Computer Tricks

WINDOWS TIPS COLLECTION

Registry Hacking

Display legal notice on startup:
Wanna tell your friends about the do's and dont's in your computer when they login in your absence. Well you can do it pretty easily by displaying a legal notice at system start up.
REGEDIT
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\policies\system]
"legalnoticecaption"="enter your notice caption"
"legalnoticetext"="enter your legal notice text"
Automatic Administrator Login:
Well here's the trick which you can use to prove that Windows XP is not at all secure as multi-user operating system. Hacking the system registry from any account having access to system registry puts you in to the administrator account.
REGEDIT 4
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon]
"AutoAdminLogon"="1"
No Shutdown:
Wanna play with your friends by removing the shutdown option from start menu in their computer.
Just hack it down !!!
Regedit
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
"NoClose"="DWORD:1"
Menu Delays:
Another minor and easy tweak to remove any delay from menus sliding out. For this you will need to use regedit (open regedit by going to Start -> Run..., then typing 'regedit' and pressing enter). The key you need to change is located in HKEY_CURRENT_USERControl PanelDesktop. The actual key is called MenuShowDelay - all you have to do is change the value to 0. Remember, you will have to re-boot your computer for this tweak to take effect.
GPEDIT.MSC And Autoplay
A great tweaking file that comes with XP is gpedit.msc. Go to Start -> Run... and then type in 'gpedit.msc' and press enter. This is effectively the Policies Editor, and it comes in handy often. For example, if you hate CD autoplay like I do and want to permanently disable it, you can use this tool to do so. Just run gpedit.msc, then go to Computer Configuration -> Administrative Templates -> System. In here you can see the value 'Turn Off Autoplay'. Right-click on it and then click 'Properties'.
Increasing options in add/remove programs:
Not a fan of MSN Messenger? don't want Windows Media Player on your system? Fair enough, but if you go to Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel, by default none of Windows XP's 'built in' programs are visible. it's fairly easy to change, though... just open the file X:\Windows\inf\sysoc.inf (where X: is the drive letter where Windows XP is installed) in Notepad. You should see a section of the file something like this:
[Components]
NtComponents=ntoc.dll,NtOcSetupProc,,4
WBEM=ocgen.dll,OcEntry,wbemoc.inf,hide,7
Display=desk.cpl,DisplayOcSetupProc,,7
Fax=fxsocm.dll,FaxOcmSetupProc,fxsocm.inf,,7
NetOC=netoc.dll,NetOcSetupProc,netoc.inf,,7
iis=iis.dll,OcEntry,iis.inf,,7
com=comsetup.dll,OcEntry,comnt5.inf,hide,7
dtc=msdtcstp.dll,OcEntry,dtcnt5.inf,hide,7
IndexSrv_System = setupqry.dll,IndexSrv,setupqry.inf,,7
TerminalServer=TsOc.dll, HydraOc, TsOc.inf,hide,2
msmq=msmqocm.dll,MsmqOcm,msmqocm.inf,,6
ims=imsinsnt.dll,OcEntry,ims.inf,,7
fp_extensions=fp40ext.dll,FrontPage4Extensions,fp40ext.inf,,7
AutoUpdate=ocgen.dll,OcEntry,au.inf,hide,7
msmsgs=msgrocm.dll,OcEntry,msmsgs.inf,hide,7
RootAutoUpdate=ocgen.dll,OcEntry,rootau.inf,,7
IEAccess=ocgen.dll,OcEntry,ieaccess.inf,,7
This is a list of all components installed at the moment. I've taken the example of MSN Messenger - the program entry called 'msmsgs', third-last line. You can see the word 'hide' highlighted - this is the string which tells Windows not to display the component in the Add/Remove Programs list. Fix this up by simply deleting the word 'hide' like so:
msmsgs=msgrocm.dll,OcEntry,msmsgs.inf,hide,7
To this:
msmsgs=msgrocm.dll,OcEntry,msmsgs.inf,,7
Now, after restarting, you should be able to see MSN Messenger in the Add/Remove Programs list. If you want to be able to quickly view and remove all components, simply open the sysoc.inf file and do a global find and replace for the word ",hide" and replace it with a single comma ",".
Automatically Kill Programs At Shutdown:
don't you hate it when, while trying to shut down, you get message boxes telling you that a program is still running? Making it so that Windows automatically kills applications running is a snap. Simply navigate to the HKEY_CURRENT_USERControl PanelDesktop directory in the Registry, then alter the key AutoEndTasks to the value 1.
Speeding Up Share Viewing:
This is a great tweak. Before I found it, I was always smashing my head against the table waiting to view shares on other computers. Basically, when you connect to another computer with Windows XP, it checks for any Scheduled tasks on that computer - a fairly useless task, but one that can add up to 30 seconds of waiting on the other end - not good! Fortunately, it's fairly easy to disable this process. First, navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/RemoteComputer/NameSpace in the Registry. Below that, there should be a key called {D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF}. Just delete this, and after a restart, Windows will no longer check for scheduled tasks - mucho performance improvement!
Create a Shortcut to Lock Your Computer
Leaving your computer in a hurry but you don’t want to log off? You can double-click a shortcut on your desktop to quickly lock the keyboard and display without using CTRL+ALT+DEL or a screen saver. To create a shortcut on your desktop to lock your computer: Right-click the desktop. Point to New, and then click Shortcut. The Create Shortcut Wizard opens. In the text box, type the following: rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation Click Next. Enter a name for the shortcut. You can call it "Lock Workstation" or choose any name you like. Click Finish. You can also change the shortcut's icon (my personal favorite is the padlock icon in shell32.dll). To change the icon: Right click the shortcut and then select Properties. Click the Shortcut tab, and then click the Change Icon button. In the Look for icons in this file text box, type: Shell32.dll. Click OK. Select one of the icons from the list and then click OK You could also give it a shortcut keystroke such CTRL+ALT+L. This would save you only one keystroke from the normal command, but it could be more convenient.
Speed up Internet Explorer 6 Favorites
For some reason, the Favorites menu in IE 6 seems to slow down dramatically sometimes--I've noticed this happens when you install Tweak UI 1.33, for example, and when you use the preview tip to speed up the Start menu. But here's a fix for the problem that does work, though it's unclear why: Just open a command line window (Start button -> Run -> cmd) and type sfc, then hit ENTER. This command line runs the System File Checker, which performs a number of services, all of which are completely unrelated to IE 6. But there you go: It works.
 

All keyboard Shortcuts

 1.) Windows Hotkeys

* Shift + F10 right-clicks.
* Win + L (XP Only): Locks keyboard. Similar to Lock Workstation.
* Win + F or F3: Open Find dialog. (All Files) F3 may not work in some applications which use F3 for their own find dialogs.
* Win + Control + F: Open Find dialog. (Computers)
* Win + U: Open Utility Manager.
* Win + F1: Open Windows help.
* Win + Pause: Open System Properties dialog.
* Win + Tab: Cycle through taskbar buttons. Enter clicks, AppsKey or Shift + F10 right-clicks.
* Win + Shift + Tab: Cycle through taskbar buttons in reverse.
* Alt + Tab: Display CoolSwitch. More commonly known as the AltTab dialog.
* Alt + Shift + Tab: Display CoolSwitch; go in reverse.
* Alt + Escape: Send active window to the bottom of the z-order.
* Alt + Shift + Escape: Activate the window at the bottom of the z-order.
* Alt + F4: Close active window; or, if all windows are closed, open shutdown dialog.
* Shift while a CD is loading: Bypass AutoPlay.
* Shift while login: Bypass startup folder. Only those applications will be ignored which are in the startup folder, not those started from the registry (Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run\)
* Ctrl + Alt + Delete or Ctrl + Alt + NumpadDel (Both NumLock states): Invoke the Task Manager or NT Security dialog.
* Ctrl + Shift + Escape (2000/XP ) or (Ctrl + Alt + NumpadDot) : Invoke the task manager. On earlier OSes, acts like Ctrl + Escape.
* Printscreen: Copy screenshot of current screen to clipboard.
* Alt + Printscreen: Copy screenshot of current active window to clipboard.
* Ctrl + Alt + Down Arrow: Invert screen. Untested on OSes other than XP.
* Ctrl + Alt + Up Arrow: Undo inversion.
* Win + B : Move focus to systray icons.




2.) Generic




* Ctrl + C or Ctrl + Insert: Copy.
* Ctrl + X or Shift + Delete: Cut.
* Ctrl + V or Shift + Insert: Paste/Move.
* Ctrl + N: New... File, Tab, Entry, etc.
* Ctrl + S: Save.
* Ctrl + O: Open...
* Ctrl + P: Print.
* Ctrl + Z: Undo.
* Ctrl + A: Select all.
* Ctrl + F: Find...
* Ctrl+W : to close the current window
* Ctrl + F4: Close tab or child window.
* F1: Open help.
* F11: Toggle full screen mode.
* Alt or F10: Activate menu bar.
* Alt + Space: Display system menu. Same as clicking the icon on the titlebar.
* Escape: Remove focus from current control/menu, or close dialog box.


3.) Generic Navigation



* Tab: Forward one item.
* Shift + Tab: Backward one item.
* Ctrl + Tab: Cycle through tabs/child windows.
* Ctrl + Shift + Tab: Cycle backwards through tabs/child windows.
* Enter: If a button's selected, click it, otherwise, click default button.
* Space: Toggle items such as radio buttons or checkboxes.
* Alt + (Letter): Activate item corresponding to (Letter). (Letter) is the underlined letter on the item's name.
* Ctrl + Left: Move cursor to the beginning of previous word.
* Ctrl + Right: Move cursor to the beginning of next word.
* Ctrl + Up: Move cursor to beginning of previous paragraph. This and all subsequent Up/Down hotkeys in this section have only been known to work in RichEdit controls.
* Ctrl + Down: Move cursor to beginning of next paragraph.
* Shift + Left: Highlight one character to the left.
* Shift + Right: Highlight one character to the right.
* Shift + Up: Highlight from current cursor position, to one line up.
* Shift + Down: Highlight from current cursor position, to one line down.
* Ctrl + Shift + Left: Highlight to beginning of previous word.
* Ctrl + Shift + Right: Highlight to beginning of next word.
* Ctrl + Shift + Up: Highlight to beginning of previous paragraph.
* Ctrl + Shift + Down: Highlight to beginning of next paragraph.
* Home: Move cursor to top of a scrollable control.
* End: Move cursor to bottom of a scrollable control.


4.) Generic File Browser



* Arrow Keys: Navigate.
* Shift + Arrow Keys: Select multiple items.
* Ctrl + Arrow Keys: Change focus without changing selection. "Focus" is the object that will run on Enter. Space toggles selection of the focused item.
* (Letter): Select first found item that begins with (Letter).
* BackSpace: Go up one level to the parent directory.
* Alt + Left: Go back one folder.
* Alt + Right: Go forward one folder.
* Enter: Activate (Double-click) selected item(s).
* Alt + Enter: View properties for selected item.
* F2: Rename selected item(s).
* Ctrl + NumpadPlus: In a Details view, resizes all columns to fit the longest item in each one.
* Delete: Delete selected item(s).
* Shift + Delete: Delete selected item(s); bypass Recycle Bin.
* Ctrl while dragging item(s): Copy.
* Ctrl + Shift while dragging item(s): Create shortcut(s).
* In tree pane, if any:
* Left: Collapse the current selection if expanded, or select the parent folder.
* Right: Expand the current selection if collapsed, or select the first subfolder.
* NumpadAsterisk: Expand currently selected directory and all subdirectories. No undo.
* NumpadPlus: Expand currently selected directory.
* NumpadMinus: Collapse currently selected directory.


5.) Accessibility



* Right Shift for eight seconds: Toggle FilterKeys on and off. FilterKeys must be enabled.
* Left Alt + Left Shift + PrintScreen: Toggle High Contrast on and off. High Contrast must be enabled.
* Left Alt + Left Shift + NumLock: Toggle MouseKeys on and off. MouseKeys must be enabled.
* NumLock for five seconds: Toggle ToggleKeys on and off. ToggleKeys must be enabled.
* Shift five times: Toggle StickyKeys on and off. StickyKeys must be enabled.
* 6.) Microsoft Natural Keyboard with IntelliType Software Installed
* Win + L: Log off Windows.
* Win + P: Open Print Manager.
* Win + C: Open control panel.
* Win + V: Open clipboard.
* Win + K: Open keyboard properties.
* Win + I: Open mouse properties.
* Win + A: Open Accessibility properties.
* Win + Space: Displays the list of Microsoft IntelliType shortcut keys.
* Win + S: Toggle CapsLock on and off.


7.) Remote Desktop Connection Navigation



* Ctrl + Alt + End: Open the NT Security dialog.
* Alt + PageUp: Switch between programs.
* Alt + PageDown: Switch between programs in reverse.
* Alt + Insert: Cycle through the programs in most recently used order.
* Alt + Home: Display start menu.
* Ctrl + Alt + Break: Switch the client computer between a window and a full screen.
* Alt + Delete: Display the Windows menu.
* Ctrl + Alt + NumpadMinus: Place a snapshot of the entire client window area on the Terminal server clipboard and provide the same functionality as pressing Alt + PrintScreen on a local computer.
* Ctrl + Alt + NumpadPlus: Place a snapshot of the active window in the client on the Terminal server clipboard and provide the same functionality as pressing PrintScreen on a local computer.


8.) Mozilla Firefox Shortcuts



* Ctrl + Tab or Ctrl + PageDown: Cycle through tabs.
* Ctrl + Shift + Tab or Ctrl + PageUp: Cycle through tabs in reverse.
* Ctrl + (1-9): Switch to tab corresponding to number.
* Ctrl + N: New window.
* Ctrl + T: New tab.
* Ctrl + L or Alt + D or F6: Switch focus to location bar.
* Ctrl + Enter: Open location in new tab.
* Shift + Enter: Open location in new window.
* Ctrl + K or Ctrl + E: Switch focus to search bar.
* Ctrl + O: Open a local file.
* Ctrl + W: Close tab, or window if there's only one tab open.
* Ctrl + Shift + W: Close window.
* Ctrl + S: Save page as a local file.
* Ctrl + P: Print page.
* Ctrl + F or F3: Open find toolbar.
* Ctrl + G or F3: Find next...
* Ctrl + Shift + G or Shift + F3: Find previous...
* Ctrl + B or Ctrl + I: Open Bookmarks sidebar.
* Ctrl + H: Open History sidebar.
* Escape: Stop loading page.
* Ctrl + R or F5: Reload current page.
* Ctrl + Shift + R or Ctrl + F5: Reload current page; bypass cache.
* Ctrl + U: View page source.
* Ctrl + D: Bookmark current page.
* Ctrl + NumpadPlus or Ctrl + Equals (+/=): Increase text size.
* Ctrl + NumpadMinus or Ctrl + Minus: Decrease text size.
* Ctrl + Numpad0 or Ctrl + 0: Set text size to default.
* Alt + Left or Backspace: Back.
* Alt + Right or Shift + Backspace: Forward.
* Alt + Home: Open home page.
* Ctrl + M: Open new message in integrated mail client.
* Ctrl + J: Open Downloads dialog.
* F6: Switch to next frame. You must have selected something on the page already, e.g. by use of Tab.
* Shift + F6: Switch to previous frame.
* Apostrophe ('): Find link as you type.
* Slash (/): Find text as you type.


9.) GMail



* Note: Must have "keyboard shortcuts" on in settings.
* C: Compose new message.
* Shift + C: Open new window to compose new message.
* Slash (/): Switch focus to search box.
* K: Switch focus to the next most recent email. Enter or "O" opens focused email.
* J: Switch focus to the next oldest email.
* N: Switch focus to the next message in the "conversation." Enter or "O" expands/collapses messages.
* P: Switch focus to the previous message.
* U: Takes you back to the inbox and checks for new mail.
* Y: Various actions depending on current view:
* Has no effect in "Sent" and "All Mail" views.
* Inbox: Archive email or message.
* Starred: Unstar email or message.
* Spam: Unmark as spam and move back to "Inbox."
* Trash: Move back to "Inbox."
* Any label: Remove the label.
* X: "Check" an email. Various actions can be performed against all checked emails.
* S: "Star" an email. Identical to the more familiar term, "flagging."
* R: Reply to the email.
* A: Reply to all recipients of the email.
* F: Forward an email.
* Shift + R: Reply to the email in a new window.
* Shift + A: Reply to all recipients of the email in a new window.
* Shift + F: Forward an email in a new window.
* Shift + 1 (!): Mark an email as spam and remove it from the inbox.
* G then I: Switch to "Inbox" view.
* G then S: Switch to "Starred" view.
* G then A: Switch to "All Mail" view.
* G then C: Switch to "Contacts" view.
* G then S: Switch to "Drafts" view.




10.) List of F1-F9 Key Commands for the Command Prompt



* F1 / right arrow: Repeats the letters of the last command line, one by one.
* F2: Displays a dialog asking user to "enter the char to copy up to" of the last command line
* F3: Repeats the last command line
* F4: Displays a dialog asking user to "enter the char to delete up to" of the last command line
* F5: Goes back one command line
* F6: Enters the traditional CTRL+Z (^z)
* F7: Displays a menu with the command line history
* F8: Cycles back through previous command lines (beginning with most recent)
* F9: Displays a dialog asking user to enter a command number, where 0 is for first command line entered.
* Alt+Enter: toggle fullScreen mode.
* up/down: scroll thru/repeat previous entries
* Esc: delete line

 

Speed up Booting Xp by 61 Times

run -> msconfig - Hit Enter

Awesome tricks Explained here for u Free! :




Whenever you start your computer, you are faced with a few moments of thumb twiddling while Windows XP boots and prompts you to log on. Although you should expect to wait for a few moments, sometimes Windows XP seems to boot rather slowly. In fact, you may notice that over a period of time the PC that used to roar to life seems a bit sluggish instead. Fortunately, you can perform several techniques that help Windows XP get the bootup speed you want. This Article explores how to put these techniques to work.


Stopping Unneeded Startup Services !


Along with the core operating system and programs that Windows XP runs when it starts, there is also a host of services involved. Many of these services are necessary for Windows XP to operate correctly. However, many of them are for features in Windows XP that you may not use at all. You can peruse the services and disable any service that you do not want to run. The fewer services that run, the more quickly Windows XP will boot.

Caution:

Exercise caution when stopping services. If you do not know what a service does or are unsure of the ramifications of stopping the service, leave it alone. Some services are critical to Windows XP's operations, so make sure you understand what the service is before you disable it.


To reduce the number of services that start on bootup, you can access two different areas of Windows XP. The first is the System Configuration Utility. The Services tab shows you the services that start when the computer boots.
You can stop a service from starting by simply clearing the check box next to the service and clicking OK. However, before you do so, there is another way to disable services that you may prefer because the interface gives you more information about the service in question.


Open Control Panel/Administrative ToolsServices or else select Start/Run, type services.msc, and click OK. Either way, you see the Services console.
I prefer to use the Services console instead of the System Configuration Utility because it describes what the service does. Additionally, you can double-click a service and examine its properties.

Notice the Startup Type column in Figure 4-2. This information lists whether the service is automatic or manual. Manual services are only started in Windows XP when you start a process that requires the service. Some other process may require the service that has a "dependency" relationship with it; in this case, the dependency service will start, as well. Because these services do not start automatically when you boot Windows XP, you do not need to do anything with manual services.


However, all services listed as automatic start when Windows XP boots. These are the services that increase boot time. As I have mentioned, many of them are necessary and important, so you should not stop automatic services from booting unless you are sure of the ramifications. You can get this information by looking at the Description column. Here's a quick look at common services you may want to live without:


SPEED UP BOOT BY DISABLING UNUSED PORTS.!!


You may have tried many tweaks like modifying windowsXP start-up applications, prefetches, unload DLLs method,etc. And yes those methods do work for me.
I have just accidentally found out another way to give you an extra boost in windowsXP's boot performance. This is done by disabling your unused devices in
Device Manager. for example, if you don't have input devices that are connected to one of your USBs or COM ports, disabling them will give you an extra perfromance boost in booting. Go to Control Panel -> System -> Hardware tab -> device manager Disable devices that you don't use for your PC and then restart.


Do Dis !!

1.Start Registry Editor (Regedit.exe).

2.Locate the following key in the registry:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\SessionManager\MemoryManagement\PrefetchParameters

3.Make sure you backup the keys by exporting them to a .reg file.

4.On the EnablePrefetcher value, change the setting from 3 to 5 (decimal).

5.Close the registry editor.

6.Restart your computer


Automatic Updates !

This service enables Windows XP to check the Web automatically for updates. If you don't want to use Automatic Updates, you can disable the service. You can always check for updates manually at the Windows Update Web site.

Computer Browser: If your computer is not on a network, you don't need this service. If you are on a network, leave it alone.

DHCP Client: If you are not on a network, you do not need this service. If you are on a small workgroup, you can still increase boot time by configuring manual IP addresses (which I explore later in this chapter).

DNS Client: If you are not on a network, you do not need this service. If you are, leave it alone.

Error Reporting and Event Log: You don't have to use these services but they can be very helpful, so I would leave them configured as automatic.

Fax: If you don't use your computer for fax services, you can disable this one.

Help and Support: If you never use the Windows XP Help and Support Center (found on the Start menu), you can disable this service.

IMAPI CD-Burning COM: This service enables you to burn CDs on your computer. If you never burn CDs, you can disable the service.

Indexing Service: Your computer keeps an index of files but if you rarely search for files, the service is just a resource hog. You can stop it and turn the service to manual.

Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing: If you do not use these features, you can disable them.

Infrared Monitor: If you do not use infrared devices, you can disable this service.

Messenger: This service sends alert messages on a local area network (it is not the same as Windows Messenger). If you are not on a network, you can disable this service.

Print Spooler: If you do not do any printing from the computer, you can disable this service. If you print, make sure you leave it as automatic.

Remote Registry: This service allows remote users to modify the Registry on your computer. If you are not on a network, you can disable this service.

System Restore Service: This service allows you to use System Restore. If you have turned off System Restore anyway, you do not need to turn off the service. If you do, you turn off System Restore.

Themes: If you do not use themes, you can disable this service.

Windows Image Acquisition: If you do not use scanners or digital cameras, you can disable this service.

Wireless Zero Configuration: If do not use wireless networking devices, you can disable this service.




You may have a number of other automatic services, depending on software and other configurations on your computer. So it's a good idea to look through the services and learn more about them. If you double-click a service, a Properties dialog box appears
Notice that on the General tab, you see a Startup Type drop-down menu. If you want to change an automatic service to manual, select Manual here and click OK. As a general rule, don't disable a service unless you are sure you will never use it. However, manual configuration allows the service to be started when you find it necessary, thus speeding up your boot time.
However, before you change a service to manual, look at the Dependencies tab (see Figure 4-4). This tab shows you which other services depend upon the service you are considering changing.
Keep in mind that services are necessary for the vast functionality you get with Windows XP. Change only those services that you understand and do not use. How you use your Windows XP computer should be the best guide in terms of optional startup services.


Tip !


The Indexing service and the System Restore service take up a lot of disk space and system resources across the board. You can live without the Indexing service but I suggest that you keep using System Restore. It works great when you are in a bind and this is one case where the loss of speed may not be worth the ramifications of not using System Restore.


Speed Tips and Tricks for Windows XP Startup
Aside from startup programs, services, and the Prefetch folder, there are a number of other startup procedures and issues you can modify to help Windows XP start faster. The following sections explore those tips and tricks.


Manual IP Addressing on Small Office/Home Networks
Windows XP is configured to help you take care of networking. It uses the TCP/IP protocol for networking in workgroups, or what you might call small office or home networks that do not use a dedicated server.

The problem is that automatic IP addressing can be slow. When your computer boots, it has to query the network to see what IP addresses are already in use and then assign itself one. If you want to speed up the boot time a bit, consider manually assigning IP addresses to all computers on the network. This way, the network computers do not have to worry about locating an automatic IP address. Because one is manually configured, the operating system doesn't have to spend time solving this problem.

This isn't a networking book, however, so I won't delve into the implications of using a manual IP address, but if you are using a computer that functions as a host computer to the Internet (using Internet Connection Sharing [ICS]), you can get into connectivity problems if you change the configuration of the IP address. However, you can still work around this problem by starting with the ICS host computer.

Select Start/Connect To/Show All Connections. Right-click your network adapter card and click Properties. On the General tab, select TCP/IP in the list of services and click the Properties button.

In the TCP/IP properties, you can see if you use an automatic or manual IP address. In the example in Figure 4-5, I have configured a manual IP address of 90.0.0.1 and a default subnet mask. The other computers on my office network each use a different IP address in the same class, such as 90.0.0.2, 90.0.0.3, 90.0.0.4, and so on. This way, each computer has a permanent IP address, which helps increase boot time. Note that if you change the IP addresses of your computers, they must all use the same subnet mask. A default subject mask of 255.255.255.0 will keep you in good shape.

Make sure you understand the implications of changing IP addresses on your network. If you have no networking experience at all, you may be wiser to leave the automatic IP addressing as is and try to gain some speed using the additional suggestions in this chapter.


Disabling Recent Documents History !


Windows XP includes a feature that keeps track of all recent documents you have opened or used. The idea is that you can select Start/Recent Documents History and quickly reopen any document you have recently used. I use many documents each day and never use the feature myself. In my opinion, I can keep up with what I want to use without Windows XP doing it for me.
The bad thing about Recent Documents History is that Windows XP has to calculate what should be put there each time you boot Windows, which can slow things down. So, if you never use the Recent Documents History, it's a good idea to disable it. Here's how:
1. Open the Registry Editor (select Start/Run, type regedit, and click OK).
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Mcft\Windows\ CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer.
3. Create a NoRecentDocsHistory D_WORD key. Double-click the value to open it once it is created.
4. Set the Data Value to 1 to enable the restriction.
5. Click OK and close the Registry Editor. You'll need to restart the computer for the change to take effect.


Disabling the Boot Logo !


You can remove the boot logo that appears when you start Windows XP. This little tweak probably shaves only a few seconds off your boot time but seconds count if you are serious about trying to get Windows XP up and running as quickly as possible. The only negative is that if you remove the boot logo, you will also not see any boot messages, such as check disk. (But if you are not having problems with your computer, this isn't such a big deal.)
To remove the boot logo, follow these steps:
1. Select Start/Run, type msconfig, and click OK.
2. In the System Configuration Utility, click the BOOT.INI tab.
3. On the BOOT.INI tab, click the NOGUIBOOT check box option. Click OK.


Removing Unwanted Fonts !


One trick that increases your boot time a bit is to lose any fonts in the Fonts folder in Control Panel that you never use. The more fonts you have, the more processing Windows XP has to do to prep all of those fonts for use. You must be a bit careful here to not remove fonts that you might want, but there is a good chance that you can live without many of them. For instance, you may have foreign language fonts and other symbol fonts (such as Wingdings) that you never use.
To delete unneeded fonts, follow these steps:
1. Open the Fonts folder in Control Panel.
2. Select Edit/Select All and then Edit/Copy.
3. Create a new folder on your desktop, open it, and select Edit/Paste.
4. In this new folder, delete any of the fonts you do not want.
5. Return to the Fonts folder in Control Panel. Right-click the selected fonts and click Delete.
6. Go back to your new desktop folder and click Edit/Select All.
7. Return to your Fonts folder and click Edit/Paste. You now have only the desired fonts in the Fonts folder.


Tip:


You can directly delete fonts from the Fonts folder without creating the secondary folder. However, I recommend the preceding steps to help ensure that you do not make a mistake in the deletion process.


Stopping Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop Sharing !


In Windows XP Professional, you have two remote networking features called Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop Sharing. These remote networking features are very helpful in a variety of situations but if you don't use them, it is good idea to disable them to save boot time. You can always enable them later if you want to use them.
Note:
If you are interested in using Remote Desktop or Remote Assistance, see my book Windows XP for Power Users: Power Pack published by John Wiley & Sons.
1. Open the Start menu, right-click My Computer, and choose Properties.
2. Click the Remote Tab.
3. Clear both check boxes to disable Remote Assistance and Remote Desktop.


Speeding Up the Dual-Boot Timeout !


If you dual-boot your computer with Windows XP and another operating system, you see an operating system selection menu on startup. If you typically boot into Windows XP and not the other operating system, you can speed up the dual-boot timeout value so that you do not wait so long for the boot process to select your default operating system and continue with the boot process. The default timeout value is 30 seconds but you can change this setting to 10. This gives you enough time to select the alternate operating system if you want but also speeds up the boot process. You can skip this section if you do not use a dual-boot configuration.
Follow these steps:
1. Locate the boot.ini file on your computer. It is a hidden file by default; mine is located in C:\boot.ini.
2. Open the file with Notepad (which is what opens it by default).
3. Change the Timeout value to 10 (see Figure 4-11).
4. Select File/Save and close Notepad.


Speeding Up Your PPPoE Connection !


If you use a Point-to-Point Protocol connection over Ethernet (PPPoE), you may notice a delay in using the PPPoE connection after startup. By default, there is a 120 second delay but you can stop this behavior by manually configuring an IP address for the network adapter card. If you do not use a PPPoE connection, you can skip this section.
1. Select Start/Connect to/Show All Connections.
2. Open the TCP/IP properties for your LAN network interface card.
3. Manually set the IP address on the TCP/IP properties to an appropriate IP address and subnet mask for your network.


Reducing the Wait Time


When you start to shut down Windows XP, it has to quit, or "kill," any live applications or processes that are currently running. So close all applications first. However, some applications and processes are always running in the background. You can reduce the amount of time that Windows XP waits for those applications and processes to close before Windows XP kills them. Edit three different Registry settings to change this:
1. Open the Registry Editor.
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop. Select WaitToKillAppTimeout and set the value to 1000.
3. Select the HungAppTimeout value and set it to 1000 as well.
4. Navigate to HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop. Set the WaitToKillAppTimeout and set the value to 1000. Select the HungAppTimeout \newline value and set it to 1000 as well.
5. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control. Select the WaitToKillServiceTimeout value and set it to 1000.
6. Close the Registry Editor.

Automatically Killing Tasks on Shutdown !


You know the drill. You start to shut down the computer, you wait a few moments, and then you see a dialog box asking if you want to kill an application or service that is running. Instead of prompting you, you can make Windows XP take care of the kill task automatically. Here's how:
1. Open the Registry Editor.
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop.
3. Highlight the value AutoEndTasks and change the value to 1.
4. Close the Registry Editor.

More

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 Scheduled Tasks. If you like you may want to export the exact branch so that you can restore the key if necessary. This fix is so effective that it doesn't require a reboot and you can almost immediately determine yourself how much it speeds up your browsing processes.