Windows Tips

My previous post on free alternatives to Windows' built-in utilities confused the Windows Firewall with Windows Defender, which protects against viruses. (My thanks to the folks who pointed out the error.)

The fact is, I stopped paying attention to both programs a long time ago. First, I decided security is too important to leave up to Microsoft. Second, I can do without the hassle of managing separate applications for various security tasks. To me, the time I recover repays the cost of a security suite many times over.

So what's wrong with the Windows Firewall? It doesn't monitor … Read more

I wouldn't give you a nickel for all the system tools that come with Windows. That's because I can replace them with programs that do the job better without spending even that much.

Start with the firewall, which most people would consider an indispensable piece of software. Windows Defender's firewall is better than none at all, but not by much. Of the free alternatives, my favorite is the Comodo Firewall Pro. I described why and how I switched from ZoneAlarm to Comodo in a post from last February.

Since that time, I replaced the Comodo firewall and … Read more

Exactly one year ago in this very blog, I promised to describe how to use commands to manage Windows. The earlier post linked to a comprehensive list of system commands on Microsoft's TechNet site.

The problem with the TechNet list is that it's a little too comprehensive. It's easy to lose the very useful ping, ipconfig, and tracert commands among the dozens of obscurities, such as atmadm, nbtstat, and unlodctr. You'll find a much more accessible list at Victor Laurie's site, which includes a page describing commands for renaming, deleting, backing up, and otherwise managing … Read more

Sometimes I wonder how Microsoft gets away with it. I mean, you start your PC and every program that loads with Windows tries to be first in line for your precious processing cycles.

So that little specialty utility you use about once a month is wresting resources away from the programs that really need to start right away, such as your antivirus app. You'd think the company that makes the OS would let you set the order of your auto-start programs.

Last April, I wrote about Vista's Software Explorer, which provides more information than the System Configuration utility (… Read more

You probably know that when you delete a file, you're not really removing the information from your storage device. Instead, you're designating the space taken up by the file as available for storing new data, should it be needed.

A properly motivated person can recover the deleted information. In fact, data recovery tools such as the free Recuva exist for this very purpose. To keep prying eyes from perusing your deleted data, you need to write over the digital bits that comprise the file. That's where secure-erase utilities come in.

(By the way, the process of recovering … Read more

Three years ago, I attempted to condense PC security into 10 steps you could finish in about an hour. After a recent false-positive on a virus scan, I returned to that advice and realized that those tips are sorely out of date.

I'll re-examine the first three tips here and will cover the rest in posts later this week.

Step one: Set Windows to download and install updates automatically.

I don't do that anymore. Windows updates often cause problems, so I set Windows to download but not install updates. Then I wait a couple of days before actually … Read more

The other day, I counted up the windows that were open on my PC: two browsers, an HTML editor, an image editor, two folder windows, nine received e-mails, and one outgoing message. I was lost on my own desktop.

That's when I remembered my favorite window managers for XP and Vista: Alt-Tab Thingy and Switcher, respectively. Both programs put Windows' built-in window manager to shame.

In XP, you can right-click the taskbar to cascade your open windows or tile them horizontally or vertically. Pressing Alt-Tab opens another window showing icons representing your active windows. (Vista replaces the icons with … Read more

What's the fastest way to shut down Windows?

With a mouse, it takes at least two clicks, plus the time required for the various menus to appear.

With a keyboard, you can shut down Windows XP by pressing the Windows key (or Ctrl-Esc) and typing U twice. In Vista, the shutdown keyboard sequence is Windows key, right arrow three times, Enter.

By default, Vista goes into sleep mode when you press the Windows key, then the right arrow, and then Enter to activate the Start menu's power button. You can change this behavior--letting you shut down with two … Read more

I approach the Windows Registry the same way I approach my dentist's office. I enter both places only when necessary.

Sometimes, the fastest, most efficient way to make your PC more usable is to venture into the belly of the Windows beast via the Registry Editor. Before you make any Registry changes, create a backup by setting a restore point via System Restore.

Put the brakes on stalled apps Programs crash: it's a simple fact of PC life. But you don't have to wait for Windows to spin its wheels while it waits for the stuck process … Read more