[Tyler]

52. Prevent Browser Hijackers and Spyware in SP2 Internet Explorer

The upgrades made to Internet Explorer in the new Service Pack 2 for Windows XP offer considerably more security for the Internet's most common browser software.

The first and most obvious improvement is contained in IE's new pop-up blocking software. This feature, which suppresses any secondary windows that a website may try to open in your browser, has the handy secondary ability of suppressing most other forms of pop-ups also. This includes those irritating prompts that may pop-up when you are browsing, prompting you to install this or that piece of spyware-ridden software.

Obviously, if you don't see them, you won't accidentally click 'ok' on them, hence IE becomes instantly better secured.

The second security addition steals a page from the effective 'HijackThis' anti-browser hijacking program. The new version of IE includes a feature that allows you to view and control elements and plugins that have been added to the browser since it was installed. Since many forms of spyware and all browser hijackers make changes to IE's settings in order to do their dirty work, they will be listed in 'tools\manage add-ons.'

From here, you can view and disable any suspicious contents.

These two features alone make the new Service Pack for XP a worthy download. For more information on SP2, we had a thread eariler, here.

[Tyler]

53. Test Your PCs Security with Online Security Probes

Are you security conscious? Have you secured your PC with anti-virus and firewall software? Whether you answered yes or no to these questions, you should still test your PC for security vulnerabilities with one of these online security-scanning services.

Each will probe your computer for security weaknesses which could be used by a malicious hacker or virus to compromise your PC and data. Use these services to ensure that you are well secured, or use them as an incentive to fix your insecure system; just use them.

Some free online security scanners:
https://grc.com/x/ne.dll?bh0bkyd2
http://www.pcflank.com/scanner1s.htm
http://scan.sygatetech.com/

54. Disable Annoying Sartup Programs

Whether it's spyware or just an annoying feature of a legitimate program, everyone has experienced the phenomena of the annoying startup program. They may take up all your system resources at startup, causing your computer to c...r...a...w...l along, or they may be unwelcome pests causing havoc within your system.

The thing that startup programs all have in common is that they need to be run during the Windows boot from a few specific locations. Traditionally in Windows XP, you can use the built-in MSCONFIG utility to find and disable automatically starting programs, but this utility does not check all possible locations.

For a more comprehensive scan, we suggest using Sysinternal's free 'autoruns' program to display all auto-running software on your computer. To paraphrase a certain commercial, this utility checks the parts that MSCONFIG can't reach.

To use autoruns download and run the program.

The program displays all software (including some essential Windows files) that runs automatically after Windows loads. By unchecking the boxes, you can disable specific programs and prevent them from loading. Note that there are several entries here you should not disable at any time, the two most important of which are userinit.exe and explorer.exe.

Be very cautious with anything authored by Microsoft in this list (though it is possible for malicious startup programs like spyware and Trojan horse viruses to use the Microsoft label here also).

[Tyler]

55. Fun With Shortcuts 1: Shortcuts to Email

Here's something you might not have know you can do with shortcuts. Got one or more people you email all the time? Of course you do. So create a shortcut to send them an email. One click of the shortcut (or even a key combination, see tip 62) and your default mail program will open up a message to that person, pre-addressed and ready to send.

To make an email shortcut right click an empty area of the desktop or folder where you wish to create the shortcut and hit 'new\shortcut.'

Once the shortcut wizard comes up, type 'mailtothe email address you want to send to)' Click 'next' and give the shortcut a name. From now on, clicking your new shortcut will open up an email to that recipient.

56. Fun with Shortcuts 2: Shortcuts to Web Sites

In much the same fashion as the above tip, you can also create desktop shortcuts to your favourite web sites. To do this right click an empty area of the desktop or folder where you wish to create the shortcut and hit 'new\shortcut.'

Once the shortcut wizard comes up, type the URL (www.cbttechs.com) and click 'next' then give your shortcut a name. From now on, opening the shortcut will open your default web browser to the page you specified.

57. Fun with Shortcuts 3: Shortcuts to Windows Control Panels and Utilities

You can also use desktop shortcuts to launch specific Windows utilities and control panels that would otherwise require a fair amount of clicking through the GUI to access.

Here's some good examples:

Simply create a new shortcut then copy and paste the information below into the 'location' box of the shortcut.

To create a shortcut to system settings: rundll32.exe shell32.dll,Control_RunDLL sysdm.cpl
To create a shortcut to shared folder list: Rundll32.exe ntlanui.dll,ShareManag
To create a shortcut to display options: rundll32.exe shell32.dll,Control_RunDLL desk.cpl

Computer management window: compmgmt.msc
Device manager: devmgmt.msc
Storage manager: diskmgmt.msc
Event viewer: eventvwr.msc
Group policies: gpedit.msc
Services: services.msc

[Tyler]

58. Fun with Shortcuts 4: Create a Shortcut to Shutdown or Restart Your PC

You can create quick desktop shortcuts to shutdown or lock your PC with this handy tip.

To do this right click an empty area of the desktop or folder where you wish to create the shortcut and hit 'new\shortcut.' For the location of the shortcut, enter 'shutdown -s -t 01' for a shutdown command or 'shutdown -r -t 01' for a restart. Hit 'next' and give your shortcut an appropriate name.

59. Fun with Shortcuts 5: Create a Shortcut to Lock Your PC

To create a desktop shortcut that will instantly lock your PC, requiring a username and password to get back in right click an empty area of the desktop or folder, where you wish to create the shortcut and hit 'new\shortcut.' For the location, enter 'rundll32.exe user32.dll, LockWorkStation.' Hit 'next' and give the shortcut an appropriate name.

60. Fun with Shortcuts 6: Create a Shortcut to 'Run' on Your Desktop

This tip creates a shortcut to the useful 'run' prompt on your desktop or another location.

Simply open the start menu, click on the 'run' command and drag it onto the desktop. This will create 'shortcut to &run' which you can then rename to 'run.'

61. Fun with Shortcuts 7: Create a Shortcut to Command Prompt on Your Desktop

Right click an empty area of the desktop or folder where you wish to create the shortcut and hit 'new\shortcut.' In the location box, enter 'c:\windows\system32\cmd.exe'. Hit 'next' and give the shortcut an appropriate name.

62. Fun with Shortcuts 8: Create Keyboard Shortcuts for Applications and Folders

To speed up access to your favourite programs and folders, you can create key combinations that will open them automatically provided they have a shortcut on the desktop.

To make a keyboard shortcut create a shortcut to an application or folder and place it on the desktop. Right click the shortcut, choose 'properties' and go to the 'shortcut' tab. Select the 'shortcut key' window and press a key you would like to use as a shortcut. Windows will automatically create a CTRL + ALT + (your key) combination. Pressing this combo will open the shortcut.

63. Shortcuts to Important Control Windows With the Run Command

As you probably already know, the 'run' command is a great way to quickly bring up several useful applications and windows. Following is a small list of some of the ones you might find yourself using most often. Simply bring up the run prompt by going to 'start\run' then type any one of the entries below to open that particular window.

Group policy editor: gpedit.msc
Command prompt: cmd
Windows Explorer: explorer
Registry Editor: Regedit
Computer management window: compmgmt.msc
Device manager: devmgmt.msc
Storage manager: diskmgmt.msc
Event viewer: eventvwr.msc
Services: services.msc

[Tyler]

64. Stupid Disk Tricks for XP Part 1: Dynamic Disks

Windows XP, like Windows 2000 before it, contains support for dynamic disks. Dynamic disk volumes use a database which records information about the partitions on each drive, allowing for several interesting new capabilities which we will cover in the next few tips. Dynamic disks can be expanded within windows, can be extended across physical drives (spanning), form RAID arrays, and can be transported from computer to computer. They do require Windows 2000, 2003 or XP to function though.

Any partition can be converted to a dynamic disk without data loss, but you cannot reverse the process. Converting your drives to dynamic disks allows you access to the next few tips in this article.

To convert your existing drives to 'dynamic disks' go to computer management (right click 'my computer' and select 'manage') then open 'disk management.'

The lower pane on the right contains information about your drives and partitions. Under the heading for each disk (disk 0, disk 1, etc.) is either 'basic disk' or 'dynamic disk' depending on their current type.

To convert the disks from basic to dynamic, right click the grey box on the left that contains the disk names (disk 1, disk 2, etc.) and select 'convert to dynamic disk.'

From the next Window you can check both blank drives and click 'ok' to convert them.Note that to perform any of the advanced disk management features, your partitions will also need to use the NTFS file system

[Tyler]

65. Stupid Disk Tricks for XP Part 2: Mounting Partitions to Directories

Another neat trick you might not have known that you can do in Windows XP is mount partitions as folders in other partitions. So for instance you could have a C: drive where you use a peer-to-peer sharing program such as Kazaa which may require a lot of disk space. You could purchase a new 80 gigabyte drive and mount it as a folder (c:\kazaa files) in C:, then use this to store your downloads. Very simple and organized.

To mount disk partitions as folders right click on 'my computer' and select 'properties' then 'manage.' Open 'disk management' from the computer management window. Right click on the partition you wish to mount as a directory in the graphical partition window (lower pane) and select 'change drive letter and paths.'

Remove the current option (if any), then click add. Choose the 'mount in the following empty NTFS folder,' browse to the desired volume and add a directory for your drive. Click 'ok.'

That's it. If you wish to return things back to the way they were, simply repeat the procedure, removing the directory location and choosing a drive letter instead. The data on the drive will be unharmed.

66. Stupid Disk Tricks for XP Part 3: Creating Software RAID 0

RAID (Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks) zero is another name for the technique known as disk 'striping' in which two disks act as one single hard drive, sharing (or striping) all data between them. This process considerably speeds up drive performance, especially when reading from the drives, since the data stream can come from both disks at once. For more information on other forms of RAID.

Windows XP, like Windows 2000 before it, comes with RAID 0 support built in. If you have two hard drives, you can take advantage of this feature to speed up your computers disk access (which affects nearly every facet of the computing experience). Note that you cannot create a RAID 0 stripe with the partition that holds the Windows operating system.

This means that you will have to have at least two physical hard drives with free space so you can create a pair of new partitions to stripe since you cannot stripe an existing partition with data on it either.

To create a RAID 0 stripe with two identical disks right click on 'my computer' and select 'properties' then 'manage.' Open 'disk management' from the computer management window. Convert both drives to dynamic disks as shown in tip 64 above. Once both disks are listed as dynamic, right click the 'unpartitioned space' of either drive and select 'new volume.' In the 'select volume type' Window, select 'striped.'Add all disks you wish to use, then decide on the amount of space on both disks you wish to use for the striped volume you are about to create. If you wish, use only part of each disk for the stripe, leaving the rest free for other uses.

Choose a drive letter or folder to use, and the method of formatting, and you are done. The striped array will format and be ready for use.

67. Stupid Disk Tricks for XP Part 4: Extending and Spanning Volumes

If you have blank space on one of your drives and you would like to merge this with an existing partition rather than creating a new partition with a new drive letter, you can do it with dynamic disks.

Extending (enlarging an existing partition to include free space on the same disk) and spanning (enlarging an existing partition to include free space on another disk) are both possible with dynamic disks and the NTFS file system. Note that you cannot span or extend the system volume; the partition in which Windows is installed.

To span or extend an existing partition open Disk Management. Right click the partition you would like to expand and select 'extend volume.'

The extend volume wizard will come up. Press 'ok' to get to the 'select disks' window. Any available space on your dynamic disks will be displayed in the left hand box. Choose the space you'd like to use and click 'add' then 'next' and 'finish.' XP will format the blank space and add it to the current partition, no reboot required.

[Tyler]

68. Create a Portable Version of Windows XP

For a long time now, Linux users have been spoiled by the availability of 'Live' Linux distributions. These self-contained operating systems can boot themselves on almost any PC off a single CD or even a floppy disk, allowing users to carry their operating system with them wherever they go. The most well known version of these 'live distros' is Knoppix). These portable operating systems have many advantages, not least of which is their ability to boot PCs whose operating systems have failed, possibly rescuing essential data.

Until recently, there was no similar option for Windows users. Microsoft has come out with WinPE, a portable version of Windows intended to simplify the pre-installation of multiple computers, but it is a separate product from XP, command prompt based and frankly not very useful for anything except its intended purpose - not that this has stopped a host of modifications for it from appearing.

There is a another way though. This website offers access to a program that can build a bootable Windows environment out of your Windows XP CD. This 'BartPE' environment can be used to rescue data or perform a number of other tasks, and there are several add-ons (see here for starters) that can turn it into a viable, portable version of Windows (with restrictions, read the FAQ for more details). Download the PEBbuilder software and follow the instructions to get started!

69. Create Alarms and Reminders with Windows XP's Scheduling Service

Like other versions of Windows, XP includes a built in task scheduling application which is generally used to automatically run operations like data backups and disk defragmentation that need to be done when no-one is using the system. If you're creative though, you can find numerous other uses for this time keeping utility, including as a musical alarm clock and reminder.

To open the scheduled tasks application, go to 'start\all programs\accessories\system tools\scheduled tasks.'

Now, if you want to create a musical wakeup call, drag and drop a single MP3 file (or a playlist) into the scheduled tasks window.

If you want to create a text file reminder that will pop up at certain times, create a notepad document with the desired info, save it and then drag it into the scheduled tasks window. Now right click the new entry and hit 'properties.'

In the 'tasks' tab, you need to fill the 'start in:' box with the application you want to use to open the text or music file. To use notepad, type 'notepad.exe'. To use Windows media player type 'wmplayer.exe'. Note that if you are using another application to play MP3 files as your default, 'wmplayer.exe' should start that app instead. If not, you need to use the 'browse' button to locate the .exe file of your MP3 playing software.

The 'schedule' tab allows you to set the time, date and frequency of the alarm or reminder. The 'advanced' button contains further options. Once you have set your schedule, hit Ok and right click on the new entry in the scheduled tasks window again. Choose 'run' to test that everything is working correctly, and from them on your scheduled task will now occur at the time you set.

[Tyler]

70. Perform a 'Hands Off' Windows XP Installation.

Windows XP includes the option to create an 'unattend' text file which will automatically answer all the questions you would normally field while installing Windows. This allows the installation to proceed without user input right from booting the computer. This method is often used by IT Professionals who can't afford the time to babysit a single system through the answer process.

While the 'unattend.txt' file itself is packed with options, Windows XP includes a simple to use utility which can build one of these files for you without much effort.

To get at this utility, setup manager, you need to insert your Windows XP CD and go to the 'support\tools' directory. Use your favourite zip/unzip software like Winzip or WinRAR to extract the 'deploy' .cab file to a directory on your hard drive.

Once the deploy.cab file is unzipped, navigate to the new directory and double click 'setupmgr' to start the setup manager wizard. This program will ask you a series of questions and use the answers to create a text file that can automate your Windows XP installation.

Most of the answers will be obvious, but here's a few you need to know near the start:

Create a new answer file;
Windows unattended installation;
Fully automated (but read the descriptions for the other modes);
No, this answer file will be used to install from CD;

Once the wizard has completed, you will be left with an 'unattend.txt' file in the same directory. Rename this file to 'winnt.sif'.

Now copy the winnt.sif file to a formatted floppy disk.

When you start your Windows XP installation, insert the floppy disk. The install process will automatically search for winnt.sif on the floppy and use the answers to automate the installation process.

71. Experiment With 'Virtual' Computing

You may have heard about 'virtual server' technology in the past. Companies like VMWare created software that allow multiple virtual computers to run sharing the memory, processor(s) and hardware of a single physical computer.

A single server can run many virtual 'client' systems inside itself, using multiple operating systems. This technology is primarily used for testing network and patch settings in business environments where running the tests on the actual live network would be too risky and time-consuming. Microsoft has decided to get into the virtual computing market, and you can try their 'virtual server' product evaluation for yourself here. Be aware that you'll need a fast PC to get much out of this, but if you are at all interested in networking and Windows networks, you owe it to yourself to play with this.

[Tyler]

72. Show How Long Your System has Been Running With SYSTEMINFO

The Systeminfo command prints out a long list of interesting information about your PC, including how long it's been running, the original install date, installed patches, motherboard and processor information, network information, memory and page file details and more.

To access Systeminfo open a command prompt by going to 'start\run' and type 'cmd', then type in 'systeminfo'.

73. Use MSN Messenger's 'Whiteboard' Feature

MSN Messenger has a built in 'whiteboard' feature that allows you to share pictures and drawings in real time on an MS-paint like application window. To use the whiteboard feature, open the 'actions' menu and choose 'start whiteboard.'

You will send a request to the other party, and if accepted, the shared session window will appear. Choose 'whiteboard' to begin the whiteboard session.

74. Use MSN Messenger's Shared Applications Feature

Even more powerful than the above tip is MSN Messenger's ability to share documents powered by certain application. As long as both parties have the application in question, they can view the document simultaneously. Only one party can make changes at a time though. To use this feature, go to the 'actions' menu and hit 'start application sharing.'

75. Collect System Data with the Performance Monitor Wizard

As you might know, Windows XP includes a performance monitor application which can intensively monitor many aspects of your computer's operation. It's not very user friendly to set up though, which is where this tip comes in. Microsoft provides a downloadable wizard for the performance monitor application which greatly simplifies the task of setting up and recording performance logs for later inspection.

You can download the wizard here. Doubling clicking the executable starts the wizard. Follow the steps to create a comprehensive test log and start it off on collecting system data.

[Tyler]

76. Use a Free, Full Featured Office Suite

Microsoft Office is expensive, but pretty much standard in the working world these days. Other word processors like WordPerfect are available, but these come with a cost attached also. There is a way to get a full-featured, Microsoft compatible office software suite completely free though. It's called Open Office.

Open Office is an offshoot of the successful commercial Star Office suite for Linux and Windows. Open Office is completely free and is constantly being worked on and updated by the Linux and Windows user community. The interface may be considerably different from Office, but the functionality is essentially the same and you can't argue with the price. Try it out.

77. Create a Windows XP Bootable CD with Service Pack 2 Built-in

If you have any plans to re-install Windows XP and you would rather not go through the lengthy Service Pack download and installation process, we have a guide for you.

Did you know that you can create a legal, bootable Windows XP CD with Service Pack 2 included as long as you possess an original Windows XP CD? The process is called slipstreaming, and involves copying the contents of the XP CD to your hard drive, updating the files with the Service pack, then recreating a bootable Windows XP CD with the new files. It's easier than it sounds, and you might well learn something.

78. Edit Local Computer Settings with GPEDIT (XP Professional)

Windows XP contains a vast amount of possible configuration options, many of which are not available from the control panel. The easiest interface with which to change most of these option is the Group Policy Editor Window.

You can access this by going to the run prompt ('start\run') and typing 'gpedit.msc'

As you can see, the local policies are divided into two groups, computer configuration and user configuration. Computer configuration options change the way Windows XP operates, while user configuration options change the way users interact with the operating system. It's worth noting that all the settings here apply equally to all users of the computer, and only your computer.

As you can see, there are many, many configuration options available here. Explore, but be cautious, as unwary changes here can mess up your system as fast as a bad registry edit can. The next few tips will cover some interesting things you can do in this interface.

Ex.1) Customize Internet Explorer Appearance

You can customize the appearance of Internet Explorer and add bitmaps to toolbars and your own caption to the Internet Explorer window title by going here:

'user configuration\windows settings\Internet Explorer Maintenance\browser user interface.'

Ex.2) Customize IE Toolbar

This GPEDIT entry allows you to specify which buttons will appear on the standard Internet Explorer toolbar:

'user configuration\administrative templates\windows components\internet explorer\toolbars\configure toolbar buttons'

Ex.3) Remove the File Delete Confirmation Dialog Box

To remove the 'confirm (filename) delete' box that pops up when you attempt to delete a file, go to: 'user configuration\administrative templates\windows components\explorer\display confirmation dialog when deleting files' and disable the option.

Ex.4) Disable Windows Messenger Easily

If you do not want to use Windows Messenger and you are annoyed by its persistence, turn it off easily with this GPEDIT option:

'user configuration\administrative templates\windows components\windows messenger\do not allow messenger to be run'

Ex.5) Customize the Start Menu and Taskbar

This section contains a wealth of options for customizing the Windows XP start menu and taskbar, everything from adding a 'log off' button to removing the clock from the system tray is covered here:

'user configuration\administrative templates\windows components\start menu and taskbar'

Ex.6) Prevent Users from Running Certain Programs

You can prevent programs you specify from running within Internet Explorer with this GPEDIT option:

'user configuration\administrative templates\windows components\system\don't run specified windows applications'

You will need to know the name of the application's executable file.