Computer knowledge: Restoring Windows

50 tips to help you tame Windows, eliminate clutter in your PC and prevent troubles from the beginning. When having troubles, there are two possibilities: either you get mad or doomed. However, there is a third option: tame it. Eliminate unnecessary Windows programs, icons and services, and you'll get rid of much trouble.

Most of the necessary tools are available, mainly tweaking Windows and programs so they only do what you want.You should also replace popular but bulky and expensive programs with simpler programs.If you miss too much and make the PC 'dull', there is also a way to help you turn around.

Computer knowledge: Restoring Windows Picture 1 STARTING AND ENDING TRU

Thanks to the stability of Windows 2000 and XP, now you no longer have to regularly boot your PC.Anyway, with the goal of tame Windows, you also need to understand the boot process.The fewer programs that are admitted at startup, the faster Windows is activated and the more memory areas are available for applications.Furthermore, controlling loaded programs at startup will help you avoid the hassles caused by spyware or viruses.

The first step to reducing the load at startup is to remove unused programs, especially those that always place the icon in the system tray (lower left corner, the current system location). First look in the Start menu (uninstall) icon in the same place as the program's main icon. If you don't see this icon, use the Add or Remove Programs tool in Control Panel of Windows, select the unnecessary program and click the Remove or Change / Remove button to perform the uninstall.

Next, you may need to keep an eye on the programs that you want to keep but don't always need to run. For example, Apple's QuickTime program always loads the qttask.exe file at startup, every time you watch QuickTime movies, the program will reload itself into the system tray. Get rid of such programs to reduce the boot load process (you can still use them when needed). To do this, look in all the places Windows uses to call programs at startup and block unnecessary programs.

Reduce the boot process load  

There are four ways for Windows to call running programs automatically at startup: declare the shortcut pointing to the program in the Startup section of the Start menu (Start.All Programs.Startup);declaration in the registry;declare the old style in the system.ini file or autoexec.bat;or declare in Computer Management console (if the program is a special type called service - service).

You browse through each place and prohibit or remove references to programs that don't need to be run at startup.An easy way to do this is to use Windows' System Configuration utility, which can remove such references in all four places (if you use Windows 2000, first download the msconfig tool at the address. www.perfectdrivers.com/howto/msconfig.html and save to c: winntsystem32 folder).

Select Start, Run, type msconfig in the Open area and click OK to call the tool. The programs listed in the Startup section are taken from the registry; Although there are few cases where the program uses system.ini or win.ini to start automatically, you should also browse through these items if not found elsewhere. You can also use msconfig to manage services, but there is a better way to turn them off quickly.

To block a program from starting, delete the check box next to it, click OK and restart the computer. If something goes wrong, go back to the System Configuration Utility and check the program again.

You can shorten boot time and free up memory by stopping unnecessary services, then setting them up so that they don't start with Windows. Open the Services Console: right-click My Computer and select Manage. When this window opens, in the right pane, double-click Services and Applications (or click the plus sign next to) to open this item, then select Services that appears below.

The Services Console displays running services ('Started') and how the service is activated: Automatic (activates every time the system starts, regardless of whether you need it or not), Manual (does not run at startup but Windows can enable the service when needed), or Disabled (not running at all, even if Windows needs).

Of course, banning one or more services that Windows needs at times can cause some problems. You can refer to the list of Windows services along with detailed information at the UK Security Online website (www.uksecurityonline.com/husdg/windowsxp/disableservices.htm) to find out which services can be safely banned.

Stanby to accelerate

Computer knowledge: Restoring Windows Picture 3 Figure 2: Stop unnecessary services

 

No matter how many programs and services you remove, the system still takes a long time to boot (startup) and finish (shutdown).There is a better way to cure your PC: Give the PC to Stanby or Hibernate instead of turning it off completely.Stanby shuts off the monitor and drives but maintains the CPU and memory power, allowing you to 'wake up' the PC and get back to work in seconds.Hibernate writes memory information to disk and turns off PC completely;When rebooted, the PC will reread the session information stored on the disk, so you can immediately go to the work you were doing before.

Hibernate is suitable for laptops (to optimize battery life), while Stanby is suitable for desktop computers.Double-click the Power Options icon in Control Panel;choose Power Schemes;set up screen, hard disk and Stanby options;then click OK.To turn on Hibernate, click the Hibernate tab, check Enable hibernation, and click OK.Some PCs, especially older ones, may not support Stanby or Hibernate mode;If so, you won't see the Hibernate tag.

FILTER DESKTOP AND MENU

Sometimes it's hard to know what tools Windows has.To easily find the necessary tool, remove the duplicate icons in the Start menu, in the Quick Launch toolbar and on the desktop.You may want some icons to appear in many places, but for simplicity, you should only arrange icons in the most appropriate place.

Clean the icon

Removing software with limited functionality or trial doesn't usually remove the shortcut on the desktop.Fortunately, Windows XP provides a convenient tool to wipe unused desktop icons.Right-click on the desktop, select Properties, click the Desktop tab, and click the Customize Desktop button.Click Clean Desktop Now to enable the wizard to find icons that you haven't recently used and convert them to Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder.When there are only a few icons left on the desktop (such as Recycle Bin), link them to the taskbar so you don't have to minimize the applications that are working just to see them: Right-click the taskbar Service and select Toolbars.Desktop.Next right-click the new toolbar name (if 'Lock the Taskbar' is checked, uncheck it, right-click the taskbar to add the desktop toolbar).On the menu that appears, you will see options for resizing the icon and turning on / off the title display of the toolbar or the name of the icon.

 

Computer knowledge: Restoring Windows Picture 5 Figure 3: Use Desktop Cleanup Wizard to clean unused icons from the desktop

Windows' Start menu is highly configurable - right-click the Start button, click Properties, select the Start Menu tab, select either Start menu (default of XP) or Classic Start (change to a Windows 2000-like menu), then click the Customize button to display the options.Depending on your preferences, you can remove 2 identical icons in the default Start menu by unchecking the Internet and E-mail options (by default, links to these programs appear in the taskbar. Quick Launch tool).Click the Advanced tab to see more tweaking options.If you rarely use the following items of the Start menu: Favorites, Search, Set Program Access and Default, Help and Support . you can disappear them by unchecking them in the 'Start menu items' list and clicking OK.

The Quick Launch bar, located to the right of the Start button, is the most convenient method for enabling applications - you can call your favorite programs with just one click (if you don't see the Quick Launch bar, right-click. Go to the taskbar and select Toolbars.Quick Launch).

Remove the little icons (right-click on the icon and select Delete).You can also resize the Quick Launch toolbar (drag the bar to the right of the toolbar with no locking conditions), arrange icons (drag them one by one) and hide the title of the toolbar and names of icons.Most programs, when installed with the default settings, will place the icon on the desktop, in Quick Launch and in the Start menu - too 'wasted'.To prevent icon clutter later, you should select the 'custom' option when installing a new application in order to decide where to place the icon.

Computer knowledge: Restoring Windows Picture 6

Filter the system tray

Removing unnecessary applications will reduce the number of icons in the system tray, but you can further purge: Windows, hardware devices and system utilities that install icons to allow retrieval. Quickly update settings or to display status.The system tray filter frees the space on the taskbar to make room for more important applications (see section '15 icons can be removed ').Working on the system tray is easier when all its icons are displayed: In Windows XP, right-click the Start button, select Properties, click the Taskbar tab, uncheck Hide inactive icons, and click OK (yes You may want to re-enable this feature when done).Right-click or left-click on each icon to display configuration options (each symbol behaves differently).Even if the software does not allow to turn off the system tray icon, Windows can still hide it with the system tray customization feature (see the Outlook section in '15 icons can be removed ').

Just like Windows itself, applications you use every day over time will become 'disordered'.You need to get rid of the overflowing mailboxes, the 'tricky' menu that hides the commands you need and the toolbars never use.Here is how to remove unnecessary things.

Simple security

Currently, computer security is important.However, turning on all security features on the PC can affect performance.For example, enabling password protection (password) of the screen saver allows you to leave your PC without worrying about anyone being curious about sensitive information.

But the screen-saver can also be activated when you're busy talking on the phone or you're busy thinking about something and it's a computer.There is a 'grace period' from the time the screen saver activates until the protection mode requires a valid password (during this time, when you drag or click any key, the screen -saver will end immediately), default is 5-10 seconds.You can increase this time to avoid the trouble of re-entering the password.The free TweakUI PowerToys for Windows XP tool from Microsoft (find.pcworld.com/42714) can do this.Run TweakUI, click the plus sign next to Logon in the left pane, and click Screen Saver below.You can increase 'grace period' to 99999 seconds, but only 30-60 seconds is enough.Alternatively, you can edit it directly in the registry with the available regedit tool (remember to back up the registry before editing).Browse to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindows NTCurrentVersionWinlogon key, create a new DWORD variable named 'ScreenSaverGracePeriod' (if it is, just edit it) and set the appropriate Value between 0-2147483 (seconds).

Windows XP SP2 adds many attractive security features, most notably Windows Firewall.When you install SP2, a small shield-like icon will appear in the system tray.This icon links to the Security Center Control Panel, which allows you to manage settings on / off Automatic Updates and Windows Firewall.If you use other firewall software, Microsoft recommends turning off Windows' built-in firewall.But if you do so, you'll get a bunch of annoying system alerts that require you to turn on the firewall.To end these alerts, double-click the icon to open Security Center, click the Change the way Security Center alerts me link on the left, and uncheck Firewall Alert.The same way can help you avoid Automatic Update warning trouble, if you perform manual Windows updates and prohibit Automatic Updates.

Computer knowledge: Restoring Windows Picture 9

Refine the menu

MS Office and many other programs use menus to hide frequently used commands.Designed to help use simple but irony applications, this feature makes it difficult to find lesser commands.If you find it annoying, you can disable the custom menu feature in Outlook, Word, Excel or Access by selecting Tools, Customize, checking Always show full menus and then clicking Close.

Figure 5: Removing custom menus in MS Office to see more clearly

Maybe sometimes you don't want to see the entire menu.Some applications like IE and Outlook allow dragging and dropping (or resizing) toolbars to minimal space.Other programs such as the Mozilla browser allow the removal of less-used components.After moving or resizing IE toolbars, lock them in their current position by right-clicking on the toolbar or menu and selecting Lock the Toolbars.

Refined mailbox

When the number of messages in the mailbox is up to hundreds or thousands, it is easy to miss important messages, but finding an email also takes a long time. This problem can be overcome.

First of all, use spam filtering tools to remove junk messages that can hide viruses (refer to 'Spam protection for mailboxes' - TGVT A 6/2004, p.84).You may need to keep some messages for future reference, but not necessarily 'permanent' in the Inbox.Transfer them to subfolders and use the email archiving feature to transfer old messages ahead of time (eg 3 months in advance) to an archive file.

In theory, any hardware installed and working on a PC requires power (memory), memory and processor control.Removing unused devices can help improve system performance.Some hardware, such as wireless network adapters, can also significantly reduce battery life (for laptops), even when you're not connected, in addition to creating a security risk.

If you rarely use a modem, infrared connection, Serial or Parallel port, you can use hardware settings to ban some or prohibit this group of hardware in order to save battery power. If you later need to use prohibited hardware (such as a Serial port), you can reboot the machine and select this hardware-enabled profile.

To create a new hardware profile, right-click My Computer (on the desktop in the Start menu), select Properties, click Hardware, and then click Harware Profiles.Select an existing profile (you may have only one) and click Copy, then click OK (copying the existing profile is the easiest way to create a new profile).To set the default profile, use the arrow buttons on the right to move the selected profile to the top of the list.Windows will use it from the next startup.To ban hardware in the current profile, right-click My Computer, select Properties, click Hardware, and click Device Manager.Right-click the hardware item you want to prohibit in the Device Manager list (you may need to open this list first), and select Disable (note: do not prohibit any hardware listed under the System Devices list). ).

 

Computer knowledge: Restoring Windows Picture 12 Figure 6: Hardware Profile allows you to ban unnecessary hardware

You can also save your laptop battery power by removing accessories such as PC Cards, Flash memory cards, USB and FireWire devices.To avoid network problems and increase security, use only one network at a time - prohibit wireless connection if the network is wired.Most new Wi-Fi integrated laptops have an on / off switch on the outside.

An important suggestion: not all PCs need an Internet connection. If you have 2 or 3 PCs, set aside a device to play games and other tasks that do not require an Internet connection - just unplug the phone cable or network cable, or prohibit network hardware in Device Manager. If the PC is not connected to the network, it will be less vulnerable to viruses.

Clean up hard disk space will affect the performance of the system and of course you can not install additional software or create new documents. You can free up significant disk space by deleting junk files created by applications or web browsers. Open My Computer, right-click the Windows installation drive, select Properties, and click Disk Cleanup. After browsing through the drive, Windows will display a list of items that are sometimes up to hundreds of megabytes. Select the items you want to delete and click OK.

Discard the defragmenter

And this is the final trick: Don't waste time defragmenting hard disks.Previously, sequentially consolidating file sectors could speed up disk access.Scaling up will increase the free space continuously (allowing you to install large programs) but does not help significantly improve the speed of most PCs today (see the article 'Backup to safety' - TGVT). A 2/2004, p.60).Instead, spend precious time doing other things if you want to speed up your PC.

FRUIT FACE OF WINDOWS PROCESSING

SCREENING REVERSE service, applications and other messy things in the PC are good, but overdoing it can turn PC into a bit of a nuisance into a useless machine.If you use Windows XP, the System Restore tool can support you in case you miss the line between taming and PC brainwashing.
In general, if you are not sure whether to remove or ban a better solution or program, leave it (Google is a good tool to learn about a program, just search by its name. ), otherwise you can mistakenly disable the Windows function needed to boot.
To prevent this, create a rescue CD (bootable) before proceeding (see instructions at TGV A 11/2003, p.116).After creating the CD, check it out and put it in a safe and hopeful place that never has to be used.

You should only prohibit programs or services that you know are not needed, then monitor PC activity for 1 day to make sure there are no problems.Always proceed with care, each time banning a service or program, then restart your computer to see if something goes wrong at startup.
If all goes well, create a new recovery point

Use System Restore, this tool will save the system configuration and allow you to fix wrong Windows editing with just a few clicks.Creating a restore point with this tool is easy: Select Start, All Programs (or Programs).Accessories.System Tools.System Restore, select Create a restore point, click Next, enter the description of the restore point (such as 'good running configuration before 9/11'), then press Create.
System Restore can also be used to create restore points before installing new software, allowing you to withdraw any changes that the new program has made on the system.With System Restore and the Rescue CD, you can be quite comfortable with tame Windows without having to worry about turning your PC into an inanimate machine.

Phuong Uyen