index -- tips-n1 -- .... -- tweaks -- software -- cmdline -- security -- links-n1 -- links-n2 -- theend
Times Visited:
Last Updated: 15.11.2004, 1:00 AM
KEYPAD 
I will continue this "tour" with my favorite (and carefully selected) general computing tips/hints/rules, or whatever you want to call them. I mostly call them rules. These are mostly discovered and tested by me, but few of them were listed on various sites/pages with similar topics, so I got a general idea there, and just modified them a bit (at least partially), added sentences, and similar.
Just to warn you all - those of you who are "experts" in computing related stuff, and will read this page, please take into the consideration that you might not agree with some of them, so to emphasize again - these in particular are my "strictly personal rules", and not "generally accepted".
Please note also, that this is just a beginning of "tips/hints" part of my home-page, consider it as "just for taste", meaning that, when I will have some more free time, I will make this "tips/hints" part bigger, and more complete. Various performance registry "hacks" as well as other tricks will be (of course) included in it.
SPECIFIC RULES FOR WINDOWS 9x (i.e., 95/98/98SE/ME):
TASKBAR - MISBEHAVING:
If taskbar is misbehaving, or just do not work properly, simply kill Internat.exe process (of course, if it is running), this usually helps. As far as I remember, I got that hint from "somewhere", deep inside my Windows 98SE, if I am not wrong, particulary from Dr.Watson debugger's help files.
"DO-NOT-DO-THIS" STUFF:
Do not type "debug f 0:0 Lffff 0" (without "quotes" chars) in MS-DOS, because doing so may hang your computer, and certainly do not try to go into /nul/nul directory, cause you will just have to restart (I got that from somewhere on web)
SPECIFIC RULES FOR WINDOWS NT (i.e., NT4/2k/XP/2003):
"DO-NOT-DO-THIS" STUFF:
Do NOT use "msconfig" to disable services, instead type "services.msc" in the Run box instead and disable, enable or set startup options from there. And before disabling ANY service, check out the service information about each by selecting the service name links provided. Service settings are global, meaning changes apply to all users. For an easy method of creating multiple Service Configurations, please check out the Windows XP help. Btw., I suggest to use Microsoft Help and Support Center, if you are running NT-based system (it is HelpCtr.exe file in D:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Binaries\ directory)
GENERAL INSTALLATION RULES FOR ALL WINDOWS VERSIONS:
INSTALLATION - GENERAL:
One thing or way of how I use installers is that, if I run some installation program, and during that I change some settings (delete previous version's directory, make some installer's configuration changes, etc.), I rather exit an installer, and start it again. And there are many many similar cases, there are just too many to describe all, but you got the point (I hope)
INSTALLATION - DRIVERS:
1. Utilities like "Download Accelerators", etc., should be disabled when downloading any drivers.
2. Do not run virus protection software in the background while installing the drivers (especially this means disabling so-called Real-Time/On-Access protection), and it's better to disable/exit you firewall also. This prevents the driver from configuring itself properly (could prevent, but better do not take your chances). and it's better to exit any other user's programs (not NT-services, etc.), when installing some new software (from packages, usually with some sort of "wizard"), or even in case of re-installing, but note, all this especially points to, when installing "low-level" software.
3. Before installing new drivers make sure you uninstalled all previous versions of display drivers from the Windows Control Panel (i.e., display drivers are meant here as - graphic card's main display drivers).
INSTALLATION - EMPTY DIRECTORY:
Wherever you install something to somewhere and from somewhere, that folder should be always empty before installing. So or when installing some software from some self-executable package (4 steps) in first example, or making "room" for new "non-setup" program (no installation/setup, just single .exe file, or more files inside one .zip), as in second example (3 steps) - the general "main" rule would be:
first CREATE new directory (folder, if you prefer) ... 1 step
Copy installation file into this new empty directory ... 2 step
Install it (double-click, or right-click -- Open) ... 3 step
Execute it (program, you just installed) ... 4 step
... or when making "room" for your new "non-setup" program:
first CREATE new directory ... 1_step
Decompress it into this new empty directory ... 2 step
Execute it (program, you just installed) ... 3 step
GENERAL RULES FOR ALL WINDOWS VERSIONS AND COMPUTING IN GENERAL:
GENERAL - COMPUTING:
I got used to use multipliers of number 8 (the favorite ones are 8, 16, 32, 64, 128, 512, etc.) anywhere, where you need to enter some value. It's all about computer's inner architecture. Or at least where it is not possible, i.e., you need to enter the number that is less than 8, I got used to use EVEN NUMBERS instead of ODD NUMBERS. I think it is quite reasonable.
MONITOR - SETTINGS
For best performance (Philips, LCD in particular, but also for other monitors), ensure that your display settings are set at 1024x768, 60Hz (for 14"/15" inches) or 1280x1024, 60Hz (for 17"/18" inches). Note that some other article states, that: "nowadays monitors should operate at 85 MHz", and anohter one, that: "At least 85 Hz vertical refresh rate is recommended for classic displays"
BOOTING - SAFE MODE/BIOS:
If you want to get into your computer's so-called "safe mode", press F8 during OS boot-up (and pres it many times probably) in my case in pre-before-login screen. For getting to BIOS, click on DEL (Delete), as I remember a bit earlier than in previous case in pre-logon screen. Probably the best is to press it, somehow during basic-boot computer's RAM-checking and IDE drives-detection.
SOFTWARE - REGISTRY:
If you "screw" some application's installation, before uninstalling and reinstalling, try first deleting its respective registry keys and entires. This mostly helps, if only non-essential settings were somehow "corrupted" (like window/column/tab position, etc. Usually these keys reside under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\software\, or HKEY_CURRENT_USER\software\, note that if you delete also key/entry mostly named "Registration" (or similar), the program will unregister. You will just need to enter name/serial/code again, not a big deal at all.
EXECUTE - THROUGH MENUS:
I think it is a better to execute/start programs from "shell-dialogs", well it's not actually "shell-realated", I just call them that. For example, my experience is/was, that it is better to execute DivX player with "Open-With" prompt popup-window, than with "Double-Clicking", or "Drag-&-Drop". It is that I experienced errors, when I was using "Double-Clicking", or "Drag-&-Drop", to play some clip (after some other clip already beeing loaded), but on the other hand, there was no error, when I used "Open-With" option/method.
Similar, I get used to exit programs with common control's "Menu -- File -- Exit", or "Right-click -- Exit", rather than "directly", with that "X" button (just by full-screen and minimize buttons), on the top-right corner of program's main window. It seems you get "deeper" into program in that way, cause for example for my shell, I see, only moving through menus, writes changes for respective plugin, etc. I know, some computing-scientist would say, I am completely wrong.
GENERAL - PERFORMANCE:
If you aren't using some program/s at the moment, but they are running, and probably they're currenly making some "background" processing (like p2p software, mp3-encoding, anything), and if you want/need them to run, i.e., you don't want (yet) to exit program's process, or it is required to wait some time, if some task is stil in processing, then ALWAYS:
MINIMIZE IT - TO TASKBAR, or better MINIMIZE IT - TO SYSTRAY ... (if this option is also available in that particular application)
Also before doing that (minimizing it), put it to some window/tab, which is not "hard-animated" (for example "blank window" in Firefox, instead of some "hard-coded" site/page, with tons of pictures, animations, embedded-scripts, etc.), or similar in other software's cases, put it to window/sub-window, or tab/column, which is not displaying, or monitoring lots of things (for example, like "OS", or "Dialup", instead of "Drivers" sub-window in Task Info 2003), that will save resources too, if you aren't actually using it, why would you need all that "hapenning" ??
Though this Driver's tab is consuming too much CPU anyway, I mean like 30-40 % of long-average measured "kernel-mode-CPU" (per minute), compare to any other TaskInfo's tab, sub-window, or any other app, so it must be a bug, and therefore it's not quite fair example ...
And - restarting "resource-hog" applications once in a while, can also help much.
GENERAL - VARIOUS OTHERS:
Similar to display drivers installation rule above, I also advise you to - Disable Virus Protection (on-access, or also called "real-time", if you are more familiar with this term), during various HD scans, and similar intensive file operations, like for instance, when scanning for spyware files with Ad-aware, or Spybot S&D, etc.
This way, you prevent unneeded HD "stress", (because applicaIion, with whoich you are scanning, doesn't need to wait for antivirus real-time protecion to first "open" files before scanning application accessing/opening/reading it)
And further, as an addition to previous paragraph. I recommend to close all programs, that could conflict with some huge, "resource-hog" program, you attend to use. Here are few examples.
During installations:
- disconnect from internet
- close any additional (user's) application, that is not required for OS to run
During CD-burning, etc.:
- disconnect from internet
- do not watch movie (with your favorite video-player)
- do not run huge, resource-consuming application (like e-mail clients, process-viewers)
During HD scans and similar activity:
- disconnect from internet
- do not watch movie (with your favorite video-player)
- do not run "heavy-file-usage" apps, like p2p apps, file-managers (copying/moving/deleting)
