Windoze IT Tips Thread

[ed_o_brain]

I thought it would be good to start a few threads which have general tips in them. These can be simple or complex.
I'd envisage having similar threads of Linux PCs/Macs etc.

If they are well worded, then a search of the forums will bring up the answer for people to find.


I'll chip in:

On a couple of Windows 7 PCs I noticed my print dialog boxes taking a long time to open. I realised this is because I have connections to networked printers which are not always available. Removing the connections to the networked printers reduces the time it takes to open the print dialog box.

[Biggsy]

For XP and older Windows: download the X-Setup Pro utility for a handy interface to tweak thousands of Windows settings, including many hidden ones.  It's free after the company went bust.  http://majorgeeks.com/download4083.html

For Windows 7:
 - Find and download these free utilities: Ultimate Tweaker and Windows 7 Tweaker 3.6.
 - Consider paying for Directory Opus if you want a far better and nicer and file explorer than 7's crappy own one.

[fred the great]

Auslogic do a nice,  free, disk defragmenter which does the job better than W 7.

You can download it from Auslogic direct or other well known places. 

[rusky]

Microsoft Security Essentials seems to pick up more than avast or avg.

[Sergeant Pluck]

I'd envisage having similar threads of Linux PCs/Macs etc

I'll do a Mac-related one.

[Kim]

Microsoft Security Essentials seems to pick up more than avast or avg.

And does a reasonable job of quietly updating through the usual update mechanism and not blinging at the user endlessly to make them feel that they're getting their money's worth.

[pcolbeck]

If Windows (any version) has a problem try turning the computer off and on again. This is the most important Windows tip.

[fuaran]

Piriform Defraggler is good. Better/quicker than the standard XP defrag tool. http://www.piriform.com/defraggler

Tweak UI is a very useful tool for tweaking loads of hidden settings in Windows XP. http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/downloads/windows-xp

[neilrj]

The tips title needs to say Macintosh/Apple and Windows/Win7 rather than Mac or PC as those search terms are too short.

[Kim]

'PC' is an increasingly meaningless term in this context these days anyway, given that a significant number of desktops (by which I mean "not servers or embedded systems", rather than something that sits on a desk) run a Linux OS, and Macs are using basically the same hardware.  You can't reasonably assume it's running Windows XP any more.


ObTip (not Windows specific, but gets the most use on Windows boxen):  A modern computer can be forced to power off by holding down the power button for about 4 seconds, rather than faffing about unplugging the mains or removing batteries.  This is a low-level hardware function and should work regardless of what the OS (if any) is or isn't doing.

[hulver]

The windows key does more than just show the "Start" menu. Key combinations do things.

The most common one I use is "Windows-L" to lock the desktop.
Windows-E to show file explorer.

Ctrl-Shift-Esc brings up task manager.

[Basil]

The windows key does more than just show the "Start" menu. Key combinations do things.

The most common one I use is "Windows-L" to lock the desktop.
Windows-E to show file explorer.

The most common one I use at work is Windows M.  When I've got stupid amounts of applications open and need to get to my desktop.