that only authorized people can use it

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When several people use a single computer, it’s convenient to set up a user account for each person to keep everyone’s setup preferences and documents separate. If someone wants to use your computer briefly he or she can use the Guest user account. By default in Microsoft Window XP, this account is disabled, which means that only specifically authorized users can access your computer.

If you have enabled your Guest account, you should disable the Guest account (once your guest has finished using your computer) to improve your computer’s security.

To disable the Guest account

1.	Click Start, and then click Control Panel.
2.	Under Pick a Category, click User Accounts.
3.	Under or pick an account to change, click Guest.
4.	On the What do you want to change about the guest account? page, click Turn off the guest account.

Now the Guest account is disabled. As an added safety precaution, and to prevent users without user accounts from logging on, it’s a good idea to add passwords to every account on your computer.

Speed up menu display

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Microsoft Windows XP uses many visual effects to provide a rich, friendly interface. One of these settings allows menus to fade into view when you open them. This visual effect is so smooth that you may never have noticed it; however, the effect does cause menus to take a little longer to appear.

On a fast computer, this shouldn't be an issue. But on a computer that isn’t responding as quickly as you'd like, you can make menus display faster.

To speed up menu display

1.	Click Start. Right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.
2.	Click the Advanced tab. In the Performance area, click Settings.
3.	On the Visual Effects tab in the Performance Options dialog box, clear the Fade or slide menus into view check box.
4.	Click OK.
5.	In the System Properties dialog box, click OK.

Now when you click a menu, it will appear almost instantly.