Tag: control panel
January 18, 2009 by
Jason
In the next version of the Windows client, end users will be able to customize the level of nagging that the operating system generates via the User Account Control, revealed Steven Sinofsky, Senior Vice President, Windows and Windows Live Engineering Group, on behalf of the team building the feature. Sinofsky emphasized that, as early as Windows 7 pre-Beta Milestone 3 Build 6801, users of the operating system would be able to see a reduction in the volume of prompts associated with UAC. At the same time, Microsoft started implementing the new dialog designs into the platform, along with the new UAC Control Panel.
The User Account Control was introduced in Windows Vista with the purpose of making all Windows users run under standard privileges, even those with administrator accounts. In this respect, the mitigation is able to provide an extra layer of defense against malicious code that would attempt to install itself on a machine, as UAC requires the user to grant it the rights. Sinofsky indicated that, in Windows 7, users would have more control over UAC compared to what was made available in Windows Vista. Read More»
Posted in Windows 7 | No Comments »
January 09, 2009 by
Jason While Outlook 2007 offers many new features that do indeed offer real benefits it can come at a price – performance.
On my Core 2 Duo with 2GB of RAM Outlook 2007 originally took a good 20 seconds to fire up from a fully booted PC and appeared to be constantly sluggish. So what can be done about it?
Tip 1: Delete attachments
A little-known feature in Outlook is the ability to keep an email but delete one or several attachment. Firstly, sort your inbox by file size (descending) and open a message (by double clicking so it opens in a new window) where you no longer wish to keep the attachment. Right click over the attachment and select Remove. Now save the email, repeat with all relevant emails in this mailbox and then repeat in any other mailboxes (including your sent items). Read More»
Posted in Office | 2 Comments »
December 23, 2008 by
Jason 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). Read More»
Posted in Windows XP | No Comments »
November 18, 2008 by
Jason Use the following steps to identify your chipset using the Microsoft Windows* Device Manager.
1. Open Device Manager.
for Windows Vista
Click Start » click Control Panel » click System and Maintenance » clickDevice Manager
for Windows XP
Click Start » click Control Panel » double-click the System icon » click the Hardware tab » click Device Manager
for Windows 2000
Click the Start button » click Settings » click Control Panel » double-click the System icon » click the Hardware tab » click Device Manager Read More»
Posted in Hardware | No Comments »
October 30, 2008 by
Jason
Have you ever clicked on the Shutdown or Restart button in Windows and have absolutely nothing happen? Sometimes Windows gets stuck because of some process that has become hung, meaning it is running, but can’t be ended in the normal way.
Hence, you try to shutdown or restart your computer, nothing happens at all. If you’re lucky, after a minute or two, you might see a message pop up saying that a process is hung and you can either let Windows try to end it or you can press End Now. I always prefer End Now!
Unfortunately, sometimes Windows simply refuses to shutdown and it won’t give you any kind of message. Don’t worry, the underlying cause of this is still a hung process, so all you need to do is kill the non-critical Windows processes one by one or modify the registry so that a hung process is automatically ended without manual intervention. I’ll explain both methods. Read More»
Posted in Computer | 1 Comment »
October 05, 2008 by
Jason Are you experiencing problems with your computer network? Are these error messages appearing?:
- Unable to clear the DNS cache
- Unable to renew your IP address
- An operation was performed on something that is not a socket
- Unable to clear the ARP cache
If so, here are some potential solutions for Windows XP/Vista.
1. Check to make sure your computer is on and is connected to a network.
2. Be aware that Windows has a built in function to repair a network connection. This function can give valuable information in the form of an error message if you know what you are looking for. Some common error messages given are:
- Unable to clear the DNS cache
- Unable to renew your IP address
- Unable to clear the ARP cache Read More»
Posted in Computer | No Comments »
September 06, 2008 by
Jason From the moment you start using Windows Vista, you’ll find a lot of new things to get used to: new programs, new layout, new ways of doing things. Some are great, some are confusing, some are just very well hidden. These are my picks for the 19 things you should try when you first start using Windows Vista do you think differently?
1. Use Flip3D
Okay, so it’s hardly essential, but it’s still one of the first things you should try: it’s just a neat way to show off that snazzy new interface. Hold down the Windows key and your keyboard and hit Tab to spool through them.
2. Fix a photo – and automatically back it up
One of the most useful new programs, Photo Gallery enables you to automatically import and organise your photos. Click Fix and you can crop out unsightly backgrounds, remove red-eye and adjust the lighting, too. But the most impressive feature is that it automatically backs up every photo: press CTRL and R and it’ll restore it just as it was when you first imported it. Read More»
Posted in Windows Vista | 1 Comment »
By default, Windows XP will prompt the user for input if there are one or more applications which have crashed or are not responding and it receives a shut down command. This halts the shutdown process entirely until the user approves the stopping of the non-responsive app.
By altering the registry slightly, Windows XP can be set to close crashed applications automatically. While this does not technically speed up the shut down process, it does streamline it, and ensure that the user will not give the shutdown command then get up and leave, only to find the PC still powered on because Windows never received input on what to do with a hung application. Read More»
Posted in Windows XP | No Comments »
1. Open the Control Panel from the Start menu.
2. Make sure you’re in the Classic View of the Control Panel by clicking Classic View in the Control Panel’s left sidebar.
3. Open System.
4. Click Device Manager in the left sidebar of the System window.
5. Right-click the device you want to uninstall the drivers and then select Properties.
6. Click the Driver tab in the device properties window. Read More»
Posted in Windows Vista | 1 Comment »
Most programs written for Windows XP also work in this version of Windows, but some older programs might run poorly or not at all. If a program written for an earlier version of Windows doesn’t run correctly, use the Program Compatibility Wizard to change the compatibility settings for the program. To change settings for a program manually, use the individual program’s Compatibility tab.
If changing the settings does not fix the problem, go to the program manufacturer’s website to see if there is an update for the program.
Do not use the Program Compatibility Wizard on older antivirus programs, disk utilities, or other system programs because it might cause data loss or create a security risk. Read More»
Posted in Computer | No Comments »
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