Copy desktop themes to other Windows XP computers

Steps

1. On the computer containing your favorite desktop theme, right-click the desktop and select properties. On the theme tab, with your theme selected, click the Save As button and save the file to the My Documents folder (or folder of your choice).
2. Launch Windows Explorer and access the My Documents folder.
3. Look for files with the .theme extension, locate your file, and copy it to a floppy disk or USB thumb drive.
4. Go to the other computer on which you would like to have your favorite desktop theme and copy the .theme file to My Documents.
5. Right-click the desktop and select Properties to open the Display Properties dialog box.
6. On the Themes tab, click the Theme drop-down and select Browse.
7. In the Open Theme dialog box, access the My Documents folder, locate your theme file, and double-click it.
8. Click OK to load the new theme and close the Display Properties dialog box.
9. While Windows XP loads the desktop theme, you’ll see a Please Wait message in the middle of the screen. Your current desktop colors will fade to gray while the new settings are applied.

There is one caveat to this approach — if part of your theme involves wallpaper you created or other graphical elements unique to that particular PC, those elements will have to be copied over along with the .theme file.

Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional.

FIGHT SPAM

Follow this link if you have problems with spam

http://spam.abuse.net/userhelp/

Turn on automatic completion at the command prompt

<!– /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:”Cambria Math”; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:1; mso-generic-font-family:roman; mso-font-format:other; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:0 0 0 0 0 0;} @font-face {font-family:Calibri; panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:swiss; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:-1610611985 1073750139 0 0 159 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-unhide:no; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:”"; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:”Times New Roman”,”serif”; mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;} .MsoChpDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; mso-default-props:yes; font-size:10.0pt; mso-ansi-font-size:10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} –>

/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:”Table Normal”;
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:”";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:”Calibri”,”sans-serif”;
mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri;
mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-fareast-font-family:”Times New Roman”;
mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast;
mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri;
mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;
mso-bidi-font-family:”Times New Roman”;
mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;}

Configure XP to complete file and folder names that you type at the command prompt. To turn it on for all command window sessions for all users and assign the TAB key as the control character:

<!– /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:”Cambria Math”; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:1; mso-generic-font-family:roman; mso-font-format:other; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:0 0 0 0 0 0;} @font-face {font-family:Calibri; panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:swiss; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:-1610611985 1073750139 0 0 159 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-unhide:no; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:”"; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:”Times New Roman”,”serif”; mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;} .MsoChpDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; mso-default-props:yes; font-size:10.0pt; mso-ansi-font-size:10.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in; mso-header-margin:.5in; mso-footer-margin:.5in; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} /* List Definitions */ @list l0 {mso-list-id:642009209; mso-list-template-ids:461389120;} ol {margin-bottom:0in;} ul {margin-bottom:0in;} –>

/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:”Table Normal”;
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-qformat:yes;
mso-style-parent:”";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:”Times New Roman”,”serif”;}

1. Open the registry editor.
2. Back up the registry key before editing it (if you don’t know how to do this, you probably shouldn’t edit the registry).
3. Navigate to the following key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ Software \ Microsoft \ Command Processor
4. Double click the value named CompletionChar
5. In the Value Data field, type in the hexadecimal value for the TAB key, which is 0×9 (you can just type in 9 and XP will convert it to hex). Click OK.
6. Now, in the same registry key, doubleclick the value named PathCompletionChar and enter the same value (0×9 or 9) in the Value Data field. Click OK.
7. Close the registry editor.

Now you can use the TAB key to activate automatic completion of both file and folder names in any command session.

For more information go to :

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;310530&sd=tech

Wizard Help for Forgotten Passwords

The link that launches this wizard says “Prevent a forgotten password”  It will create a disc that’s specific to your user account. Store the disc in a safe place, since anybody could use it to get into your account.

After you’ve created the disc, the Welcome screen will change ever so slightly. If you type the wrong password (or no password) when trying to log on, the “Did you forget your password?” message now has a link that walks you through using the password reset disc. Note that the disc won’t reveal what the old password was. That could be a security risk if you’ve used the same password elsewhere. Rather, it just lets you define a new password. Remember to create a new password reset disc after making the change!

NO RUN COMMAND IN WINDOWS XP

Right click on the Start button and click on Properties:

Right away we can see that choice to be made: “Start Menu” or “Classic Start Menu”. The good news is that the one you’re currently using will already be selected, and I’m going to assume you don’t want to change this right now.

“As you can see the Start menu is extremely customizable.”

But, the options are a little different depending on which you’re using, so I’ll show you both.

•

Classic Start Menu

Click the Customize button:

Make sure that the Display Run option is checked.

OK your way back out, and the Run… command should be visible on your start menu.

•

Start Menu

For the not-Classic version, once again click the Customize button. Then click the Advanced tab, and in the Start Menu Items list, and scroll down until you see the item Run command:

Make sure that’s checked.

OK your way back out, and the Run… command should be visible on your start menu.

How to Clear the Recently Run Programs List

Q: How can I clear the list of recently run programs that appears when you click the Start button and then click Run? 

A: If you’re willing to clear the Recent Documents list, too, there’s a  easy way to clear the list. Right-click the taskbar and choose Properties. Click the Start menu tab and click the Customize button next to whichever Start menu option is active. If you use the Classic Start menu, simply click the Clear button. If you use the Microsoft Windows XP Start menu, click the Advanced tab and then click the Clear List button.  Now just click Cancel, Cancel—you’re not actually changing any settings.

If you need to automate the cleanup process, or if you must clear the Run list while leaving Recent Documents intact, you can do it with a Registry script. Launch Notepad and enter these two lines:

REGEDIT4
[-HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft \Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\RunMRU]

Line two consists of everything between the square brackets [ ], though it may be wrapped for printing or display. Save this file as “norunmru.reg” including the quotes (without the quotes Notepad might call it norunmru.reg.txt). To clear the MRU list, launch the file, answer Yes, and click OK.

The list in the Registry is now gone, but Windows Explorer still has it in memory. In order to get rid of it, you must do one of three things: You can restart or shut down Windows. You can log out and log in again. Or you can kill the Explorer.exe process using Task Manager, and then launch Explorer.exe again by choosing File | New Task (Run . . . ) from Task Manager’s menu. This last option may wipe out the system-tray icons for some background programs, so it’s not really recommended.

Prevent Reboots

Your PC doesn’t have to reboot, even if it installs an update.

Many people leave their PCs on all of the time. That often means dozens of open windows, and information that hasn’t been saved as recently as possible. A simple edit to the system Registry will end this annoyance and save you from losing potentially hours of work if a reboot occurs when you aren’t there to prevent it.

Even if you tell Windows Update that you wish to perform a custom manual installation of new software, updates can still be pushed down to your system. Most of these critical updates are system-level files that require a reboot to fix problems properly, but you can still make Windows work the way you want it to.

Click Start, then Run. Then type regedit and press Enter. Be careful in the Registry, following the directions slowly and reading twice before clicking once. With the Registry Editor opened, click and expand HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Policies and finally Microsoft\Windows. Right-click on Windows and select New\Key with your left mouse. Type WindowsUpdate and press Enter. This will create a new folder.

Now right-click on that folder and create another new key, this one named AU, and press Enter. AU stands for Auto Update. Turn to the right-hand pane, where an entry reads (Default); right-click on the white space and select New DWORD Value. Enter the string NoAutoRebootWithLoggedOnUsers, and press Enter. Now double-click that entry and change the Value Data to a 1, with the Base button of Hexadecimal selected.

Click on File | Exit, after which the Registry autosaves (just as other applications ought to but don’t), and reboot. Once Windows loads this value it should never force a reboot when you are not present. It’s a small price to pay for regaining control of your computer.

Put Windows on a Diet

Windows XP is full of helpful applications, but some of them take too much control or have other downsides. MSN Explorer, the Outlook Express e-mail client, and even the Internet Explorer browser may all be mere baggage to you. All of these can be removed, saving you as much as 20MB of drive space in the process.

To remove them, navigate to the Control Panel by first clicking Start. Then open Add or Remove Programs and click on Add/Remove Windows Components on the left-hand side of the window. You can uncheck options that you do not use, such as Outlook Express, MSN Explorer, and, of course, Messenger.

After unchecking items to your heart’s content, click Next and let Windows configure its components; your system should be a few megabytes lighter. Note that some changes will require a restart, and removing things such as Networking can leave you with a crippled computer.

If you want to control more components in XP, try the utility in Add or Remove Programs that comes with Microsoft’s Service Pack 1. Click Start, then All Programs, then near the top of the column click on Set Program Access and Defaults. From here you can set your default browser, music player, and messenger, among other things.

How to Distribute a Custom Desktop Theme

If you create your own customized theme in Windows XP, you might want to share it with others or put it on another computer that you use so you’ll have a consistent desktop appearance. The theme contains information about your wallpaper, screen saver, icons, fonts, colors, mouse pointers and sounds. To create a theme:

1. Click Start | Control Panel | Appearance and Themes.
2. Click Display.
3. Click the Themes tab and select an existing theme to modify.
4. Through the Display Properties dialog box, make the changes you want. Then click the Themes tab and click the Apply button.
5. Click Save As and type a name for the new theme.
6. Click Save, then click OK.

Your theme is saved by default in the My Documents folder with the .theme extension. You can send this file to others via email or put it in a network share. To install it on another computer, once it’s on that computer’s hard disk:

1. Right click the desktop and click Properties, then the Themes tab.
2. Click the Browse button and navigate to the folder where the theme file is located.
3. Double click the theme file and click OK to load the new theme.

Speed up menu display

Microsoft Windows XP uses many visual effects to provide a rich, friendly interface. One of these settings allows menus to fade into view when you open them. This visual effect is so smooth that you may never have noticed it; however, the effect does cause menus to take a little longer to appear.

On a fast computer, this shouldn’t be an issue. But on a computer that isn’t responding as quickly as you’d like, you can make menus display faster.

To speed up menu display

1.	Click Start. Right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.
2.	Click the Advanced tab. In the Performance area, click Settings.
3.	On the Visual Effects tab in the Performance Options dialog box, clear the Fade or slide menus into view check box.
4.	Click OK.
5.	In the System Properties dialog box, click OK.

Now when you click a menu, it will appear almost instantly.