There Must Be a Faster Way ...
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Who doesn't feel the need for speed? You might not be aware that you're doing some common tasks the hard (read: slow) way. Follow these tips to get in the fast lane.
One-Click Exits
Do you want an easy way to shut down Windows? Right-click the Desktop and choose New, Shortcut. Then type c:\windows\rundll.exe user.exe,exitwindows (your path may differ), click Next, type a name for the Shortcut, and click Finish. Double-click this icon anytime to exit Windows.
To create a keyboard shortcut to do the same thing, right-click the icon, select Properties from the menu, click the Shortcut tab, and click in the Shortcut key box. Press the keys you want to use to activate your shutdown shortcut (they must begin with Ctrl-Alt, Ctrl-Shift, or Shift-Alt).
If you want a shortcut that restarts Windows rather than simply shutting it down, change the command line in the Target box to read c:\windows\rundll.exe user.exe,exitwindowsexec (again, your path may differ).
Instant Desktop Folder
The Windows desktop is a folder like any other. While you can edit the contents of this folder by adding or deleting items on the Desktop itself, sometimes you need to access the underlying folder (for example, to reach hidden files within it). Here's how to open that folder quickly.
Select Start, Run. Type a period and press Enter.
Launching Multiple Apps
Do you want to click a single icon to start more than one application? You can create a batch file that launches as many programs as you want. Open Notepad and type start followed by a space and the command line of an application (for example, c:\windows\calc.exe); then press Enter. If your path includes long file or folder names, you must either enclose the path in quotation marks (for example, "c:\programfiles\accessories\mspaint.exe") or use shortened versions of the long names (for example, c:\progra~1\ access~1\mpaint.exe). Add more lines following this pattern for each program you want to start with one icon.
Don't press Enter after the last line. Choose File, Save and type a file name (in quotation marks) with the .bat extension. (The quotation marks keep Notepad from overriding the .bat extension with its default .txt extension.) Double-click the batch file (or its Shortcut) to launch your programs.
Faster Menu Navigation
The mouse can slow you down, especially if you're a touch typist. Here's how to keep your fingers on the keyboard while you're trying to launch an application. Press Ctrl-Esc to bring up the Start menu, followed by the first letter of the menu option you want, such as P for Programs. Now type the first letter of the menu item you want to reach (say, A for Accessories). If several menus start with that letter, keep typing it until you reach the item you want. Or be really efficient and rename your menus so each item starts with a unique character. If you can't come up with enough workable names, use a numbering system.
Instant Device Manager
Do you need to access the System Properties dialog box--for example, to access the Device Manager? Select Start, Settings, Control Panel, double-click System, and ... hey, wait a minute. There's an easier way. Hold down Alt as you double-click My Computer; or select My Computer and press Shift-F10; or right-click My Computer and select Properties. Once you see the Properties sheet, click the Device Manager tab.
Empty Your Trash Anywhere
When you're rooting around in folders and want to empty the Recycle Bin, it can be a hassle to move windows out of the way or (in the case of Windows Explorer) to scroll around to find the Recycle Bin. Wouldn't it be great if you could empty the Recycle Bin from any Windows Explorer or folder window?
If you agree--and you don't mind editing the Windows Registry--we have a solution for you. As a precaution, first back up these Registry files in your Windows folder: user.dat, user.da0, system.dat, and system.da0.
To edit the Registry, choose Start, Run, type regedit, and press Enter. Navigate down the tree in the left pane until you reach this location: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\*\shellex\ContextMenuHandlers. Right-click the ContextMenuHandlers folder on the left, and choose New, Key. When the new folder appears, carefully type the following: {645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E} (or just copy it from here, complete with the brackets, and paste it into RegEdit) and press Enter. Exit the Registry Editor.
That's all there is to it. Now when you right-click any file you'll have the option of emptying the Recycle Bin.
Restart, Don't Reboot
There are a number of ways to reboot your computer: Press Ctrl-Alt-Del twice (do this only when your system is hopelessly locked); press the Restart button (you know where it is); or choose Start, Shut Down and select "Restart the computer"' and click OK.
But did you know you can restart Windows without rebooting your entire system? (This trick comes in handy after you've made Registry changes for which you need to restart Windows.) Choose Start, Shut Down and select "Restart the computer" and then--here's the trick--hold down Shift when you click OK.
Speed to Sites With Windows 95's Run Command
You can speed your way to Web and FTP sites by selecting Start, Run. In the dialog box that appears, type a URL or FTP address. (You can even type the subdirectory and name of the file you want to download, such as ftp.microsoft.com/softlib/mslfiles/rptsampl.exe.) Click OK.
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