Windows 7 PC

Hide updates in Windows 7

2009-08-07T04:31:00.000-07:00

When updates are available for Windows 7 and you do not want Windows 7 to notify then you may hide the update(s). Perform the following steps to hide update(s) in Windows 7:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on System and Security and then click Windows Update. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Windows Update.
3. Click on the Important updates link or the Optional updates link to hide the update. The following figure shows this.
4. To hide a single update, right-click on an update and click Hide update. You can also hide multiple updates at once.

You can either make a continuos selection by clicking the first update, having the Shift key in pressed state, and then clicking the last update. Once the updates are highlighted, right-click on any update and click Hide updates.
You can also make a non-continuos selection by clicking the first update, holding the Ctrl key and clicking the updates that needs to be hidden. Once the selection is done, right-click on any update and click Hide updates.

(If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
5. Click OK.

Rename Recycle Bin in Windows 7

2009-08-07T04:08:00.001-07:00

You will see the name for the recycle bin as Recycle Bin in Windows 7. If you need to change the name to Trash Can or to a name of your need, you can do it easily. Perform the following to rename the Recycle Bin.
Right-click Recycle Bin and click on Rename. Name it accordingly and then press the Enter key from the keyboard.

Turn on the guest account in Windows 7

2009-08-07T04:06:00.000-07:00

To have someone temporary access to your computer, you have to turn on the guest account. People using the guest account can't install software or hardware, change settings, or create a password. Perform the following to turn on the guest account:
1. Click Start button , click Control Panel.
2. Click User Accounts and Family Safety if the View by: is Category and then click on User Accounts or click on User Accounts if the View by: is Small icons or Large icons.

3. Click Manage another account (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
4. Click Guest and then click on Turn on.
Now, the guest account is turned on.

How to enable or disable tabbed browsing in Internet Explorer 8?

2009-08-07T04:04:00.000-07:00

Tabbed browsing is a feature in Internet Explorer 8 that helps you to open links or websites in a single browser window. You do this by opening webpages in new tabs. The primary use of tabbed browsing is to reduce the number of Internet Explorer windows on the taskbar. You can enable the tabbed browsing feature or if you feel that one webpage in a single browser window satisfies your needs then you may disable tabbed browsing feature. Perform the following steps to enable or disable tabbed browsing in Internet Explorer 8:
1. Open Internet Explorer.
2. Press Alt + T + O to open Internet Options dialog box.
You may also click or and then click Internet Options.
3. Click General tab. In the Tabs section, click Settings button to open Tabbed Browsing Settings dialog box.
4. Do one of the following:
To enable tabbed browsing : Click to place the checkmark beside Enable Tabbed Browsing (requires restarting Internet Explorer).

To disable tabbed browsing : Click to remove the checkmark beside Enable Tabbed Browsing (requires restarting Internet Explorer).

5. Click OK to close Tabbed Browsing Settings dialog box.
6. Click OK again to close Internet Options dialog box.
7. Restart Internet Explorer for the changes to take effect.

Start menu appears big plus the text and icons on the screen appears large. How to make it normal in Windows 7?

2009-08-07T02:15:00.000-07:00

In Windows 7, if the items on the Start menu plus the items on the screen like the icons, text appear large then you may check whether the screen resolution is adjusted to a lower value. Once you adjust the screen resolution to an optimum level and still if you see the items appear large then you may check whether the value in the Make it easier to read what's on your screen section has a value of Medium or Larger. If so, then set the value to Smaller. If this settings does not work then consider installing the display driver. We will perform the steps as discussed in this section.

Adjusting the screen resoultion
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Display. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Display.
3. From the left pane, click Adjust resolution.
4. Click the Resolution: dropdown box and drag the slider towards high to an optimum level.
5. Click OK.

Adjusting the size of the text and other items on the screen
If the screen resolution setting did not help you to reduce the size of the text and other items on the screen then you may try adjusting the settings in the Make it easier to read what's on your screen section. For your information, the possible values included here are Smaller, Medium, and Larger. Making a value selection will only affect the setting to the text size and the items on the screen and will not change the screen resolution. Perform the following steps to adjust the size of the text and other items on the screen.
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Display. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Display.
3. In the Make it easier to read what's on your screen screen, select Smaller - 100% (default) and then click Apply.
4. You have to log off in order to apply the changes. Click Log off now button.

Try logging to see if the text and other items on the screen appear normal. If not, install the display driver.

Compressed (Zipped) Folders Error - cannot be compressed because it includes characters that cannot be used in a compressed folder, such

2009-08-06T23:13:00.000-07:00

When you try to zip a folder by right-clicking the folder, hovering the mouse over Send to and clicking Compressed (zipped) folder, you may receive the following error " cannot be compressed because it includes characters that cannot be used in a compressed folder, such as ©. You should rename this file or directory", where is the name of the folder that you are trying to compress. The will have a full path. For example, "F:\Users\Public\Documents\New Folder\Copyright © cannot be compressed because it includes characters that cannot be used in a compressed folder, such as ©. You should rename this file or directory."
The reason for this error message to appear is the © character present either in the parent folder or within the files or folders inside the parent folder. Removing the © character from the file or folder name resolves the issue. Once it is done, you will be able to compress the folder.
From the picture in the right, there is a file named File Copyright © and a folder named Copyright © which are present inside the New folder. When you compress New folder, you may receive the error message 'F:\Users\Public\Documents\New Folder\Copyright ©' cannot be compressed because it includes characters that cannot be used in a compressed folder, such as ©. You should rename this file or directory. In this case, you have to rename both the file and folder.

Maximize windows on the desktop using Snap in Windows 7

2009-08-04T09:17:00.000-07:00

While there are many ways to maximize a window, Microsoft had added few to its already existing list. Snap, a new feature in Windows 7 helps you to maximize, minimize, arrange the window to the top or left portion on the desktop. To maximize a window using Snap, click and drag the mouse cursor to the top most part of the screen and release the mouse button when you see a graphic displaying the outline of the expanded window.
You may also perform the same by pressing the Windows Logo key + Up arrow key.

Other ways to maximize a window:
Double-click on the title bar of the window.
Click on the center button from the right part of the title bar in a window.
Press the Shift key and right-click on the program icon from the taskbar and click Maximize.
Press Alt + Spacebar + X keys from the keyboard.

Know the user account type in Windows 7

2009-08-04T09:16:00.001-07:00

If multiple user accounts are present on your computer and you want to know the user account type (i.e., whether Standard user or Administrator). Perform the following steps to know the user account type:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on User Accounts and Family Safety and then click User Accounts. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on User Accounts.
3. Click Manage another account (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
4. Under the user account name, you will see the user account type.

Change the number of lines to scroll for each notch of mouse wheel movement in Windows 7

2009-08-04T09:14:00.001-07:00

You can regulate the speed of the scroll for each notch of mouse wheel movement as by default, the next three lines are displayed. You can adjust this and set a new value. Perform the following steps to do so:
Ctrl key from the keyboard. Perform the following steps to do so:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Hardware and Sound. Under Devices and Printers, click Mouse. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Mouse.
3. Click the Wheel tab. In the Vertical Scrolling section, click the Up arrow to increase the number of lines or click the Down arrow to decrease the number of lines to change the number of lines to scroll for each notch of mouse wheel movement.
You may also a value directly in the number box.
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Create a desktop background slide show in Windows 7

2009-08-04T09:11:00.000-07:00

For users who change the desktop wallpaper often, Windows 7 introduces a cool feature that performs slide show of the pictures. You have the option of using the pictures that are provided as part of a theme in Windows or you may use your own pictures to create the desktop slide show. To create a desktop background slideshow, perform the following steps:
1. Click Start button , in the Search programs and files box, type desktop background. Click Change desktop background.
Step 1 can also be performed by right-clicking on an empty place on the desktop, clicking Personalize and then clicking Desktop Background.
2. In the Choose your desktop background window, you may choose the pictures that Windows provides or you may choose your own pictures.
To select the pictures that Windows provides, click the Picture location: list
To select your own pictures, click Browse button and select the folder that contains your desktop background pictures.
3. By default all pictures are selected. You may uncheck to remove the pictures from the slide show.
4. You may customize further by:
Changing the picture position - Click the Picture position: list. You have the following options:
Fill, Fit, Stretch, Tile, Center
Changing the time for the next picture to appear as the desktop wallpaper - Click the Change picture every: list and choose the time value.
Make random selection of pictures - Click to place a checkmark beside Shuffle to have the pictures appear in a random order.
5. Click Save changes.

Start Windows Media Center automatically when you turn on your computer

2009-08-04T08:53:00.001-07:00

If you are planning to setup your computer as an entertainment hub then you may consider setting up Windows Media Center to automatically start as soon as the boot process gets complete. Perform the following steps to start Windows Media Center automatically when you start your Windows 7 based computer:
1. Open Windows Media Center by clicking the Start button , clicking All Programs and then clicking Windows Media Center. You may also open Windows Media Center by clicking Start button , typing Windows Media Center in the Search programs and files box and then clicking Windows Media Center from the Programs list.
2. From the Windows Media Center start screen, scroll and click Tasks and then click Settings.
3. Click General and then click Startup and Window Behavior.
4. From the STARTUP AND WINDOW BEHAVIOR screen, click to place a checkmark beside Start Windows Media Center when Windows starts and then click Save.

Know the version of Windows Media Center in Windows 7

2009-08-04T08:32:00.001-07:00

You may perform the following steps to know the version of Media Center in Windows 7:
1. Open Windows Media Center by clicking the Start button , clicking All Programs and then clicking Windows Media Center. You may also open Windows Media Center by clicking Start button , typing Windows Media Center in the Search programs and files and then clicking Windows Media Center from the Programs list.
2. From the Windows Media Center start screen, scroll and click Tasks and then click Settings.
3. Click General and then click About Windows Media Center.
4. Click Software Version to view the version of Windows Media Center in Windows 7.

Windows 7 Upgrade Paths

2009-07-31T10:42:00.000-07:00

If you are upgrading your current version of Microsoft Windows to Windows 7 then make sure that you are not using the following versions of Microsoft Windows as they may not be upgraded to Windows 7.
Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows Millennium, Windows XP, Windows Vista RTM, Windows 7 Starter, Windows 7 M3, Windows 7 Beta, Windows 7 RC or Windows 7 IDS.
Windows NT Server 4.0, Windows 2000 Server, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, or Windows Server 2008 R2.

The following are the supported upgrade paths:You may also view more information regarding the Cross-architecture in-place upgrades , Cross-language in-place upgrades , Cross-SKU upgrades , Cross-build type in-place upgrades, and more. To view this information, download the Microsoft Word document from the Microsoft Download Center. The download is titled as Windows 7 Upgrade Paths.
You may also click on the following link to go to the Microsoft Download Center to download the Windows 7 Upgrade Paths Word document.
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?displaylang=en&FamilyID=e170eba1-5bab-401f-bbf5-00f0ee7fe0fb#tm

Move the Stop and Refresh buttons in Internet Explorer 8

2009-07-11T04:54:00.000-07:00

In Internet Explorer 8, the Stop and Refresh buttons appear after the Address bar as shown in the figure below. You can adjust this setting and have Stop and Refresh buttons appear before the Address bar.
To move the Stop and Refresh buttons before Address bar, perform the following:
Right-click on the Command Bar and hover the mouse over Customize and click Show Stop and Refresh Buttons before Address Bar.

If you do not see the Command Bar then press Alt + V + T + C keys.

Minimize all open windows to view the desktop in Windows 7

2009-07-11T04:31:00.000-07:00

It will be tiring to minimize each and every open window to view the desktop. There are few ways (say a mouse click or a few key strokes to hit) to view the desktop.

Minimize all open windows using mouse
Click the Show desktop button from the notification area on the taskbar.

Minimize all open windows using keyboard
Press Windows Logo key + D. Press these key combinations again to restore the minimized windows.
You can also minimize all open windows by pressing Windows Logo key + M except that to restore the minimized windows, you have to press the Windows Logo key + Shift + M keys.

Enable or disable pop up description in Windows 7

2009-07-11T04:16:00.000-07:00

In Windows 7, when you point your mouse over the items on the startup or on a file or folder, you will see a small pop-up that provides information regarding the properties of that item or the functionality of that item. You may choose to enable or disable pop-up descriptions based on your customization needs. Perform the following steps to do so:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Folder Options. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Folder Options.
3. In the Folder Options dialog box, click the View tab and do one of the following:

Enable pop-up description for folder and desktop items - Click to place checkmark beside Show pop-up description for folder and desktop items.
Disable pop-up description for folder and desktop items - Click to remove checkmark beside Show pop-up description for folder and desktop items.

4. Click Apply and then click OK.

How to enable or disable tabbed browsing in Internet Explorer 8?

2009-07-10T11:33:00.000-07:00

Tabbed browsing is a feature in Internet Explorer 8 that helps you to open links or websites in a single browser window. You do this by opening webpages in new tabs. The primary use of tabbed browsing is to reduce the number of Internet Explorer windows on the taskbar. You can enable the tabbed browsing feature or if you feel that a webpage in a single browser window will satisfy your needs then you may disable tabbed browsing feature. Perform the following steps to enable or disable tabbed browsing in Internet Explorer 8:
1. Open Internet Explorer.
2. Press Alt + T + O to open Internet Options dialog box.
You may also click or and then click Internet Options.
3. Click General tab. In the Tabs section, click Settings button to open Tabbed Browsing Settings dialog box.
4. Do one of the following:
To enable tabbed browsing : Click to place the checkmark beside Enable Tabbed Browsing (requires restarting Internet Explorer).

To disable tabbed browsing : Click to remove the checkmark beside Enable Tabbed Browsing (requires restarting Internet Explorer).

5. Click OK to close Tabbed Browsing Settings dialog box.
6. Click OK again to close Internet Options dialog box.
7. Restart Internet Explorer for the changes to take effect.

Change the default video player in Windows 7

2009-07-08T15:41:00.000-07:00

If you had installed new video player(s) and need to open video's in the video player that best suits then you may do it easily. Also, once you had chosen the video player, you need not have to perform the steps detailed below each time. In other words, it is a one time setting that you have to do. Perform the following steps to change the default video player:
1. Navigate to the location that contains the video file(s).
2. Right-click on the video file and hover the mouse over Open with and then click Choose default program...
3. Do one of the following:

If the video player that suits you appears in the Recommended Programs list then click it and go to Step 4.
If the video player is not listed in the Recommended Programs list then click the down arrow in the Other Programs and see if the video player appears there. If the video player appears then click it and go to Step 4.
If your program does not appear then click Browse... and locate the video player from your computer.

4. Make sure that a check mark appears beside Always use the selected program to open this kind of file.
5. Click OK.

Add Language bar to the taskbar in Windows 7

2009-07-08T14:02:00.000-07:00

You can easily change the input language or keyboard layout using the Language bar. Also, you can move the Language bar anywhere on your screen, minimize it to the taskbar, or hide it. Perform the following steps to add the Language bar to the taskbar:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Clock, Language, and Region and then click Region and Language. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Region and Language.
3. In the Region and Language dialog box, click Keyboards and Languages tab.
4. Click Change keyboards...
5. From the Text Services and Input Languages dialog box, click the Language Bar tab. In the Language Bar section, click Docked in the taskbar.
6. Click OK to close the Text Services and Input Languages dialog box.
7. Click OK to close the Region and Language dialog box.

Show or hide the volume icon in Windows 7 taskbar

2009-07-08T13:13:00.000-07:00

The Volume icon appears on the right part of the taskabar in Windows 7 provided that the taskbar is at the bottom of the screen. If the volume icon does not appear on the notification area in the taskbar then it might be turned off. You may perform the following steps to show or hide the volume icon.
1. Right-click Start button and click Properties to open Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box.
2. Click the Taskbar tab. In the Notification area section, click Customize... button.
3. From the Select which icons and notifications appear on the taskbar window, click Turn system icons on or off.
4. From the Turn system icons on or off window, do one of the following:
To show the volume icon on the notification area in the taskbar, click the Volume drop-down box and click On and then click OK.
To hide the volume icon on the notification area in the taskbar, click the Volume drop-down box and click Off and then click OK.
5. Click OK again to close Select which icons and notifications appear on the taskbar window.
6. Close the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box by clicking OK.

Delete temporary Internet files in Internet Explorer 8

2009-07-08T13:08:00.001-07:00

Internet Explorer 8 stores webpages in Temporary files folder. Storing these files takes up space. You have to clear these files in order to free up space on your computer. To delete temporary Internet files, perform the following steps:
1. Open Internet Explorer.
2. Press Alt + T + O to open Internet Options dialog box.
You may also click or and then click Internet Options.
3. Click General tab. Under Browsing history, click Delete...
4. From the Delete Browsing History dialog box, click to place checkmar beside the items to delete. If you uncheck the items, they will not be deleted.
5. Click Delete.

Turn off slideshow in Windows 7

2009-07-08T13:06:00.001-07:00

You do not have turn on or turn off option for the slide show in Windows 7. To turn off the slide show, you have to uncheck all the pictures except one. Perform the following steps to do so:
1. Click Start button , in the Search programs and files box, type desktop background. Click Change desktop background.
2. In the Choose your desktop background window, hover your mouse over the picture and uncheck to remove the pictures from the slide show. Repeat this for all the pictures except one.
3. Click Save changes.

Turn off automatic logon in Windows 7

2009-07-08T13:03:00.000-07:00

If there are multiple user accounts and upon starting your computer, if you do not see the screen to select a user account to login, this means the automatic logon feature is turned on. Once you turn off this, you will have all the user account names displayed in the welcome screen. To turn off automatic logon, perform the following steps:
1. Click Start button. In the Search programs and files field, type netplwiz and press the Enter key from the keyboard. If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
2. Under Users tab, click to place the checkmark beside Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer.
3. Click Apply and then click OK.

Arrange windows side by side on the desktop using Snap in Windows 7

2009-07-05T07:43:00.001-07:00

Need to compare two documents, transfer files or folders from one window to another easily then use the Snap feature to easily do this. Perform the following to arrange windows side by side on the desktop using Snap.

To arrange a window to the left part of the screen, click and drag the title bar of the window until the mouse cursor is at the left most part of the screen. When you see the graphic displaying the outline of the expanded window, release the mouse button.
Repeat the same for the second window but this time click and drag the title bar of the second window to the right portion of the screen.

You may also perform the same using your keyboard. The keys for arranging windows side by side are:
Windows Logo key + Left arrow to arrange the window to the left part of the screen.
Windows Logo key + Right arrow to arrange the window to the right part of the screen.

How to remove or uninstall Internet Explorer 8 from Windows 7?

2009-07-05T04:17:00.000-07:00

If you are not comfortable using Internet Explorer 8, you may remove it by turning off this Windows feature. Doing this will not completely remove Internet Explorer 8 instead it remains in the computer so that you may turn on later. To remove or uninstall Internet Explorer 8, perform the following:
1. Click Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Programs. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons, click on Programs and Features.
3. Click Turn Windows features on or off (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
4. Click the checkmark beside Internet Explorer 8. You will see a message saying Turning off Internet Explorer 8 may affect other Windows features and applications installed on your computer. information box, click Yes.
5. Click OK.
6. Wait until you see a message box saying You must restart your computer to apply these changes. Click Restart Now.
7. During shutdown and restart, you will see Configuring Windows features. After computer restart, the uninstallation or removal process of Internet Explorer 8 is over.

To install or to turn on Internet Explorer 8, follow the steps provided above except that in Step 4, click to place a checkmark beside Internet Explorer 8.

Easily swap the left and right mouse buttons in Windows 7

2009-07-05T03:52:00.000-07:00

You have primary and secondary buttons in mouse. The primary mouse button is for selecting item(s), performing drag-drop operations, positioning the cursor. Normally the left mouse button is the primary mouse button. You use the secondary mouse button to make the context menu to appear. The right mouse button is normally the secondary mouse button. If you are a left hander and need to make the left mouse button as secondary and the right mouse button as primary then perform the following steps to swap the left and right mouse buttons:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Hardware and Sound, under Devices and Printers, click Mouse. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Mouse.
3. Click the Buttons tab, in the Button configuration section, click to place a checkmark beside Switch primary and secondary buttons.
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Move the taskbar in Windows 7

2009-07-04T00:24:00.000-07:00

In previous versions of Microsoft Windows, you have to first unlock the taskbar in order to move the taskbar to the right, left, or top (assuming that the taskbar is at the bottom). In Windows 7, you may move the taskbar without unlocking the taskbar. Perform the following steps to move the taskbar:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properies dialog box, in the Tasbar appearance section, click on the Taskbar location on screen: drop-down box to choose Bottom or Left or Right or Top.
3. Click Apply and click OK.

You may also move the taskbar by left-clicking the mouse button and dragging the taskbar to the Bottom or Left or Right or Top. However, you have to unlock the taskbar first if the Lock the taskbar has a check mark beside it. To unlock the taskbar, right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click Lock the taskbar.

Preview files from Windows Explorer in Windows 7

2009-07-03T12:59:00.000-07:00

One of the most useful and much improved feature in Windows 7 is the Preview pane in Windows Explorer. The Preview pane helps you to preview images, videos (all files types that Windows Media Player supports), webpage files, text files (created in Notepad, WordPad), PDF files (when Adobe Acrobat Reader is installed), Microsoft Office files (when Microsoft Office is installed) without opening the respective applications. You may view the Preview Pane by pressing Alt and P keys from the keyboard.

You may also view the Preview pane by:
Clicking Show the Preview pane button from the top right part of the window.
Or
Clicking Organize button, hovering the mouse over Layout and then clicking Preview pane.

Note:
You may not be able to edit the changes to text file's from the Preview pane. However, you can copy the text from the text files from the Preview pane.
You may resize the Preview pane.
You may show/hide the Preview pane.

Delete items permanently with out moving to the Recycle Bin in Windows 7

2009-07-03T11:18:00.001-07:00

When you click an item and press the Delete key from the keyboard or right-click on the item and click on Delete, the deleted item moves to the Recycle Bin. You have to empty the Recycle Bin in order to remove the deleted item from your computer. You can remove the item without moving to the Recycle Bin by clicking on the item, pressing Shift and Delete keys from the keyboard. You can also have the Shift key in pressed state and then right-clicking on the item and then clicking Delete.
Tired during this then adjust the settings in Recycle Bin to make the items get delete automatically. Perform the following steps to do so:
1. Right-click on the Recycle Bin icon and click on Properties.
2. In the Settings for selected location section, click Don't move files to the Recycle Bin. Remove files immediately when deleted.
3. Click Apply and then click OK.

Disable a user account in Windows 7

2009-07-03T03:09:00.001-07:00

Disabling a user account is different from deleting a user account. If you disable a user account, you can enable it but if you delete a user account, you cannot restore it. You cannot disable a user account if you are using Windows 7 Starter, Windows 7 Home Basic, and Windows 7 Home Premium. Perform the following to disable a user account:
1. Click Start button . In the Search programs and files field, type mmc and press the Enter key from the keyboard. If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
2. In the left pane, click Local Users and Groups. If you do not see Local Users and Groups then perform the following steps to add this snap-in to Microsoft Management Console.

In the Microsoft Management Console window, click File menu, and then click Add/Remove Snap-in.
From the Available snap-ins: box, click Local Users and Groups, and then click Add.
Click Local computer: (the computer on which this console is running), click Finish.
Click OK.

3. From the left pane, click Local Users and Groups (Local). Now, double-click the Users folder.
4. Right-click on the user account that needs to be disabled. Click Properties.
5. Click to place a check mark beside Account is disabled.
6. Click Apply and then click OK.

Show or hide shadows from Windows 7 borders

2009-07-03T00:35:00.000-07:00

In Windows 7, you will see shadow around the borders in all windows. If your computer is slow then one way to improve the performance is by disabling the visual effects. There are 20 visual effects that you can control. Here we will see how to show or hide the shadows from the window borders. Perform the following steps to do so:
1. Click Start button , right-click Computer and click Properties.
2. From the left pane, click Advanced system settings. If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
3. Click the Advanced tab. Under Performance, click Settings... to open Performance Options dialog box.
4. Click Visual Effects tab, click Custom: and do one of the following:
To remove shadow under windows, click to remove the checkmark beside Show shadows under windows.
To show shadow under windows, click to place the checkmark beside Show shadows under windows.
5. Click OK twice.
System Properties dialog box with shadow effect
System Properties dialog box without shadow effect

Set the thickness of the blinking cursor in Windows 7

2009-07-02T13:06:00.000-07:00

In Windows 7, the default value for the blinking cursor is 1px. You can change the thickness of the cursor easily. The possible range is 1px - 20px. The image at the right shows the width of the mouse cursor at 1px, 5px, 10px, and 20px.
To set the thickness of the blinking cursor, perform the following steps:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Ease of Access and then click Ease of Access Center. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Ease of Access Center.
3. Under Explore all settings, click Make the computer easier to see.
4. In the Make things on the screen easier to see section, click the Set the thickness of the blinking cursor: dropdown box and make the selection. You may also preview the mouse cursor.
5. Click Apply and then click OK.

Make text and other items on the screen larger or smaller in Windows 7

2009-07-02T11:24:00.000-07:00

You can easily make the text and other items like icons appear larger without changing the resolution of the screen. You may also adjust the settings back to default if you do not need the text and other items to appear large. To make text and other items on the screen larger or smaller, perform the following:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Display. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Display.
3. Choose one of the following:
Smaller - 100% (default This is the default setting.
Medium - 125% This setting increases the size by 125%. You may see the difference in the size of the text Medium - 125% and also in the Preview section. To see the actual effect, you have to apply this setting.
Larger - 150% This setting increases by 150%. Again, you may see the difference in the size of the text Larger - 150% and also in the Preview section. If this option does not appear then your computer screen does not support the resolution required for this setting.
4. Click Apply.
5. Log off and login to apply the changes.

Add Recent Items to the Start menu in Windows 7

2009-07-02T08:56:00.000-07:00

By default, Recent Items button does not appear on the right pane in the Start menu. To add Recent Items button to the Start menu, perform the following:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, click on the Start Menu tab.
3. In the Privacy, if there is no check mark beside Store and display recently opened items in the Start menu and the taskbar then click to place a check mark.
4. Click the Customize... button.
5. From the Customize Start Menu dialog box, in the You can customize how links, icons, and menus look and behave on the Start menu. section, scroll and click to place a check mark beside Recent Items.
6. Click OK twice.

Make folders to open in separate window in Windows 7

2009-07-02T08:45:00.000-07:00

In Windows 7, when you open a folder then the contents of the folder gets displayed in the same window. You may change this setting and make Windows 7 open a new window when you open a folder. To do this, perform the following steps:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Folder Options. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Folder Options.
3. Under General tab, click Open each folder in its own window.
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

How to remove or uninstall the default games from Windows 7?

2009-07-02T08:02:00.000-07:00

Windows 7 comes with games like Chess Titans (available in Premium editions only), FreeCell, Hearts, Internet Backgammon, Internet Checkers, Internet Spades, Mahjong Titans (available in Premium editions only), Minesweeper, Purble Place, Solitaire, and Spider Solitaire. If you choose not to have this games on your computer then you may remove the games by turning off the Games feature. The games remain in your computer and turning on the Games feature will bring back the games. To remove the games, perform the following:
1. Click Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Programs. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons, click on Programs and Features.
3. Click Turn Windows features on or off (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
4. Click to remove the checkmark beside Games. You may also remove a particular game. To do this, click the plus sign beside Games and uncheck the game that you need to remove.
Windows will take some time to turn off the Games feature. Once it is done, the Games folder will not appear when you click Start, All Programs.

Note:
To make a particular game or the entire games to appear in the Start menu, perform the three steps provided above. In step 4, click to place a checkmark beside Games or click the plus sign beside Games and check the game that you need.

Turn off Narrator in Windows 7

2009-07-02T06:10:00.000-07:00

Once the Narrator is turned on, it reads aloud most of what the screen displays. If you are tired of this and need to turn off the Narrator then perform the following steps:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Ease of Access and then click Ease of Access Center. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Ease of Access Center.

3. From the Explore all settings section, click Use the computer without a display.

4. Click to remove the checkmark beside Turn on Narrator.

5. Click Apply and then click OK.

Know whether you are using 32-bit or 64-bit edition of Windows 7

2009-07-02T04:20:00.000-07:00

Windows 7 comes with 32-bit and 64-bit editions. You can have either 32-bit or 64-bit edition installed depending on the type of processor that you have. To know which edition of Windows 7 is installed on your computer, perform the following:
1. Click Start button , right-click Computer and click on Properties to view basic information about your computer.
2. Under System, see the information to the right of System type:. It will be mentioned as 32-bit Operating System or 64-bit Operating System.

You may also press and Pause Break keys to view basic information about your computer.

Stop highlighting new programs on Start menu in Windows 7

2009-07-02T03:35:00.000-07:00

When you install a new program and if the program entry is listed in the Start menu then when you click on the Start button , you will see All Programs highlighted as shown in the figure below. This would give an idea that a new program(s) has been installed and that entry is in the Start menu.

Once you click on the program from the Start menu, the highlight will turn off. If you choose not to have the highlight feature then you may do so by performing the following steps:
1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, click on the Start Menu tab. Click the Customize... button.
3. From the Customize Start Menu dialog box, in the You can customize how links, icons, and menus look and behave on the Start menu. section, scroll and click to remove the check mark beside Highlight newly installed programs.
4. Click OK to close Customize Start Menu dialog box.
5. Click Apply and then click OK to close Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box.

Do not show thumbnail previews for files in Windows 7

2009-07-02T00:55:00.000-07:00

If the thumbnail preview feature is enabled then your computer will slow down. To view thumbnails, you must change the view to Extra Large Icons, Large Icons, or Medium Icons. To do so, open Windows Explorer or click Start button and then click Computer button. Press Alt key to make the Menu Bar appear. Now click on the View tab and do the selection.
Follow these steps to disable the thumbnail previews:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Folder Options. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Folder Options.
3. Click View tab, under Advanced settings:, click to place a checkmark beside Always show icons, never thumbnails.
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Below is the image for viewing thumbnails for files:
The following image does not show thumbnails for files:

Turn Windows features on or off in Windows 7

2009-07-01T07:50:00.000-07:00

In Windows 7, certain programs and features must be turned on in order to use them. Some features are turned on by default (like games, Internet Explorer 8). If you choose to turn off a feature then the program remains in the computer so that you may turn on the feature again. In earlier versions of Windows, you had to uninstall the program in order to turn off a feature.
To turn Windows features on or off, perform the following:
1. Click Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Programs. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons, click on Programs and Features.
3. Click Turn Windows features on or off ( If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
4. To turn on a Windows feature, click to place a checkmark beside that feature. To turn off the Windows feature, click to remove the checkmark beside that feature.
5. Click OK.
Some Windows features are grouped in folders and some have subfolders for additional features. If you see a blue colored box, it means some features are turned on and some turned off.

Select items that are not next to each other in Windows 7

2009-06-30T10:51:00.000-07:00

You may perform the following to select the items (files, folders) that are not next to each other:
1. Click to select the first item.
2. From the keyboard, press the Ctrl key.
3. Keeping the Ctrl key in pressed state, click to select other items.

Add or remove items such as Computer, Documents, Control Panel, Help and Support from Start menu in Windows 7

2009-06-30T09:08:00.000-07:00

In Microsoft Windows 7, you can customize the Start menu by adding or removing items such as Computer, Connect To, Control Panel, Default Programs, Devices and Printers, Documents, Downloads, Favorites menu, Games, Help, Homegroup, Music, Network, Personal folder, Pictures, Recent Items, Recorded TV, Run command, System administrative tools, and Videos. To add or remove items, perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, click on the Start Menu tab. Click the Customize... button.
3. From the Customize Start Menu dialog box, you may:

Click on Don't display this item radio button to remove the particular item from the Start menu.
Click on Display as a link or Display as a menu radio button to add the particular item to the Start menu.
For checkbox selection type, if a checkmark appears beside the item then it will appear when you click the Start button.

4. Click OK to close Customize Start Menu dialog box.
5. Click Apply and then click OK to close Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box.

Items such as Computer, Control Panel, Documents, Downloads, Games, Music, Personal folder, Pictures, Recorded TV, System administrative tools, and Videos have the radio button option to choose the appropriate selections.
Items such as Connect To, Default Programs, Devices and Printers, Favorites menu, Help, Homegroup, Network, Recent Items, Run command have the check box option. If these items have a check mark beside them then the particular item will be displayed in the Start menu. To remove the item, uncheck the check box.

Show menu bar when opening folders in Windows 7

2009-06-30T08:09:00.000-07:00

Windows 7 displays folders in windows. The same applies when opening libraries, Computer, Windows Explorer. If you had used Windows XP or a previous version of Windows, you may see the menu bar by default. In Windows 7, by default the menu bar is hidden. You may make the menu bar appear permanently by performing the following steps:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Folder Options. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Folder Options.
3. In the Folder Options dialog box, click the View tab and click to place a checkmark beside Always Show Menus.
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Picture with menu bar

Make the taskbar of Windows 7 appear like Windows Vista

2009-06-30T07:25:00.000-07:00

By default, the icons on the taskbar in Windows 7 appear large and also the labels for the icons are hidden and if multiple instances of a program are opened, they are displayed as a single icon with the taskbar icon image changing when multiple instances appear. On the other hand, the icons on the taskbar are small and appear with labels and get combined when the taskbar is full in Windows Vista. You may make this setting in Windows 7. You may not get the appearance like Windows Vista but it has a closer resemblance. Perform the following steps to achieve this:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, under Taskbar appearance section, click to place a checkmark beside Use small icons. Click on the Taskbar buttons: drop-down box, select Always combine, hide labels.
3. Click Apply and then click OK.

The result of the above steps is shown in the figure below

Minimum system requirements for Windows 7

2009-06-29T23:14:00.000-07:00

The Windows 7 system requirements are as follows:

Processor Speed : 1GHz or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
Memory (RAM) : 1GB RAM (32-bit) / 2GB RAM (64-bit)
HDD free space : 16GB available disk space (32-bit) / 20 GB (64-bit)
Graphics card : DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver

Access taskbar button Jump List without right-click in Windows 7

2009-06-29T14:01:00.000-07:00

Jump lists appear when you right-click on a taskbar icon. You will see a list of documents, pictures, songs, or websites depending on the program that you had right-clicked. For example, right-clicking Internet Explorer will display a list of frequently viewed websites, pinned websites (if any). You can also make the Jump lists to appear by left-clicking on the taskbar button and moving the mouse up. Doing so, the Jump list will pop-up.

Change a user's account type in Windows 7

2009-06-29T13:03:00.002-07:00

You can change the user type from Standard user to Administrator or from Administrator to Standard user. Windows requires at least one administrator account on a computer. If you have only one account on your computer, you can't change it to a standard account. Perform the following to change the account type:
1. Click Start button , click Control Panel.
2. Click User Accounts and Family Safety if the View by: is Category and then click User Accounts.
Or
Click User Accounts if the View by: is Large icons or Small icons.
3. Click Change your account type (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
4. Select your new account type and then click Change Account Type.

Show or hide Command Bar in Internet Explorer 8

2009-06-29T13:03:00.001-07:00

By default, the Command Bar is visible in Internet Explorer 8. You may make the Command Bar hide or view if the Command Bar is hidden. To do so, perform the following:
1. Open Internet Explorer.
2. Press Alt key from the keybaord and click View menu or click or (You may also press Alt + T from the keyboard), hover the mouse pointer over Toolbars and do the following:

To hide the Command Bar, click to remove the checkmark beside Command Bar
To view the Command Bar, click to place the checkmark beside Command Bar

Change the icon of the Recycle Bin in Windows 7

2009-06-29T13:01:00.000-07:00

To change the icon of the Recycle Bin, perform the following steps:
1. Right-click on an empty space on the desktop and click on Personalize.
2. From the left pane, click on Change desktop icons to open Desktop Icon Settings dialog box.
3. Click on Recycle Bin (full) and click on Change Icon.
4. From the Change Icon dialog box, click to select an icon and then click OK to close the Change Icon dialog box.
5. Click on Recycle Bin (empty) and click on Change Icon.
6. From the Change Icon dialog box, click to select an icon and then click OK to close the Change Icon dialog box.
7. Click Apply and then click OK to close the Desktop Icon Settings dialog box.

Change the time zone in Windows 7

2009-06-29T13:00:00.000-07:00

To change the time zone that is specific to your region, perform the following steps:
1. From the taskbar, right-click on the clock and then click on Adjust Date/Time.
2. Click on Change date and time settings... (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
3. From the Date and Time dialog box that opens, under Time zone section, click on the Change time zone... button.
4. From the Time Zone Settings dialog box that opens, click on the Time zone: drop-down box and select your time zone.
5. For the daylight saving time to take effect automatically, click to place a check mark beside Automatically adjust clock for Daylight Saving Time.
6. Click OK to close Time Zone Settings dialog box.
7. Click OK again to close Date and Time dialog box.

Decrease the width of the command prompt window in Windows 7

2009-06-29T12:57:00.002-07:00

You may decrease the width of the command prompt window by performing the following steps:
1. Open Command Prompt window by clicking Start button , All Programs, Accessories, then Command Prompt.
2. Right-click on the title bar of the Command Prompt window and click Properties to open "Command Prompt" Properties dialog box.
3. Click Layout tab, in the Screen Buffer Size section, change the Width: value. You can preview the changes that you make in the Window Preview section.
4. Click OK to accept the changes.

Reset the password using the password reset disk in Windows 7

2009-06-29T12:57:00.001-07:00

If you are stuck on the login screen because of lost or forgotten password but have already created a password reset disk then perform the following steps to reset the password:
1. Enter a blank or incorrect password and then click Go button. Windows 7 will inform you that the user name or the password is incorrect.
2. Click OK to return to the Welcome screen. Now, click on the Reset password link to start the Password Reset wizard.
3. On the Welcome page, click Next.
4. On the Insert the Password Reset Disk page, select the USB flash disk or the floppy disk. Insert the password reset disk and then click Next.
5. On the Reset the User Account Password page, enter a new password and password hint. Click Next. Click Finish in the Completing the Forgotten Password Wizard page.

Change the Number of Recent Items in Jump List

2009-06-29T11:04:00.000-07:00

When you right-click on a taskbar icon, you will see a list of documents, pictures, songs, or websites depending on the program that you had right-clicked. For example, right-clicking Internet Explorer will display a list of frequently viewed websites, pinned websites (if any). By default, there are 10 items displayed in the jump list. You can change this number and can increase or decrease the number by performing the following steps:
1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, click on the Start Menu tab. Click Customize… button.
3. From the Customize Start Menu dialog box, under Start menu size section, set a new value for Number of recent items to display in Jump Lists option.
4. Click OK twice.

Windows 7 editions

2009-06-29T08:49:00.000-07:00

Windows 7 will be available in six editions namely Windows 7 Starter, Windows 7 Home Basic, Windows 7 Home Premium, Windows 7 Professional, Windows 7 Enterprise, and Windows 7 Ultimate.

Windows 7 Home Basic, Windows 7 Home Premium, and Windows 7 Ultimate is available as retail or OEM copy.
Windows 7 Starter is available as OEM copy only.
Windows 7 Home Basic is available in emerging markets such as Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Pakistan, Philippines, and Thailand.
Windows 7 Enterprise is available through Volume Licensing only.

How many display modes are there in Windows Media Player?

2009-06-22T05:06:00.000-07:00

Windows Media Player has four display modes:

Player Library
Now Playing
Skin
Full screen

Adjust the screen resolution in Windows 7

2009-06-22T04:51:00.000-07:00

To adjust the screen resolution, perform the following steps:
1. Right-click on an empty place on the desktop and click Screen resolution.
2. In the Change the appearance of your display page, click Resolution: and move the slider to the resolution that you want.
3. Click Apply and then click OK.

Change the desktop wallpaper in Windows 7

2009-06-22T02:41:00.000-07:00

To change the desktop background (wallpaper), perform the following steps:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Personalization. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Personalization.
3. Click Desktop Background.
4. Choose your desktop background from the Picture Location: list or click Browse to select picture from your computer or from other sources.
You may also click Select all button to select all the pictures that are in Picture location.
5. Click Save changes.

Note:
You may add more than one picture to be as the desktop background. When you do this, Change picture every: list gets enabled and you can choose to change the pictures as specified in the Change picture every: list. You may also shuffle the pictures.

Change the user account picture in Windows 7

2009-06-22T02:37:00.001-07:00

When you click on the Start button, the user account picture appears at the top right part of the Start menu. You may change the picture that is associated with your user account. To do so, perform the following:
1. Click Start button , click Control Panel.
2. Click User Accounts and Family Safety if the View by: is Category or click on User Accounts if the View by: is Small icons or Large icons.
3. Click Change your picture.
4. Choose from the list of pictures that you see or make the picture of your choice to appear by clicking on Browse for more pictures... and then navigating to the location, then clicking on Open.
You may use a picture of any size and of the following file formats (.jpg, .png, .bmp, or .gif).
5. Click Change Picture.

Show hidden files and folders in Windows 7

2009-06-22T02:34:00.000-07:00

By default, Windows 7 does not show the hidden files, folders or drives. To view the hidden files, folders, or drives, perform the following steps:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Folder Options. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Folder Options.
3. In the Folder Options dialog box, click the View tab and click Show hidden files, folders, and drives.
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Move the Start button in Windows 7

2009-06-22T00:24:00.000-07:00

The Start button is located on the taskbar. You cannot move only the Start button. You have to move the taskbar to make the Start button move along with it. To move the taskbar, perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the tasbar and click on Properties.
2. In Taskbar appearance section, click on the Taskbar location on screen: drop-down box, select Bottom, Left, Right, or Top to move the taskbar, which holds the Start button to the bottom or left or right or top.

Note:

In versions of Microsoft Windows prior to Windows 7, you have to right-click on an empty-space on the taskbar and remove the check mark that is beside Lock the taskbar to move the taskbar. In Microsoft Windows 7, you can perform the move operation without having to remove the check mark that is beside Lock the taskbar. You may see Step 2 for information regarding this.

Remove the preview for individual tabs in the taskbar for Internet Explorer 8 in Windows 7

2009-06-21T23:23:00.000-07:00

If multiple tabs are opened in a single Internet Explorer window then by default, you can see a preview of each tab when you hover the mouse over the Internet Explorer button on the taskbar. You can change this behavior and have only one entry to preview for one Internet Explorer window. Perform the following steps to do so:
1. Open Internet Options by clicking or , and clicking on Internet Options.
You may also press Alt + T + O.
2. In General tab, under Tabs section, click Settings button.
3. In the Tabbed Browser Settings dialog box, Click to remove the check mark beside Show previews for individual tabs in the taskbar*.
4. Click OK to close the Tabbed Browser Settings dialog box.
5. Click Apply and then click OK to close the Internet Options dialog box.

Do not show the confirmation box while deleting items in Windows 7

2009-06-21T22:34:00.000-07:00

In Windows 7, when you delete a file or folder by pressing the Delete key from the keyboard or by right-clicking on the file or folder and then clicking on Delete, you will see the Delete File dialog box that reads

Are you sure you want to move this file to the Recycle Bin?, if you are about to delete a file.
Or
Are you sure you want to move this folder to the Recycle Bin?, if you are about to delete a folder.

The file or folder will be deleted when you click on Yes. Clicking No will not delete the file or folder. If Yes is clicked then the deleted item moves to the Recycle Bin. You can change this setting and make the deleted items move straight to the Recycle Bin instead of making the Delete File dialog box to appear. To do this, perform the following:
1. Right-click on the Recycle Bin and click on Properties.
2. From the Recycle Bin Properties dialog box, click to clear the check mark beside Display delete confirmation dialog.
3. Click Apply and then click OK.

Make Close all tabs message box to appear while closing Internet Explorer 8 in Windows 7

2009-06-21T16:12:00.000-07:00

If Tabbed Browsing is enabled in Internet Explorer 8 and when you close an Internet Explorer window that has multiple tabs, a message box appears as shown in the figure to the right.
If you had placed a check mark beside Always close all tabs then the message box will not appear while closing the Internet Explorer window.
To make the message box appear again, perform the following:

1. Open Internet Options by clicking or , and clicking on Internet Options.
You may also press Alt + T + O.
2. In General tab, under Tabs section, click Settings button.
3. In the Tabbed Browser Settings dialog box, Click to place a check mark beside Warn me when closing multiple tabs.
4. Click OK to close the Tabbed Browser Settings dialog box.
5. Click Apply and then click OK to close the Internet Options dialog box.

Create a password reset disk in Windows 7

2009-06-20T21:16:00.000-07:00

When you assign a password to your user account, you have the option of creating a password hint. If you enter an incorrect password then Windows 7 will display the password hint. As a good practice, create password reset disk to retrieve the password in case you are unable to make use of the password hint or you had not entered the password hint. You can create a password reset disk on a floppy disk or on a USB flash drive. Perform the following steps to create the password reset disk:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on User Accounts and Family Safety and then click User Accounts. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on User Accounts.
3. From the left pane, click Create a password reset disk to open the Forgotten Password Wizard.
4. On the Welcome to the Forgotten Password Wizard page, click Next, specify the location of the floppy disk or USB flash disk, click Next.
5. On the Current User Account Password page, enter the password that you use to login to your computer and then click Next.
6. Once you see 100% complete in the progress bar, click Next. On the Completing the Forgotten Password Wizard page, click Finish.

Make Internet Explorer 8 as the default browser in Windows 7

2009-06-20T20:35:00.000-07:00

To make Internet Explorer as the default browser, perform the following:
1. Open Internet Explorer.
2. If you see the message Internet Explorer is not currently your default browser. Would you like to make it your default browser?
3. Click Yes. Now, Internet Explorer is set as the default browser.

If you do not see the message box then perform the following:
1. Open Internet Options by clicking or , and clicking on Internet Options.
You may also press Alt + T + O.
2. Click Programs tab, click Make default.
3. Click Apply and then click OK.

Show AM / PM symbol on the taskbar clock in Windows 7

2009-06-20T17:50:00.000-07:00

By default, Windows 7 does not display the AM or PM symbol as it displays a 24 hour clock. To make Windows 7 display the clock in 12 hour format with the AM or PM symbol, perform the following:
1. Click Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Clock, Language, and Region and then click Region and Language. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Region and Language.
3. From the Region and Language dialog box, click Additional settings... to open Customize Format dialog box.
4. Click on the Time tab. Under Time formats section, in the Long time: box, add tt to the end of HH:mm:ss. It should look like
HH:mm:ss tt (Make sure there is a space between s and t)
5. Click Apply and then click OK.

Change the power button action in Start menu in Windows 7

2009-06-19T00:14:00.000-07:00

In Microsoft Windows 7, when you click on the Start button, in the right bottom part, you have the Shut down button. Options like Switch user, Log off, Lock, Restart, Sleep, and Hibernate appear when you click or hover the mouse over the right-side pointing arrow that is to the right of Shut down. You can change the power button from Shut down to one of the options as mentioned earlier. To do this, perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, click on the Power button action: drop-down box and select one of the following:

Switch user
Log off
Lock
Restart
Sleep
Hibernate

3. Click Apply and then click OK to close Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box.

To shut down the computer, click or hover the mouse over the right-side pointing arrow and click Shut down.

Know the version of Internet Explorer that you are using

2009-06-18T23:47:00.000-07:00

You may perform the following steps to know the version of Internet Explorer:
1. Open Internet Explorer.
2. Click on Help menu (Help menu is present in the Menu Bar. If you do not see the Menu bar then press the Alt key from the keyboard).
3. Click on About Internet Explorer.

You may also click on the Help button and click on About Internet Explorer to know the version of Internet Explorer.

Change Windows fonts in Windows 7

2009-06-18T22:50:00.000-07:00

You can change the font of any part of windows (for example: Active Title Bar, Message Box, Menus). This change does not affect the font for the files that you create (for example: Microsoft Word document, Notepad file). To change the Windows fonts, perform the following:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Personalization. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Personalization.
3. Click Window Color.
4. Click Advanced appearance settings... to open Window color and Appearance dialog box.
5. Click Item: and click to make changes to the appropriate selected item. Now, you can do the following:
To change the font, click Font: and select a font from the list.
To change the color, click Color: and select a color.
To change the size, click Size: and select the size from the list.
You may also make the text appear bold, italic.
(Repeat the same for other items)
6. Click Apply and then click OK.

How to remove the Recycle Bin icon from the desktop in Windows 7?

2009-06-18T22:27:00.000-07:00

You cannot remove the Recycle Bin icon by pressing the Delete key from the keyboard. To remove the Recycle Bin icon from the desktop, perform the following:
1. Right-click on an empty space on the desktop and click on Personalize.
2. From the left pane, click on Change desktop icons to open Desktop Icon Settings dialog box.
3. Click to remove the check mark beside Recycle Bin.
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Delete a user account in Windows 7

2009-06-18T22:16:00.001-07:00

If you have a user account that is no longer used on your computer then you may delete the user account. Perform the following steps to delete a user account:
1. Click Start button , click Control Panel.
2. Click User Accounts and Family Safety if the View by: is Category and then click on User Accounts or click on User Accounts if the View by: is Small icons or Large icons.
3. Click Manage another account (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
4. In the Choose the account you would like to change window, click on the user account that you need to delete.
5. Click Delete the account.
6. Choose to keep or delete the files created under the account by clicking on Delete Files or Keep Files.
7. Click Delete Account in the Confirm Deletion window.

Change the date and time in Windows 7

2009-06-18T22:08:00.000-07:00

You may perform the following to change the date and time settings:
1. Right-click on the taskbar clock and click on Adjust Date/Time.
2. From the Date and Time dialog box, click on Change date and time... (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
3. To change the date, under Date: click on a date from the calendar. You may also click on the left and right arrows to make month selections.
4. To change the time, in Time: under the clock, change the time.
5. Click OK.

Change text color and background color of the command prompt in Windows 7

2009-06-18T22:05:00.000-07:00

To change the text color and background color of the Command Prompt, perform the following steps:
1. Open Command Prompt window by clicking Start button , All Programs, Accessories, then Command Prompt.
2. Right-click on the title bar of the Command Prompt window and click Properties to open "Command Prompt" Properties dialog box.
3. Click Colors tab and do the following:
To change the color of the text, click Screen text radio button and then click on any of the color or enter a color value from the Selected Color Values section.
To change the color of the Command Prompt window, click Screen Background radio button and then click on any of the color or enter a color value from the Selected Color Values section.
4. Click OK once you had made the changes.

Open files and folders by a single click in Windows 7

2009-06-18T22:04:00.001-07:00

By default, you have to double-click to open a file or folder. You can change this behavior and have Windows 7 open a file or folder by a single click. Perform the following steps to do so:
1. Click the Start button and then click Control Panel.
2. If the View by: is Category then click on Appearance and Personalization and then click Folder Options. If the View by: is Large icons or Small icons then click on Folder Options.
3. In the Folder Options dialog box, under General tab, click Single-click to open an item (point to select).
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Change the taskbar hover time in Windows 7

2009-06-18T22:02:00.000-07:00

Windows 7 displays a preview of the window when you hover the mouse over a taskbar item. The default mouse hover time is 400 milliseconds. You can change the mouse hover time to make the preview window appear soon or late. To change the taskbar hover time, perform the following:
1. Click the Start button . In the Search programs and files box, type regedit and press the Enter key from the keyboard.
2. Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Mouse. From the right pane, double-click on MouseHoverTime to edit. (You can also right-click MouseHoverTime and click on Modify).
3. Change the value in the Value data: field.

Increase the width of the command prompt window in Windows 7

2009-06-18T01:17:00.000-07:00

In Windows 7, when you maximize the command prompt window, it gets maximized in the vertical direction. Horizontal wise, the command prompt does not gets maximized to the entire screen. You may change the width of the command prompt window by performing the following steps:
1. Open Command Prompt window by clicking Start button , All Programs, Accessories, then Command Prompt.
2. Right-click on the title bar of the Command Prompt window and click Properties to open "Command Prompt" Properties dialog box.
3. Click Layout tab, in the Window Size section, change the Width: value. You can preview the changes that you make in the Window Preview section.
4. Click OK to accept the changes.

Remove the Ctrl + Alt + Delete screen in Windows 7

2009-06-17T20:53:00.000-07:00

Enabling the secure logon feature will make the Press CTRL + ALT + DELETE to log on screen to appear when you start your computer or when you perform the Switch user operation or when you log off. Also, you will see the Press CTRL + ALT + DELETE to unlock this computer screen when you lock your computer. Perform the following steps to disable the secure logon feature:
1. Click Start button . In the Search programs and files field, type netplwiz and press the Enter key from the keyboard (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
2. Click Advanced tab. Under Secure logon, click to remove the check mark beside Require users to press Ctrl+Alt+Delete.
3. Click Apply and then click OK.

Know how much RAM your computer has

2009-06-17T09:10:00.000-07:00

You may perform the following to know how much RAM your computer has:
Click Start button . Right-click Computer and click on Properties. In System section, to the right of Installed memory (RAM), you can see the amount of RAM that your computer has.

Turn on Automatic logon in Windows 7

2009-06-17T05:00:00.000-07:00

If there are multiple user accounts and you need to have a particular user account logon automatically (meaning that a particular user will login into the computer without having to type the user name and password). To turn on automatic logon, perform the following steps:
1. Click Start button . In the Search programs and files field, type netplwiz and press the Enter key from the keyboard. (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
2. From the User Accounts dialog box, under Users for this computer: click to select the user account that needs to be logged on automatically and then click to remove the checkmark beside Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer. Now, other user names will be grayed out.
3. Click Apply. Now, Automatically Log On dialog box appears. Enter and confirm the password (If no password is set for a user then leave the Password: and Confirm Password: boxes blank).
4. Click OK to close the Automatically Log On dialog box.
5. Click OK again to close the User Accounts dialog box.

Change the default operating system for startup

2009-06-17T04:44:00.000-07:00

If you have more than one operating system installed on your computer then you may choose which one to start when you turn on or when you restart your computer. Perform the following steps to change the default operating system for startup:
1. Click the Start button . Right-click Computer and then click Properties.
2. From the left pance, click Advanced system settings (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation).
3. Click on the Advanced tab.
4. Under Startup and Recovery, click Settings...
5. Under System startup, in the Default operating system list, click the operating system that you want to use when you turn on or restart your computer.
6. Click OK to close Startup and Recovery dialog box.
7. Click Apply and then click Close to dismiss the System Properties dialog box.

Change the name of the computer in Windows 7

2009-06-17T03:43:00.000-07:00

If you do not specify a name to your computer while installing Windows 7 then My-PC name will be assigned automatically. You can change the computer name by performing the following steps:
1. Click the Start button . Right-click Computer and then click Properties.
2. From the left pane, click Advanced system settings (If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation to open System Properties dialog box).
3. Click on the Computer Name tab and then click Change...
4. Type a name in the Computer name: box and then click OK.
5. Click OK again in the Computer Name/Domain Changes dialog box.
Restart your computer to have the computer name changed.

Add additional clocks to the taskbar in Windows 7

2009-06-06T17:33:00.000-07:00

In Windows 7, by default the time is displayed in the right part of the taskbar and you have the local time displayed in the taskbar clock. You can have two more clocks to display time from other time zones. Once you setup the additional clocks, you have to hover the mouse or click on the taskbar clock to view them. To add the additional clocks, perform the following:
1. Right-click on the taskbar clock and click on Adjust date/time.
2. From the Date and Time dialog box, click on the Additional Clocks tab.
3. For each clock, click to place a check mark beside Show this clock. Select the time zone from the Select time zone: drop-down box. Enter the name for the time zone in the Enter display name: field (Upto 15 characters are allowed in the Enter display name: field).
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Add Recycle Bin icon to the taskbar in Windows 7

2009-05-30T00:13:00.000-07:00

In Windows 7, when you drag-and-drop Recycle Bin to the taskbar, it get's pinned to Windows Explorer on the taskbar. If you need to add the Recycle Bin icon to the taskbar then make sure that the Recycle Bin icon is on the desktop and then perform the following:
1. Right-click on an empty space on the desktop, point to New and click on Folder.
2. Rename the New Folder to My Toolbar.
3. Drag-and-drop the Recycle Bin icon to the My Toolbar folder.
4. In the taskbar, right-click on an empty space, click to clear the check mark beside Lock the taskbar. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and point to Toolbars and click New toolbar...
5. From the New Toolbar - Choose a folder dialog box that opens, locate the My Toolbar folder from the desktop. Click to highlight the My Toolbar folder and then click on the Select Folder button.
6. My Toolbar folder appears on the taskbar. Now, you have to hide the labels and make the Recycle Bin icon large. To do this,

Right-click on My Toolbar and click to clear the check mark beside Show Text and Show title.
Right-click on My Toolbar, point to View, click Large Icons.

7. Now, the Recycle Bin icon would appear to the right of the taskbar. To make the Recycle Bin icon appear to the left, click on the dotted lines that appears to the left of the Recycle Bin icon and drag to the right of the Start button.
8. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click to place a check mark beside Lock the taskbar.

Show line number in Notepad

2009-05-28T23:37:00.000-07:00

To see the line number (where the cursor is blinking), click on Edit menu and click Go To... or press Ctrl + G from the keyboard.
If you do not see the line number then click on the Format menu and click to clear the check mark beside Word Wrap. Now you can see the line number.

Know the edition of Windows 7 that you are using

2009-05-28T15:18:00.000-07:00

You may perform the following to know the edition of Windows 7 that you are using:

Click Start , right-click Computer and click on Properties.

The edition of Windows 7 is displayed under Windows edition section.

You may also press Windows logo key + PAUSE.

Move a window using keyboard

2009-05-27T12:02:00.000-07:00

To move a window, make sure that the window is not in the maximized state. Now, press the Alt + <Spacebar> keys and then click on Move. Now, use the Up, Down, Left, Right arrow keys to move the window. Once you had moved it to a desired position, press the Enter key from the keyboard.
You may also use the same to move dialog boxes. For example, the Print dialog box in Internet Explorer 8, if it has been moved to a location that is too far from the main Internet Explorer window and are unable to move the Print dialog box then you may press the Alt + <Spacebar> keys and then click on Move. Now, use the Up, Down, Left, Right arrow keys to move the window. Once you had moved it to a desired position, press the Enter key from the keyboard.

How to make the taskbar icons smaller in Windows 7

2009-05-27T10:39:00.000-07:00

By default, the icons on the taskbar appear large. You can change this setting and make smaller icons to have more space on the taskbar. To use small icons on the taskbar, perform the following steps:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, under Taskbar appearance section, click to place a check mark beside Use small icons.
3. Click Apply and then click OK.

To use the default setting, click to clear the check mark beside Use small icons.

Rearrange icons on the taskbar in Windows 7

2009-05-27T10:30:00.001-07:00

This is the first of its kind in the family of Microsoft's operating system's that allows users to rearrange program icons on the taskbar. To rearrange the icons, left-click on the program and drag it to the left or right.

Choose how icons will appear on the taskbar in Windows 7

2009-05-27T05:51:00.000-07:00

You have three choices to make as to how the icons would appear on the taskbar. They are:

Always combine, hide labels

Combine when taskbar is full

Never combine

The above text has been copied as is from Microsoft for easy understanding.

To make the appropriate choice for the taskbar buttons to appear, perform the following steps:
1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, under Taskbar appearance section, click on the Taskbar buttons: drop-down box, select one of the following:

Always combine, hide labels
Combine when taskbar is full
Never combine

3. Click Apply and then click OK.

Pin a program to the taskbar in Windows 7

2009-05-27T04:30:00.000-07:00

If the program is running then right-click the program from the taskbar and click on Pin this program to taskbar.
You may also pin a program from Start menu or by locating the program on your computer and then right-clicking on it and clicking on Pin to taskbar option.
You may also drag the program from the desktop, Start menu, or from any location on the computer to the taskbar to pin the program to the taskbar.

To unpin a program from the taskbar, right-click on the program and click on Unpin this program from taskbar.

Find the taskbar in Windows 7

2009-05-27T04:17:00.000-07:00

By default, the taskbar is located at the bottom of the desktop. If the taskbar is not visible then check whether the Auto-hide the taskbar option is turned on. Also, if you are using multiple monitors then the taskbar would appear on only one computer. You may press the Windows logo key to view the taskbar.

To turn off auto-hide, perform the following:
1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, under Taskbar appearance, click to remove the check mark beside the Auto-hide the taskbar.
3. Click Apply and click OK.

Open a new instance of the program from the taskbar in Windows 7

2009-05-26T04:02:00.001-07:00

If a particular program supports multiple instances then hold the Shift key and click the program on the taskbar to open a new instance of the program.

No icons on the desktop in Windows 7

2009-05-26T03:39:00.000-07:00

You may right-click on an empty space on the desktop, point to View and then click to place the check mark beside Show desktop icons to view the desktop icons.

To hide the icons, right-click on an empty space on the desktop, point to View and then click to remove the check mark beside Show desktop icons.

Show text beside the buttons on the taskbar in Windows 7

2009-05-26T03:37:00.000-07:00

By default, the text that is beside the buttons on the taskbar is hidden. You may make the text appear bedise the taskbar button by performing the following steps:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, under Taskbar appearance section, click on the Taskbar buttons: drop-down box, select Combine when the taskbar is full or Never combine.
3. Click Apply and then click OK.

Change the icon of the Recycle Bin in Windows 7

2009-05-26T03:34:00.001-07:00

You may change the icon of the Recycle Bin by performing the following steps:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the desktop and click on Personalize.
2. From the left pane, click Change desktop icons.
3. In the Desktop Icon Settings dialog box, click on the Recycle Bin (full) picture and click on Change Icon... button.
4. From the Change Icon dialog box, select the icon and click OK to close the Change Icon dialog box.
2. Click Apply and then click OK.

Add desktop icons in Windows 7

2009-05-26T03:32:00.000-07:00

By default, only Recycle Bin icon is present on the desktop. You may add other icons like Computer, User's files, Network, Control Panel icons to the desktop by performing the following steps:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the desktop and click on Personalize.
2. From the left pane, click Change desktop icons.
3. In the Desktop Icon Settings dialog box, under Desktop icons section, click to place a check mark to make the icons appear on the desktop.
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Add Computer icon to the desktop in Windows 7

2009-05-26T03:27:00.000-07:00

By default, Computer icon is not present on the desktop. You may add the Computer icon to the desktop by performing the following steps:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the desktop and click on Personalize.
2. From the left pane, click Change desktop icons.
3. In the Desktop Icon Settings dialog box, under Desktop icons section, click to place a check mark beside Computer.
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Recycle Bin icon missing from the desktop. How to restore the Recycle Bin icon to the desktop in Windows 7?

2009-05-26T03:25:00.000-07:00

Recycle Bin holds the deleted files. For some reasons, if the Recycle Bin icon does not appear on the desktop then you may perform the following steps to restore the Recycle Bin icon back to the desktop:

1. Right-click on an empty space on the desktop and click on Personalize.
2. From the left pane, click Change desktop icons.
3. In the Desktop Icon Settings dialog box, under Desktop icons section, click to place a check mark beside Recycle Bin.
4. Click Apply and then click OK.

Turn off auto-hide in Windows 7

2009-05-25T22:48:00.000-07:00

If the auto-hide the taskbar feature is turned on then the taskbar would appear only if you hover the mouse over the taskbar. You may turn off the Auto-hide the taskbar feature to make the taskbar visible always. Perform the following to turn off this feature.
1. Right-click on an empty space on the taskbar and click on Properties.
2. From the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties dialog box, under Taskbar appearance, click to remove the check mark beside the Auto-hide the taskbar.
3. Click Apply and click OK.