A very important new feature in Microsoft Windows XP is the ability to do a boot defragment. This basically means that all boot files are placed next to each other on the disk drive to allow for faster booting. By default this option is enabled but some upgrade users have reported that it isn't on their setup. Start Regedit. Navigate to      HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Dfrg\BootOptimizeFunction Select Enable from the list on the right. Right on it and select Modify. Change the value to Y to enable and N to disable. Reboot your computer.

To disable unneeded start up services for a safer, faster XP, use the "Services" Admin Tool (Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Services). If you are a single user of a non-networked machine, you can disable the following items, with no ill effect.  Alerter  Clipbook  Computer Browser  Fast User Switching  Human Interface Access Devices  Indexing Service (Slows the hard drive down)  Messenger 

Right–click the executable or the program shortcut to the executable, and then click Properties. Select the Run this program in compatibility mode check box. From the list, select an operating system that the program runs in comfortably. If necessary, also change the display settings and/or resolution, or disable the Windows XP visual themes. Run the program again when you’re finished changing the settings. Adjust the compatibility settings again if the program is still not running smoothly: a program that’s unhappy on Windows 2000 may flourish on Windows 98.

Google just  announced  that its social search results will now include public Google Plus posts. Since the  expiration  of Google's realtime search agreement with  Twitter  last month, it hasn't been clear how Google will continue to integrate posts from social networks into search results. Now that Google's in-house social network will provide a stream of content, Google can try to build out its social search out from there. For users logged into their Google Accounts, searches will now display public Google Plus posts from people in their circles as search results, right alongside web pages. If it's a link, for example, that link will show up like any other Web result would, but the person who posted it will be displayed underneath it, along with the date of the post. Google launched social search  in 2009  as a way of adding personalization to search results. Facebook's  partnership  with Bing puts a big squeeze on G...

               Six weeks after launching, the demographic make-up of people who are visiting Google's new social network  Google Plus  is changing to become less focused on early adopters than it was at launch, says leading web traffic monitoring company Experian Hitwise, which posted the results of a 10 million person tracking study today.               It will be very interesting to see how the graph below looks some time after yesterday's launch of Games on Google Plus. The use of arbitrary terminology in the graph below is a little confusing, but the simple version is: Google Plus is now more popular among suburban parents and well-off empty nesters than it is among the College and Cafe crowd.            At launch Plus was disproportionately popular among people in its "Coll...

Waiting for a  Google Plus  invite? Google is rolling out the service in waves and you can expect it to become a ubiquitous social option in the coming months. We have been playing with the service since getting invites yesterday and there are a lot of things to like about Google's new social initiative. Unlike Google's last big invite-only rollout of a social initiative -  Google Wave  - users will not be confounded on just what the heck you are supposed to with the service when signing up for the first time. From Friendster, Friendfeed, MySpace and Facebook, users are familiar with how a social platform is theoretically supposed to look. At its core level, Plus is not that much different. Yet, there is so much more. How do you get started with Google Plus? Let's break down the nuts and bolts. A word from our sponsor: The  Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University  offers programs that combine the enduring skills and values of journalism with ...

Google finally announced Google+, its next effort in social. Basically, Google+ is an amalgamation of several services we already use. The idea, according to Google, is to do them better. We'll have a full review and impressions soon. In the meantime, check out our breakdown of what Google+ can do below.

News that Google will be rolling out with its own version of  Facebook  code name Google Me or +1 this fall has been spreading like a wild fire. CEO Eric Schmidt has confirmed that the new social network will be the company next biggest project. Schmidt didn’t reveal much of the info on  the platform  according to the  Wall Street Journal .  Instead of reinvent the wheel, it is believe that Google will be adding it on its existing service platform. For an example, you might be alerted when a bunch of your friends have watched the same  video  on YouTube. WSJ reported that Google will make Zynga’s popular social games like Farmville and Mafia Wars to be play on platform other than Facebook. To verify on the fact,  Tech Crunch  reported in July Google had secretly  invested  some $100 million in the social gaming company. While other parts of the WSJ report did mention Google’s effort to link its services with Twitter and F...

1) Click Start, Run and enter GPEDIT.MSC 2) Go to Computer Configuration, Administrative Templates, System. 3) Locate the entry for Turn autoplay off and modify it as you desire.

If you’re running Windows XP Professional as a local user in a workgroup environment, you can create a password reset disk to log onto your computer when you forget your password. To create the disk: 1.Click Start, click Control Panel, and then click User Accounts. 2.Click your account name. 3.Under Related Tasks, click Prevent a forgotten password. 4.Follow the directions in the Forgotten Password Wizard to create a password reset disk. 5.Store the disk in a secure location, because anyone using it can access your local user account.

To copy files and folders to a CD •Insert a blank, writable CD into the CD recorder. •Open My Computer. •Click the files or folders you want to copy to the CD. To select more than one file, hold down the CTRL key while you click the files you want. Then, under File and Folder Tasks, click Copy this file, Copy this folder, or Copy the selected items. •If the files are located in My Pictures, under Picture Tasks, click Copy to CD or Copy all items to CD, and then skip to step 5. •In the Copy Items dialog box, click the CD recording drive, and then click Copy. •In My Computer, double–click the CD recording drive. Windows displays a temporary area where the files are held before they are copied to the CD. Verify that the files and folders that you intend to copy to the CD appear under Files Ready to be Written to the CD. •Under CD Writing Tasks, click Write these files to CD. Windows displays the CD Writing Wizard. Follow the instructions in the wizard. Notes: •Do not copy more files to th...

To convert a FAT partition to NTFS, perform the following steps. Click Start, click Programs, and then click Command Prompt. In Windows XP, click Start, and then click Run. At the command prompt, type CONVERT [driveletter]: /FS:NTFS. Convert.exe will attempt to convert the partition to NTFS. NOTE: Although the chance of corruption or data loss during the conversion from FAT to NTFS is minimal, it is best to perform a full backup of the data on the drive that it is to be converted prior to executing the convert command. It is also recommended to verify the integrity of the backup before proceeding, as well as to run RDISK and update the emergency repair disk (ERD). Convert.exe will attempt to convert the partition to NTFS.

You can run "wmiprvse.exe" as a process for quick shared network access to Win98/ME machines. Stick it in Startup or make it a service. "On the PC running XP, log in as you normally would, go to users, manage network passwords. Here is where the problem lies. In this dialog box remove any win98 passwords or computer-assigned names for the win98 PCs. In my case , I had two computer-assigned win98 pc names in this box (example G4k8e6). I deleted these names (you may have passwords instead). Then go to My Network Places and -- there you go! -- no more delay! Now, after I did this and went to My Network Places to browse the first Win98 PC, I was presented with a password/logon box that looked like this: logon: G4k8e6/guest (lightly grayed out) and a place to enter a password. I entered the password that I had previously used to share drives on the Win98 PCs long before I installed XP. I have the guest account enabled in XP. This solves the problem for Win98 & XP machines...

(XPPro only) Go to start/run, and type control userpasswords2

Go to Start/Run, and type: GPEDIT.MSC Open the path User Config > Admin Templates > Control Panel doubleclick "Hide specified Control Panel applets" put a dot in 'enabled', then click 'Show" click Add button, type "nusrmgt.cpl" into the add box

How do I enable advanced security settings like found in Windows 2000 Open windows explorer then click on Tools->Folder Options Click on the View Tab. Scroll to the bottom and deselect (uncheck) the option that reads 'use simple file sharing' This will allow you to see the security tab when viewing the properties of a file/folder.

Mustek 600 CP scanner or other software unable to install on XP   If you have a piece of software that refuses to install because it says that you are not running Windows 2000 (such as the Win2K drivers for a Mustek scanner!!) you can simply edit HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SOFTWARE/Microsoft/Windows NT/CurrentVersion/ProductName to say Microsoft Windows 2000 instead of XP and it will install. You may also have to edit the version number or build number, depending on how hard the program tries to verify that you are installing on the correct OS. I had to do this for my Mustek 600 CP scanner (compatibility mode didn't help!!!) and it worked great, so I now have my scanner working with XP (and a tech at Mustek can now eat his words). BTW, don't forget to restore any changes you make after you get your software installed.

If you have any AVI files that you saved in Windows 9x, which have interference when opened in Windows XP, there is an easy fix to get rid of the interference: Open Windows Movie Maker. Click View and then click Options. Click in the box to remove the check mark beside Automatically create clips. Now, import the movie file that has interference and drag it onto the timeline. Then save the movie, and during the re-rendering, the interference will be removed.

•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 Mus...

Go to start/run type 'cmd' then type 'ipconfig' Add the '/all' switch for more info.

Windows Product Activation uses the following ports: 80 - HTTP 443 - HTTPS

You can provide Remote Assistance to a friend who uses a Network Address Translation (NAT) device by modifying the Remote Assistance invitation using XML. Network Address Translation is used to allow multiple computers to share the same outbound Internet connection. To open a Remote Assistance session with a friend who uses a NAT device: 1. Ask your friend to send you a Remote Assistance invitation by e–mail. 2. Save the invitation file to your desktop. 3. Right–click the file, and then click Open With Notepad. You'll see that the file is a simple XML file. 4.Under the RCTICKET attribute is a private IP address, such as 192.168.1.100. 5. Over–write this IP address with your friend's public IP address. Your friend must send you his or her public IP address: they can find out what it is by going to a Web site that will return the public IP address, such as http://www.dslreports.com/ip. 6. Save the file, and then double–click it to open the Remote Assistance session. Now, you'...

If you don't use the Recycle Bin to store deleted files , you can get rid of its desktop icon all together. Run Regedit and go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SOFTWARE/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/explorer/Desktop/NameSpace Click on the "Recycle Bin" string in the right hand pane. Hit Del, click OK.

If you work in a multiuser computing environment, and you have full (administrator level) access to your computer, you might want to restrict unauthorized access to your "sensitive" files under Windows 95/98. One way is to disable the Cancel button in the Logon dialog box. Just run Regedit and go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Network/Logon Create the "Logon" subkey if it is not present on your machine: highlight the Network key -> right-click in the left hand Regedit pane -> select New -> Key -> name it "Logon" (no quotes) -> press Enter. Then add/modify a DWORD value and call it "MustBeValidated" (don't type the quotes). Double-click it, check the Decimal box and type 1 for value. Now click the Start button -> Shut Down (Log off UserName) -> Log on as a different user, and you'll notice that the Logon Cancel button has been disabled.

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 ...

With Internet Connection Sharing (ICS) in Windows XP, you can connect one computer to the Internet, then share the Internet service with several computers on your home or small office network. The Network Setup Wizard in Windows XP Professional will automatically provide all of the network settings you need to share one Internet connection with all the computers in your network. Each computer can use programs such as Internet Explorer and Outlook Express as if they were directly connected to the Internet. You should not use this feature in an existing network with Windows 2000 Server domain controllers, DNS servers, gateways, DHCP servers, or systems configured for static IP addresses. Enabling ICS The ICS host computer needs two network connections. The local area network connection, automatically created by installing a network adapter, connects to the computers on your home or small office network. The other connection, using a 56k modem, ISDN, DSL, or cable modem, connects the home...

Here's a great tip to speed up your browsing of Windows XP machines. Its actually a fix to a bug installed as default in Windows 2000 that scans shared files for Scheduled Tasks. And it turns out that you can experience a delay as long as 30 seconds when you try to view shared files across a network because Windows 2000 is using the extra time to search the remote computer for any Scheduled Tasks. Note that though the fix is originally intended for only those affected, Windows 2000 users will experience that the actual browsing speed of both the Internet & Windows Explorers improve significantly after applying it since it doesn't search for Scheduled Tasks anymore. Here's how : Open up the Registry and go to : HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/RemoteComputer/NameSpace Under that branch, select the key : {D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF} and delete it. This is key that instructs Windows to search for Sch...

This guide describes how to upgrade a Microsoft Microsoft Windows 98-based, or Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition-based client that has user profiles to a Microsoft Windows XP-based client. The following steps enable the Windows 98 and Windows Millennium Edition (Me) profiles to be retained throughout the process. Your best method to retain the profiles is to join the domain during the upgrade installation process. Otherwise, you must use a workaround method to transfer the profile information over to the Windows XP profile. During the upgrade installation process, at the networking section, the administrator is offered the choice to join a domain or a workgroup. If you join the domain at this juncture, you ensure that all the existing profiles are migrated successfully to the Windows XP-based installation. If you did not join the computer to the domain during the upgrade process, you must use the following workaround method: Join the upgraded computer to the target...

You can upgrade a computer that runs Windows 98, 98SE, or Me to Windows XP Home Edition. Those same versions, along with Windows NT Workstation 4.0 and Windows 2000 Professional, can be upgraded to Windows XP Professional. (1).To ensure a smooth upgrade and avoid networking problems, follow these tips before starting the upgrade: (2)Install all network cards. XP will detect them and automatically install the right drivers. (3)Have your Internet connection available. The XP setup process will connect to a Microsoft server to download the latest setup files, including changes that have been made since XP was released. Some programs are incompatible with XP and can cause networking problems. Un-install these programs. After the upgrade is complete and the network is working, re-install XP-compatible versions of these programs: Internet Connection Sharing, NAT, Proxy Server Anti-Virus Firewall.

With the loads of problems reported by users with Soundblaster cards on Windows XP Creative has stepped up and offered drivers for at least some models of their Sound Blaster cards, but check your particular model closely.  I have downloaded the SB128 drivers and my sound problems have been resolved..! So they do work. http://www.creative.com/support/winxp/

When I first saw the default search pane in Windows XP, my instinct was to return it to its classic look; that puppy had to go. Of course, I later discovered that a doggie door is built into the applet. Click "Change preferences" then "Without an animated screen character." If you'd rather give it a bare-bones "Windows 2000" look and feel, fire up your Registry editor and navigate to: HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Explorer \ CabinetState. You may need to create a new string value labeled "Use Search Asst" and set it to "no".

Theoretically, you can get rid of it (as well as a few other things). Windows 2000 power users should already be familiar with this tweak. Fire up the Windows Explorer and navigate your way to the %SYSTEMROOT% \ INF folder. What the heck is that thingy with the percentage signs? It's a variable. For most people, %SYSTEMROOT% is C:\Windows. For others, it may be E:\WinXP. Get it? Okay, on with the hack! In the INF folder, open sysoc.inf (but not before making a BACKUP copy first). Before your eyes glaze over, look for the line containing "msmsgs" in it. Near the end of that particular line, you'll notice that the word "hide" is not so hidden. Go ahead and delete "hide" (so that the flanking commas are left sitting next to one another). Save the file and close it. Now, open the Add and Remove Programs applet in the Control Panel. Click the Add / Remove Windows Components icon. You should see "Windows Messenger" in that list. Remove the chec...

How to Remove Windows XP 's Messenger?   Theoretically, you can get rid of it (as well as a few other things). Windows 2000 power users should already be familiar with this tweak. Fire up the Windows Explorer and navigate your way to the %SYSTEMROOT% \ INF folder. What the heck is that thingy with the percentage signs? It's a variable. For most people, %SYSTEMROOT% is C:\Windows. For others, it may be E:\ WinXP . Get it? Okay, on with the hack! In the INF folder, open sysoc.inf (but not before making a BACKUP copy first). Before your eyes glaze over, look for the line containing "msmsgs" in it. Near the end of that particular line, you'll notice that the word "hide" is not so hidden. Go ahead and delete "hide" (so that the flanking commas are left sitting next to one another). Save the file and close it. Now, open the Add and Remove Programs applet in the Control Panel. Click the Add / Remove Windows Components icon. You should see ...

In windows environment, the  Send To  command is used to transfer files from one location to different locations. By using this command, a user can quickly send his file between default destinations (default lists in Send To menu, for example Desktop, CD/DVD Drive, My Documents, Mail Recipient and Floppy Drive). These are the default Send To menu lists in windows XP. To increase the data transfer speed between different locations, you can add more new destination in Send To lists.   Follow the given steps to add new destinations to Send To lists:  First click on Start button and type  sendto  in Run option then press Ok button. A window will appear with default Send To lists (Compressed (zipped) Folder, Desktop (create shortcut), Mail Recipient, My Documents).   Now using drag-and-drop technique (or using copy and paste method), you can move any program, folders and drives shortcuts to this folder. Now you can verify, your new short...

If you are using Windows Task Manager to display the information about programs and processes that are running on your computer. You can start your Windows Task Manager with pressing Ctrl+Alt+Delete keys or with pressing Ctrl+Shift+Esc keys. To keep Task Manager hidden when it is minimized. First open it by pressing  Ctrl+Alt+Delete  keys then go to Options menu and click on Hide When Minimized. You can easily restore it, if you click on the icon of Task Manager that will appear in taskbar near the time display.

You can start your computer applications automatically and control the sequence of the programs when your computer comes up. Here we consider you want to run three different applications (WordPad, calculator, and notepad)   and minimized  automatically with sequence at windows startup.  However, you can write a batch file to do the job for you. Open any text editor like notepad and type the following command. start /min wordpad.exe start /min calc.exe start /min notepad.exe Now choose the option, Save As to save this file with .bat extension. For example filename.bat. Now Right- click on Start button and choose open > Double click Programs > here open Startup folder. Now drag your .bat file in the Startup folder and close the dialog box. Next time When you restart the computer, WordPad, Calc will start first and then Notepad. You won't see the batch file run because you told it to run minimized.