Windows Tips

Infopackets Reader 'P.S. Liew' writes: " Dear Dennis, Over the years, my 'temp' folder in Windows [located at c:\windows\temp] has gathered quite a substantial amount of temporary, space-eating files as well as Internet browser history items such as ... cookies, cache and the like. I am contemplating whether or not I should delete these files in order to reclaim hard disk space, but prior to doing so, I would like to get some pointers from you as to which selection of files in this folder is safe to delete. Am I wrong to assume that it is safe to completely delete all files in c:\windows\ ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Charles M. writes: " Dear Dennis, I have Windows Media Player installed on my system, which is okay for the majority of media files I play. A few of my friends have tried Rhapsody, Real Player, Dell MusicMatch, and such, and have ... urged me to use these players on my own system. If I decided to use one player versus another, don't I have to uninstall the others? If I don't, and put the others on hold in the recycle bin, will it impede my listening on my Windows Media Player? How do I uninstall these players, if that is what I need to do? I purchased this system (a Dell ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Ramesh S. writes: " Dear Dennis, I recently purchased a new external hard drive (via USB connection) for backing up my laptop running Windows XP. When I connect the external enclosure to my system, however, the drive letter is not ... accessible via 'My Computer'. Device Manager shows the hard drive is there and no errors are reported, but I can't figure out why the drive isn't showing up. Can you please tell me why I can't access the new hard drive? " My response: Great question. The answer is that you need to configure the hard drive geometry before you can use it ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Bernie B. 'kennel king' writes: " Dear Dennis, You last featured my program, FileMap by BB, in your newsletter of January 2004. FileMap by Bernie Madigan I just wanted to pass on a quick note to let you know that I've just ... released version 4.03 of FileMap. It now displays System Registry 'run keys' since Trojan programs need to be constantly running in order to achieve any rational objective. My purpose in the update was to allow users to monitor 'run keys' which are a dead give-away for any rogue programs [Spyware, Trojans, etc] downloaded from the Internet. Rather ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Betty S. writes: " Dear Dennis, I just finished reading your article which detailed how to sort the Start Menu. My question is somewhat related and deals with the 'Favorites' listed in Internet Explorer. Unfortunately, my ... Favorites list goes on and on and it's a real pain to find the site I want to visit. Could you please tell me how to transfer this list to a CD so I can start over? " My response: If you want to sort and organize your favorites, refer to these articles: Sort favorites in Internet Explorer Organize Favorites in Internet Explorer Organize Favorites ... (view more)

Last week , Infopackets Reader Diane M. asked how to organize items in her cluttered Start Menu. In my response, I suggested that Diane right-click over top of the "Program Files" and use the Windows Explorer to "Explore All Users" of the Start Menu ... to sort her icons. Shortly after emailing my response, Diane wrote in again: " Dennis: thanks for your response. I went to Start -> Program Files, right-clicked, and chose to Explore ... but I did not see the 'Explore All Users' option. I am using Windows XP; would that make any difference? All I want to do is take one ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Fred G. writes: " Dear Dennis, I love your newsletter. I just finished reading the last issue of the Gazette (regarding how to sort the Start Menu) and have a related question. I know there is a way to alphabetize your all ... programs menu -- but is there a way to apply this setting for all users that log into the computer? If so, can you please list the instructions again in the newsletter? Thanks again and keep up the great job! " My response: As far as I understand, the Start Menu appearance (with respect to how it is sorted) is different for each user account ... (view more)

Infopackets Reader Diane M. writes: " Dear Dennis, When I go to Start -> Programs, the list is so big, I find it hard to navigate and find the application that I want to launch. Is there a way I can organize the information in my Start Menu? " My ... response: Yes. Click Start -> place mouse over top of Programs Folder, then right-click the mouse and choose 'Explore All Users'. An Explorer Window will appear; simply organize your list of programs into a hierarchy and delete the ones you don't need. Note that deleting the icons in your Start Menu will not remove the program from ... (view more)