Really Bad Default Setting
Windows 2000 and XP users should change a Windows
default setting. That setting is the "Automatically
Reboot on
System Failure." By default this is ON.
We see a couple machines each month that when started,
run for a moment or two then
reboot. On a few of these we are able
to see the "stop code" thereby allowing system repair but some reboot so
fast the stop code does not appear!
More times than not, these faster systems have to be
completely restored. So please, before you have problems, change
this "auto-reboot" setting:
Control Panel > System icon > Advanced tab > Startup
Settings button and near the bottom of the screen, uncheck the
auto-reboot option.
Quick Launch
Most of us have our applications open to fill the screen
and perhaps have a few applications open at one time. Getting back
to the desktop can be a real pain unless you have the Show Desktop icon
available in the taskbar. To setup, right click the taskbar and
from the Tool Bars menu, select Quick Launch. Windows XP Filename Sorting
XP has changed the way files are sorted!
Example:
| Sorting Before XP |
Sorting Under XP |
| 11.txt |
5.txt |
| 5.txt |
11.txt |
| 88.txt |
88.txt |
But this sort order can be changed by running TweakUI.
Available from Microsoft
"Run" the installer and answer Yes to the agreement
prompt.
Once Tweak is installed, open it from the Start > Programs menu. Click on
the word Explorer and on the right side, near the bottom is "use intuitive filename
sorting," uncheck that option and click Apply.
While You Are in TweakUI
There are many other interesting settings you can
change using TweakUI but be careful as some may have adverse effects!
Not only are there settings if you expand the category by clicking the
plus sign but there are also settings by clicking on the category word
itself.
Taking out the Garbage?
When you delete files from your computer they
typically* end up in the recycle bin. If sometime in the future
you need that particular file, you can open the recycle bin, right click
and restore that file.
The restore process places that file back into the
folder from which it was deleted. If a file already exists with
that same name, you are prompted to over-write the existing file.
If you want both the existing file and the deleted file, answer NO then
go to that folder and rename the existing file.
*If you delete files/folders by pressing Shift
Delete, they do not go to the recycle bin, they are deleted.
But Hold on a Minute. . .
Unless you are very low on disk space, or have
recently cleaned up from an infection, do not empty the recycle bin.
Most computers have plenty of disk space and leaving files in the
recycle bin has no adverse effect on the computer performance.
Outlook Users (not Outlook Express)
Unless you are under Microsoft Exchange (a
large corporate server), Outlook stores all data in a single
(database) file with a PST extension (Outlook.pst
by default). Like any database, occasionally this file may become
corrupt. This will be evident by problems sending or receiving. Fortunately Microsoft created a repair utility called "ScanPST"
but unfortunately it is hard to find and cumbersome to use.
This one is a little tough to do on paper so bear with
us...
First thing you need to do is find the tool; use
Find/Search from the Start menu and search the entire drive for a filename
of scanpst.exe. 
Once found, right click and copy (CTRL C). Close the search box, go to your Desktop, right
click a blank area and select "Create a Shortcut."
Next, open search again and search for *.pst (all files
with a pst extension), when found, right click the pst filename and select
open container/folder.
This will open the folder
containing the database via Windows Explorer. If your Windows
Explorer address bar
is visible and correctly configured, you should be able to see the
database file location, e.g.
C:\Documents and
Settings\Username\Application Data\Microsoft\Outlook\Outlook.pst
Note: If the folder address bar is not
visible or you cannot see the entire address,
click here
for more information.
Now that you can see the full address, select and copy
that address. Open the ScanPST via your Desktop shortcut, click
the browse button and in the filename field (near the bottom of
the window), paste that address (CTRL V) then click the Open
button. This should show the actual pst file. Double click
the file and click the Start button to
begin the repair process. |
