7/28/2019 Lots of Windows Xp Tips, Take a Look !

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file:///F|/References/Computer/1000+%20Hacking%20Tutorials/Lots%20Of%20Windows%20Xp%20Tips,%20Take%20A%20Look%20!.txt

LotsOf WindowsXpTips, Take ALook !

Lock XPWorkstation (#1)

You canlock yourXP workstation with two clicksof the mouse. Create a newshortcut on yourdesktop using a right mouse click,and enter'rundll32.exe user32.dll, LockWorkStation'in the location field.Give the shortcut a name you like. That'sit -- just double clickon it and yourcomputerwill be locked. Andif that'snot easy enough, Windowskey+ L will do the same.

Remove WindowsXPsystem software (#2)

XPhides some system software you might want to remove, such asWindows Messenger, but you can tickle it and make it disgorge everything. Using Notepad orEdit, edit the text file /windows/inf/sysoc.inf, search forthe word 'hide'and remove it. You can then go to the Addor Remove Programsin the Control Panel, select Add/Remove WindowsComponentsand there will be your prey, exposed and vulnerable.

Newcommands(#3)

Forthose skilledin the art ofDOS batch files, XPhasa numberof interesting newcommands. These include 'eventcreate'and 'eventtriggers'for creating and watching system events, 'typeperf'formonitoring performance ofvarious subsystems, and'schtasks'for handlingscheduled tasks. Asusual, typingthe command name followed by /? will give a list ofoptions --they're all fartoo baroque togo into here.

WindowsXPsupports IPv6 (#4)

XPhas IPversion 6 support --the next generation ofIP. Unfortunately thisis more than yourISP has, so you can only experiment with thison your LAN. Type 'ipv6 install'into Run... (it'sOK, it won't ruin yourexisting networksetup) and then 'ipv6/?'at the command line to findout more. If you don't knowwhat IPv6 is, don't worry and don't bother.

Kill tasksfrom the command line (#5)

You canat last get ridof taskson the computerfr om the command line by using 'taskkill /pid'and the task number,orjust 'tskill'and the process number.Find that out by typing 'tasklist', which will also tell you a lot about what'sgoingon in your system.

Enable ClearType by default (#6)

XPhas ClearType --Microsoft'santi-aliasing font display technology--but doesn't have it enabled by default. It'swell worth trying,especially ifyou were there forDOS and all those yearsof staring at a screen have given youthe eyesof anastigmatic bat. To enable ClearType, right click onthe desktop, select Properties, Appearance, Effects, select ClearType from the second drop-downmenu and enable the selection.Expect best resultson laptop displays.If you want to use ClearType on the Welcome login screen aswell,set the registry entry

HKEY_USERS/.DEFAULT/ControlPanel/Desktop/FontSmoothingType to 2.

Run program asdifferent user(#7)

You canrun a program asa different user without logging out and back in again. Right click the icon, select Run As... and enterthe username and password you want to use. Thisonly appliesfor that run. The trick isparticularlyuseful ifyou need to have administrative permissionsto install a program, which manyrequire. Note that you can have some fun by running programsmultiple timeson the same system asdifferent users, but thiscan have unforeseen effects.

Speed upthe Start Menu (#8)

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

Rename multiple filesat once (#9)

You canrename loads offiles at once in WindowsExplorer. Highlight a set offilesin a window, then right click on one and rename it.All the otherfiles will be renamed to that name, with individual numbersin brackets to distinguishthem. Also, ina folderyou canarrange icons in alphabetized groupsbyView, Arrange Icon By... ShowIn-Groups.

Showcover art inMedia Player(#10)

WindowsMedia Playerwill display the coverart for albumsas it playsthe tracks-- ifit found the picture on the Internet when you copied the tracksfrom the CD. Ifit didn't, orifyou have lotsof pre-WMPmusic files, you can put yourown copy ofthe coverart in the same directoryasthe tracks. Just call it folder.jpg and WindowsMedia Playerwill pick it upand displayit.

Display Hibernate Option on the Shut Down dialog (#11)

Forsome reason, Hibernate isn't available from the default Shut Down dialog. But you can enable it simply enough, by holding down the SHIFT key while the dialog is visible.Nowyou see it,now you don't!

Enable ClearType on the Welcome Screen!(#12)

Aslaptop usersand other LCDowners are quickly realizing, Microsoft'sClearType technology in WindowsXPreally makes a big difference forreadability.But the thisfeature isenabled on a per-userbasis in WindowsXP, soyou can't see the effect on the Welcome screen; it only appearsafter youlogon.

But you canfix that. Fire up the Registry Editorand look for the following keys:

(default user)HKEY_USERS\ .Default \ Control Panel \ Desktop \

FontSmoothing(String Value)

HKEY_USERS\ .Default \ Control Panel \ Desktop \

FontSmoothingType (Hexadecimal DWORDValue)

Make sure bothof these valuesare set to 2 and you'll have ClearType enabled on the Welcome screen and on each newuser by default.

Change UserPicture (#13)

Click onthe Icon at the top of the start menu. Select desired picture from resulting screen Windows2000 style logon. To revert back to the Win2k style logon so you can log on asthe administratorand otheroptions, press ctrl+alt+delete twice at the logon screen. Change the locationofthe My Music or My Picturesfolders:

In Windows2000, Microsoft added the ability to right-click the My Documentsfolder and choose a newlocation forthat folder in the shell. With WindowsXP,Microsoft has elevated the My Music and My Picturesfolders to the same "special shell folder"status ofMy Documents, but theyneveradded a similar( and simple)method forchanging those folder's locations. However, it isactually prettyeasy to change the location ofthese folders, using the following method.

Open a MyComputerwindow and navigate to the location where you'd like My Music (orMy Pictures)to reside. Then, open the My Documentsfolderin a different window. Drag the My Music (orMy Pictures)folderto the other window, andWindowsXP will update all ofthe referencesto that folderto the newlocation, includingthe Start menu.

Protect YourFilesFrom Unauthorized Users(#14)

Otherusers withpermission to delete a file (userswith Modify orFull Control permission)can't use yourencrypted files-but they can make them difficult foryou to use. Any such usercan rename your files, which can make them difficult to find, and can alsodelete yourfiles. (Even if the usermerely deletesthem to the Recycle Binand doesn't remove them altogether, the deleted filesare unavailable to you because youdon't have accessto any other user'sRecycle Bin.) Therefore,if you're concerned about protecting yourfilesfrom other authorized usersas well asfrom a thiefwho steals yourcomputer, you should modify the NTFSpermissionsto prevent any type ofmodification by otherusers.

ShutdownYourSystem in a Hurry (#15)

Ifyou need toshut down in a hurry-orif a frozen application preventsyou from shutting down in the normal ways-you can use the following procedure.Be aware,however, that you won't get an opportunity to save open documents. To perform an emergency shutdown, pressCtrl+Alt+Del to display Task Manager. Openthe Shut down menu andholddown the Ctrl keyas you clickthe TurnOff command.Poof! Ifyour computeris part ofa domain, the procedure issimilar. PressCtrl+Alt+Del and then hold down Ctrl when you click Shut Down.In thissituation,you'll get a warning message pointing out-quite correctly-that thisshould be used only asa last resort.

Provide Personal Support (#16)

It neverfails: when friends, co-workers, orfamily members discoverthat you're a Windowsexpert, you get pressed into service asan unpaid support technician. Ifthe party asking for help isrunning any edition ofWindowsXP and hasan active Internet connection, yourjob ismuch easier. Have the otherperson send you a Remote Assistance request; when you accept the request, you connect directly to theircomputerand can edit Registry settings, fixfile associations, set System options,and perform just about any othertroubleshooting orrepairtask, just asif you were sitting at the otherperson'sdesk.

Quickly Fix Connectivity Problems(#17)

Are you havingtrouble connecting to othercomputerson your local area network? Ifyour network usesa hardware firewall that assignsIP addressesto each machine and you're certain you've configured all othercomponentscorrectly, check tosee whether the Internet Connection Firewall isenabled. That component can effectivelyblock communicationbetween PCson the network.

Hack IE Title Bar(#18)

Thiscan be an impressive bit ofpersonalization. Use yourname ormoniker to brand Internet Explorer. Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\ and left-click on Main to change the string "WindowTitle"to whatever youwish.

Unload DLLs(#19)

To prevent Windowsfrom caching DLLsafter the program using them hasclosed, followthisprocedure: Navigate to

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ then left-click on Explorer. Right-click (as above)and create the DWORD

AlwaysUnloadDLL with a value of1. Thisrequires a reboot to take effect. This will allowmemory to be used more efficiently.

Registry Hacks(#20)

Editing the WindowsRegistry, while much more common nowthan in years past, isstill not to be entered into lightly. You can break Windows,cause boot failure. Iknow you're gonna do it anyway; why else would you be reading this. Just be careful, OK?

These are fewbecause, for the most part WinXPcan be customized through the interlace orwith third-party freeware (asabove).

All ofthe tipsbelow require running regedit. To do so, hit 'Start/Run'then type 'regedit'and followthe instructions.

Naturally, Itake no responsibility forany damage orloss ofdata incurred in the remote possibility that something goesterribly wrong.

The Ultimate Appearance Tweak (#21)

Microsoft said: "You can connect up to 10 monitorsto yourWindows XP-based computerand display numerousprograms orwindows at one time.You can use yourmouse to move itemsfrom one monitorto another. You can open a different file oneach monitor. Orseveral. Oryou can stretch one item across several monitors; so forexample, you can see more columnsin a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet,orthe entire layout of a Web page, without scrolling."Consider it.Monitorsand PCI video cardsare pretty cheap now.Windows recognizesthe addition & allowseasy adjustmentson the 'Display Properties/Settings'menu.

Save StreamingMedia (#22)

It'scool tolisten to MP3s(or watch movies)overthe Internet. Often, saving thismedia, however, seemsimpossible. Hey,if it playson yourcomputer, it'son yourhard drive. Once the file isfully loaded and with folderviewset to showhidden and systemsfolders, searches forthe media (.mp3 or.mpg). There it is!

Securing the Paging File (#23)

Ifyou're truly concerned about the possibility ofyourcomputerf alling into the wrong hands, you should be sure that you don't leave any tracksin the paging file.By default,when you shut down yoursystem, the paging file remainsintact. People who've accessto yourcomputer couldconceivablylook through the unencryptedpagingfile to find informationthey shouldn't have.

Assign a Keyboard Shortcut (#24)

Click inthe Shortcut Key field and pressa keyboard combination that you want to use forlaunching or switching to thisprogram. The shortcut key you assign must consist ofone character key (a letter,number, orsymbol) plusat least twoof the followingthree keys: Ctrl, Alt, andShift. (Ifyou press a characterkey only, Windowsautomaticallyadds Ctrl+Alt.)

Shortcut keyswork only when assigned to a pr ogram shortcut on the Start menu, the Programsmenu, or the Desktop. The shortcutsyou define will not work if it conflictswith a combination used in the program whose windowhas the focus.

Please remember, we cannot accept responsibility with what you decide to do with these tips. These tipsact as a guide to tweaking and changing WindowsXPf rom the default settings. Ifyou are unsure about howto make these changes then don't meddle !

file:///F|/References/Computer/1000+%20Hacking%20Tutorials/Lots%20Of%20Windows%20Xp%20Tips,%20Take%20A%20Look%20!.txt [7/20/2013 8:25:48 AM]