CHRISdotTODD

I recently posted that I would recommend staying with Windows XP as long as possible. Well if you buy a PC now, it is likely that you will get a coupon for a free upgrade to Vista when it ships. I would be very leery of what "free" really means. As you may also recall from my prior posting, I suggested you should wait as long as possible so that Microsoft can correct all the security issues -- there will be security issues. PC World published on October 24th a good reminder about the new Vista Home Edition -- it will have less features than XP Home. So, for your free version, you can upgrade to an OS with fewer features. Why would you want to do that? PC World makes another good point... upgrading your OS may not be an easy task either. Unless you are very comfortable troubleshooting your PC issues, I would recommend you avoid that chore -- wait until you buy your next PC in 2009. (Average users should be fine getting a new PC every 3 years.)

My wife and I bought the same model computer this past summer (HP Compaq Presario, Win XP Media Center), and while I have had no problems, she seemed to have many. The first problems was that her computer seemed to lock up when accessing the Internet. After several different tries, I ended up re-imaging her computer, and that seemed to do the trick. Within a month though, she started having memory problems: "Insufficient system resources exist to complete the requested service." After doing a bit a research, I concluded that the problem stemmed from the new multi-function HP printer we bought . HP kindly [grrr...] installs a java-based server and application to monitor the device. And because it is so important, HP installed it in the system tray upon startup, so it is always available. Come to find out, HP has know memory leak issues with this application. And worse, it is a very difficult application to uninstall. This led me to Bleeping Computers and Startup Inspector . S

Have you ever wondered why you need many of the Services running in your Windows XP environment? Or perhaps you want to know if you can disable any to gain some extra performance. I have scoured the web, viewing article from Microsoft and The Elder Geek ; I have also used my own reference materials and notes that I have collected over the years; and have produced a description and recommendation for each of the Services in XP . If you consider yourself an average user, stick with the Standard recommendations. But if you are a Power User or Gamer, there are recommendations for you too. Undoubtably you will find a service that is not listed, if so, try searching Google . And I am sure you will have a difference on some setting or another... well that is okay too. For the Power User, this should give you enough information to make your own decision. download

I found some good tips for power users of XP, 20 Things the average person doesn't know about XP . The tips include how to speed up the time it takes for XP to expand the Start menu; to how to configure Delete to delete, not send files to the Recycle Bin; to how to enable Clear Type. This is well worth adding to your XP toolkit.

Occasionally we all have a bad day -- maybe we send an email with some embarrassing typos, or we get a flat tire, or maybe an argument with our boss. But when millions of people count on you for their PC to be secure, you cannot afford to have a bad day. Unfortunately for Windows users, that is what Microsoft had today (and here ). Microsoft was supposed to automatically send 11 fixes, 6 categorized as critical . You already know how I feel about Internet Explorer -- do not use it. And recently, I have changed to Thunderbird for my email . If you are on the Internet, do not expose yourself with Microsoft tools. In some future post, I will talk more about Thunderbird -- for now, know that the upgrade went without a hitch plus I found that I like the RSS reader included, too. So depending on your level of risk taking and the security measures you have in place, you can wait fro Microsoft to fix their distribution problems, or you can go to their website and manually get all the patch

The prior XP keyboard shortcuts was so popular, I decided to update it. The new Windows XP Keyboard Shortcuts file has 23 new shortcuts. In addition, it is now in a handy tri -fold format. Print the two pages on a single sheet of paper, fold it up, and you have a very handy desk reference. Though it is in color, it looks good in black and white too. Download it today! Speaking of shortcuts, here is a good reference for PowerPoint keyboard shortcuts courtesy of Florida Gulf Coast University.

Seems like every time I work on a new XP system, I have to re-figure how to get the folder settings the way I like it - the way it worked in prior versions of Windows. So for the benefit of others, here is how you do it. Open Windows Explorer (Windows key + E) Choose the View menu (alt + V) Select Details from the menu (alt + D): This may already be set -- it will make sure that the Detail option will be the default display option Choose the Tools menu (alt + T) Select Folder Options from the menu (alt + O) Make sure you are on the General tab, and click the Use Windows classic folders radio button within the Tasks area (should be the second radio button on the tab) Select the View tab Check the following boxes in the Advanced settings area: Display file size information in folder tips Display the contents of system folders Display the full path in the address bar Show hidden files and folder Uncheck the following boxes in the same Advanced settings area: Hide extensions for

Seems once or more a week that I use Windows NetMeeting. When the participants look for NetMeeting, which Microsoft now hides, I hear them struggle to find it. For me, it is very easy -- go to Run... , type conf , and Enter . This is one of many shortcuts to launch applications that can save you time. For more of these shortcut, visit Another Home @ Sansor -- he has posted many such shortcuts . Now if you combine this with the shortcuts I posted on the 30th of August, here is what you get: type plus R , the filename from Sansor's list, and then Enter . Give it a try: + R , s-p-i-d-e-r , Enter

I have documented all the keyboard shortcuts for Windows XP that I could come up with. Most of them I use on a regular basis -- it is so much quicker than using the mouse. Let me know if I have missed any of your favorites. ( Click on the image to get the full-size view. )