- Date: June 18th, 2008
- Author: Greg Shultz
The pinned items list found in the Start menu of Microsoft Windows XP can be customized to save you time by keeping your most-used applications in an easily accessible list.
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The left panel of the Start menu consists entirely of a divided list of programs that Microsoft Windows XP thinks will come in handy for you: the pinned items list above the separator line, and the most frequently used programs list, displayed below the line.
This blog post is also available in the PDF format in a TechRepublic Download.
By default, Windows XP places links to your Internet browser and your e-mail application in the pinned items list and will place as many as 30 shortcuts to the programs that you’ve recently used in the most frequently used programs list. (The most frequently used programs list is, by default, propecia effect six shortcuts long.)
In order to really take advantage of the Start menu as a launching area for all the programs you use most often, you can configure the entire left panel as a pinned items list. Here’s how:
- Right-click the Start button and select the Properties command to display the Taskbar And Start Menu Properties dialog box.
- Click the Customize button adjacent to the Start Menu radio button to display the Customize Start Menu dialog box.
- In the Programs panel, use the Spin button to set the Number Of Programs On The Start Menu setting to 0. Click the Clear List button.
- In the Show On Start Menu panel, you can clear the Internet check box, because the Internet Explorer icon already appears in the Quick Launch menu by default, and maybe even the e-mail check box, depending on how you launch your e-mail application.
- Click OK twice — once to close the Customize Start Menu dialog box and once to close the Taskbar And Start Menu Properties dialog boxes.
- Click the Start button and access the All Programs submenu.
- Locate and right-click on a shortcut to a program you use most often and select the Pin To Start Menu command.
You can pin as many as 30 of your most often used programs to the Start menu, depending on your screen resolution setting. With your actual favorite programs on the pinned items list, you can now really take advantage of the Start menu.
- Date: June 11th, 2008
- Author: Greg Shultz
The Microsoft Management Console (MMC) application provides you with an interface shell into which you can insert various tools called snap-ins to create custom consoles. While custom consoles can come in handy for performing any number of tasks, Windows XP’s MMC 2.0 convoluted console-creation process often seems counterintuitive.
Fortunately, Microsoft has made the new MMC interface developed for propecia ed color=”#003399″>Windows Vista available for Windows XP. Version 3.0 of the MMC application provides more functionality for snap-ins than prior versions and sports a smoother-looking user interface that makes it much easier to create and use consoles.
One of the biggest changes in MMC 3.0 for Windows XP is the new Add or Remove Snap-ins interface. Instead of having to use a tedious procedure that involves two separate dialog boxes to build a custom console, the new MMC 3.0 provides a single dialog box that makes it much easier to create custom consoles.
Downloading and installing the MMC 3.0 for Windows XP is a breeze. However, you must manually enable the new user interface by adding a key to the registry. Here’s how:
- Download the Microsoft Management Console 3.0 for Windows XP from the Microsoft Download Center.
- Locate and run the WindowsXP-KB907265-x86-ENU.exe executable file to launch the MMC 3.0 installation wizard.
- Once the installation is complete, launch the Registry Editor (Regedit.exe).
- Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MMC.
- Right-click the MMC subkey and select New | Key.
- Name the key UseNewUI and press [Enter].
- Close the Registry Editor.
Now, when you launch MMC.exe from the Run dialog box, you’ll be able to take advantage of the new Add or Remove Snap-ins interface. You simply scroll through the available snap-ins in the left panel and click the Add button to build your custom console in the right panel.
Notes: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Professional but requires that Service Pack 2 or 3 is installed. Editing the registry is risky, so be sure you have a verified backup before making any changes.
- Date: July 8th, 2008
- Author: Bill Detwiler
As I recently wrote, propecia dosing color=”#003399″>Dell and HP are selling select, business computers loaded with Windows XP Professional. Customers can have Windows XP preinstalled and get a DVD to upgrade to Vista when they are ready.
Dell and HP’s decision to continue selling a nearly seven-year-old operating system, got me thinking about which Windows version TechRepublic members most often support.
Answer the following poll and let us know which Windows version is the most prevalent among your end users.
Which of the following Windows versions is the most prevalent among your end users?
- Windows XP (92%)
- Windows Vista (4%)
- Windows 2000 (3%)
- Windows 98 (1%)
- Windows Me (0%)
- Windows 95 or earlier (0%)
- Date: July 9th, 2008
- Author: Greg Shultz
The number of USB devices you can connect to a PC running Microsoft Windows XP is likely more than you could use in any practical manner.
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As long as you have enough power, attaching many USB devices to your Microsoft Windows XP system can’t cause degradation in performance — even if you attach as many as 127 USB devices at one time.
While it’s unlikely for that many devices to be connected at a time, that number is made possible by Windows XP’s seven-tiered USB topology. The top, or tier number one, consists of the host controller or root hub, which is the USB hub built in to the computer’s motherboard. Tiers two through six are equipped to consist of a series of USB hubs (two or more at each tier) daisy chained together. Tier seven consists of any devices attached to the USB hub(s) at tier six.
While USB hubs can draw power from the root hub, the amount of power is limited to 100 milliamperes per port, and the hub can have only four ports. However, most USB hubs have their own external AC adapter and can provide up to 500 milliamperes of power per port on more than four ports.
Follow these steps to learn more about the root hub and the USB hubs attached to your system in Device Manager:
- Go to Start, right-click My Computer, and select Manage.
- Click Device Manager in the left pane.
- Click Universal Serial Bus Controllers in Device Manager. (Figure A)
- Double-click each root and USB hub and check the information on the tabs. (Figure B)
Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Windows XP Professional.
Figure A
Universal Serial Bus Controllers in Device Manager
Figure B
USB hub
- Date: July 9th, 2008
- Author: Greg Shultz
Start with a fresh Windows XP system every day.
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To help you automate this type of restart operation, Microsoft Windows XP comes with a command-line utility called Shutdown.exe, which can restart your system. To make this happen automatically, you can configure it to run at a specified time with the Scheduled Tasks tool. Here’s how:
- Go to Control Panel | Scheduled Tasks.
- Double-click Add Scheduled Task to launch the Scheduled Task Wizard.
- Click Next and then click the Browse button.
- Access the Windows\System32 folder, select Shutdown.exe, and click Open.
- Follow the wizard through the next two screens to give the task a name and choose a schedule.
- Enter your user account name and password and click Next.
- Select the Open Advanced Properties check box and click Finish.
- In the task’s Properties dialog box, add the /r parameter to the end of the command line in the Run text box and click OK. (Be sure to include a space between the last character in the command name and the first character in the parameter list.)
- Enter your user account name and password and click OK.
When the Shutdown utility runs, you’ll momentarily see a small dialog box on your screen before the system restarts.
Note: This tip applies to both Windows XP Home and Professional editions.
