23 WAYS TO SPEED WINXP

Since defragging the disk won't do much to improve Windows XP performance, here are 23 suggestions
that will. Each can enhance the performance and reliability of your customers' PCs. Best of all, most of
them will cost you nothing.

1.) To decrease a system's boot time and increase system performance, use the money you save by not
buying defragmentation software -- the built-in Windows defragmenter works just fine -- and instead
equip the computer with an Ultra-133 or Serial ATA hard drive with 8-MB cache buffer.

2.) If a PC has less than 512 MB of RAM, add more memory. This is a relatively inexpensive and easy
upgrade that can dramatically improve system performance.

3.) Ensure that Windows XP is utilizing the NTFS file system. If you're not sure, here's how to check: First,
double-click the My Computer icon, right-click on the C: Drive, then select Properties. Next, examine the
File System type; if it says FAT32, then back-up any important data. Next, click Start; click Run, type CMD,
and then click OK. At the prompt, type CONVERT C: /FS:NTFS and press the Enter key. This process may
take a while; it's important that the computer be uninterrupted and virus-free. The file system used by the
bootable drive will be either FAT32 or NTFS. I highly recommend NTFS for its superior security, reliability,
and efficiency with larger disk drives.

4.) Disable file indexing. The indexing service extracts information from documents and other files on the
hard drive and creates a "searchable keyword index." As you can imagine, this process can be quite taxing
on any system.

The idea is that the user can search for a word, phrase, or property inside a document, should they have
hundreds or thousands of documents and not know the file name of the document they want. Windows
XP's built-in search functionality can still perform these kinds of searches without the Indexing service. It
just takes longer. The OS has to open each file at the time of the request to help find what the user is
looking for.

Most people never need this feature of search. Those who do are typically in a large corporate
environment where thousands of documents are located on at least one server. But if you're a typical
system builder, most of your clients are small and medium businesses. And if your clients have no need for
this search feature, I recommend disabling it.

Here's how: First, double-click the My Computer icon. Next, right-click on the C: Drive, then select
Properties. Uncheck "Allow Indexing Service to index this disk for fast file searching." Next, apply changes
to "C: subfolders and files," and click OK. If a warning or error message appears (such as "Access is
denied"), click the Ignore All button.

5.) Update the PC's video and motherboard chipset drivers. Also, update and configure the BIOS. For more
information on how to configure your BIOS properly, see this article on my site.

6.) Empty the Windows Prefetch folder every three months or so. Windows XP can "prefetch" portions of
data and applications that are used frequently. This makes processes appear to load faster when called
upon by the user. That's fine. But over time, the prefetch folder may become overloaded with references
to files and applications no longer in use. When that happens, Windows XP is wasting time, and slowing
system performance, by pre-loading them. Nothing critical is in this folder, and the entire contents are safe
to delete.
7.) Once a month, run a disk cleanup. Here's how: Double-click the My Computer icon. Then right-click on
the C: drive and select Properties. Click the Disk Cleanup button -- it's just to the right of the Capacity pie
graph -- and delete all temporary files.

8.) In your Device Manager, double-click on the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers device, and ensure that DMA is
enabled for each drive you have connected to the Primary and Secondary controller. Do this by double-
clicking on Primary IDE Channel. Then click the Advanced Settings tab. Ensure the Transfer Mode is set to
"DMA if available" for both Device 0 and Device 1. Then repeat this process with the Secondary IDE
Channel.

9.) Upgrade the cabling. As hard-drive technology improves, the cabling requirements to achieve these
performance boosts have become more stringent. Be sure to use 80-wire Ultra-133 cables on all of your
IDE devices with the connectors properly assigned to the matching Master/Slave/Motherboard sockets. A
single device must be at the end of the cable; connecting a single drive to the middle connector on a
ribbon cable will cause signaling problems. With Ultra DMA hard drives, these signaling problems will
prevent the drive from performing at its maximum potential. Also, because these cables inherently
support "cable select," the location of each drive on the cable is important. For these reasons, the cable is
designed so drive positioning is explicitly clear.

10.) Remove all spyware from the computer. Use free programs such as AdAware by Lavasoft or SpyBot
Search & Destroy. Once these programs are installed, be sure to check for and download any updates
before starting your search. Anything either program finds can be safely removed. Any free software that
requires spyware to run will no longer function once the spyware portion has been removed; if your
customer really wants the program even though it contains spyware, simply reinstall it. For more
information on removing Spyware visit this Web Pro News page.

11.) Remove any unnecessary programs and/or items from Windows Startup routine using the MSCONFIG
utility. Here's how: First, click Start, click Run, type MSCONFIG, and click OK. Click the StartUp tab, then
uncheck any items you don't want to start when Windows starts. Unsure what some items are? Visit the
WinTasks Process Library. It contains known system processes, applications, as well as spyware references
and explanations. Or quickly identify them by searching for the filenames using Google or another Web
search engine.

12.) Remove any unnecessary or unused programs from the Add/Remove Programs section of the Control
Panel.

13.) Turn off any and all unnecessary animations, and disable active desktop. In fact, for optimal
performance, turn off all animations. Windows XP offers many different settings in this area. Here's how to
do it: First click on the System icon in the Control Panel. Next, click on the Advanced tab. Select the
Settings button located under Performance. Feel free to play around with the options offered here, as
nothing you can change will alter the reliability of the computer -- only its responsiveness.

14.) If your customer is an advanced user who is comfortable editing their registry, try some of the
performance registry tweaks offered at Tweak XP.

15.) Visit Microsoft's Windows update site regularly, and download all updates labeled Critical. Download
any optional updates at your discretion.

16.) Update the customer's anti-virus software on a weekly, even daily, basis. Make sure they have only
one anti-virus software package installed. Mixing anti-virus software is a sure way to spell disaster for
performance and reliability.
17.) Make sure the customer has fewer than 500 type fonts installed on their computer. The more fonts
they have, the slower the system will become. While Windows XP handles fonts much more efficiently
than did the previous versions of Windows, too many fonts -- that is, anything over 500 -- will noticeably
tax the system.

18.) Do not partition the hard drive. Windows XP's NTFS file system runs more efficiently on one large
partition. The data is no safer on a separate partition, and a reformat is never necessary to reinstall an
operating system. The same excuses people offer for using partitions apply to using a folder instead. For
example, instead of putting all your data on the D: drive, put it in a folder called "D drive." You'll achieve
the same organizational benefits that a separate partition offers, but without the degradation in system
performance. Also, your free space won't be limited by the size of the partition; instead, it will be limited
by the size of the entire hard drive. This means you won't need to resize any partitions, ever. That task can
be time-consuming and also can result in lost data.

19.) Check the system's RAM to ensure it is operating properly. I recommend using a free program called
MemTest86. The download will make a bootable CD or diskette (your choice), which will run 10 extensive
tests on the PC's memory automatically after you boot to the disk you created. Allow all tests to run until
at least three passes of the 10 tests are completed. If the program encounters any errors, turn off and
unplug the computer, remove a stick of memory (assuming you have more than one), and run the test
again. Remember, bad memory cannot be repaired, but only replaced.

20.) If the PC has a CD or DVD recorder, check the drive manufacturer's Web site for updated firmware. In
some cases you'll be able to upgrade the recorder to a faster speed. Best of all, it's free.

21.) Disable unnecessary services. Windows XP loads a lot of services that your customer most likely does
not need. To determine which services you can disable for your client, visit the Black Viper site for
Windows XP configurations.

22.) If you're sick of a single Windows Explorer window crashing and then taking the rest of your OS down
with it, then follow this tip: open My Computer, click on Tools, then Folder Options. Now click on the View
tab. Scroll down to "Launch folder windows in a separate process," and enable this option. You'll have to
reboot your machine for this option to take effect.

23.) At least once a year, open the computer's cases and blow out all the dust and debris. While you're in
there, check that all the fans are turning properly. Also inspect the motherboard capacitors for bulging or
leaks. For more information on this leaking-capacitor phenomena, you can read numerous articles on my
site.

Following any of these suggestions should result in noticeable improvements to the performance and
reliability of your customers' computers. If you still want to defrag a disk, remember that the main benefit
will be to make your data more retrievable in the event of a crashed drive.

10 REASONS WHY PCS CRASH U MUST KNOW

Fatal error: the system has become unstable or is busy," it says. "Enter to return to Windows or press
Control-Alt-Delete to restart your computer. If you do this you will lose any unsaved information in all
open applications."You have just been struck by the Blue Screen of Death. Anyone who uses Mcft
Windows will be familiar with this. What can you do? More importantly, how can you prevent it
happening?

1 Hardware conflict

The number one reason why Windows crashes is hardware conflict. Each hardware device communicates
to other devices through an interrupt request channel (IRQ). These are supposed to be unique for each
device. For example, a printer usually connects internally on IRQ 7. The keyboard usually uses IRQ 1 and
the floppy disk drive IRQ 6. Each device will try to hog a single IRQ for itself. If there are a lot of devices, or
if they are not installed properly, two of them may end up sharing the same IRQ number. When the user
tries to use both devices at the same time, a crash can happen. The way to check if your computer has a
hardware conflict is through the following route:

* Start-Settings-Control Panel-System-Device Manager.

Often if a device has a problem a yellow '!' appears next to its description in the Device Manager. Highlight
Computer (in the Device Manager) and press Properties to see the IRQ numbers used by your computer. If
the IRQ number appears twice, two devices may be using it. Sometimes a device might share an IRQ with
something described as 'IRQ holder for PCI steering'. This can be ignored. The best way to fix this problem
is to remove the problem device and reinstall it. Sometimes you may have to find more recent drivers on
the internet to make the device function properly. A good resource is www.driverguide.com. If the device
is a soundcard, or a modem, it can often be fixed by moving it to a different slot on the motherboard (be
careful about opening your computer, as you may void the warranty). When working inside a computer
you should switch it off, unplug the mains lead and touch an unpainted metal surface to discharge any
static electricity. To be fair to Mcft, the problem with IRQ numbers is not of its making. It is a legacy
problem going back to the first PC designs using the IBM 8086 chip. Initially there were only eight IRQs.
Today there are 16 IRQs in a PC. It is easy to run out of them. There are plans to increase the number of
IRQs in future designs.

2 Bad Ram

Ram (random-access memory) problems might bring on the blue screen of death with a message saying
Fatal Exception Error. A fatal error indicates a serious hardware problem. Sometimes it may mean a part is
damaged and will need replacing. But a fatal error caused by Ram might be caused by a mismatch of chips.
For example, mixing 70-nanosecond (70ns) Ram with 60ns Ram will usually force the computer to run all
the Ram at the slower speed. This will often crash the machine if the Ram is overworked. One way around
this problem is to enter the BIOS settings and increase the wait state of the Ram. This can make it more
stable. Another way to troubleshoot a suspected Ram problem is to rearrange the Ram chips on the
motherboard, or take some of them out. Then try to repeat the circumstances that caused the crash.
When handling Ram try not to touch the gold connections, as they can be easily damaged. Parity error
messages also refer to Ram. Modern Ram chips are either parity (ECC) or non parity (non-ECC). It is best
not to mix the two types, as this can be a cause of trouble. EMM386 error messages refer to memory
problems but may not be connected to bad Ram. This may be due to free memory problems often linked
to old Dos-based programmes.

3 BIOS settings

Every motherboard is supplied with a range of chipset settings that are decided in the factory. A common
way to access these settings is to press the F2 or delete button during the first few seconds of a boot-up.
Once inside the BIOS, great care should be taken. It is a good idea to write down on a piece of paper all the
settings that appear on the screen. That way, if you change something and the computer becomes more
unstable, you will know what settings to revert to. A common BIOS error concerns the CAS latency. This
refers to the Ram. Older EDO (extended data out) Ram has a CAS latency of 3. Newer SDRam has a CAS
latency of 2. Setting the wrong figure can cause the Ram to lock up and freeze the computer's display. Mcft
Windows is better at allocating IRQ numbers than any BIOS. If possible set the IRQ numbers to Auto in the
BIOS. This will allow Windows to allocate the IRQ numbers (make sure the BIOS setting for Plug and Play
OS is switched to 'yes' to allow Windows to do this.).

4 Hard disk drives

After a few weeks, the information on a hard disk drive starts to become piecemeal or fragmented. It is a
good idea to defragment the hard disk every week or so, to prevent the disk from causing a screen freeze.
Go to

* Start-Programs-Accessories-System Tools-Disk Defragmenter

This will start the procedure. You will be unable to write data to the hard drive (to save it) while the disk is
defragmenting, so it is a good idea to schedule the procedure for a period of inactivity using the Task
Scheduler. The Task Scheduler should be one of the small icons on the bottom right of the Windows
opening page (the desktop). Some lockups and screen freezes caused by hard disk problems can be solved
by reducing the read-ahead optimisation. This can be adjusted by going to

* Start-Settings-Control Panel-System Icon-Performance-File System-Hard Disk.

Hard disks will slow down and crash if they are too full. Do some housekeeping on your hard drive every
few months and free some space on it. Open the Windows folder on the C drive and find the Temporary
Internet Files folder. Deleting the contents (not the folder) can free a lot of space. Empty the Recycle Bin
every week to free more space. Hard disk drives should be scanned every week for errors or bad sectors.
Go to

* Start-Programs-Accessories-System Tools-ScanDisk

Otherwise assign the Task Scheduler to perform this operation at night when the computer is not in use.

5 Fatal OE exceptions and VXD errors

Fatal OE exception errors and VXD errors are often caused by video card problems. These can often be
resolved easily by reducing the resolution of the video display. Go to

* Start-Settings-Control Panel-Display-Settings

Here you should slide the screen area bar to the left. Take a look at the colour settings on the left of that
window. For most desktops, high colour 16-bit depth is adequate. If the screen freezes or you experience
system lockups it might be due to the video card. Make sure it does not have a hardware conflict. Go to

* Start-Settings-Control Panel-System-Device Manager

Here, select the + beside Display Adapter. A line of text describing your video card should appear. Select it
(make it blue) and press properties. Then select Resources and select each line in the window. Look for a
message that says No Conflicts. If you have video card hardware conflict, you will see it here. Be careful at
this point and make a note of everything you do in case you make things worse. The way to resolve a
hardware conflict is to uncheck the Use Automatic Settings box and hit the Change Settings button. You are
searching for a setting that will display a No Conflicts message. Another useful way to resolve video
problems is to go to

* Start-Settings-Control Panel-System-Performance-Graphics
Here you should move the Hardware Acceleration slider to the left. As ever, the most common cause of
problems relating to graphics cards is old or faulty drivers (a driver is a small piece of software used by a
computer to communicate with a device). Look up your video card's manufacturer on the internet and
search for the most recent drivers for it.

6 Viruses

Often the first sign of a virus infection is instability. Some viruses erase the boot sector of a hard drive,
making it impossible to start. This is why it is a good idea to create a Windows start-up disk. Go to

* Start-Settings-Control Panel-Add/Remove Programs

Here, look for the Start Up Disk tab. Virus protection requires constant vigilance. A virus scanner requires a
list of virus signatures in order to be able to identify viruses. These signatures are stored in a DAT file. DAT
files should be updated weekly from the website of your antivirus software manufacturer. An excellent
antivirus programme is McAfee VirusScan by Network Associates ( www.nai.com). Another is Norton
AntiVirus 2000, made by Symantec ( www.symantec.com).

7 Printers

The action of sending a document to print creates a bigger file, often called a postscript file. Printers have
only a small amount of memory, called a buffer. This can be easily overloaded. Printing a document also
uses a considerable amount of CPU power. This will also slow down the computer's performance. If the
printer is trying to print unusual characters, these might not be recognised, and can crash the computer.
Sometimes printers will not recover from a crash because of confusion in the buffer. A good way to clear
the buffer is to unplug the printer for ten seconds. Booting up from a powerless state, also called a cold
boot, will restore the printer's default settings and you may be able to carry on.

8 Software

A common cause of computer crash is faulty or badly-installed software. Often the problem can be cured
by uninstalling the software and then reinstalling it. Use Norton Uninstall or Uninstall Shield to remove an
application from your system properly. This will also remove references to the programme in the System
Registry and leaves the way clear for a completely fresh copy. The System Registry can be corrupted by old
references to obsolete software that you thought was uninstalled. Use Reg Cleaner by Jouni Vuorio to
clean up the System Registry and remove obsolete entries. It works on Windows 95, Windows 98,
Windows 98 SE (Second Edition), Windows Millennium Edition (ME), NT4 and Windows 2000. Read the
instructions and use it carefully so you don't do permanent damage to the Registry. If the Registry is
damaged you will have to reinstall your operating system. Reg Cleaner can be obtained from www.jv16.org

Often a Windows problem can be resolved by entering Safe Mode. This can be done during start-up. When
you see the message "Starting Windows" press F4. This should take you into Safe Mode. Safe Mode loads a
minimum of drivers. It allows you to find and fix problems that prevent Windows from loading properly.
Sometimes installing Windows is difficult because of unsuitable BIOS settings. If you keep getting SUWIN
error messages (Windows setup) during the Windows installation, then try entering the BIOS and disabling
the CPU internal cache. Try to disable the Level 2 (L2) cache if that doesn't work. Remember to restore all
the BIOS settings back to their former settings following installation.

9 Overheating
Central processing units (CPUs) are usually equipped with fans to keep them cool. If the fan fails or if the
CPU gets old it may start to overheat and generate a particular kind of error called a kernel error. This is a
common problem in chips that have been overclocked to operate at higher speeds than they are supposed
to. One remedy is to get a bigger better fan and install it on top of the CPU. Specialist cooling
fans/heatsinks are available from www.computernerd.com or www.coolit.com CPU problems can often be
fixed by disabling the CPU internal cache in the BIOS. This will make the machine run more slowly, but it
should also be more stable.

10 Power supply problems

With all the new construction going on around the country the steady supply of electricity has become
disrupted. A power surge or spike can crash a computer as easily as a power cut. If this has become a
nuisance for you then consider buying a uninterrupted power supply (UPS). This will give you a clean
power supply when there is electricity, and it will give you a few minutes to perform a controlled
shutdown in case of a power cut. It is a good investment if your data are critical, because a power cut will
cause any unsaved data to be lost.

BEST KEYBOARD SHORT CUTS

Windows key + R = Run menu

This is usually followed by:

cmd = Command Prompt

iexplore + "web address" = Internet Explorer

compmgmt.msc = Computer Management

dhcpmgmt.msc = DHCP Management

dnsmgmt.msc = DNS Management

services.msc = Services

eventvwr = Event Viewer

dsa.msc = Active Directory Users and Computers

dssite.msc = Active Directory Sites and Services

Windows key + E = Explorer

ALT + Tab = Switch between windows

ALT, Space, X = Maximize window

CTRL + Shift + Esc = Task Manager

Windows key + Break = System properties

Windows key + F = Search

Windows key + D = Hide/Display all windows

CTRL + C = copy

CTRL + X = cut

CTRL + V = paste

Also don't forget about the "Right-click" key next to the right Windows key on your keyboard. Using the
arrows and that key can get just about anything done once you've opened up any program.

Keyboard Shortcuts

[Alt] and [Esc] Switch between running applications

[Alt] and letter Select menu item by underlined letter

[Ctrl] and [Esc] Open Program Menu

[Ctrl] and [F4] Close active document or group windows (does not work with some applications)

[Alt] and [F4] Quit active application or close current window

[Alt] and [-] Open Control menu for active document

Ctrl] Lft., Rt. arrow Move cursor forward or back one word

Ctrl] Up, Down arrow Move cursor forward or back one paragraph

[F1] Open Help for active application

Windows+M Minimize all open windows

Shift+Windows+M Undo minimize all open windows

Windows+F1 Open Windows Help

Windows+Tab Cycle through the Taskbar buttons

Windows+Break Open the System Properties dialog box

acessability shortcuts

Right SHIFT for eight seconds........ Switch FilterKeys on and off.

Left ALT +left SHIFT +PRINT SCREEN....... Switch High Contrast on and off.

Left ALT +left SHIFT +NUM LOCK....... Switch MouseKeys on and off.

SHIFT....... five times Switch StickyKeys on and off.

NUM LOCK...... for five seconds Switch ToggleKeys on and off.

explorer shortcuts

END....... Display the bottom of the active window.

HOME....... Display the top of the active window.

NUM LOCK+ASTERISK....... on numeric keypad (*) Display all subfolders under the selected folder.
NUM LOCK+PLUS SIGN....... on numeric keypad (+) Display the contents of the selected folder.

NUM LOCK+MINUS SIGN....... on numeric keypad (-) Collapse the selected folder.

LEFT ARROW...... Collapse current selection if it's expanded, or select parent folder.

RIGHT ARROW....... Display current selection if it's collapsed, or select first subfolder.

Type the following commands in your Run Box (Windows Key + R) or Start Run

devmgmt.msc = Device Manager

msinfo32 = System Information

cleanmgr = Disk Cleanup

ntbackup = Backup or Restore Wizard (Windows Backup Utility)

mmc = Microsoft Management Console

excel = Microsoft Excel (If Installed)

msaccess = Microsoft Access (If Installed)

powerpnt = Microsoft PowerPoint (If Installed)

winword = Microsoft Word (If Installed)

frontpg = Microsoft FrontPage (If Installed)

notepad = Notepad

wordpad = WordPad

calc = Calculator

msmsgs = Windows Messenger

mspaint = Microsoft Paint

wmplayer = Windows Media Player

rstrui = System Restore

netscp6 = Netscape 6.x

netscp = Netscape 7.x

netscape = Netscape 4.x

waol = America Online

control = Opens the Control Panel

control printers = Opens the Printers Dialog

internetbrowser

type in u're adress "google", then press [Right CTRL] and [Enter]
add www. and .com to word and go to it

For Windows XP:

Copy. CTRL+C

Cut. CTRL+X

Paste. CTRL+V

Undo. CTRL+Z

Delete. DELETE

Delete selected item permanently without placing the item in the Recycle Bin. SHIFT+DELETE

Copy selected item. CTRL while dragging an item

Create shortcut to selected item. CTRL+SHIFT while dragging an item

Rename selected item. F2

Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next word. CTRL+RIGHT ARROW

Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous word. CTRL+LEFT ARROW

Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next paragraph. CTRL+DOWN ARROW

Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous paragraph. CTRL+UP ARROW

Highlight a block of text. CTRL+SHIFT with any of the arrow keys

Select more than one item in a window or on the desktop, or select text within a document. SHIFT with
any of the arrow keys

Select all. CTRL+A

Search for a file or folder. F3

View properties for the selected item. ALT+ENTER

Close the active item, or quit the active program. ALT+F4

Opens the shortcut menu for the active window. ALT+SPACEBAR

Close the active document in programs that allow you to have multiple documents open simultaneously.
CTRL+F4

Switch between open items. ALT+TAB

Cycle through items in the order they were opened. ALT+ESC

Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop. F6

Display the Address bar list in My Computer or Windows Explorer. F4

Display the shortcut menu for the selected item. SHIFT+F10

Display the System menu for the active window. ALT+SPACEBAR

Display the Start menu. CTRL+ESC

Display the corresponding menu. ALT+Underlined letter in a menu name

Carry out the corresponding command. Underlined letter in a command name on an open menu

Activate the menu bar in the active program. F10

Open the next menu to the right, or open a submenu. RIGHT ARROW

Open the next menu to the left, or close a submenu. LEFT ARROW

Refresh the active window. F5

View the folder one level up in My Computer or Windows Explorer. BACKSPACE

Cancel the current task. ESC

SHIFT when you insert a CD into the CD-ROM drive Prevent the CD from automatically playing.

Use these keyboard shortcuts for dialog boxes:

To Press

Move forward through tabs. CTRL+TAB

Move backward through tabs. CTRL+SHIFT+TAB

Move forward through options. TAB

Move backward through options. SHIFT+TAB

Carry out the corresponding command or select the corresponding option. ALT+Underlined letter

Carry out the command for the active option or button. ENTER

Select or clear the check box if the active option is a check box. SPACEBAR

Select a button if the active option is a group of option buttons. Arrow keys

Display Help. F1

Display the items in the active list. F4

Open a folder one level up if a folder is selected in the Save As or Open dialog box. BACKSPACE

If you have a Microsoft Natural Keyboard, or any other compatible keyboard that includes the Windows
logo key and the Application key , you can use these keyboard shortcuts:

Display or hide the Start menu. WIN Key

Display the System Properties dialog box. WIN Key+BREAK

Show the desktop. WIN Key+D

Minimize all windows. WIN Key+M

Restores minimized windows. WIN Key+Shift+M

Open My Computer. WIN Key+E

Search for a file or folder. WIN Key+F

Search for computers. CTRL+WIN Key+F

Display Windows Help. WIN Key+F1

Lock your computer if you are connected to a network domain, or switch users if you are not connected to
a network domain. WIN Key+ L

Open the Run dialog box. WIN Key+R

Open Utility Manager. WIN Key+U

accessibility keyboard shortcuts:

Switch FilterKeys on and off. Right SHIFT for eight seconds

Switch High Contrast on and off. Left ALT+left SHIFT+PRINT SCREEN

Switch MouseKeys on and off. Left ALT +left SHIFT +NUM LOCK

Switch StickyKeys on and off. SHIFT five times

Switch ToggleKeys on and off. NUM LOCK for five seconds

Open Utility Manager. WIN Key+U

shortcuts you can use with Windows Explorer:

Display the bottom of the active window. END

Display the top of the active window. HOME

Display all subfolders under the selected folder. NUM LOCK+ASTERISK on numeric keypad (*)

Display the contents of the selected folder. NUM LOCK+PLUS SIGN on numeric keypad (+)

Collapse the selected folder. NUM LOCK+MINUS SIGN on numeric keypad (-)

Collapse current selection if it's expanded, or select parent folder. LEFT ARROW

Display current selection if it's collapsed, or select first subfolder. RIGHT ARROW

BOOT WINXP FAST

Follow the following steps

1. Open notepad.exe, type "del c:\windows\prefetch\ntosboot-*.* /q" (without the quotes) & save as
"ntosboot.bat" in c:\
2. From the Start menu, select "Run..." & type "gpedit.msc".

3. Double click "Windows Settings" under "Computer Configuration" and double click again on "Shutdown"
in the right window.

4. In the new window, click "add", "Browse", locate your "ntosboot.bat" file & click "Open".

5. Click "OK", "Apply" & "OK" once again to exit.

6. From the Start menu, select "Run..." & type "devmgmt.msc".

7. Double click on "IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers"

8. Right click on "Primary IDE Channel" and select "Properties".

9. Select the "Advanced Settings" tab then on the device or 1 that doesn't have 'device type' greyed out
select 'none' instead of 'autodetect' & click "OK".

10. Right click on "Secondary IDE channel", select "Properties" and repeat step 9.

11. Reboot your computer.

BACKTRACKING EMAIL MESSAGES

Ask most people how they determine who sent them an email message and the response is almost
universally, "By the From line." Unfortunately this symptomatic of the current confusion among internet
users as to where particular messages come from and who is spreading spam and viruses. The "From"
header is little more than a courtesy to the person receiving the message. People spreading spam and
viruses are rarely courteous. In short, if there is any question about where a particular email message
came from the safe bet is to assume the "From" header is forged. So how do you determine where a
message actually came from? You have to understand how email messages are put together in order to
backtrack an email message. SMTP is a text based protocol for transferring messages across the internet. A
series of headers are placed in front of the data portion of the message. By examining the headers you can
usually backtrack a message to the source network, sometimes the source host. A more detailed essay on
reading email headers can be found . If you are using Outlook or Outlook Express you can view the headers
by right clicking on the message and selecting properties or options. Below are listed the headers of an
actual spam message I received. I've changed my email address and the name of my server for obvious
reasons. I've also double spaced the headers to make them more readable.

Return-Path: <[email protected]>

X-Original-To: [email protected]

Delivered-To: [email protected]

Received: from 12-218-172-108.client.mchsi.com (12-218-172-108.client.mchsi.com [12.218.172.108])

by mailhost.example.com (Postfix) with SMTP id 1F9B8511C7

for <[email protected]>; Sun, 16 Nov 2003 09:50:37 -0800 (PST)

Received: from (HELO 0udjou) [193.12.169.0] by 12-218-172-108.client.mchsi.com with ESMTP id
<536806-74276>; Sun, 16 Nov 2003 19:42:31 +0200

Message-ID: <[email protected]>

From: "Maricela Paulson" <[email protected]>

Reply-To: "Maricela Paulson" <[email protected]>

To: [email protected]

Subject: STOP-PAYING For Your PAY-PER-VIEW, Movie Channels, Mature Channels...isha

Date: Sun, 16 Nov 2003 19:42:31 +0200

X-Mailer: Internet Mail Service (5.5.2650.21)

X-Priority: 3

MIME-Version: 1.0

Content-Type: multipart/alternative;
boundary="MIMEStream=_0+211404_90873633350646_4032088448"

According to the From header this message is from Maricela Paulson at [email protected]. I could
just fire off a message to [email protected], but that would be waste of time. This message didn't come
from yahoo's email service. The header most likely to be useful in determining the actual source of an
email message is the Received header. According to the top-most Received header this message was
received from the host 12-218-172-108.client.mchsi.com with the ip address of 21.218.172.108 by my
server mailhost.example.com. An important item to consider is at what point in the chain does the email
system become untrusted? I consider anything beyond my own email server to be an unreliable source of
information. Because this header was generated by my email server it is reasonable for me to accept it at
face value. The next Received header (which is chronologically the first) shows the remote email server
accepting the message from the host 0udjou with the ip 193.12.169.0. Those of you who know anything
about IP will realize that that is not a valid host IP address. In addition, any hostname that ends in
client.mchsi.com is unlikely to be an authorized email server. This has every sign of being a cracked client
system. Here's is where we start digging. By default Windows is somewhat lacking in network diagnostic
tools; however, you can use the tools at to do your own checking.

davar@nqh9k:[/home/davar] $whois 12.218.172.108

AT&T WorldNet Services ATT (NET-12-0-0-0-1)

12.0.0.0 - 12.255.255.255

Mediacom Communications Corp MEDIACOMCC-12-218-168-0-FLANDREAU-MN (NET-12-218-168-0-1)

12.218.168.0 - 12.218.175.255

# ARIN WHOIS database, last updated 2003-12-31 19:15

# Enter ? for additional hints on searching ARIN's WHOIS database.

I can also verify the hostname of the remote server by using nslookup, although in this particular instance,
my email server has already provided both the IP address and the hostname.
davar@nqh9k:[/home/davar] $nslookup 12.218.172.108

Server: localhost

Address: 127.0.0.1

Name: 12-218-172-108.client.mchsi.com

Address: 12.218.172.108

Ok, whois shows that Mediacom Communications owns that netblock and nslookup confirms the address
to hostname mapping of the remote server,12-218-172-108.client.mchsi.com. If I preface a www in front
of the domain name portion and plug that into my web browser, http://www.mchsi.com, I get Mediacom's
web site. There are few things more embarrassing to me than firing off an angry message to someone who
is supposedly responsible for a problem, and being wrong. By double checking who owns the remote
host's IP address using two different tools (whois and nslookup) I minimize the chance of making myself
look like an idiot. A quick glance at the web site and it appears they are an ISP. Now if I copy the entire
message including the headers into a new email message and send it to [email protected] with a short
message explaining the situation, they may do something about it. But what about Maricela Paulson?
There really is no way to determine who sent a message, the best you can hope for is to find out what host
sent it. Even in the case of a PGP signed messages there is no guarantee that one particular person actually
pressed the send button. Obviously determining who the actual sender of an email message is much more
involved than reading the From header. Hopefully this example may be of some use to other forum
regulars.

BECAUSE OF THE SECURITY FEATURES BUILT INTO WINDOWS XP, IT IS VIRTUALLY IMPOSSIBLE TO GET
BACK INTO THE SYSTEM WITHOUT THE PASSWORD.

You have several options to try and get around this problem.

If you have access to another user account with administrator rights, you can use that account to change
the password of the account that is locked out. You can also use the default Administrator account that is
built into Windows XP. First you need to boot the system into Safe Mode.

1.Restart your system.

2.When you see the blue Dell globe or screen, press the ( F8 ) key about 3 times a second.

3.You should get the Windows startup menu. Use the (Up or Down) arrow keys to highlight (SafeMode)

4.Press (Enter) on (Safe Mode), then press (Enter) on (Windows XP).

5.The system should boot to Safe Mode.

Once you are at the Account Log on Screen, click on the icon for the user account with administrator
rights, or click on the icon for the administrators account. Note: For Home the Administrator account isn't
normally shown & in Safe Mode you have to press Ctrl+Alt+Delete keys twice to show. For PRO you can do
this in normal mode When the system has booted to the desktop, use the following steps to change the
accounts password.

1.Click Start, Control Panel, Administrative Tools.

2.Click Computer Management.

3.Double click Local Users and Groups, double click the folder Users.

4.Right click on the account name that is locked out, and click on Set Password.

5.You may get a warning message about changing the password, simply click proceed.

6.Leave the New Password box blank, also leave the Confirm Password box blank.

7.Click OK, and OK again.

8.Then close all Windows, reboot the system and try to log in.

There are also applications that can recover the password for you. The following companies provide these
applications at a cost. iOpus® Password Recovery XP here. LostPassword.com, here. Asterisk Password
Recovery XP v1.89 here. Windows XP / 2000 / NT Key here. If the above information does not help in
recovering the password, the only option left is to format the hard drive then reinstall Windows and the
system software.