Tweaking enables you to make Windows do interesting and useful things that it doesn't necessarily do directly out of the box.
Some tweaks are easier to action than others but all of them help you to customise your PC and make it run closer to the way you'd like.
A simple tweak might be learning a keyboard shortcut you hadn't heard of before to perform a task you undertake regularly.
A more advanced tweak might be assigning a custom shortcut to a program that includes your most recent settings preloaded. An expert tweak may involve Registry editing.
Go deeperOver the coming pages, we'll provide you with the advanced user manual that never came with Windows. Whether you use XP, Vista or Windows 7, we've hunted down a wide range of tweaks and modifications that aren't immediately obvious, but can make your life easier or stamp your personality on your PC. Some are straightforward, others involve a degree of skill.
Where we suggest Registry editing, it's important to have a recent backup. Windows backs it up automatically, but it doesn't hurt to back up manually as well. If you have a drive imaging program such as Macrium Reflect, back up your main Windows drive to an external hard disk before making any major changes.
Remember that it's your computer, so don't be shy – claim it for yourself and make it work smarter.
01. Remove programs from Open with… Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
You can remove unwanted programs that appear on the Open with… list when you're trying to open an unknown program.
In the Registry, browse to
HKEY_CLASSES_ ROOT\Applications and you'll see a list of programs installed on your PC as subkeys in the left-hand pane.
To remove an unwanted program from this list, select it and then right-click in the right-hand pane. Choose New > String Value, and name it "NoOpenWith".
02. Copy to folder Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
Add a "Copy to folder" option to the context menu so you can right-click a file to quickly copy it.
In Registry Editor, browse to
HKEY_CLASSES_ ROOT\AllFilesystemObjects\shellex\ContextMenu Handlers, and create a new key called Copy to.
Change its (Default) value to "" and check it works.
03. Move to folder Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
You can also add a "Move to folder" option in this way.
From the same ContextMenuHandlers key as in tip 2, create a new key called "Move to" and change its (Default) value to "".
04. Quick folder PropertiesWorks with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
To move quickly to a folder's Properties dialog, double-click it and hold down [Alt].
05. Correct file sorting Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
By default, a file named 2.jpg is sorted after one called 20.jpg. Many people work around this by starting single digit numbers in file names with a leading zero, but you can change this behaviour by making a Registry edit.
Browse to the Registry key
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\ Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explore.
Then create a new DWORD value and name it "NoStrCmpLogical". Right-click and modify its value to "1".
06. Change the mouse pointer in Vista and Windows 7Works with: Vista, Windows 7
Right-click the desktop and choose Personalize > Mouse Pointers. Select the scheme you want to use from the drop-down list. You can modify individual pointers by selecting one in the current scheme and clicking Browse – then replace this with any static cursor file with the extension .CUR, or an animated cursor file, which will have the .ANI file extension.
You can also download sets of mouse pointers online. These are generally distributed in sets of .CUR or .ANI files, grouped together in a zip archive. Download the file, unzip it and then replace the pointers you want to with the new files as in the above tip. A good place to start looking is here ► (
http://www.goldfiles.com/cat.php?catid=31).
You can also make your own cursor files by creating suitable bitmap images in a graphics program and saving them with the .CUR extension.
07. Mouse pointers in XP Works with: XP
To change the mouse pointer scheme in Windows XP, open Control Panel and switch to Classic View. Double-click Mouse and choose the Pointer tab.
You can now select a different scheme, or browse for a new pointer in exactly the same way as in Vista and Windows 7.
08. Send To expansionWorks with: Windows 7
When you right-click a file or folder in Windows 7 and choose Send To, there's a limited number of options. But hold down [Shift] as you right-click and you'll open an expanded menu containing My Documents, Downloads and more useful locations.
09. Edit your theme Works with: Vista, Windows 7
Right-click anywhere on the desktop and choose Personalize > Theme. Select an option from the drop-down list to use an existing theme.
Alternatively, choose "Window Colour and Appearance", open the Classic Appearance dialog to select a classic scheme and modify fonts and colours. Click Advanced. Pick the item you want to modify and enter the new colour or font.
10. Folder toolbar Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
This tweak enables you to turn any folder on your hard drive into a toolbar, similar to the Quick Launch toolbar that gives you quick and easy access to the folder's contents.
First, minimise all your open windows, then move the mouse pointer to the Taskbar and right-click it. Choose Toolbars > New Toolbar from the expanding menu, which will launch the New Toolbar dialog.
Now select the item you want to use as a toolbar. If necessary, browse through My Documents or My Computer to find the folder you want. Alternatively, you can click "Make new folder" to create a custom one with specific contents.
Click OK, and your new toolbar appears as a button on the Windows Taskbar, then click this to see an expanding menu of its contents. Sub-folders also become their own expanding menus, and you can then select a particular file to open it in its associated application.
11. Active windows Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
Press [Alt] + [Esc] to cycle through your active items in the order in which they were opened. Then press [Alt] + [Tab] to pick the window you want to work on.
12. Hanging time Works with: XP, Vista
By default, Windows waits for five seconds to allow time for any hung applications to be closed when you shut down your computer.
If you want to reduce this period of time slightly, you can change the length with a quick Registry edit, so browse to HKEY_CURRENT_ USER\Control Panel\Desktop. In Vista, create a string entry called "HungAppTimeout" (if you use XP, it's already there).
Right-click this and choose Modify. The number is in milliseconds, so the default of 5000 equates to a wait of five seconds. If you're using Windows 7, you should avoid using this tweak, because it causes glitches.
13. Tweak performance Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
1. Best performance 
Choose Start, right-click Computer and go to Properties > Advanced system settings. In Performance, click Settings > Visual Effects. Tick "Adjust for best performance". This removes most animations to improve PC performance.
2. Processor scheduling 
In the Advanced tab, both Processor Scheduling and Memory usage are optimised for programs' performance. Change to Background services and System cache if you use your PC as a server, and programs' performance is secondary.
3. Virtual memory 
In Virtual Memory, click Change > Custom size, and enter an upper and lower limit for your virtual memory. Try one and a half times the amount of RAM as your lower limit, and two to three times your RAM for the upper limit.
14. Disable paging file Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
If you're running a 64-bit version of Windows, have more than 4GB RAM installed, and don't perform memory-intensive operations, you could improve performance by disabling the paging file. In "Advanced system settings", choose Performance > Advanced, click Change under Virtual memory and choose "No paging file".
15. Clear paging file at shutdown Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
Windows uses the paging file on your hard drive as if it were RAM, and this routinely holds temporary data to free up your RAM. When you shut down your PC, this file is normally preserved, which can lead to inefficiency, because it slowly clutters up your system.
If your data is sensitive, this could also be a security threat, since it remains accessible even after you've deleted or destroyed the files it contains.
This edit flushes out the swap file whenever you shut down. Open the Registry Editor and browse to the key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management.
This contains a number of configurations for RAM and virtual memory. Either create or modify the DWORD value called "ClearPageFileAtShutdown", which defines whether the memory flush happens. To turn it on, set the value to "1".
16. Quick access to Task Manager Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
You may be used to accessing Task Manager by pressing [Ctrl] + [Alt] + [Del] and then selecting it from the resulting screen. You can also get quick access to it that's less intrusive, however – rightclick the Taskbar and choose Task Manager.
17. Change user picture Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
Click the Start button and then click your user picture. In the resulting dialog, choose Change your picture > Browse for more pictures. Locate the photo you want to use and click OK. Click Change Picture, followed by OK to confirm your choice.
18. Autohide the TaskbarWorks with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
You can free up more screen space by hiding the Taskbar. Right-click it, choose Properties and select Auto-hide. To access it when you want it, just drag the mouse to the bottom of your screen and it'll pop up.
19. Get past the welcome screen Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
You can automatically log on and bypass the welcome screen with this simple tweak. Choose Start > Run and type "control userpasswords2" into the Open bar.
Click OK to see a dialog with each user installed on the PC. Clear the box marked "Users must enter a username and password to use this computer". Click OK. Now restart, and you'll go directly to your desktop.
20. Custom keyboard shortcuts Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
Create keyboard shortcuts to launch any program shortcut. Right-click the shortcut icon and choose Properties. Select the Shortcut key box and press a letter on the keyboard, (such as [H]) and click OK. Now [Ctrl] + [Alt] + [H] will launch the shortcut.
21. Invert selection Works with: Vista, Windows 7
To select the majority of files in a folder, it's quicker to highlight the ones you don't want by holding down [Ctrl] to make the multiple selection. Now choose Edit > Invert selection.
22. Explorer menu bar Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
The menu bar in Windows Explorer is hidden by default in Vista and Windows 7. If you need to use it, browse to the folder you want to use and press the [Alt] key. Pressing [Alt] again hides the menu bar once more.
23. Show the Run commandWorks with: Vista, Windows 7
The Start menu search covers much the same job, but if you miss having the Run command from Windows XP on the Start menu in Vista and Windows 7, you can use this tweak to get it back.
Right-click the Start button and choose Properties. Ensure that the Start Menu tab is showing, and click Customize. Scroll down to the box marked Run Command and tick it, then click OK twice to complete the process.
24. Ditch the Recycle Bin Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
If you'd like to clear your desktop completely, perhaps to show off a stunning wallpaper image, you can remove the Recycle Bin from it with this clever Registry tweak. You can then simply use [Shift] + [Delete] to dump your old files and folders, instead of dragging them to the bin.
Open the Registry Editor and browse to the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\HideDesktopIcons\NewStartPanelRight-click in the right-hand pane and choose New > DWORD value. Right-click the newly created value and give it the following name: "". Then double-click on the value and change the Value data box to "1".
Quit the Registry Editor, right-click an empty space on your desktop and choose Refresh – the Recycle Bin icon will now magically disappear from view.
If you begin to miss the bin after a while, you can get it back again by going back into the Registry Editor and changing the DWORD value data back to "0".
25. Quick Launch toolbar Works with: Windows 7
If you miss the Quick Launch toolbar in Windows 7, you can get it back by right-clicking the Taskbar and choosing Toolbars > New Toolbar.
In the folder location, enter the following: "%AppData%\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch". Click Select Folder, and drag your toolbar to the left.
26. Disable startup entries Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
Click Start, type "msconfig" and click OK. MSconfig differs slightly between Windows versions, but does the same job.
Click "Selective Startup" and go to the Startup tab. Look in the list of startup entries for any you think you don't need, uncheck them, click Apply, and restart your PC to check if the items were needed for a successful boot.
Some startup entries are important, however, so go back to MSconfig and reinstate them if you had a problem. If your PC started as normal you can permanently remove them, so use the details in the Location column of MSconfig to find out where the startup entries exist. Try to remove the startup option in the parent program, or delete the Registry entry or startup shortcut.
27. Alter keyboard optionsWorks with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
Speed up your keyboard's response time by opening Control Panel and choosing Classic View.
Double-click Keyboard, and use the sliders to adjust the Repeat rate and Repeat delay to suit your typing style. You can also alter the cursor blink rate here by dragging its slider. Try out your new settings in the text box.
28. Cut back services Works with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
Free up resources by disabling unnecessary services, or setting them to start manually. There's a list of possible candidates for disabling them here.
To turn off services in Windows, go to Start > Run and type: "services.msc". Double-click on the service you want to alter and change the Startup Type to Disabled or Manual. The Remote Registry Service is a serious security threat if it's turned on, so make sure this is disabled.
29. Manage servicesWorks with: XP, Vista, Windows 7
1. Computer Management
Right-click (My) Computer on the Start Menu and choose Manage. This launches the Computer Management console. In here, you can fi nd a number of key ways to tweak your Windows system.
2. Service properties 
Click Services (and Applications) > Services. You can see each process that Windows runs. Those that show Started under the Status column are currently running. Rightclick a process and choose Properties.
3. Manual or Disabled
In the General tab, change the Startup Type drop-down menu setting to Manual. This means that the service will only start if you want it to. If you select Disabled, this means that the service won't run at all.
30. Remove text from iconsWorks with: XP, Vista, Windows7Windows won't let you rename a desktop shortcut to a single space. However, you can force it to accept a space by holding down [Alt] and typing "255" on the number pad. For multiple items, use an increasing number of spaces.
source:techradar continued
