Welcome to our archive of helpful Windows
T I P S


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Dos and Don'ts

• DO run maintenance regularly
• DON'T work off a floppy disk
• DO know what CD-ROMs you have with your system
• DO know what your software's serial numbers are
• DO keep your anti-virus software updated
• DON'T trust everything on the internet
• DON'T unplug your keyboard or mouse while the computer is on

Problems

• Can't defragment my hard drive
• Why does it take so long to boot?

Timesavers and General Tidbits

• Computer tips on your hard drive!
• Sort the Programs menu
• Best way to uninstall a program
• Keyboard shortcuts with the Windows key
• Right-click everywhere
• Whatis.com
• Take a screenshot

DO RUN MAINTENANCE REGULARLY

Your computer needs cleaning, just like your house. Run maintenance programs on a regular basis to keep your PC performing well. ScanDisk, Disk CleanUp, and Disk Defragmenter are typically available on a Windows installation (in Start -> (All) Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools). You can run these as often as you like, or use the Task Scheduler to run them for you unattended.

You can also purchase other disk utilities for more extensive and varied maintenance operations. Norton Utilities is common choice (and recommended by BlueScreen), as is Norton SystemWorks (which is a software bundled containing Norton Utilities, Anti-Virus and other programs).

DON’T WORK OFF OF A FLOPPY DISK

Many of us still use floppy diskettes to transport files. But if you work on (or make changes to) a file on a floppy, it can cause problems. You may get errors opening the files, and files can even be corrupted and lost. The best practice is to move your files off of the floppy onto your hard drive. Edit your files from your hard drive and save them there. When you are finished, move them back to the floppy disk.

DO KNOW WHAT CD-ROMS YOU HAVE WITH YOUR SYSTEM

When you buy a system (new or used), pay attention to what types of CDs come with it for your operating system and programs. Some systems come with separate CDs for the Windows operating system, word processing program, anti-virus software, etc. Other systems will come with only a Rescue CD.

A Rescue CD contains a snapshot of the computer as it was when it left the manufacturer. If serious problems develop on the system, the Rescue disk can only restore the system to the ‘snapshot’ state. The downside is serious: often this process erases all your information on your hard drive, which includes your personal files and data.

When you have the full, individual CDs for the operating system and programs, you have more options for repair, customization and recovery. Often, if problems develop, you can repair just the software that is causing the problem without losing your personal files or data. Also, let’s say you wish to uninstall a program to free up some hard drive space. This is no problem if you have the CD for that program—you can always reinstall it later. With Rescue CDs, this can be difficult or impossible to do.

The downside to purchasing a system with full, individual software CDs is that it might cost more. Companies spend more to purchase and distribute the numerous CDs that make up all of the installations on your system, so they pass this cost to you. When buying a system, you may have to decide if the cost is worth it to you. Generally, BlueScreen Computer Services recommends having the full CD for each operating system and program, not the Rescue CD.

DO KNOW WHAT YOUR SOFTWARE’S SERIAL NUMBERS ARE

You almost always need a serial number to install any program or operating system.

If you’ve just bought the software, chances are that the serial number is right in front of you: on the box, CD cover or CD itself. But if you’re buying a used system or piece of used software, it may harder to find the serial number(s).

In such a case, be sure to ask if any serial numbers are required for using any of the CDs provided. You’ll need them to reinstall your programs if you ever have a problem. An installation CD without its serial number is usually useless.

DO KEEP YOUR ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE UPDATED

Installing your anti-virus software is not enough to protect against computer viruses. Your anti-virus software can only protect you against the list of viruses that it knows about. Everyday new viruses are created, and the makers of your anti-virus software are always working on updating their virus lists to keep you protected. The catch is that you have get those updates!

Your anti-virus software should have an easy-to-use update button or trigger—use it often! Once a week is a good general plan, but you won’t cause any trouble if you check for updates more often than that.

Just remember: if your anti-virus software doesn’t know about a new virus, then it will allow that virus past your computer’s defenses. Keep your software in-the-know.

DON’T TRUST EVERYTHING ON THE INTERNET

Be warned: there are many programs that will try to install themselves on your computer as you surf the internet, and all they need is for you to answer Yes to one question.

Some of these programs are good. They may help your internet browser show you certain graphics or play certain types of sound files. But many programs are not necessary and can actually bog your system down. One type of unnecessary software is ‘spyware’, which tracks information about you, your surfing habits and your computer, and sends it back to its creators.

When you meet up with any screen with a Yes or No question on it, do not click an answer before reading the question. Otherwise, you could install something you don’t want or need on your computer. If you don’t understand the question being posed, a safe option is usually to close the window via the ‘X’ button in the upper-right corner.

DON’T UNPLUG YOUR KEYBOARD OR MOUSE WHILE THE COMPUTER IS ON

Don’t disconnect any cables while your computer is powered up. A range of issues can arise if you remove a part of your computer without shutting down first—from error messages to internal system board damage.

The exceptions to this rule are USB and 1394 Standard hardware devices. These items support ‘hot-plugging’, or are ‘hot-swappable’, which means they can be added to and removed from a system at any time. If you have any doubts as to if a given hardware piece is hot-swappable, check its user manual so you don’t make a costly mistake.

Problems

CAN’T DEFRAGMENT MY HARD DRIVE

Running the Disk Defragmenter is a good way to keep your computer in shape. But sometimes the Disk Defragmenter encounters a problem and cannot complete its operation.

The error message may state that the defragmenter has been interrupted 10 or more times, or cannot run properly until you close other programs running in the background. But even if you close all visible programs before running the defragmenter, it still may not solve this error.

You should know that some programs have components that run invisibly in the background, or can be found as smaller icons in the system tray (next to your clock). You should exit or halt as many of these programs first and then attempt to defragment your drive. You may have better success with it then.

When you finish defragmenting your hard drive, you should reboot your computer. This will start back up the programs you stopped earlier.

WHY DOES IT TAKE SO LONG TO BOOT?

When first booting a new computer, it seems like it starts up in a flash! Then, over the course of a couple of weeks or months, it seems like the boot-up wait-time has increased to a patience-draining level.

This can be because of the various programs that have been installed since you’ve started using the machine. Antivirus programs, Instant Messaging applications, CD recording software and others often add themselves to the Windows startup list. This means that when you’re staring at the Windows hourglass during boot-up, you could be waiting for several other programs to finish loading after Windows is finished loading.

Go to Start -> (All) Programs -> Startup, and you may see some of the items that load in addition to the needed Windows components. You can remove these items from this location, if you want, and they will no longer load as you boot up.

Note: When you remove items from the Startup folder, you are not uninstalling the program. The program is still completely functional and accessible from the shortcuts on your desktop or menus. You are just telling Windows that the program should not be run automatically each boot.

Timesavers and General Tidbits

COMPUTER TIPS ON YOUR HARD DRIVE!

Are you running Window 95, 98 or Millennium? Then quite likely there is a file that came with your operating system that will tell you about all kinds of computer tips. The name of the file is TIPS.TXT and is usually found in the C:\Windows directory. Locate the file via a Find Files or a Windows Explorer window and open it up for all kinds of helpful advice, straight from Microsoft!

SORT THE PROGRAMS MENU

After you’ve installed programs, all of the folders and icons on your (All) Programs menu will probably appear in the order you installed them. Sometimes this makes it hard to find the one you want. If this is the case, you can re-sort it!

Float your cursor over any entry in the (All) Programs list, right-click your mouse and then left-click the option “Sort by Name”. Your programs list will now be sorted alphabetically, with folders at the top.

BEST WAY TO UNINSTALL A PROGRAM

If you incorrectly uninstall a program from Windows, problems can result. Deleting the shortcuts and program file folders is often just not good enough for Windows. It is a fine idea to remove programs that you never use, especially if you are looking to free up hard drive space, but you should do it the way Microsoft intended you to.

To remove a program from your system, go to Start -> Settings -> Control Panel (Start -> Control Panel if you’re using Windows XP). Double-click the Add/Remove Programs icon. Select the program you wish to remove from the list and use the Remove button to uninstall. If you have a third-party uninstaller utility (e.g.: McAfee’s Uninstaller), that will likely do a safe job of removing programs as well. But beware of deleting files by hand—errors ranging from cryptic messages to boot-up failure can result!

KEYBOARD SHORTCUTS WITH THE WINDOWS KEY

Keyboard shortcuts can be pretty handy to accomplish common tasks. If you’re nimble of finger and like using shortcut keys, you may find the following shortcuts, which use the Windows key, to be quite useful.

The Windows key, by the way, is typically located to the left of your left-hand Control key and again to the left of your right-hand Alt key. On a laptop, the Windows key may be in a different location—perhaps towards the upper-right corner of the keyboard area. In any case, the key is indicated with the Windows flag logo. (Note: Some older keyboards do not have a Windows key. If yours does not have a Windows key, these shortcuts won’t be available.)

Here are the shortcuts (WIN = Windows Key):

The right-hand mouse button is a powerful time-saver. Program manufacturers—Microsoft, Adobe, Adaptec, etc.—have linked many common and useful functions to the right-click button on your mouse. Try right-clicking on items, buttons and selections as you use your programs. Usually, you will get a short list of functions available for the object you clicked on (such as copy/paste or formatting options). You may find quicker or easier ways of doing things!

WHATIS.COM

As with any field, the computer world has a lot of technical terms that can be confusing.

To better understand articles and user manuals, we recommend a particular website that strives to define every term in the computer world: Whatis.com. While some sites have good definitions for people who already know a lot about computers, Whatis.com defines terms in plain language, and has helpful cross-referencing for basic and advanced items.

Try them out at whatis.com.

TAKE A SCREENSHOT

A screenshot is really a snapshot of what is displayed on your monitor. As long as your PC is not locked up, you can take a screenshot whenever you like.

Screenshots can be useful for a variety of reasons, but here’s our favorite one: a screenshot can serve as detailed evidence.

When a computer is having problems, you may see error messages. The message may be lengthy or very technical (or both). But it can be very useful to the person diagnosing your computer. If you get an error message you do not understand or would have difficulty remembering, take a screenshot. It’s the easiest way to save the message to give to others later.

To take a screenshot on a Windows-based PC, press Print Screen. Or, you can press Alt + Print Screen to take a screenshot of just the active window. This copies what you see on the screen to the Windows clipboard. Then you can use the regular Paste function to paste it into many programs—like MS Paint or MS Word. Once you’ve pasted the image, you can save it as a file for safe-keeping.





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