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Beginners Guides: 99 Performance Tips for Windows
Beginners Guides: 99 Performance Tips for Windows - PCSTATS
Newest Update! PCSTATS covers all the TechTips you need to push a Windows XP PC from sluggish to quick. This Guide deals with quicker boot times, making your current hardware work faster, and 99 other Tips from PCSTATS that will help you make your computer run better, quicker, and more efficiently!
Filed under: Beginners Guides Published:  Author: 
External Mfg. Website: PCSTATS Feb 25 2014   M. Dowler  
Home > Reviews > Beginners Guides > PCSTATS

WinXP Interface Tweaks and Shortcuts: Tips 70 - 73

70. Add the address taskbar to desktop

Here's an interesting little tip to speed up your use of the Internet. You can actually get the Internet Explorer address bar to be a taskbar item, hidden away on your screen until needed. This makes launching a web page without disrupting your workflow considerably easier. As an added bonus, you can also use this feature to perform the same operations you would do with the 'Run...' application from the start menu, like launching the command prompt with 'cmd.'

To place the address bar on your desktop:

Right click on the taskbar, select 'toolbars' and place a checkmark next to 'address.'

The address bar will appear on your taskbar. Now right click the taskbar again and remove the checkmark from 'lock taskbar.'

Select the dotted area immediately to the left of the 'address' toolbar you just added. Drag this to the top of the screen. The address toolbar will appear across the top of the screen. Now right click the toolbar and select 'auto-hide' and 'always on top.' The address toolbar will now pop up whenever you move your mouse to the top of the screen.


71. Disable error reporting

To make for a smoother computing experience, disable the error-reporting feature in windows XP. This will prevent error boxes popping up after application crashes, and upon restarting Windows after a fatal crash.

To disable error reporting right click on 'my computer' and select 'manage.'

Expand 'services and applications' and select 'services' to open the services window.

Highlight the 'error reporting service,' right click it and select 'properties.'

In the 'startup type' dropdown box, choose 'disabled.'

72. Reduce menu delays

The Windows XP start menu incorporates a built-in delay between the time your mouse pointer lands on a menu and the time that menu unfolds. This can get annoying after a while. Using the registry, you can speed up menu response, speeding up your computing experience.

First, open REGEDIT and then navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\
Edit the MenuShowDelay value.

The default is 400; lower values will speed up the start menu.

Setting it to 0 is not a good idea unless you like 5 or 6 menus popping out at you every time your mouse pointer strays, but experiment to find your favourite setting.

73. Restore the Quick launch bar

The quick launch bar is one of the most essential windows navigation features, introduced (with minor but well-deserved fanfare) in Windows 98. Through Windows ME and 2000, it continued to give sterling service to computer users across the globe with its unbeatable combination of customizable and convenient one-click shortcuts and that essential 'minimize everything now' button.

With the dawn of Windows XP, the quicklaunch bar was suddenly and inexplicably gone from the taskbar. This probably contributed more than any other factor to Windows user's initial alienation from XP's interface. But fortunately the quicklaunch bar still exists, it has just been disabled by default. With a few clicks you can get it back where it belongs.

To re-enable the quicklaunch bar:

Right click on the time display in the lower right corner of the taskbar and select 'properties.'

Now look for the option entitled 'show quick launch.' Enable it.

Now that your quick launch bar is back, you can drag and drop shortcuts onto it from the desktop to customize it.

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Contents of Article: PCSTATS
 Pg 1.  Beginners Guides: 99 Performance Tips for Windows
 Pg 2.  Preparing your system: Tips 1 - 3
 Pg 3.  Preparing your system: Tips 4 - 5
 Pg 4.  Preparing your system: Tips 6 - 8
 Pg 5.  BIOS Tweaks: Tips 9 - 11
 Pg 6.  BIOS Tweaks: Tips 12 - 14
 Pg 7.  Overclocking Memory / CPU: Tips 15 -16
 Pg 8.  WinXP Software and Registry Tweaks: Tips 17 - 20
 Pg 9.  WinXP Software and Registry Tweaks: Tips 21 - 22
 Pg 10.  WinXP Software and Registry Tweaks: Tips 23 - 25
 Pg 11.  WinXP Software and Registry Tweaks: Tips 26 - 28
 Pg 12.  WinXP Software and Registry Tweaks: Tips 29 - 31
 Pg 13.  WinXP Software and Registry Tweaks: Tips 32 - 35
 Pg 14.  WinXP Software and Registry Tweaks: Tips 36 - 40
 Pg 15.  WinXP Software and Registry Tweaks: Tips 41 - 43
 Pg 16.  WinXP Software and Registry Tweaks: Tips 44 - 45
 Pg 17.  WinXP Software and Registry Tweaks: Tips 46 - 48
 Pg 18.  Video and Graphics Tweaks: Tips 49 - 52
 Pg 19.  Video and Graphics Tweaks: Tips 53 - 54
 Pg 20.  Video and Graphics Tweaks: Tips 55 - 57
 Pg 21.  Network and Internet Speed Tweaks: Tips 58 - 61
 Pg 22.  Network and Internet Speed Tweaks: Tips 62 - 63
 Pg 23.  Network and Internet Speed Tweaks: Tips 64 - 66
 Pg 24.  WinXP Interface Tweaks and Shortcuts: Tips 67 - 69
 Pg 25.  — WinXP Interface Tweaks and Shortcuts: Tips 70 - 73
 Pg 26.  WinXP Interface Tweaks and Shortcuts: Tips 74 - 77
 Pg 27.  WinXP Interface Tweaks and Shortcuts: Tips 78 - 81
 Pg 28.  Improving Windows XP boot speed: Tips 82 - 84
 Pg 29.  Improving Windows XP boot speed: Tips 85 - 88
 Pg 30.  Improving Windows XP boot speed: Tips 89 - 91
 Pg 31.  Improving Windows XP boot speed: Tips 92 - 94
 Pg 32.  Increasing XP shutdown speed: Tips 95 - 99

 
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