20 Things the average person doesn't know about XP

1. It boasts how long it can stay up. Go to the Command Prompt in the Accessories menu from the All Programs start button option, and then type 'systeminfo'. The computer will produce a lot of useful info, including the uptime. If you want to keep these, type 'systeminfo > info.txt'. This creates a file called info.txt you can look at later with Notepad. (Professional Edition only).

2. You can delete files immediately, without having them move to the Recycle Bin first. Go to the Start menu, select Run... and type 'gpedit.msc'; then select User Configuration, Administrative Templates, Windows Components, Windows Explorer and find the Do not move deleted files to the Recycle Bin setting. Set it. Poking around in gpedit will reveal a great many interface and system options, but take care -- some may stop your computer behaving as you wish. (Professional Edition only).

3. You can lock your XP workstation with two clicks of the mouse. Create a new shortcut on your desktop using a right mouse click, and enter 'rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation' in the location field. Give the shortcut a name you like. That's it -- just double click on it and your computer will be locked. And if that's not easy enough, Windows key + L will do the same.

4. XP hides some system software you might want to remove, such as Windows Messenger, but you can make it show everything. Using Notepad or Edit, edit the text file /windows/inf/sysoc.inf, search for the word 'hide' and remove it. You can then go to the Add or Remove Programs in the Control Panel, select Add/Remove Windows Components and there will be the software and you can now uninstall it.

5. For those skilled in the art of DOS batch files, XP has a number of interesting new commands. These include 'eventcreate' and 'eventtriggers' for creating and watching system events, 'typeperf' for monitoring performance of various subsystems, and 'schtasks' for handling scheduled tasks. As usual, typing the command name followed by /? will give a list of options.

6. XP has IP version 6 support -- the next generation of IP. Unfortunately this is more than your ISP has, so you can only experiment with this on your LAN. Type 'ipv6 install' into Run... (it's OK, it won't ruin your existing network setup) and then 'ipv6 /?' at the command line to find out more. If you don't know what IPv6 is, don't worry.

7. You can at last get rid of tasks on the computer from the command line by using 'taskkill /pid' and the task number, or just 'tskill' and the process number. Find that out by typing 'tasklist', which will also tell you a lot about what's going on in your system.

8. XP will treat Zip files like folders, which is nice if you've got a fast machine. On slower machines, you can make XP leave zip files alone by typing 'regsvr32 /u zipfldr.dll' at the command line. If you change your mind later, you can change things back by typing 'regsvr32 zipfldr.dll'.

9. XP has ClearType -- Microsoft's anti-aliasing font display technology -- but doesn't have it enabled by default. It's well worth trying, especially if you were there for DOS and all those years of staring at a screen have given you the eyes of an astigmatic bat. To enable ClearType, right click on the desktop, select Properties, Appearance, Effects, select ClearType from the second drop-down menu and enable the selection. Expect best results on laptop displays. If you want to use ClearType on the Welcome login screen as well, set the registry entry HKEY_USERS/.DEFAULT/Control Panel/Desktop/FontSmoothingType to 2.

10. You can use Remote Assistance to help a friend who's using network address translation (NAT) on a home network, but not automatically. Get your pal to email you a Remote Assistance invitation and edit the file. Under the RCTICKET attribute will be a NAT IP address, like 192.168.1.10. Replace this with your friend's real IP address -- they can find this out by going to www.whatismyip.com -- and get them to make sure that they've got port 3389 open on their firewall and forwarded to the errant computer.

11. You can run a program as a different user without logging out and back in again. Right click the icon, select Run As... and enter the user name and password you want to use. This only applies for that run. The trick is particularly useful if you need to have administrative permissions to install a program, which many require. Note that you can have some fun by running programs multiple times on the same system as different users, but this can have unforeseen effects.

12. Windows XP can be very insistent about you checking for auto updates, registering a Passport, using Windows Messenger and so on. After a while, the nagging goes away, but if you feel you might go insane before that point, run Regedit, go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/Advanced and create a DWORD value called EnableBalloonTips with a value of 0.

13. You can start up without needing to enter a user name or password. Select Run... from the start menu and type 'control userpasswords2', which will open the user accounts application. On the Users tab, clear the box for Users Must Enter A User Name And Password To Use This Computer, and click on OK. An Automatically Log On dialog box will appear; enter the user name and password for the account you want to use.

14. Internet Explorer 6 will automatically delete temporary files, but only if you tell it to. Start the browser, select Tools / Internet Options... and Advanced, go down to the Security area and check the box to Empty Temporary Internet Files folder when browser is closed.

15. XP comes with a free Network Activity Light, just in case you can't see the LEDs twinkle on your network card. Right click on My Network Places on the desktop, then select Properties. Right click on the description for your LAN or dial-up connection, select Properties, then check the Show icon in notification area when connected box. You'll now see a tiny network icon on the right of your task bar that glimmers nicely during network traffic.

16. The Start Menu can be leisurely when it decides to appear, but you can speed things along by changing the registry entry HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Control Panel/Desktop/MenuShowDelay from the default 400 to something a little snappier. Like 0.

17. You can rename loads of files at once in Windows Explorer. Highlight a set of files in a window, then right click on one and rename it. All the other files will be renamed to that name, with individual numbers in brackets to distinguish them. Also, in a folder you can arrange icons in alphabetised groups by View, Arrange Icon By... Show In Groups.

18. Windows Media Player will display the cover art for albums as it plays the tracks -- if it found the picture on the Internet when you copied the tracks from the CD. If it didn't, or if you have lots of pre-WMP music files, you can put your own copy of the cover art in the same directory as the tracks. Just call it folder.jpg and Windows Media Player will pick it up and display it.

19. Windows key + Break brings up the System Properties dialogue box; Windows key + D brings up the desktop; Windows key + Tab moves through the taskbar buttons.

20. Windows XP secretly KNOWS that the average user has no idea what they are doing. Therefore, it doesn't let you do really stupid things like deleting the windows directory (at least not without spending several hours convincing it that you REALLY want to do this). Oh yeah, and internet explorer kinda sucks, get Firefox.

Internet Explorer 7 will come looking for you

ATTENTION Windows XP users! Big changes are coming to your computer, and if you're not paying attention, the biggest one may come whether you want it or not.

Sometime in the next few days, Microsoft will make the latest version of its Web browser, Internet Explorer 7, available online. Then, next Tuesday, the company will post to the Web its newest music/video player, Windows Media Player 11.

You'll be able to download Internet Explorer 7 at www.microsoft.com/ie and Media Player at www.microsoft.com/mediaplayer. Test versions are already available at both sites.

But even if you don't grab IE7, it's going to come to you.

Although Microsoft has not yet announced the date, sometime in early November IE7 will be pushed out to Windows XP users with Service Pack 2 installed via Windows Update. It may come in the regular batch of fixes on the second Tuesday of the month — known affectionately among the geekerati as Patch Tuesday — or as early as Nov. 1.

That means one day you will sit down at your computer and be presented with a choice: should you install IE7, or not?

I strongly recommend you do. In fact, I'd say most users should download it before it's presented through Windows Update. I reviewed an IE7 preview release earlier this year (see www.chron.com/ie7preview) and have been using subsequent versions ever since, and I love it. Its redesigned interface — including a superior use of tabs over that of the rival Firefox browser — and beefed-up security features make it a must-have if you use Internet Explorer 6 as your primary browser.

The only reasons I can see for not installing IE7 is if you use Web-based software that doesn't work in it, or if you regularly visit a site whose features are broken by it. Both of those scenarios should be rare.

However, if you want to hold off, you'll be able to do so. When IE7 arrives, you'll be notified that Windows Update has a high-priority item it wants to install. When you approve, you'll be presented with a screen that indicates you're about to install an update to Internet Explorer. This is not simply a patch — don't say yes unless you're ready to use a radically redesigned version of Internet Explorer.

No second notification

If you do say yes, the process will begin. If you say no, you won't get another automatic notification. However, you can always manually download it if you change your mind.

For more details on how IE7 will be delivered through Windows Update, visit www.microsoft.com/technet/updatemanagement/
windowsupdate/ie7announcement.mspx. That site also contains information about how businesses can block IE7's automated deployment across corporate networks.

But those Windows XP users who do want IE7 should prepare for it. Being ready will help make the transition go smoother.

•If you have not yet done so, install Service Pack 2 for Windows XP. You can't use IE7 without it, and Microsoft's support for Service Pack 1 ended Oct. 10. That means the company is no longer issuing security-related fixes for those users who don't have SP2 installed. For that reason alone, even if you don't want IE7 right away, you should install SP2.
•Make sure your computer is virus- and spyware-free and running as smoothly as possible. Many operating system upgrades fail because of problems that were already present, so get your PC in shape before making this major change.
• Back up your critical data, including your IE Favorites. While IE7 itself shouldn't do anything that could cause data loss, see the item immediately above this one. If a virus or spyware causes a bigger problem, you will be glad to backed things up.
•In most cases, IE7 will coexist just fine with any toolbars or add-ins you have. However, just to be safe, it's a good idea to uninstall such additions, download the latest versions after IE7 is in place and then reinstall them.
•Immediately before installing IE7, turn off your antivirus and antispyware software — in fact, you'll be prompted to do so as part of the installation process. That's because those kinds of software look for and may try to prevent the kind of changes that IE7 will make to your system — only this time, they're desirable. Remember
to re-enable the programs
after the installation is complete.
If you have already installed one of the test versions of IE7, you don't need to uninstall it first. The installer program for the finished version will remove any older code for you.

You can roll back

Those who install IE7 and decide they don't want to stick with it can roll back to IE6. Go to the Windows XP Control Panel and launch the Add/Remove Programs module. At the top of that window, make sure the "Show updates" box is checked. You can then find IE7's listing among the removable programs.

But here's betting you won't do that, and that, if you give it time, you'll love it as much as I do.

Microsoft's shrinking license

With an eye to quelling piracy, Microsoft is making changes to its licensing terms in Windows Vista.

Under the changes, buyers of retail copies of Vista will be able to transfer their software to a new machine only once. If they want to move their software a second time, they will have to buy a new copy of the operating system.

The license changes also apply to virtualization: Customers can only transfer the copy of Windows once, including a transfer from one physical machine to a virtual machine, or from a virtual machine on one PC to a virtual machine on another PC.