104 Performance Tips for Windows XP

Windows Interface Tips (1-20) Increase the amount of ‘frequently used programs’ displayed on the start menu Remove the ‘frequently used programs’ list from the start menu Stop the automatic grouping of taskbar programs Close multiple desktop windows fast Add some useful commands to the right-click menu Add more destinations to the right-click menu’s ’send to’ command Changing the number of open programs required to ‘group’ on the taskbar Reduce menu delay to speed up the windows desktop Show control panel as a menu Change the default installation directory Associate and un-associate applications from certain file types. Make your mouse more responsive Increase PS/2 mouse performance Relocate your ‘my documents’ folder Get a better ALT+TAB application switcher Add a command prompt option to the Windows Explorer right click menu Stop ‘focus stealing’ by background applications and pop-ups Add the admin tools to the start menu Closing multiple taskbar items at once Using ‘groups’ in Windows explore Computer Maintenance and Troubleshooting Tips (21-46) Quickly un-format web text with notepad. Uncover **** passwords Disable the annoying ‘click’ sound in Internet Explorer. Use VGA mode to troubleshoot monitor refresh rate problems Make your files available offline Rollback device drivers in case of error Avoid having to re-activate Windows XP after reinstallation View PowerPoint documents without PowerPoint Control Clear type Text with free tool Mouse problem? Use MouseKeys Recovering deleted files Install the backup utility in XP Home Schedule automatic data backups Place your Internet favourites on your start menu Restore your essential data Enhance the Windows calculator Disabling startup password Remove orphaned software applications from add/remove programs Troubleshooting shutdown issues Alter your windows user name Adding ’safe mode’ to the boot menu Use XP file compression to save space How to check if you have a DVD decoder installed in your system Learn to love XP safe mode Use the program compatibility toolkit Use the system restore utility from ’safe mode command prompt.’ Computer Security Tips (47-54) Configure the SP 2 firewall Prevent computer users from logging on to Windows at certain times. Encrypt your important files (XP Professional only) Scan your computer for vulnerability with Microsoft’s free security scanner Disable USB storage device writing (Service Pack 2 only) Prevent browser hijackers and spyware in SP2 Internet Explorer Test your PCs security with online security probes Disable annoying startup programs

WindowsXP Shortcut Tips (55 – 63) Fun with shortcuts 1: shortcuts to email Fun with shortcuts 2: shortcuts to web sites Fun with shortcuts 3: shortcuts to Windows control panels and utilities Fun with shortcuts 4: create a shortcut to shutdown or restart your PC Fun with shortcuts 5: Create a shortcut to lock your PC Fun with shortcuts 6: Create a shortcut to ‘run’ on your desktop Fun with shortcuts 7: Create a shortcut to command prompt on your desktop Fun with shortcuts 8: Create keyboard shortcuts for applications and folders Shortcuts to important control windows with the run command Disk and Storage Management Tips (64 – 67) Stupid disk tricks for XP part 1: dynamic disks Stupid disk tricks for XP part 2: mounting partitions to directories Stupid disk tricks for XP part 3: creating software RAID 0 Stupid Disk tricks for XP part 4: Extending and spanning volumes Cool Tweaks, Toys and Experiments (68 – 90) Create a portable version of Windows XP Create alarms and reminders with Windows XP’s scheduling service Perform a ‘hands off’ Windows XP installation. Experiment with ‘virtual’ computing Show how long your system has been running with SYSTEMINFO Use MSN messenger’s ‘whiteboard’ feature Use MSN Messenger’s Shared applications feature Collect system data with the performance monitor wizard Use a free, full featured office suite Create a Windows XP bootable CD with Service pack 2 built-in Edit local computer settings with GPEDIT (XP Professional only) Reduce the size of your recycle bin Make sure of your location on the Internet Arrange the ‘all programs’ list alphabetically Force ‘my computer’ and other folders to open in Windows explorer automatically Boost foreground applications Place the volume control on the taskbar Experiment with Linux without installing software Use Virtual desktops in Windows XP Capture screenshots in Windows XP Create an easy HTML picture slide show for your website Import pictures from a digital camera Prevent XP from shutting down normally Networking and Internet Tips ( 91- 104) Access your PC from any system over the Internet (Professional only) Speed up network browsing in Windows XP Get the most out of your wireless network Benchmark your wireless connection Fixing the ‘guest only’ network access problem Hiding your computer from other systems in the same network Share Multiple Folders quickly in Windows XP Change Web page font size automatically Open web pages in a new window quickly Don’t have anti-virus software? Check your PC for viruses online Save web pages for offline viewing Easier searches and popup suppression with the Google toolbar Address shortcut for Internet Explorer Remove Microsoft Java VM and install Sun Java

Firefox: Speed it up! 30x!

Here’s something for broadband people that will really speed Firefox up:

1.Type “about:config” into the address bar and hit return. Scroll down and look for the following entries:

World Shutdown Day!

 

It is obvious that people would find life extremely difficult without computers, maybe even impossible. If they disappeared for just one day, would we be able to cope?

Wikipedia breaks into U.S. Top 10 Sites

Wikimedia Foundation Inc.’s popular

Wikipedia

online encyclopedia cracked the top ten list of most popular Web sites in the U.S. for the first time in January, according to comScore Networks Inc.
Wikipedia sites ranked ninth with 42.9 million unique visitors last month, ahead of the sites from The New York Times (number 10), Apple Inc. (number 11) and Viacom International Inc. (number 12), comScore reported Thursday.

Wikipedia, which already ranked in the top ten list of most popular Web sites globally, has been quickly gaining popularity in the U.S., where its parent company, the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation, is based.

In January of last year, Wikipedia sites ranked in the 33rd spot with 18.3 million unique visitors. By July, it had climbed to the 18th spot on the list with 28.1 million unique visitors, and in November it ranked 12th with 39.1 million unique visitors, according to comScore.

In doing its tally for Wikipedia, comScore also counts visits to other Wikimedia sites, like Wiktionary, Wikiquote, Wikibooks and Wikinews, but most of the traffic comes from the Wikipedia encyclopedias, a comScore spokesman said.

Wikipedia started in January 2001 with its English-language site, which currently has more than 1.6 million articles. The Wikipedia project has since grown significantly and has more than 5 million articles in more than 200 languages, according to WikiMedia. Access to Wikipedia is free. Volunteers contribute the encyclopedia’s content, which can be edited by anyone accessing the sites.

Globally, Wikipedia sites ranked sixth in December with almost 165 million unique visitors, according to comScore.

source:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/pcworld/20070217/tc_pcworld/129135

Folding Paper in Half 12 Times: The Impossible Challenge Solved!

Folding Paper in Half 12 Times:
The story of an impossible challenge solved at the Historical Society office

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Alice laughed: “There’s no use trying,” she said; “one can’t believe impossible things.” “I daresay you haven’t had much practice,” said the Queen.

Through the Looking Glass by L. Carroll

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Top 10 Reasons Why Movie Downloads Suck

 from : GIZMODO

Movie downloads suck. There are lots of reasons why they haven’t caught on yet, and we have the Top 10 of them here. Sure, everyone’s talking about movie downloads, but in reality hardly anyone is doing anything about them.

The idea of having a limitless selection of every movie ever filmed is compelling, but it’s rife with so many gotchas that the majority of movie fans are staying away in droves. To put it into perspective, Ben Fritz at Variety offers a sobering stat: the total number of movies sold as downloads is less than the first day’s sales of the DVD of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. That really does suck, doesn’t it?

Here are the Top 10 reasons why the idea of digital downloads of movies hasn’t gained much traction yet:
1. Pricing: Apple’s iTunes store charges $14.99 for a new release and $9.99 for an older movie, and Wal-Mart is expected to come close to matching that except for brand-new releases for which it will charge $19.88. That’s comparable to the price of a DVD, but with that you get a disc you can hold in your hand, cover art, a tangible item. Plus, that price is a whole lot more than you’d pay to rent a movie at Blockbuster or have one delivered to your mailbox from Netflix.

2. Meager selection of movies: although Wal-Mart promises movie downloads from the “big six” studios (Walt Disney, Warner Brothers, Paramount, Sony, 20th Century Fox and Universal), it still won’t be able to match the vast collection of an ordinary video store, at least not for a while. And the iTunes store’s selection of films is so slim, it’s just pathetic.

Water Polygons and Polyhedra!

FLUID POLYGONS AND POLYHEDRA

Figure 1. Figure 2. Figure 3.

6 Startup Lessons For The Year 2007

By guest author Jawad Shuaib, the founder of Shuzak.com: The social network for geeks.

Startups have been multiplying like rabbits over the past three years. Due to the added competition, many startups are beginning to narrow their focus to a much smaller demographic. The year 2007 will mark the transition from startups aiming for the mainstream markets to specialists intensely focused on gaining smaller grounds. This is a different landscape, one that demands new rules of the game. It is the entrepreneur’s job to anticipate these changes in order to align them with their startup’s future.

Bake Firefox Cookies! Yum!

Firefox Cookies

(all from http://blog.josephhall.com/2006/11/firefox-cookies.html)

I hope everyone had a happy Thanksgiving Day weekend! I thought I’d try out a couple more cookie techniques this weekend, since I had a couple of days more time than usual. Interestingly, one of them wasn’t nearly as successful as I had hoped, and the other was far more successful than I expected. Fortunately, with that switch-up going on, these Firefox cookies really ended up looking much better than I had hoped. Before I start, I’d like to thank Jon Hicks for his permission to use the Firefox logo that he designed. And yes, this tutorial proudly ships with the Firefox name and logo.

GOODBYE HARRY POTTER.

Section: Diary

from http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/ 

FEBRUARY 6th

Charles Dickens put it better than I ever could:

‘It would concern the reader little, perhaps, to know how sorrowfully the pen is laid down at the close of a two-years’ imaginative task; or how an Author feels as if he were dismissing some portion of himself into the shadowy world, when a crowd of the creatures of his brain are going from him for ever.’

Get FREE Internet Connection from ANYWHERE.

WIFI LIBERATOR Toolkit – 2007

From http://www.coin-operated.com/projects/wifiliberator.html 

A Tactical Toolkit to Liberate Pay-Per Use Wireless Networks!

Press:
WiFi Liberator Ends Tyranny of Pay-Per-Use Wireless, Gizmodo, 2/2/07.
WiFi Liberator Toolkit, We-Make-Money-Not-Art, 2/2/07.
Share closed WiFi with the Wifi Liberator, Boing Boing, 2/3/07.
Wifi Liberator ToolKit, Digg, 2/2/07.
Wifi Liberator, Make Blog, 2/3/07.
Wifi Liberator, Hack Zine, 2/3/07.

Version 1.0 (Stand alone version coming soon)

50 Amazing Facts

1. If you are right handed, you will tend to chew your food on your right side. If you are left handed, you will tend to chew your food on your left side.

2. If you stop getting thirsty, you need to drink more water. For when a human body is dehydrated, its thirst mechanism shuts off.

3. Chewing gum while peeling onions will keep you from crying.

4. Your tongue is germ free only if it is pink. If it is white there is a thin film of bacteria on it.

5. The Mercedes-Benz motto is “Das Beste oder Nichts” meaning “the best or nothing”.

FROZEN Tidal wave!

Nature is so nice! These pictures are from http://fatpita.net.

Disposable organizers, conversions, formulas and SUDOKU!!! http://www.pocketmod.com/

What is a PocketMod?

The PocketMod is a new way to keep yourself organized. Lets face it, PDAs are too expensive and cumbersome, and organizers are bulky and hard to carry around. Nothing beats a folded up piece of paper. That is until now. With the PocketMod, you can carry around the days notes, keep them organized in any way you wish, then easily transfer the notes to your PDA, spreadsheet, or planner.

The PocketMod is a small book with guides on each page. These guides or templates, combined with a unique folding style, enable a normal piece of paper to become the ultimate note card. It is hard to describe just how incredibly useful the PocketMod is. It’s best that you just dive in

How much is your blog worth?

How much is it really worth?

 

 

 

My blog is worth $2,258.16.
How much is your blog worth?

 

 

Project 365: How to Take a Photo a Day and See Your Life in a Whole New Way

source: http://www.photojojo.com/content/tutorials/project-365-take-a-photo-a-day/ People will often say that their whole lives flashed before their eyes after they experienced a traumatic event. Perhaps it’s a bit morbid, but we think that sounds pretty incredible.

When Taylor McKnight started taking a photo a day on January 1st, 2004, he never imagined the project would not only serve as a way to remember a year, but also help him understand what was important to him in his life.

Whether it was his relationships, his career, or his fashion sense, recording a photo a day for a whole year left him with a rich visual history of his life. And it made him a better photographer to boot!

Now that he’s in the middle of doing it for a second time, we asked Taylor to write about it for us. Read on for our tutorial on how and why to create your own daily photographic history.

Project 365: How to Create a Daily Photographic History
www.photojojo.com/content/tutorials/project-365-take-a-photo-a-day/

 

Pop Art Inspired by Lichtenstein

source: http://www.melissaclifton.com/tutorial-popart.html

 

If you are a fan of pop art then you’re probably already well acquainted with the work Roy Lichtenstein. Roy Lichtenstein became one of the leading pop artists of the sixties with his comic-strip paintings. Drowning Girl 1963, shown left, is one of his better known works and is a good example of the design features in his most famous pieces. Notice the thick lines, bold colors, and thought bubble. His work also often included boxed captions and words such as “WHAAM!”, commonly found in comic books.

Benday dots were Lichtenstein’s trademark. Benday dots are a printing process which combines two (or more) different small, coloured dots to create a third colour. Back in the day, pulp comic books used benday dots in primary colours to inexpensively create the secondary colours such as flesh tone.

Pimp Your Pals. It’s What They’d Want. — PikiPimp.com

Pimp Your Pals. It’s What They’d Want. — PikiPimp.com Your friends would look better if they had goatees, chest hair, and maybe some bruises.

At least, that seems to be the general thinking behind PikiPimp.com. And we think they’re onto something.

Upload or type in the URL for a photo, and PikiPimp will let you accessorize it with facial hair, eye-wear, new lips, ears, tattoos, and tongues… In short, embarrassing knickknacks of all sorts.

It’s like Mr. Potato Head but with photos.

PikiPimp’s not the first to do this, but they do it exceptionally well. Resize and rotate your additions, even adjust their opacity until they’re just right. Then hit save and print, share, or pop your creation into cards. Grandma with aviators, Robby with a rabbi beard and a parrot on his shoulders. It’s all here.

If you’ve resorted to e-cards for friends this year, take our advice and put your photo through PikiPimp before clicking send. They may even thank you.

PikiPimp
www.pikipimp.com

source: http://www.photojojo.com/content/

Photo Snow Globes – Make Your Own in 15 Minutes (or Your Money Back!)

The great snow gods have not been kind to us this year. If you’re still pining for wintery white, or just hoping it’d go away, we recommend a quick (and heartfelt) appeal.

Luckily, we have just the thing to melt their frosty disposition: Photojojo’s Make-Your-Own Photo Snow Globes.

Grab a bottle, photo, glitter, and corn syrup and you’re on your way to making an offering not even the gods could refuse.*

Photojojo’s Make-Your-Own Photo Snow Globes
www.photojojo.com/content/diy/photo-snow-globes/