Advanced PC Tips and Tricks

Change Logon Wallpaper-Windows XP
Logon wallpaper is the wallpaper or image that windows xp shows on screen when windows logs on (before it asks for username & password) . It’s usually set to the image-logo of the brand(manufacturer) of our computer (e.g. in compaq laptops). Now we can set it to our own image or any other image(any bmp file) by following trick.

Open Startmenu->Run type regedit and press ok to open registry editor.(shows a tree like structure of directories at left)

In that hierarchical structure in left, navigate to registry entry
HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Desktop

In right side pane see a number of values placed in a table format. choose the value named Wallpaper from there and double click it. Now you see a box with value name as Wallpaper and value data as Path to the image file .There give the full path of the image(bmp file) which you want to set as logon wallpaper by deleting previous path and writing path to your bmp file e.g. C:\WINDOWS\lon.BMP (to set image lon.BMP file as log on wall paper).

Also double click on WallpaperStyle and change it’s value to 2 to get a stretched wallpaper at logon.

Put that bmp file in windows directory for better results.
If that is a jpeg file, convert to bmp file by opening in Windows Image Viewer and save as bmp.

Removing Shared Documents folder From My Computer
Open registry editor by going to Start then Run and entering regedit. Once in registry, navigate to key

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Explorer \ My Computer \ NameSpace \ DelegateFolders

You must see a sub-key named {59031a47-3f72-44a7-89c5-5595fe6b30ee}. If you delete this key, you have effectively removed the my shared documents folder.

Disabling Recent Documents History
The bad thing about Recent Documents History is that Windows XP has to calculate
what should be put there each time you boot Windows, which can slow things down.
1. Open the Registry Editor (select Start/Run, type regedit, and click OK).
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Mcft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer.
3. Create a NoRecentDocsHistory D_WORD key. Double-click the value to open it
once it is created.
4. Set the Data Value to 1 to enable the restriction.
5. Click OK and close the Registry Editor. You'll need to restart the computer for the
change to take effect

Lock ur folder widout any software
Suppose you want to lock the folder movies in d: which has the path D:\movies.In the same drive create a text file and type
ren movies movies.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}
Now save this text file as loc.bat
Create another text file and type in it
ren movies.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D} movies
Now save this text file as key.bat

How to Hide the drives(c,d....etc) in MY COMPUTER
This is a great trick you can play on your friends. To disable the display of local or networked drives when you click My Computer.


1.Go to start->run.Type regedit.Now go to:


HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer

Now in the right pane create a new DWORD item and name it NoDrives(it is case sensitive). Now modify it's value and set it to 3FFFFFF (Hexadecimal) .Now restart your computer. So, now when you click on My Computer, no drives will be shown(all gone...). To enable display of drives in My Computer, simply delete this DWORD item that you created.Again restart your computer.You can now see all the drives again. Magic........lol..

Way to get xp product code from cd
It really works
There is a way to get the xp product code from the cd
just explorer the cd then
open the folder I386
then open the file UNATTEND.TXT and
scroll down to the last line
and it goes to show what dumbasses microsoft are u have a product code.
Have fun u never need to search for a product code for xp again...!!!!

Fast Menu Opening....
Go to Start then Run
Type 'Regedit' then click 'Ok'
Find "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\"
Select "MenuShowDelay"
Right click and select "Modify'
Reduce the number to around "100"
This is the delay time before a menu is opened. You can set it to "0" but it can make windows really hard to use as menus will open if you just look at them - well move your mouse over them anyway. I tend to go for anywhere between 50-150 depending on my mood.

Hack Admin Password From User Mode
Disclaimer: Use this article for eductational purpose ONLY.

Follow these steps:
1. Open command prompt (Start->Run->cmd),
2. Enter the following command, then press ENTER

3. Enter the followin command, then press ENTER:
compmgmt.msc
This should open the computer management console.
4. Go to local users & groups->users. Right click on any user and select "set password".

If you get a "access denied" do the following:

start>run>cmd
then use following commands
1) net user test /add (this command will make test named user)
2) net localgroup administrators test /add (this command will make test user as administrators rights)

and use net user command to reset your admin. password
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.

How to Remove Windows XP's Messenger
Theoretically, you can get rid of it (as well as a few other things). Windows 2000 power users should already be familiar with this tweak.

Fire up the Windows Explorer and navigate your way to the %SYSTEMROOT% \ INF folder. What the heck is that thingy with the percentage signs? It's a variable. For most people, %SYSTEMROOT% is C:\Windows. For others, it may be E:\WinXP. Get it? Okay, on with the hack! In the INF folder, open sysoc.inf (but not before making a BACKUP copy first). Before your eyes glaze over, look for the line containing "msmsgs" in it. Near the end of that particular line, you'll notice that the word "hide" is not so hidden. Go ahead and delete "hide" (so that the flanking commas are left sitting next to one another). Save the file and close it. Now, open the Add and Remove Programs applet in the Control Panel. Click the Add / Remove Windows Components icon. You should see "Windows Messenger" in that list. Remove the checkmark from its box, and you should be set. NOTE: there are other hidden system components in that sysoc.inf file, too. Remove "hide" and the subsequent programs at your own risk.
Set the Search Screen to the Classic Look
When I first saw the default search pane in Windows XP, my instinct was to return it to its classic look; that puppy had to go. Of course, I later discovered that a doggie door is built into the applet. Click "Change preferences" then "Without an animated screen character." If you'd rather give it a bare-bones "Windows 2000" look and feel, fire up your Registry editor and navigate to:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Explorer \ CabinetState.

You may need to create a new string value labeled "Use Search Asst" and set it to "no".

How to make your Desktop Icons Transparent
Go to ontrol Panel > System, > Advanced > Performance area > Settings button Visual Effects tab "Use drop shadows for icon labels on the Desktop"


Speed up browsing of Windows 2000 & XP machines
Here's a great tip to speed up your browsing of Windows XP machines. Its actually a fix to a bug installed as default in Windows 2000 that scans shared files for Scheduled Tasks. And it turns out that you can experience a delay as long as 30 seconds when you try to view shared files across a network because Windows 2000 is using the extra time to search the remote computer for any Scheduled Tasks. Note that though the fix is originally intended for only those affected, Windows 2000 users will experience that the actual browsing speed of both the Internet & Windows Explorers improve significantly after applying it since it doesn't search for Scheduled Tasks anymore. Here's how :

Open up the Registry and go to :

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/RemoteComputer/NameSpace

Under that branch, select the key :

{D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF}

and delete it.

This is key that instructs Windows to search for Scheduled Tasks. If you like you may want to export the exact branch so that you can restore the key if necessary.

This fix is so effective that it doesn't require a reboot and you can almost immediately determine yourself how much it speeds up your browsing processes.

Secrets Behind The Run Registry key
You can start or stop programs from executing at bootup by adding or deleting them
to/from the run Keys in the Registry. Windows loads programs to start in the
following order; Program listed in the Local Machine hive, then the Current User
hive, then theWin.ini Run= and Load = lines and then finally programs in your Start
Up folder.
To add or remove programs in the Registry.Open RegEdit. .Go to the desired Key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Micrsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServices
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\RunServices
Add a new String Value and name it anything you like. For the value data, enter the
path and executable for the program you want to run.
By adding the value to the KEY_CURRENT_USER hive instead allows the program
to start only when that user is logged on. If you add the value to the RunOnce key
the program will run once and be removed from the key by Windows.

Change Text and Baloon Tip
Change Text and Baloon Tip Associated
With All Desktop Icons
You need to know the object's class ID (CLSID), which uniquely identifies each system
object. The following table lists the CLSIDs for common desktop objects.
CLSIDs for desktop objects
Desktop object CLSID
My Computer {20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}
Recycle Bin {645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}
Microsoft Outlook {00020D75-0000-0000-C000-000000000046}
Internet Explorer {FBF23B42-E3F0-101B-8488-00AA003E56F8}
The Internet {3DC7A020-0ACD-11CF-A9BB-00AA004AE837}
My Network Places {208D2C60-3AEA-1069-A2D7-08002B30309D}
Briefcase {85BBD920-42A0-1069-A2E4-08002B30309D}
Dial-Up Networking {992CFFA0-F557-101A-88EC-00DD010CCC48}
Run the Registry Editor, go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID, a key that lets you change
characteristics of system objects, and highlight the CLSID whose name or balloon text you
want to change. For example, to change My Computer, highlight the subkey
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}. Keep
in mind that HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID has many CLSIDs listed under it, so it might
take you a while to find the proper subkey.
Once you find the right subkey, if you want to edit the name of the object, open the Default
value and type in the text that you want to appear underneath the object. If you want to edit
the balloon text for the object, open the InfoTip value and type in the text that you want to
appear as balloon text. Once you're done, exit the Registry and reboot.

Change Icons of your Desktop Objects
Change Icons of your Desktop Objects(MyComputer, Recycle bin..)
Go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID, and look for the CLSID subkey from the table above for
the object whose icon you want to change. Open the subkey and then the DefaultIcon
subkey under that. To change the icon for My Computer, open the subkey
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}\DefaultIcon.
Change the Default value to the path of the icon that you want displayed. Follow the same
for changing the icons of ther items as well. Exit the Registry. You might have to reboot for
the new settings to take effect. If you aren't able to change your icons still, then try editing the
following: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft \Windows\CurrentVersion \
Explorer\ CLSID\, and you will be in.

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