ALL IN THE FAMILY WINDOW CLOSING
Do you often end up with a lot of related windows together on screen --
for example, after
double-clicking a folder, then double-clicking one inside of that, and
so on? When you're
ready to close them all, don't waste time clicking each and every X caption
button (the one in
the upper-right corner of each window). Just hold down Shift as you click
the X of the last
window you opened. Doing so closes that window and all of its "parents"
in one fell swoop.
GIMME DETAILS
When you open Explorer and switch to Details view (select Details under
the View menu),
you'll see columns of information in the right pane. And the nice thing
is, the arrangement of
those details isn't carved in stone. You can sort by any column or change
the width of any or
all columns to get the details look you want.
To sort information by a particular column, click its gray column heading
once. Click it again to
sort by that column, but in reverse order.
To change a column's width, hold the cursor over the black line to the
right of the column's
heading, and when it changes to a double-pointed arrow, click and drag
left or right.
(Note: These same techniques work in a regular window in Details view.)
HIDE-AND-SEEK COLUMNS
If you're looking at an Explorer window (or regular window) in Details
view, you have the
option of hiding any of the columns of information. This trick is especially
useful if you need
more room to display the columns you really do want to see.
Hold the cursor over the black line (on the gray column headings) to the
right of the column
you want to get rid of, and when it changes to a double-pointed arrow,
drag it all the way left.
The column simply disappears. To display the column again, click just to
the right of where
you left it (you'll know you're in the right place because a double-pointed
arrow with two
black lines appears) and drag right.
FOCUS ON EXPLORER
Do you have a Windows Explorer shortcut on your desktop? (If not, put one
there--you'll be
amazed how handy it is.) You can tell that shortcut to open Explorer with
its focus on the
folder of your choice.
Right-mouse click the shortcut, select Properties, and click the Shortcut
tab. The information
after the last comma in the Target line's contents (for example, C:\) tells
Explorer on which
folder's contents to focus when it opens. Add the name of any folder to
the end of that line (for
example, it might now read C:\MYDATA\PERSONAL after the last comma). Click
OK, and
try out your newly focused shortcut.
TRAVELLING TOOLBARS
Tired of WordPad's toolbars taking up all that space at the top of its
screen? Then move 'em.
As in Microsoft Word, you can rearrange the toolbars' location or turn
them into floating
palettes.
Click on a blank area of the Toolbar or Format bar, and drag to the left
or right to change the
location of the tools on the current bar. Or drag and drop the top bar
just below the bottom
one to switch the placement of the two bars.
To turn a bar into a floating palette, click (again, on a blank area) and
drag it to any new
location on the screen. At any time, you can snap the bar back into place
at the top of the
screen: Just drag it back to the toolbar area, and when the dotted outline
changes to a solid
line, let go.
If you have a Windows 95 installation CD, you can create an Emergency Recovery
disk to
help you recover important files in the event of a disaster. Once created,
this disk includes
system and configuration files, plus the Emergency Recovery Utility, the
program that restores
these files to your system.
Navigate your way to the OTHER\ MISC\ERU folder on the CD and double-click
ERU.EXE. Then just follow along as Windows 95 walks you through the disk-creation
process. (You can save the recovery files on a disk or a drive, such as
on a network.) When
the setup program finishes copying the files, you'll see a box of instructions
for using the disk in
the event of a disaster.
(Note: Sometimes the files the Emergency Recovery Utility tries to copy
are larger than a
floppy disk, and the utility won't warn you that not all the files will
be copied. To see exactly
how much space the files will take up, select the Custom option during
setup and check the
Current ERU Size. If it's larger than your disk size, you have a couple
of choices: If you're
comfortable doing so, deselect files until the Current ERU Size can be
accommodated by your
disk, or if you have access to a network, save the files there instead.)
OUT OF THE DARK EXCHANGE AGE
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/software/exupd.htm
Still using the version of Microsoft Exchange that came with Windows 95
way back when?
For shame, for shame. There's an update on the Microsoft site--called Windows
Messaging--that significantly improves the performance of this turtle-slow,
bug-ridden
program. Among other things, the update increases the program's startup
time and updates
Internet mail service. Point your web browser at the above URL to read
about and download
this "complete update for the Exchange components that shipped with Windows
95."
A DESKTOP OF STICKY NOTES
Do you have little yellow sticky notes all over your desk and calendar,
filled with phone
numbers, addresses, or any other information you use all the time? How
about turning it into
desktop wallpaper? Then the information will always be at your fingertips.
Just as you can use any picture as desktop wallpaper, you can place information
there, too.
Open up Paint, type (or paste) in all the information you'd like to see
on your desktop's
background, and save it as a graphics (*.BMP) file. Choose Set As Wallpaper
(Centered)
under the File menu, and that information is stuck on your desktop for
good (or until you
change it to include new information).
Tips-in-a-tip: To paste text into a Paint file, click the text ("A") icon,
click and drag to create a
text box, then paste the text inside. Also, you'll probably want to use
a colored background--a
white desktop background can be pretty blinding.)
PUT SOME MEAT ON YOUR SCROLLBARS
If a window's contents can't fit in that window all at once, Windows 95
provides you with
scrollbars on its left and lower edges to scroll through the contents.
Think those bars are too
small? If you'd like a little more to grab nto, make them bigger.
Right-mouse click the desktop and choose Properties to open the Display
Properties dialog
box. On the Appearance tab, select Scrollbar under Item (or click the scrollbar
in the
preview) and change its Size to whatever you'd like (the defaults for most
of the color schemes
are 13 or 16). You'll see the effect of your change right in the preview.
When you're happy
with the new size, click Apply or OK.
PINBALL WIZARDS, TAKE NOTE
If you have the Windows 95 Plus! CD, you've surely tried out 3D Pinball.
Wish you knew a
little more about mastering the Space Cadet table? The Help file offers
some assistance, but
for more extensive information, there are two hidden sources.
Navigate your way to the Program Files\Plus!\Pinball folder and open PINBALL.DOC
for the
"Space Cadet table Rules and Game Strategy." Then, check out TABLE.BMP
in the same
folder for the name of every nook and cranny on the table (you may need
it to follow along
with the instructions). Who knew? (We did.)
ADD UP YOUR PROPERTIES
Want to know how much space a selection of folders and/or files takes up
on your hard drive?
(Knowing this would come in handy if, for example, you've selected items
to copy to a floppy
disk.)
In an Explorer or My Computer window, hold down Ctrl as you select each
item you'd like to
tally. Then right-mouse click on any selected item and choose Properties.
The resulting dialog
box will display the total size of all selected items, including a count
of each item type (files or
folders).
ADD UP YOUR PROPERTIES
Want to know how much space a selection of folders and/or files takes up
on your hard drive?
(Knowing this would come in handy if, for example, you've selected items
to copy to a floppy
disk.)
In an Explorer or My Computer window, hold down Ctrl as you select each
item you'd like to
tally. Then right-mouse click on any selected item and choose Properties.
The resulting dialog
box will display the total size of all selected items, including a count
of each item type (files or
folders).
EXPRESS DELIVERY
When you right-mouse click a file and choose Send To, you see a menu of
possible
destinations. Did you know you can add items to this list? Just add a folder
or application's
shortcut to the C:\Windows\SendTo folder.
Suppose you want to add the Start menu to the Send To list (doing so makes
it easy to send
any item directly to the Start menu). In an Explorer window, navigate your
way to
C:\Windows\SendTo, so that the right pane displays its contents. Right-mouse
click on the
Start Menu folder (which just happens to be in plain view), drag it into
the right pane, and
when you let go, choose Create Shortcut(s) Here. Close Explorer.
Now for the big test. Right-mouse click any file or folder, choose Send
To, and select Start
Menu from the list. Click the Start button, and there's that item.
GET SOME CHARACTER
Need to add a fancy character to your document? No matter what application
you're working
in, the Windows 95 Character Map is at your service.
Click the Start button, choose Programs, then Accessories, and then Character
Map to
display this great little applet. Select a font in the drop-down list,
double-click the character
you'd like to use (to place it in the "Characters to copy" box), and click
Copy. The character
is now on the Windows 95 Clipboard. Switch back to your document and paste
that
character wherever you'd like it.
CHARACTER COMBOS
In our last tip, we showed you how to add fancy characters to your documents:
Open the
Character Map, double-click the character you want to use, click Copy,
then switch to your
document and paste it in. If you're a keyboard-phile and a mouse-phobe,
you can add a
character using your numeric keypad--that is, as long as you know the secret
combination: the
Alt key plus a four-digit number. Where do you find the right number? Why,
in the Character
Map, of course. For oft-used characters, it's worth the research.
Open the Character Map, select the character you have in mind, and you'll
see its "Keystroke"
in the lower-right corner of the dialog box. Close the Character Map and
remember that
number. To add the character to a document, turn on Num Lock, then hold
down Alt and
type the number using the numeric keypad. Look, ma! No dialog boxes!
WALLPAPER REDECORATING
Windows 95 comes with a whole slew of ready-made wallpapers from which
to choose. But
is there one you would like, if only it were a different color? Using Paint,
you can recolor any
wallpaper.
Choose Start|Programs|Accessories|Paint, select Open under the File menu,
and navigate your
way to the C:\Windows folder. Select the wallpaper you'd like to recolor
(an easy one is
Rivets.BMP), then save it under a different name (you don't want to mess
up the original).
Ready to start painting? First you need to be able to see what you're doing,
so select Zoom
under the View menu, and select Large Size. From there, pick a tool, pick
a color, and start
coloring. (The easiest tools to use are the pencil, for individual dots,
or the paint can, for larger
areas.) Sure, it's tedious, but if it's your favorite wallpaper, it's worth
it!
When you're finished coloring, be sure to select Save under the File menu.
From now on,
you'll be able to select it by name in the Display Properties dialog box.
(Note: Some wallpapers have very few colors in their palette, meaning you
don't have many
options for recoloring. In our next tip, we'll show you how to expand that
palette.)
TAKE THAT PALETTE OVER THE RAINBOW
In our last tip, we showed you how to recolor the wallpaper bitmaps that
come with Windows
95: Open the file in Paint, save it under a new name, and start recoloring.
You'll notice,
however, that when you open some of the wallpaper bitmaps, a very limited
color palette
appears. If you want more color options, save the file as a 256-Color Bitmap.
In Paint, open a bitmap with a limited palette, such as Bubbles.BMP. Choose
Save As under
the File menu, select 256-Color Bitmap in the Save as type drop-down list,
give the file a new
name, and click Save. Now select Save As under the File menu one more time,
and click
Save. (Don't ask us why--you need to do this to get the colors to show
up in the palette.)
You'll now have a much larger palette from which to choose. Hapy recoloring!
THE INCREDIBLE SHRINKING WINDOW
If you want an application to start upon launching Windows 95, then you
just add its shortcut
to the StartUp menu. Simple enough. So what happens if you're really picky
and want the
application to start, but shrink to the Taskbar the minute it opens? No
problem. Just tell
Windows 95 to start the program minimized. Assuming you already have a
shortcut in the
StartUp folder, all you need to do is change its Properties.
Right-mouse click the shortcut, choose Properties, and click the Shortcut
tab. On the Run line,
click the drop-down arrow to display your three possible options--Normal
window,
Minimized, or Maximized. Select Minimized, click OK, and from now on, that
application will
shrink out of site when it opens at start up.
YOU CAN QUOTE THAT
In a past tip, we told you that if a command you type at the DOS prompt
includes a filename
with a space in it, DOS simply won't recognize the file. The solution?
Place the path of the file
in quotes.
Well, did you know the same thing applies to the Run command line? It may
seem like part of
the I-recognize-and-understand-every-aspect-of-long-filenames Windows 95,
but it isn't.
Here, too, you'll need to use quotes around a command line that includes
a filename with
spaces in it.
WHEN HISTORY REPEATS
In past tips, we've shown you how to add Control Panel, Dial-Up Networking
(DUN), and
Printers folders to your Start menu (see the end of this tip for a quick
review). If you use
Internet Explorer, try adding an Internet History folder to your Start
menu. Selecting an item
inside the folder launches Internet Explorer and takes you directly to
that site. (Note: You'll
probably want to empty your History folder on a regular basis, to keep
this list under control.)
To create an Internet History folder, create a new folder in your Start
menu named exactly
(and we mean exactly--your best bet is to copy and paste it from this tip):
Internet History.{FF393560-C2A7-11CF-BFF4-444553540000}
In case you didn't see the previous tips, here are the names of other folders you can create:
Control Panel.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}
DUN.{992CFFA0-F557-101A-88EC-00DD010CCC48}
Printers.{2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D}
QUEUE-ING OFF
Are you hooked up to a network printer? You can check out how many jobs
are ahead of
yours right from your desktop. Just look inside the printer queue.
Click Start|Settings|Printers and double-click the icon that represents
your network printer.
The resulting dialog box shows a list of all the print jobs that still
need to make their way
through the printer. If you see lots of jobs pending, you may just want
to wait a little while
before making that long trek down the hall.
SEE WHAT'S FREE
If you want to see how much space is left on your hard drive, there are
a few places you can
look.
One, you can open a My Computer window and select your hard drive icon.
The status bar
will display its Free Space and Capacity.
Two, you can open an Explorer window and select any item on your hard drive.
Again, the
status bar displays your Disk free space. (To display the status bar in
either window, select
Status Bar under the View menu.)
If you relate better to graphics, however, you'll love this third option
--a pie graph that displays
free vs. used space. To display this graph, in a My Computer or Explorer
window,
right-mouse click your hard drive icon and select Properties.
NEW LOOKS FOR ICONS
You can change the font and size of your desktop and window icons. These
settings are part
of your Windows 95 current appearance scheme and are accessible through
the Display
Properties dialog box.
Right-mouse click the desktop, select Properties, and click the Appearance
tab. In the
drop-down list next to Item, select Icon. Now make all the changes you
want to their
appearance. To the right of the Item box, the Size option changes the actual
icon size. Below
the Item list, you'll find options for changing the font of the icon names,
as well as its size. Play
around with different options, clicking Apply after each to see if you
like what you see. When
you're done, click OK.
GETCHER FREE PLUS! TAB HERE!
http://www.microsoft.com/truetype/grayscal/smoother.htm
If you have Microsoft Plus!, you have a page of Display Properties options
that non-users
don't. This tab, called Plus!, includes options for using larger icons,
showing window contents
while dragging, and smoothing the edges of screen fonts, among other things.
Even if you don't have Plus!, you can get your hands on these goodies.Microsoft
is giving them
away for free. Point your web browser at the above URL and download w95gray.EXE.
You
may think you're only getting the font smoothing feature, but the rest
of the Plus! tab comes
with it!
BE PREPARED
Upon installing Windows 95, you're given the opportunity to create a Startup
Disk--a boot
disk that, should you have trouble starting Windows 95, gets you to MS-DOS,
where you can
check key files and run utilities in an attempt to figure out what's up.
If you're impatient like the
rest of us, you probably opted not to make the disk at the moment and figured
you'd get to it
later. Well, later is here (you never know when something's going to go
wrong), so let's make
that disk.
Open the Control Panel and double-click Add/Remove Programs. Select the
Startup Disk tab
and click the Create Disk button. When prompted to do so, insert a blank
formatted disk into
your floppy drive, then wait as Windows 95 copies all the necessary information
to the disk.
Better safe than sorry, you know.
FAKE THE AUTOPLAY
Do you have a CD-ROM drive without AutoPlay capability? (Meaning, when
you pop an
audio CD into the drive, it doesn't play automatically.) You can't add
this feature, but you can
get one step closer to it. Whereas you normally have to open the CD Player
and press Play,
you can set the CD Player to automatically play your audio CD when you
open this program.
Open Explorer and navigate your way to the shortcut you use to start the
CD Player.
Right-mouse click it and select Properties. Place your cursor at the end
of the text on the
Target line, type a space, and then type: "/PLAY" (without the quotes).
Click OK. To test out
your handiwork, insert an audio CD, start the CD Player using the shortcut
whose target line
you just changed, and listen up!
CHECK YOUR RESOURCES
If you're itching to get into the meat and potatoes of Windows 95--we're
talking the nerdiest
of nerdy stuff, mostly for administrators--then you need the Windows 95
Resource Kit. If you
have the Windows 95 installation CD, you already have this technical resource.
If not, you can
download the Resource Kit from Microsoft's Web site, or purchase it in
your local bookstore.
Pop the installation CD into your CD-ROM drive and navigate your way to
D:\ADMIN\RESKIT\HELPFILE. To view the Help files right off the CD, double-click
WIN95RK.HLP. To access the Resource Kit from your hard drive, copy the
WIN95RK.HLP and WIN95RK.CNT files to your C:\WINDOWS\HELP folder, then
create a shortcut to WIN95RK.HLP. Either way, the Resource Kit's contents
appear in a
Help Topics window, complete with Contents, Index and Find tabs.
(If you don't have the Windows 95 installation CD, you can download the
Complete
Windows 95 Resource Kit Help File from
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/software/reskit.htm. Or you can purchase
the Resource
Kit in stores or by calling (800) MS-PRESS.)
NO-CLOUD STARTUPS
Tired of seeing that cloud StartUp logo every time you boot Windows 95?
You can get rid of
it by editing your MSDOS.SYS file.
The first thing you need to do is remove this file's hidden and read-only
attributes: Open up
Explorer and locate MSDOS.SYS, right-mouse click it and select Properties,
deselect
Read-only and hidden, and click OK. Next, open MSDOS.SYS in Notepad and
add the line
LOGO=0
to the [Options] section (or change the line LOGO=1 to LOGO=0). Select
Save under the File
menu and close Notepad.
Return the hidden and read-only attributes to MSDOS.SYS (using the same
technique you did
to remove them). Try restarting your system, and those clouds are gone
with the wind(ows).