E-Musings Mon Immorata

Where's The Right Stuff? Tweaking Windows is easy with free add-ins from Microsoft and X-Teq The problem with Windows is its such a vast product with so many unexplored areas. You need to become a very diligent Registry Rat who sniffs out the many thousands (or is it millions?) of tweaks buried under some innocuous sounding key or another. Of course, like today's pampered warriors, you could always resort to the unofficial (aka unsupported) Windows Power Toys for the in-your-face sort of tweaks like hiding that irritating arrow indicating a shortcut file. Windows Power Toys are available as version-specific builds. Microsoft has covered the idiot-factor ensuring you can no longer install the Windows 9x/NT/ME/2000 version on Windows XP/2003 and vice versa. Windows PowerToys include tweaks to go to Desk Menu (a feature not included in Windows 9x/NT), ability to open a DOS prompt or Explorer Window from the Taskbar as well as search enhancements and a customizable Sent To menu. Please read this FAQ before you install, since some tweaks are Windows-version specific. Windows XP PowerToys include Open Command Prompt, Task Switcher (Alt+Tab), Image Resizer, CD Slideshow, Power Calculator, Virtual Desktop Manager, Taskbar Magnifier, HTML Slide Show Wizard, and Webcam TimerShot. However I find the TweakUI toy the best. This lets you extensively modify the Windows User Interface. It's available as a stand alone module for Windows 9x/ME/NT/2000, Windows XP and Windows XP SP1. Windows 9x also has a separate set of Kernel Toys used for system-level modifications. And include Key Remap, WinTop, MS-DOS Mode Customization Wizard and a Conventional Memory Tracker. Two other super tweaking utilities are XQDC X-Setup Pro (formerly Xteq) 6.6 and Tweaknow Powerpack 2005. The former is free for non-commercial use. The latter is available only as a 10-day free trial. X-Setup Pro is one of the most comprehensive Windows tweaking suites that covers over 1,700 modifications! And supports every Windows version from Windows 95 through Windows XP and Windows Server 2003. There's a full list of feature here. It also supports XML-based plugins to extend the feature set. These add-ins can be downloaded separately or you can install them from within the suite. If you are comfortable with XML code, consider writing your own plugins. Then give them back to the community. Tweaknow Powerpack 2005 combines a system tweaker with memory optimizer. In Windows XP and later, Microsoft has considerably improved memory management as the operating system has transitioned to a true 32-bit core. However Windows 2000 and earlier versions desperately need memory management. Tweaknow is available in 2 version -- Professional & Standard -- that differ in the number of Windows versions supported. Professional supports all Windows versions excluding Windows NT and Windows 95. Standard supports only Windows XP (and I suppose Windows Server 2003 as well). Both are available as separate 10-day trials. Over the weekend I was faced by a unique problem. I was finding it difficult to locate program icons in the Windows XP System Tray. XP allows you to group icons into Always show, Hide when inactive and Always Hide. But the UI lacks a defined method of deleting icons you no longer need. So I turned to the Net and after a few mis-starts (the more focused your search terms the better the results), found a solution. This tweakrequires Windows Registry modification. Begin by opening the Registry Editor (regedit) and locating the key: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\TrayNotify. Within this, locate and delete the Values: IconStreams, PastIconsStream. Then open Task Manager, locate Explorer.exe and terminate it. Don't worry if your desktop icons and toolbars suddenly vanish. Use Task Manager > File > Run "explorer.exe" to restore Windows. You'll notice the System Tray flashes as it recreates icons based on open applications. The next time, your System Tray overloads with archived icons, repeat the process. You'll soon become an ace. Brian Livingston, another Windows expert, runs WinFind, a super Windows-related search multiplier. This indexes multiple Microsoft Windows-related sites -- Annoyances.org, Langa List, PC Magazine, Tom's Hardware, WinSupersite, JSI, Inc (who offer KB Alerts), Lockergnome, PCWorld, WinNetMag, Woody's Watch -- as well as Livingston Columns-- Brian's Buzz, E-Business Secrets, Window Manager, Known Issues and Executive Tech. I recently discovered another search multiplier: Queryster lets you select a default channel (search engine). Then locate multiple terms, as separate searches. You can search across the Web or in specific topics like shopping, news, images and web logs (blogs). The site offers Batch Search by default. The engine list is topic-specific to improve keyword focus.  Watcha waiting for? Go check it out now. Virus-wise, the past week's been a busy one. Al-Qaeda sympathizers have turned from chemical compositions to software ones. A new virus, Atak.B may become the first working example of a super worm combining the most destructive features of a wide genre of viruses, Trojans and worms. This infector's code indicates it was developed by Melhacker (aka Vladimor Chamlkovic) a known Al-Qaeda sympathizer who publicly stated in March 2003 that his Scezda worm (combining the worst of  Klez, SirCam and Nimda) would be unleashed if the US attacked Iraq again.  Well it did. And Scezda never arrived. So maybe its just self-publicity. But if you are inadvertently Atak'ed, watch out. This is a mass mailer with a back door (making it really a Trojan) that targets over 500 different antivirus, firewalls and debuggers as well as other viruses. There's also online danger lurking in an IFRAME. A new HTML mail making the rounds includes script that opens an IFRAME link to a web site then redirects the user using a second link to activate VBS/Inor. This in turn downloads SSE.EXE, a Trojan that opens a backdoor into your computer. Infected messages play on your longing for companionship. If you use Outlook or Outlook Express configure the client to read all messages as plain text. Or download and install a copy of Thunderbird. And then with a good antivirus and a firewall, you shouldn't be at risk. Unless you choose to open every single mail attachment you receive. That's it for now. Stay Safe! Click Here to Email Me