Usage Tips

By:  Abdul Habra
Email: ahabra@yahoo.com
Version: 1.03
Date:  August 27, 2004

These are some tips that I collected from different sources.

1. Start MS-Windows Explorer at a given directory
For example to start at D:
    C:\WINDOWS\explorer.exe /e, D:
2. Add 'Command Prompt Here' to MS-Windows Explorer Context
Create and execute the following script:

Set objShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
objShell.RegWrite "HKCR\Folder\Shell\DosHere\Command\", _
                  "cmd.exe /k cd " & chr(34) & "%L" & chr(34)
objShell.RegWrite "HKCR\Folder\Shell\DosHere\", "Command Prompt Here"
3. Add 'Explore From Here' to MS-Windows Explorer Context
Create and execute the following script:

Set objShell = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
objShell.RegWrite "HKCR\Folder\Shell\ExploreHere\", "Explore From Here"
objShell.RegWrite "HKCR\Folder\Shell\ExploreHere\Command\", _
                  "explorer.exe /e,/root," & chr(34) & "%1" & chr(34)
4. Google a specific web site
For example, to search for the word struts on www.tek271.com:
   "struts" site:www.tek271.com
5. Use this image for MS-Windows Desktop background
    DesktopBackground.bmp
6. Website Icon for MS-Internet Explorer
Create an 16x16 icon file named favicon.ico, and put it in the root of your site.

If you want to use a different name, add this to the <Head> element of the page:
  <LINK REL="SHORTCUT ICON" HREF="http://www.mydomain.com/myicon.ico">
7. Control what programs are run at Startup of MS-Windows
In the registry, edit the contents of:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Run/
8. Remove items from Control Panel/Add or Remove Programs
After you uninstall a program, sometimes it stays in the Add or Remove Programs list.
To delete it, edit the registry, go to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Uninstall/

Find the program's item and delete it.
9. Add Copy To Folder, Move To Folder to MS-Windows Explorer Context
Create and execute the following script:

Set shl = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
rp= "HKCR\AllFilesystemObjects\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers\"
gdCopy= "{C2FBB630-2971-11d1-A18C-00C04FD75D13}"
gdMove= "{C2FBB631-2971-11d1-A18C-00C04FD75D13}"
shl.RegWrite rp + "Copy To\", gdCopy
shl.RegWrite rp + "Move To\", gdMove
10. Disable Windows Kernel paging to hard disk (keep kernel in RAM)
In the registry, set this value to 1:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/SYSTEM/CurrentControlSet/Control/
  Session Manager/Memory Management/DisablePagingExecutive

Do this only if you have more than 256MB RAM.
11. Fix the text search bug in Windows XP
Create and execute the following script:

Set sh = CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
kn = "HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\ContentIndex\FilterFilesWithUnknownExtensions"
sh.Regwrite kn, 1, "REG_DWORD"

This problem is documented at http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;309173
A good (and free) search solution is to use Agent Ransack from www.agentransack.com

 

Page Last Updated August 27, 2004.