Microsoft Download Manager

"Microsoft Download Manager" enables you to download files from the Internet in a more reliable and faster way than using a browser alone. Using the Download Manager makes it easier to download large files such as an application or multimedia files.
The Download Manager has been specifically designed to manage file downloads from supporting Microsoft Web sites in a secure and reliable way. Once started, the Download Manager displays an easy-to-use interface that shows the status of downloads and enables you to resume downloads if they have failed.
download from this link Read More!

No Text Icons

If you would like your desktop Icons to have no text underneath then try this tweak:

Right click the icon and select "Rename"

Now hold the "Alt" key and type "255" and hit Enter

NOTE : It may only work with the keypad numbers and not the number keys on top of the keyboard. Read More!

If You want Geniune key ..Easily Find Serial Numbers On Google..

let's pretend you need a serial number for windows xp pro.

in the search bar type in just like this - "Windows XP Professional" 94FBR

the key is the 94FBR code.. it was included with many MS Office registration codes so this will help you dramatically reduce the amount of 'fake' porn sites that trick you.

or if you want to find the serial for winzip 8.1 - "Winzip 8.1" 94FBR

just try it out, it's very quick and it works nicely..

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here is another trick that works fairly decent for finding mp3's on the web (which is hard to do normally, to say the least)

say you want to get, for example, a Garth Brooks song. type this in the search bar - "index of/" "garth brooks" .mp3 the ones you want to check out first are the ones that say "Index of/" in the title of the search result. this technique allows you to easily pull up web folders with direct downloads. it will look the same as if you were logging into a ftp url.. i'm sure you can be pretty flexible on how you type that in, so long as you include "index of/"

i'm sure you can use this for more than just mp3's (it's not perfect but it has worked for me on a few occasions)

always make sure to use the quotations where i placed them. they help pinpoint the correct search results more accurately. just try it out, also if you want to learn how to do more with google look up "google hacks" Read More!

Disable Windows Tour

If you want to disable the Take Tour of Windows XP that comes up after you install WindowsXP:
1. Start Regedit
2. Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Applets\Tour
3. Create a new DWORD key called RunCount
4. Give it a value of 0
Reg File
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

Code:
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Applets\Tour]
"RunCount"=dword:00000000 Read More!

Editing the Boot.ini file

The boot.ini file is a simple text file that is on the root of the boot drive.
You can edit this with any plain text editor like Notepad (may need to unhide the file first)
1. Right click on My Computer
2. Select Properties
3. Click on the Advanced tab
4. Under Startup and Recovery, click on the Settings button
5. Click on the Edit button Read More!

Running CHKDSK_fix errors

One way to run a chkdsk (this is like Scandisk that was with Win9X), is to
1. Double click on My Computer
2. Right click on the drive you want to check
3. Select Properties
4. Click on the Tools tab
5. Click on the Check Now button
6. Check to Automatically fix file system errors - This is the same as running chkdsk /f
7. If you want to Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors, check that box - This is the same as running chkdsk /R. It can also add a lot of time to the scan
8. Reboot if necessary
You can also run chkdsk from the command line with will give you more options.
The following switches are available:
Code:
/F - fix any errors
/R - identifies bad sectors
/V - with FAT32, displays a verbose output
With NTFS Volumes:
/I - Performs simpler check (stage 2)
/C - Skips the checking of cycles within folder structures
/X - Forces the volume to dismount if necessary. Intended for server administrators and should be avoided for normal use Read More!

Opening Ports or Adding Allowed Programs with SP2's Firewall

1. Click on Start / Run
2. Enter in firewall.cpl
3. Click on the Exceptions tab
Adding a Port for Internet Access:
1. Click on the Add Port button
2. Name it whatever you want
3. Enter in the ports you want to open
Adding a Program for Internet Access
1. Click on Add Program... button
2. A list of all installed programs will be displayed
3. Highlight the one you want to include for Internet access
4. Click on the OK button Read More!

Running SFC without a CD ROM

If you run sfc /scannow and get prompted to insert a CD,
there are a couple of changes you might need to make.
Slipstream your copy of WindowsXP with the latest service pack you have applied.
Once these files are on your hard drive, you can simply make a few registry changes to point to those locations.
Start Regedit
Go to the follow locations and change the path to wherever you copied the source files.
Code:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\ServicePackSourcePath
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\SourcePath
the last one might not be necessary
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\SourcePath Read More!

Setting Capslock, Numlock, Scroll Lock

If you want to set the startup state for any or all of these keys,
you just need to edit the registry.
1.Start Regedit
2.Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Control Panel \ Keyboard
3.Open InitialKeyboardIndicators
4.Change the value to one of the following numbers
0 - All Keys off
1 - Caps Lock on
2 - Num Lock on
4 - Scroll Lock on
For multiple keys, add their values:
3 - Caps Lock and Num Lock on
5 - Caps Lock and Scroll Lock on
6 - Num Lock and Scroll Lock on
7 - Caps Lock, Num Lock, and Scroll Lock on
5.Log off and back on again Read More!

Removing Thumbs.db Files

When viewing a folder with the Thumbnail view, WindowsXP creates a thumbs.db file.
This is a cache of the current pictures in that directory.
If you want to turn this feature off and save a little disk space
1.Start the Windows Explorer
2.Go to Tools / Folder Options / View
3.In the first section under Files and Folders, check Do not cache thumbnails
4.Now you can search for the thumbs.db file on your computer and remove them. No more should be created. Read More!

Turn off the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer as the Default Image Viewer

You can also change the file associations for the specific file types you want.
1.Open the Windows Explorer
2.Go to Tools / Folder Options / File Types
3.Scroll down to the extension you want to change
4.Click on the Change button
5.Select the program you want to associate with that extension
6.Click on the OK button
If the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer is set as the default for many of your graphic file types,
you can remove it so other graphics programs can be used.
1.Run Regedit
2.Go to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT / SystemFileAssociations / image / ShellEx / ContextMenuHandlers
3.Delete the key ShellImagePreview
reg file
REGEDIT4

Code:
[-HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\SystemFileAssociations\image\ShellEx\ContextM
enuHandlers\ShellImagePreview] Read More!

Hide/Unhide Logon Names

If you want to hide or unhide the names of users that are displayed on the initial logon screen:
1.Start Regedit
2.Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows NT \ CurrentVersion \ Winlogon \ SpecialAccounts \ UserList
3.Add a DWORD with the name of the user account you want to hide
4.Make sure it has a value of 0
5.If there is an existing account, you can unhide it by giving it a value of 1 Read More!

Remembering Outlook / Outlook Express Password

On systems, Outlook or Outlook Express will not remember the e-mail password,
which would then need to be entered in each time.
To solve the problem:
1.Open Registry Editor
2.Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft
3.Right Click Protected Storage System Provider
4.Choose the Permissions option
5.Click the Advanced box near the bottom right hand corner. This should open another box, Towards the bottom of this box there should be two tick boxes, make sure that both of them are ticked. Click Apply, another box will open Click Yes, then Click OK and OK again.
6.Left Click the + next to Protected Storage System Provider and Delete any sub folder in this tree. (Right clicking and choose the delete option or press the delete key and choosing yes to delete)
7.Shutdown and Restart Computer. Read More!

Hiding System Tray Icons

With WindowsXP, you can manually select how you want individual icons in the System Tray to be displayed.
1.Right click on the Taskbar
2.Select Properties
3.Check Hide inactive icons
4.Click on the Customize button
5.This will bring up a dialog box that will allow you to select one of three options for your applications:
Hide when inactive, Always hide, or always show
6.Highlight current or past applications and make any changes you like.
7.A small arrow will now appear in the System Tray that will allow you to show or hide these icons. Read More!

Creating a Shutdown/Reboot Icon

WindowsXP has a program called SHUTDOWN.EXE which allows you to easily create icons to shutdown or restart your computer.
To create a shutdown shortcut on the desktop:
1.Right click on an open area of the desktop
2.Select New / Shortcut
3.Enter in "shutdown -s -t 00" - no quotes
4.Press the Next button
5.For the name, enter in anything you like. I just use shutdown. Click on the Finish button.
For a reboot, enter "shutdown -r -t 00"
Shutdown [{-l|-s|-r|-a}] [-f] [-m [\\ComputerName]] [-t xx] [-c "message"] [-d[u][p]Madx:yy]
Parameters
• -l - Logs off the current user, this is also the defualt. -m ComputerName takes precedence.
• -s - Shuts down the local computer.
• -r - Reboots after shutdown.
• -a - Aborts shutdown. Ignores other parameters, except -l and ComputerName. You can only use -a during the time-out period.
• -f - Forces running applications to close.
• -m [\\ComputerName] - Specifies the computer that you want to shut down.
• -t xx - Sets the timer for system shutdown in xx seconds. The default is 20 seconds.
• -c "message" - Specifies a message to be displayed in the Message area of the System Shutdown window. You can use a maximum of 127 characters. You must enclose the message in quotation marks. Read More!

Disabling Balloon Tips in windows

To turn off balloon tips in applications that support XP Themes:
1.Start Regedit
2.Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced\
3.Create a DWORD value of EnableBalloonTips
4.Give it a value of 0
reg file
REGEDIT4

Code:
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explor
er\Advanced]"EnableBalloonTips"=dword:00000000
note:take backup your registry first Read More!

Installing the NetBEUI Protocol

Microsoft no longer supports the NetBEUI protocol as part of WindowsXP.
You can add it as a installable protocol by going to the VALUEADD \ MSFT \ NET \ NETBEUI
directory on the CD ROM.
Note: %SYSTEMROOT% refers to the drive and directory where you installed WindowsXP.
Typically this is in the C:\WINDOWS directory
1.Copy the nbf.sys into the %SYSTEMROOT%\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\ directory
2.Copy netnbf.inf into the %SYSTEMROOT%\INF\ directory
3.Open the Network connection properties for your local area network and use "Install..." button to add NetBEUI protocol
included a zipped file with the above files and a simple batch file to copy both to the appropriate directories Read More!

Automatically Ending Non-Responsive Tasks

1.Start Regedit
2.Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\AutoEndTasks
3.Set the value to be 1
4.In the same section, change the WaitToKillAppTimeout to the number of milliseconds you want.
reg file
REGEDIT4

Code:
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop]"AutoEndTasks"="1"
"WaitToKillAppTimeout"="2000" Read More!

Changing the Internet Explorer Title

1.Start Regedit
2.Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main\Window Title
3.Enter what you want appear in the title bar
click ok
that's it. Read More!

By Default Enabling NumLock

numlock turned on for each user:
1.Start Regedit
2.Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Keyboard\InitialKeyboardIndicators
3.Change the value from 0 to 2
4.Turn Numlock on manually
5.Log off and back on again.
6.For all users, make the same change to HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Control Panel\Keyboard\InitialKeyboardIndicators
Reg file [[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Keyboard]
"InitialKeyboardIndicators"="2"]
IPCONFIG Error
When you run IPCONFIG and get an error:
An internal error occured: The request is not supported.
Please contact Microsoft Product Support Services for further help.
Additional information: Unable to query routing information
You need to copy a clean TCPIP.SYS file to the \windows\system32\drivers directory and reboot.
You can download TCPIP.SYS from here Read More!