Changing drives icon

First of all copy a icon file to the root of the drive.
example: c:\icon.ico

Then create a file called: autorun.inf in c:\autorun.inf

then open that file and type the following:

[autorun]
icon=icon.ico

save and close the file.

Now open my computer and refresh.. and woh! icon changed....
you can apply to other drives too.

be careful:

"autorun.inf" and "ico.ico" must be in the root of the drive.

example: c:\autorun.inf and c:\icon.ico.


same on the root.

How to remove the text from the Desktop icon?

                                 Desktop is the interface of Windows, which contain the icons, taskbar etc. that allow the user to interact with the computer to perform different operations. Usually the picture of icon represents its purpose so if you want your desktop looking very clean then you can remove the title under the desktop icons. May be you are thinking it is so easy, just go to rename option and set blank name or single spacebar entry but the problem is this, windows will not allow you to set blank name or name with single spacebar entry. Here interesting thing is this; window will allow you to use the ASCII code for a space, which is 0160.

First clear all the text from that icon

Now type the ASCII code, simply hold the Alt key,

type the number 0160 from the number pad

and release the Alt key

then press Enter button to finish the process.

                        But if you want to remove the text of multiple icons, then repeat the above process with adding one extra ASCII code for second icon, (for example for second icon you type the 0160 twice and for third icon type 0160 three times with Alt key.

How to show a banner at each startup in Windows

                                     There is a hidden feature in Windows and not many users know anything about it. You can setup a banner with a message in it. Each time your Windows boots up the same banner will pop up. The message can be anything from a welcome message to some important information. You can use it in the way you want. 

Follow the simple steps given below to setup a banner for your Windows system :

• First of all, go to “start” –> “run”.

• Type “regedit” and hit Enter.

• A new window will open named “registry editor”. In the left panal of the “registry editor”, go to the key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREMicrosoftWindowsCurrentVersionpolicies system

• Now right click on the right panel, choose “new”,Select “string value”. A new “string value” will be created.

• Right click on it and choose “rename”. Type “LegalNoticeCaption” .

• Right click on that “string value” and choose “modify”. On the “value data:” area, type the text or value that you want to see in the title bar of the banner.

• Now create yet another new “string value” in the right panel and “rename” it to “LegalNoticeText”.

• Right click on that “string value” and choose “modify”. On the “value data:” part, type the message you want to display each time windows boots.

• Now, close the “registry editor”.

• Restart your computer.

Now, after the “boot screen” and just before the “welcome screen” a new banner will pop up which contains your message and an “OK” button. The users have to click on the “OK” button to proceed.

Hide all Desktop icons (9x/XP)

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
NoDesktop (DWORD value):
Set to 1 to hide all icons.
Delete NoDesktop to undo.
Hit F5 to refresh the desktop.
Hide Network Neighborhood, My Network Places (9x)
Run Poledit.exe (You may have to install it: It is on your Windows CD in\tools\reskit\netadmin\poledit).
File > Open Registry > (double click) Local User > Shell > Restrictions
Check Hide Network Neighborhood or/and My Network Places
OK > File > Save
Reboot.

How to change the windows default identity?

                                 In windows XP, you can change the windows default identity (Computer Manufacturer Logo and other information's) and share your own private identity there. First you right click on My Computer then click on Properties, here may be you will see computer manufacture logo or empty area. So add your own logo there to make your computer more private.

Follow the given steps to change the system default Properties identity:

First click on Start button and type notepad in Run option then press Enter.

Now type the following text in notepad.

[General]

Manufacturer="www.ComputerFreeTips.com"

Model=" Computer Free Tips and Tricks!"

[Support Information]

Line1="We offer various help topics including A to Z Computer Free Tips and Help."

Line2="Visit daily for new tips www.ComputerFreeTips.com"

There are some standard keywords, for example Manufacturer, Model, Line 1, Line 2; you can not change these keywords. Now save this notepad file in c:/windows/system32 folder with file name, OEMINFO.INI.

Now choose your favorite picture to set as logo, using any picture editor resize the picture size approx. 150X150 pixels then save it in c:/windows/system32 folder with file name OEMLOGO.BMP.

Now close the all files and restart your computer after any changes to go into effect. To verify these changes, right click on My Computer and open Properties.

Under General tab, verify the system properties with new settings.

Now click on Support Information for more detail

How To Enable Hibernation

                      Under Windows 98, Me, or 2000 there was an option in the shutdown dialog box to enter the computer into hibernation (where all the content of the RAM is copied to the hard disk).

                The shutdown dialog box of Windows XP doesn't offer any longer the hibernation button. Some users may get confused about how to enable the hibernation mode. If this mode is supported by your motherboard (ACPI) you have to do the following:

Click Start and Shut Down, 

          Point the standby button and maintain the shift key pushed,

A new hibernation button appears: click it while still holding the shift key: voila your PC will hibernate.

 USB storage devices                                                                   

How to disable/enable the usage of USB storage devices?

                                  USB drives (also known as flash drive, mobile disk or pen drive) are becoming the most popular standard in these days to store and move data. USB support is available in PCs of both IBM-compatible and Apple computers. USB port support hot plugging and plug & play. The USB allows up to 127 devices to be connected to the bus via a single port. The driver name "usbstor.sys" is used to communicate any USB drives to the operating system.

                    USB drives are indeed very useful in these days but a user can easily use to transfer any confidential information from your computer to others and can also upload viruses affected files to your computer by accidentally or deliberately. But you can prevent the users to connect any USB drives in the computer by disabling the ability of "usbstor.sys" (USB driver) to load in system. It will block the USB storage devices only and your system USB keyboard, mouse and others USB devices will work properly. 

Perform the following steps to block the USB storage devices: 

• To edit this feature, you will need to be logged into your computer with administrative rights.

• First click on Start button to open "Run" and type "regedit" then press Ok button to open the Registry Editor.

In registry editor locate the given path: 

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Services\USBSTOR

Here select the "USBSTOR" folder and in right side of the registry editor panel find the value with name "Start".

Double click on "Start" and then set its value 4 under "Value data" section.

Close the Registry editor and restart your computer for changes to apply.

Now when you want to restore the default setting, open the Registry Editor and set its value back to 3.

Now again close the Registry editor and restart your computer for changes to apply.

Customize Internet Explorer                          
Title bar tip:

                            This tip won't make your computer any faster but may help personalize your computer experience. Open Registry by going to START-RUN and typing REGEDIT. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet. Explorer\Main. In right hand panel look for string "Window Title" and change its value to whatever custom text you want to see.

Enable and disable Windows support for ZIP files (XP)

Click Start, then Run and type:

Enable: regsvr32 zipfldr.dll
Disable: regsvr32 /u zipfldr.dll
You may have to reboot.

Download Rapidshare Files Without Delay

             Downloading from RAPIDSHARE often becomes a headache due to the time delay for FREE downloaders!!!

———————————————————–

>> Click a Download link for Rapidshare !

>> Click the Free button on Rapidshare Page !

>> Now as usual the timer starts !!!

>> Now, go to the address box of your browser.

(Address Box >> Where you type the websites !)

>> In the address box type: javascript:alert(c=0)

>> Click OK on the alert box that arises.

Creating a Logon Banner

 If you want to create a Logon Banner: A message box to appear below your logon on.

1.Open RegEdit

2.Go To

For Windows 9x and ME -

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Winlogon

For Windows 2000 XP 2003 Vista -

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Winlogon

3.Create a new String value"LegalNoticeCaption "

4. Enter the Title of the window. What is displayed in the Title Bar.

5. Create a new string value "LegalNoticeText"

6. Enter the text for your message box that will appear even before the Logon window.

Disabling Drives in My Computer                                               

To turn off the display of local or networked drives when you click on My Computer:

1.Open RegEdit

2.Go toHKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Policies\ Explorer

3.Add a New DWORD item and name it NoDrives

4.Give it a value of 3FFFFFF

5.Now when you click on My Computer, none of your drives will show.

Gtalk                                                                      

-Tips & Tricks

• Wumpus Game : - First noted by a GoogleRumors commentor, if you add the buddy wumpus.game@gmail.com you can play the classic text-based game. Wumpus is an easter egg game that came with Google Talk (unfortunately, he didn't’t accept my invitation, so I can’t play).

• Change the font size - While holding the control key, move the scroll wheel on your mouse either up or down. This trick works while being focused in either the read or write area.

• Insert line breaks - If you want to have a message that spans multiple paragraphs, just hold shift and hit enter. You can add as many new lines as you want to create.

• Bold Text - To write something bold, you can use an asterisk before and after the word, like *this* .

• Italic Text - To use italics, use an underscore before an after the word, like _this_ .

• Switch windows - Hitting tab will cycle through open windows. It will select minimized conversations, to expand them just hit enter. If you just want to cycle through IM's and don't care about the buddy list, control-tab will do that and will automatically expand a minimized conversation if you settle on one.

• Invitation Tips - You don’t need to say Yes or No when someone wants to add you as a friend; you can simply ignore it, the request will go away. (On the other hand, someone with whom you chat often will automatically turn to be your friend, unless you disable this in the options).

• Show Hyperlinks - You can show your homepage or blog URL simply by entering the it in your away message (at the top of the main window). It will automatically turn to a link visible to others.

• Google Talk Game - “Google Talk” also was the name of a word game which uses Google.

• A message can be 32767 characters long.

Keyboard Shortcuts

• Ctrl + E - It centralizes the selected text, or the current line.

• Ctrl + R - It justifies to the right the selected text, or the current line.

• Ctrl + L - It justifies to the left the selected text, or the current line.

• Ctrl + I - The same thing does that Tab.

• Tab - It is giving the area to each of the windows opened by Google Talk.

• Ctrl + Tab - The same thing does that Shift + Tab .

• Shift + Tab - The same thing does that Tab but in reverse.

• Ctrl + Shift + L -Switch between points, numbers, letters, capital letters, roman numbers and capital roman numbers

• Ctrl + 1 (KeyPad) - It does a simple space between the lines.

• Ctrl + 2 (KeyPad) - It does a double space between the lines.

• Ctrl + 5 (KeyPad) - A space does 1.5 between the lines.

• Ctrl + 1 (NumPad) - It goes at the end of the last line.

• Ctrl + 7 (NumPad) - It goes at the begin of the last line.

• Ctrl + F4 - It closes the current window.

• Alt + F4 - It closes the current window.

• Alt + Esc - It Minimize all the windows.

• Windows + ESC - Open Google Talk (if it's minimized, or in the tray)

• F9 - Open Gmail to send an email to the current contact.

• F11 - It initiates a telephonic call with your friend.

• F12 - It cancels a telephonic call.

• Esc - It closes the current window.

Gtalk Emotions

• :-|

• :-O

• :-x

• :-P

• :-D

• ;-)

• :-(

• :-)

• B-)

• :'(

• :|

• :O

• :x

• :P

• :D

• :)

• :(

• :)

Conference Calls

                     What you need to do to have conference calls: Open up a copy of Google Talk on all computers with which you wish to conference. After one copy is opened make a new shortcut for Google Talk but at the end of it add /nomutex. If you installed it to the default folder then your shortcut should read "C:\Program Files\Google\Google Talk\googletalk.exe" /nomutex. Open 2nd instances of the software on every user's computer. After this start a chain: User 1 should connect on one instance to user 2. User 2 will connect on his second instance to user 3. User 3 will connect using his second instance back to user 1. With this chain everyone is connected to everyone.

FAT32 vs. NTFS On USB Stick [How-To]                                                                     

                     When formatting a USB stick in Windows (something many of us do from time to time), in XP you usually only have two file system options, FAT or FAT32. "FAT", by the way, means "File Allocation Table".

If you were wondering which to pick, the answer is FAT32 because it overcomes certain limitations of FAT.

However if you have a USB stick that’s over 4GB in size, you may want to consider formatting with NTFS instead.

The reason? FAT32 can only recognize a maximum individual file size of 4GB (or to be exactly specific, 4GiB minus 1 byte). If a single file is any larger than that, FAT32 won’t "understand" it and you’ll get an error on attempt to copy that big file over.

For those wondering "What file could possibly be that large?" Video and ISO disc images (such as some big-big Linux distros) can easily go over 4GB in size – and yes, some people will push these files to USB sticks if they have the space. Why not, right?

In XP (but not Windows 2000), the problem that presents itself is that if you have a USB stick that holds over 4GB of data, how do you format it using NTFS instead of FAT32?

One way to do it is via the Device Manager.

1. Go to Control Panel.

2. Double-Click System icon.

3. From the window that appears, click the Hardware tab.

4. Click the Device Manager button.

Under "Disk Drives", if the USB stick is plugged into your computer, it will show up under there, like this:

What we need to do here is change the policy to "Performance" instead of "Quick Removal".

The way we do this is by right-clicking the USB drive listing, selecting Properties and then from the window that appears select the Policies tab.

It looks like this:

Click Optimize for performance and click OK.

Go to format your USB stick (you will have to format it), and…

Success! Now we have the NTFS option!

DRAWBACK:

Yes there is a drawback to this and a rather large one.

When you have your USB stick set up in this mode, you absolutely must use the "Safely Remove Hardware" method before disconnecting the stick from the computer and you absolutely CANNOT forget to do this. If you do, the data is sure to get corrupted in short order.

If you can deal with that "Safely remove" stuff, go ahead with an NTFS file system on a USB stick larger than 4GB so you can write bigger-than-4GB files to it.

And remember, there’s no need to do this unless you specifically intend to push 4GB+ files on a USB stick.

Folder Options Missing

Open Run and then type "gpedit.msc".

Now goto User Configuration > Administrative templates > Windows Component > Windows Explorer.Click on Windows Explorer

you will find the 3rd option on the right side of screen "Removes the Folder Option menu item from the Tools menu"

Just check it, if it is not configured then change it to enable by double clicking on it and after applying again set it to not configured.

I hopes that you will find the option after restarting windows.

Error Message                                                                   

"Task Manager has been disabled by your administrator"

This error is caused if the DisableTaskMgr restriction is enabled. To enable Task Manager, try one of these methods:

Method 1
Click Start, Run and type this command exactly as given below: (better - Copy and paste)
REG add HKCU\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\System /v DisableTaskMgr /t REG_DWORD /d 0 /f

Method 2
Download and run this REG fix and double-click it.

Method 3
Click Start, Run and type Regedit.exe
Navigate to the following branch:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies\ System
In the right-pane, delete the value named DisableTaskMgr
Close Regedit.exe

Method 4:
Using Group Policy Editor - for Windows XP Professional
Click Start,
Run, type gpedit.msc and click OK.
Navigate to this branch:
User Configuration / Administrative Templates / System / Ctrl+Alt+Delete Options / Remove Task Manager
Double-click the Remove Task Manager option.
Set the policy to Not Configured.

Disable Error Reporting

1. Open Control Panel 

2. Click on Performance and Maintenance. 

3. Click on System. 

4. Then click on the Advanced tab 

5. Click on the error-reporting button on the bottom of the windows. 

6. Select Disable error reporting. 

7. Click OK

8. Click OK

Restore Default Desktop Icons

You can restore the all windows default desktop icons, if you accidentally deleted them from your computer desktop. 

List of windows default icons.

• My Computer

• Internet Explorer

• My Documents

• My Network Places

• Recycle Bin 

Fellow the given steps to restore the windows default icons: 

• Go to Start Button and open Run

• Type the given command to open windows Desktop items dialog box.

Control desk.cpl,,@Web

• Click OK

• Now Select Items that you want on your Desktop

• Click Ok

Moving The Taskbar

I bet you didn't know that you could move your taskbar if you wanted. Mostly I leave mine at the bottom, like the rest of the population, but occasionally I feel like going wild and have the taskbar at the top of my computer. The Taskbar is that thin bar at the bottom where you can see all your open programs, the start menu, the clock, etc. Now, in WinXP they made it very nice to move it. 

This is how:

• Right Click on the Taskbar

• Click, Lock the Taskbar, until there is no check there

• Left Click on the task bar and move it to where you want it...it will always rest up against an edge, so top, left or right.

• Then click, Lock the Taskbar, again and it won't move from that spot.

These are the same instructions for Windows 98, ME, 2k, only you don't have to unlock the taskbar, you just left click on it and move...this was easier, but also you sometimes accidentally moved the task bar when you didn't want it to move, ugh. Well, there you have it, now put your taskbar to the top and see if you like it.

MULTIPLE LOGIN THROUGH FIREFOX

Step 1: open system properties(by right clicking my computer), choose tab advanced, click to environment variables button. in system variables section, click new. type this information to each textbox.

variable name: moz_no_remote(should be all small letter)

Variable value: 1

press ok to close all windows.

Step 2: open firefox icon's properties(from desktop and quick launch). add extension -p to command line(like "c:\program files\mozilla firefox\firefox.exe" -p). press ok.

done!!!!!!!!!!!

while starting firefox u have to create two separate profiles of firefox so that u can login to two accounts of any(orkut,yahoo,rediff or anything else).......

for three logins create three profiles of firefox.........

enjoy!!!!!!!!!!!!

How to reset Windows admin password                                          

without knowing the old password

                     Here is a simple tutorial on resetting the admin account password of any Windows Operating System.  All you will require for this is one Ubuntu live CD.
1.    Insert Ubuntu Live CD and boot from it.
2.    Open terminal and install chntpw in Ubuntu. To do so use the following commands.
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install chntpw
3.    Now mount your Windows volume. In my case it was dev/sda1. Replace it with yours.
sudo mkdir /media/WINDOWS
sudo mount /dev/sda1 /media/WINDOWS
4.    Now navigate to the Windows configuration folder.
cd /media/WINDOWS/WINDOWS/system32/config/
5.    To reset the administrator password enter
sudo chntpw SAM
6.    After completing this command you will see 5 different choices. Select the 1st one and press Enter and done.

Make your Folders Private                                          

►   Open My Computer


►  Double-click the drive where Windows is installed (usually drive (C:), unless you have more than one drive on your computer).


If the contents of the drive are hidden, under System Tasks, click Show the contents of this drive.


►  Double-click the Documents and Settings folder.


►  Double-click your user folder.


►  Right-click any folder in your user profile, and then click Properties.


►  On the Sharing tab, select the Make this folder private so that only I have access to it check box.

Speed up your internet by 20%                                       

Microsoft reserves 20% of your available bandwidth for their own purposes like Windows Updates and interrogating your PC etc

You can get it back:

Click Start then Run and type "gpedit.msc" without quotes.This opens the group policy editor. Then go to:
Local Computer Policy

then Computer Configuration

then Administrative Templates then Network then QOS Packet Scheduler and then to Limit Reservable Bandwidth.

Double click on Limit Reservable bandwidth. It will say it is not configured, but the truth is under the 'Explain' tab i.e."By default, the Packet Scheduler limits the system to 20 percent of the bandwidth of a connection, but you can use this setting to override the default."

So the trick is to ENABLE reservable bandwidth, then set it to ZERO. This will allow the system to reserve nothing, rather than the default 20%.It works on Win 2000 as well.

Secret ‘GodModes’ in Windows 7                                        

                         The foxy-sounding name is a little deceiving, because as far as we know, it is exactly what people are calling it – a glorified control panel.  However, that goes without saying how useful this feature actually is.

GodMode is the name given to cheats in video games that provided you with all weapons and access to all areas. As it turns out, Windows 7 has a GodMode cheat as well. It is basically a control panel of sorts which provides you access to all the features in one explorer window. In the Windows 7 control panel, features are grouped together either in categories or control panel item names. Nothing is grouped under anything in GodMode.
How to access GodMode?

Method 1:

1. Create a new folder and name it GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}

2. The icon will be changed automatically to Control Panel’s icon.

3. Now open the folder and see the magic of Windows Registry!

Method 2

1. Create a shortcut with following path and set desired icon:

    explorer.exe shell:::{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}

Note: Sometimes it kills explorer.exe using Method 1! probably Windows Vista x64 editions. Therefore I suggest to use Method 2.

Solution for the Crash

To get rid of this issue, Boot into Safe Mode with Command Prompt and delete that folder. For eg. You created a folder GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C} on desktop, So either navigate to Desktop folder execute the following command:

    RmDir “GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}”

Or type the absolute path of folder, like-

    RmDir “C:\Users\<User-Name>\Desktop\GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}”

Applies To:

    * Windows Vista x86 editions
    * Windows Vista x64 editions
    * Windows 7 x86 editions
    * Windows 7 x64 editions

Windows has lot of GodModes

It is found that there are lot of GodModes and they differ based on the Strings used in Name the Folder.

In an e-mail interview, Steven Sinofsky, Windows division president, said several similar undocumented features provide direct access to all kinds of settings, from choosing a location to managing power settings to identifying biometric sensors.

As with the all-encompassing GodMode uncovered by bloggers, these other settings can be accessed directly by creating a new folder with any name (GodMode or otherwise) and then including a certain text string. Sinofsky noted more than a dozen strings create particular settings folders, in addition to the overarching GodMode folder option.

For example, the first one could be a folder named “Hungry Hacker.{00C6D95F-329C-409a-81D7-C46C66EA7F33}” (use everything inside quotes–but not the quotes themselves).

Here’s the list of strings:

    {00C6D95F-329C-409a-81D7-C46C66EA7F33}
    {0142e4d0-fb7a-11dc-ba4a-000ffe7ab428}
    {025A5937-A6BE-4686-A844-36FE4BEC8B6D}
    {05d7b0f4-2121-4eff-bf6b-ed3f69b894d9}
    {1206F5F1-0569-412C-8FEC-3204630DFB70}
    {15eae92e-f17a-4431-9f28-805e482dafd4}
    {17cd9488-1228-4b2f-88ce-4298e93e0966}
    {1D2680C9-0E2A-469d-B787-065558BC7D43}
    {1FA9085F-25A2-489B-85D4-86326EEDCD87}
    {208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}
    {20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}
    {2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D}
    {241D7C96-F8BF-4F85-B01F-E2B043341A4B}
    {4026492F-2F69-46B8-B9BF-5654FC07E423}
    {62D8ED13-C9D0-4CE8-A914-47DD628FB1B0}
    {78F3955E-3B90-4184-BD14-5397C15F1EFC}

IP address of your connection                                                  

Go to start/run type 'cmd'
then type 'ipconfig'
Add the '/all' switch for more info.

IMPROVE XP SHUTDOWN SPEED                                       

This tweak reduces the time XP waits before automatically closing any running programs when you give it the command to shutdown.

Go to Start then select Run


Type 'Regedit' and click ok


Find 'HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\'


Select 'WaitToKillAppTimeout'


Right click and select 'Modify'


Change the value to '1000'


Click 'OK'


Now select 'HungAppTimeout'


Right click and select 'Modify'


Change the value to '1000' Click 'OK'

IP commands                                                  
Display Connection Configuration: ipconfig /all or ipconfig/?

Display DNS Cache Info Configuration: ipconfig /displaydns

Clear DNS Cache: ipconfig /flushdns

Release All IP Address Connections: ipconfig /release

Renew All IP Address Connections: ipconfig /renew

Re-Register the DNS connections: ipconfig /registerdns

Display DHCP Class Information:ipconfig /showclassid

Change/Modify DHCP Class ID: ipconfig /setclassid

Network Connections: control netconnections

Network Setup Wizard: netsetup.cpl

Test Connectivity: ping

Trace IP address Route: tracert

Displays the TCP/IP protocol sessions: netstat

Display Local Route: route

Display Resolved MAC Addresses: arp

Display Name of Computer Currently on: hostname

Reset the root password in Linux Systems.                            

                 Here comes the Steps to reset your root user password if you have forgot it.

1) When it shows the two Os (Windows, Red hat), highlight the red hat option and Press ‘e’.
2) This will show two or three options; in these one of the options will have ‘kernel’ word. Highlight that option and press ‘e’.
3) This will show the grub command line, in that line shown press a space and type ‘1’(no single quotes) to login into the single user mode and press Enter.
4) Linux will start to load and it will show # prompt.
5) Now type ‘passwd’, this will prompt for the new password.
6) Type the new password, once again it will ask for retype, retype once again and press enter.
7) Type exit to quit the prompt and linux will start to load.
8) Now you can login into the root user with your changed password.

Rename a Series of Files                                              
Small Tips
                 When you download photos from your digital camera, they often have unrecognizable names. You can rename several similar files at once with the following procedure. This also works for renaming other types of files.

1.Open the My Pictures folder. (Click Start, and then click My Pictures.) Or open another folder containing files that you want to rename.

2.Select the files you want to rename. If the files you want are not adjacent in the file list, press and hold CTRL, and then click each item to select it.

3.On the File menu, click Rename.

4.Type the new name, and then press ENTER.

Password Protect Your Excel Files

Password to open the document:
If it is applied then you have to give the correct password to open the workbook. Otherwise you cannot open the workbook.
Password to modify the document:
If it is applied then you have to give the correct password to modify the workbook. Otherwise your workbook is opened but you cannot modify the workbook. It means that your workbook becomes read-only.
To apply a password to MS Excel document, follow the given steps:
1. Open the file
2. Click on Tools menu and select “Options” from the menu.
3. Select the “Security” tab.
4. Enter “Password to Open”
5. Enter “Password to Modify”
6. Click On OK
7. Verify the passwords by re-entering both of them.
8. Save the document and close it
9. Re-open the document and check the passwords.

Changing Windows' Icons                                                         

            ►  You can change the Icons Windows uses for folders, the Start Menu, opened and closed folder in the Explorer, and many more.

1. Open RegEdit
2. Go to

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ Software\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Explorer\ Shell Icons
3. Add a string value for each Icon you wish to change.

Example: "3" ="C:\Windows\Icons\MyIcon.ico,0" This will change the closed folders in the Explorer to "MyIcon.ico". Here is a complete list for each value. 

0= Unknown file type 1= MSN file types 2= Applications Generic 3= Closed Folder 4= Open Folder 5= 5.25" Drive 6= 3.25" Drive 7= Removable Drive 8= Hard Drive 9= NetWork Drive 10= Network Drive Offline 11= CD-ROM Drive 12= RAM Drive 13= Entire Network

14= Network Hub 15= My Computer 16= Printer 17= Network Neighborhood 18= Network Workgroup 19= Start Menu's Program Folders 20= Start Menu's Documents 21= Start Menu's Setting 22= Start Menu's Find 23= Start Menu's Help 24= Start Menu's Run 25= Start Menu's Suspend 26= Start Menu's PC Undock 27= Start Menu's Shutdown

28= Shared 29= Shortcut Arrow 30= (Unknown Overlay) 31= Recycle Bin Empty 32= Recycle Bin Full 33= Dial-up Network 34= DeskTop 35= Control Panel 36= Start Menu's Programs 37= Printer Folder 38= Fonts Folder 39= Taskbar Icon 40= Audio CD

You need to reboot after making changes. You may need to delete the hidden file ShellIconCache if after rebooting the desired Icons are not displayed.

Disable and Delete thumbs.db file from Folders                                   

Thumbs.db is is a cache file of the current thumb picture in that directory.

To remove it, go for following steps:
1. Open Any Folder
2. Go to Tools Menu
3. Click On Folder Options
4. Go to “View” tab
5. In the section “Files And Folders” Click on “DO NOT CACHE THUMBNAILS

Customize the System Tray

                     You can add your name or anything you like that consists of 8 characters or less. This will replace the AM or PM next to the system time. But you can corrupt some trial licenses of software that you may have downloaded.
1. Open RegEdit
2. Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\International
3. Add two new String values, "s1159" and "s2359"
4. Right click the new value name and modify. Enter anything you like up to 8 characters.
                    If you enter two different values when modifying, you can have the system tray display the two different values in the AM and PM.

File sharing between Windows XP and a Vista computer


                      Seems there are a number of people having problems sharing files between their Windows XP and Windows Vista computers. Me included. So after some research and playing around, I have finally worked out how to share my Vista files so that XP users can access them.

First things first
With the release of Vista, the default workgroup is MSHOME, not WORKGROUP like it is in XP. So make sure both PC’s are on the same workgroup before attempting to share files between XP and Vista.
In XP, go to Control Panel > System. Then on the “Computer Name” tab, click the change button, and edit the workgroup to be the same as Vista (MSHOME).

On the Vista machine
1.    First go to the Network and Sharing Centre and make sure you have file sharing turned on. Having your network set to Private also helps.


1.    Then go to the folder you want to share and Right-click on the file to bring a menu up > Choose Properties > Then Sharing. Click on Advanced Sharing. More details on how to share a file.
2.    Click the Share this folder check box, and then click Permissions.
    
3.    The Permission window should open.
4.    Click on add to add a user. Then type in guest in the textbox that says Enter the object names to select.
5.    Click Check Names which should then find Vista’s guest account and prefix your PC’s name in this format: YourComputerName\guest.
6.    Click Ok to go back to the Permissions window.
 
7.    You should now have the Guest account under group or users names.
8.    Highlight the guest account and give it the relevant permissions. (Full control, Change or Read)
9.    Click Ok and your done!
This is how simple file sharing worked between Windows XP computers , and now you can have it enabled for Vista too!

Hide Hard Drive Partitions In Windows                             

If you want to hide any partition of your hard disk just follow these simple steps.

1. Goto Start > Run and type diskpart

A DOS window will appear with following description

DISKPART>

2. Then type list volume

All partitions will be listed, there will be also a volume number for each partitions

3. Suppose you want to hide drive E:, type select volume 3 (Here 3 is the volume number of E:, in your pc it may vary). A message will now appear in the window saing "Volume 3 is the selected volume".

4. Now type remove letter E . You may have to reboot the computer. Diskpart will remove the letter. Since Windows XP doesn't have the capability to identify the unknown volume, it won't display or show results from it. To access the content of the hidden drive, repeat the process, but in the foruth step, replace remove to assign, ie., assign letter E.

How to backup your registry                 

                              Before you try to edit your PC's registry, make sure that your first export the keys in the registry that you plan to edit, or back up the whole registry. It is a very good practice to always backup your registry because if a problem occurs, you can just restore your registry to its previous state.

These are the easy steps on how you can export your registry keys

► Click Start, and then click Run.

► In the Open box, type regedit, and then click OK.

► On the File menu, click Export.

► In the Save in box, select the box at the bottom the bottom according to weather you want to export all or only selected branches of the registry.

► Next select a location in which to save the backup .reg file. In the File name box, type a file name, and then click Save.


Follow these steps to restore your registry to it's previous state

► To restore registry keys that you exported, double-click the .reg file that you saved.
Posted by Admin at 9:46 PM ►►►►►►►►►►

How To - Permanently disable UAC in Windows 7 / Vista

                  User Account Control is a technique implemented in latest Windows Operating Systems to safeguard it from inexperienced computer users. It mainly aims at securing the system from accidental damages caused by users. But sometimes it may interfere in simple program installation or some other simple tasks. This may be annoying for users.

Here is a small step by step guide on disabling UAC in Windows 7 / Vista.

1.    Go to start, type regedit.exe in searchbox and press enter.

2.    Navigate to the following entry in Registry Editor.
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SOFTWARE Microsoft Windows CurrentVersion Policies System
 

3.    Now look for EnableLUA in right side pane. If the key is not there then create new DWORD with same name. Double click on the key and change its value to ’0′.

4.    Press OK, restart your computer and done.

How to change the windows default identity?                            

                  In windows XP, you can change the windows default identity (Computer Manufacturer Logo and other information's) and share your own private identity there. First you right click on My Computer then click on Properties, here may be you will see computer manufacture logo or empty area. So add your own logo there to make your computer more private.

       Follow the given steps to change the system default Properties identity:

First click on Start button and type notepad in Run option then press Enter.

Now type the following text in notepad.

       [General]
       Manufacturer="www.ComputerFreeTips.com"
       Model=" Computer Free Tips and Tricks!"
       [Support Information]
       Line1="We offer various help topics including A to Z Computer Free Tips and Help."
       Line2="Visit daily for new tips www.ComputerFreeTips.com"


There are some standard keywords, for example Manufacturer, Model, Line 1, Line 2; you can not change these keywords. Now save this notepad file in c:/windows/system32 folder with file name, OEMINFO.INI.

Now choose your favorite picture to set as logo, using any picture editor resize the picture size approx. 150X150 pixels then save it in c:/windows/system32 folder with file name OEMLOGO.BMP.

Now close the all files and restart your computer after any changes to go into effect. To verify these changes, right click on My Computer and open Properties.

Under General tab, verify the system properties with new settings.

Now click on Support Information for more detail

How to Rename the Recycle Bin

To change the name of the Recycle Bin desktop icon, open Regedit and go to:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT/CLSID/{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E} and change the name "Recycle Bin" to whatever you want (don't type any quotes).

Changing drives icon
First of all copy a icon file to the root of the drive.

example: c:\icon.ico

Then create a file called: autorun.inf in c:\autorun.inf
then open that file and type the following:
[autorun]
icon=icon.ico

save and close the file.
Now open my computer and refresh.. and woh! icon changed....
you can apply to other drives too.
be careful:
"autorun.inf" and "ico.ico" must be in the root of the drive.
example: c:\autorun.inf and c:\icon.ico.
same on the root.

Change thumbnail size

By default, thumbnails are 96x96 pixels in size.
You can change this value for the current user or all users. Current user:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
All users: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer

Go to either key, select Explorer, then create a DWORD value called ThumbnailSize. Double-click it, select Decimal in the Base section, and enter a value between 32 and 256. Restart Windows Explorer