Windows Tips&Tricks

Windows Tips and Tricks
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Win Ip Config | Delete files directly | Finding files through DOS | Freecell Cheats | Autoconnect to your ISP at bootup | Auto Completion of DOS commands | Add/Remove entries | Dual Boot Options | Finding the Welcome Screen | Making the Modem Dial Faster | Password Deletion | Restarting the Taskbar | SysEdit | System Information | Troubleshooting Memory | Open With

1.       Win IP Config
You can use a little-known utility called WinIPConfig to see information about your TCP/IP network settings. From the Start Menu, press Run, type WINIPCFG, and click OK.
2.       Delete Files Directly
To delete files without sending them to the recycle bin, select the file or files to be deleted. Right-click the selection and hold the Shift key down while selecting Delete.
3.       Finding Files in DOS
To find a file in MS-DOS, use ATTRIB. Type : attrib filename /s. This will list the path your file is in. You can use wildcards and redirection. To find all the jpegs on a PC from MS-DOS and to save the result to floppy disk type : attrib *.jpg /s > a:jpeglist.txt
4.       Freecell Cheats
You can force a win with Freecell by holding down the CRTL-SHIFT-F10 together. You will then get a message stating: Choose Abort to win, Retry to Lose, or Ignore to Cancel. Hit Abort and then move a card to the top. It will automatically Win the game for you.
5.       Create An Auto Connection To Your ISP on Bootup
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To make your computer use Dial-up networking to connect you to the internet every time you boot, go into the dial-up networking directory in "My Computer." Now click on the file that you usually use to connect to the internet and drag it to the desktop; it should appear there without asking any questions such as "This file cannot be placed on the desktop, would you like to create a shortcut instead?" At this point, you should "cut" the file off of the desktop and placing it in your startup directory in your start menu. Now reboot your computer. It should automatically connect you to the internet without the "enter information" box appearing, forcing you to click Connect before it continues. If it does come up with the box, do two things... type in your password in the appropriate box when it appears on the boot-up and check the box below it that says "save password." Now you must connect to the internet once by clicking on Connect. The call must go through or else it will not save your password. Now disconnect from that call once it has completed verifying you. Go into dial-up networking in My Computer and click ONCE on the icon that you dragged to the desktop before. Choose "settings" from the toolbar at the top of the window. Uncheck the box in this window stating "Display information box." Now reboot and watch it dial!
6.       AutoCompletion of DOS Commands
To enable auto-completion of a command (similar to that used in tsch in unix) start the registry editor and change the value of the CompletionChar key to 9. (HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Command Processor) Once this is done you can just hit the tab key to complete your commands. (Ex. type c --> type c:\command.com type c --> type c:\config.sys)
7.       Add/Remove Entries
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This explains how to remove those annoying entries in the Add/Remove programs list. I commonly delete the folder from the directory and I am left with a non-removable entry in the Add/Remove programs list.
1. From the Start button, run Regedit
2. select HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
3. select Software
4. select Microsoft
5. select Windows
6. select Current Version
7. select UninstallThis will give you a list of all the programs in your Add/Remove programs list. Highlight the file and select delete. This will remove the entry from the list.
8.       Dual Boot Options
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You can make your computer boot Window95, Windows98, windows 3.x, winodwsNT, unix, os2, etc. Get a large hard drive (or several) You MUST BE ABLE TO SPECIFY WHERE TO INSTALL THE OPERATING SYSTEM DURING THE INSTALLATION or this will not work. Programs like QuarterDeck's Select it allow you to boot multiple os's from the same computer. The trick to getting it to works is you must install these programs under the operating system that is NOT installed in it's default directory. For example, Select-It looks for Operating systems on only the first disk. If you install windows onto D:\windows, that specific version of windows will assign that drive as the default drive and the "first" drive. It also must store boot information on drive C:, thereby also making it the "first drive". Install (for example)Select-It under the OS running off of D: \windows. And follow it's instructions. Viola, dual boot win95/95 (Which Microsoft Press explicitly state CANNOT be done). This trick is usefull is you have several pieces of hardware which cannot run under the same system at the same time. So just give them their own operating system!
9.       Finding The Welcome Screen
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If you turned off the Welcome Screen and would like to see it again or make it pop up every time you start Windows, go to the Start, Run, and type WELCOME, and click OK.
10.       Making The Modem Dial Faster
Double-Click on the Modems item in the Control Panel and then click on the properties button. Open the Connections tab and click on the advanced button. Enter s11=50 in the extra settings feild. 50 (milliseconds) is the new speed, the lower the faster, some modems may not go that fast, but if you enter a number too low it will use the default fastest setting.
11.       Password Deletion
To delete your password information, find the .PWL file in the Windows directory with your username in it (such as JACKM.PWL). Delete it and restart Windows.
12.       Restarting the Taskbar
To restart the Taskbar, press Ctrl+Alt+Del and Shutdown the Explorer task. When the Shutdown dialog pops up, choose No. When the End Task confirmation pops up, click End Task. The Taskbar will shut down and then automatically restart.
13.       SysEdit
From the Start button, choose the Run command. In the command line type SYSEDIT. This will launch the System Configuration Editor which will allow you to edit the following files: PROTOCOL.INI, SYSTEM.INI, WIN.INI, CONFIG.SYS, and AUTOEXEC.BAT.
14.       System Information
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It is a good idea to get your system information on paper incase you ever have a computer problem where you need to refer to this. Right click on the My Computer icon and select Properties from the context menu. Click on the Device Manager tab, then the Print button. Select the "All devices and system summary" button, then click on OK. This will give you a print out of information about your hardware, IRQ's, ports, memory usage, devices and drivers.
15.       Troubleshooting Memory
You can solve memory problems on your computer by using the Memory Troubleshooter in Windows Help.
16.       Open With...
If you want to open an already associated file with a different program than the one it is associated with, hold down the shift key and then right click the file. "Open with" should be added to the menu now so you can open the file with a different program.
©2001 Rohini Bakshi.     Back To Top