MGadAllah

You can set the Quick Launch bar icon size to either Large or Small. Right-click an empty area on the Task bar and uncheck Lock the Taskbar option. Now, right-click exactly on the Quick Launch drag handle and select View menu. You can choose between the two options namely Large Icons and Small Icons. Once selected the required option, Lock the taskbar again.

In windows XP explorer, you can rename multiple files at the same time simply by highlighting all the files you wish to change, right clicking one of them and selecting 'rename.' Once you have done this, all the files will share the same name with a number in brackets differentiating them.

To create a useful link desktop link to shutdown or restart your PC, follow these directions: Right click on an empty area of your desktop, then select 'new' and 'shortcut' to open the new shortcut wizard. When prompted for the location of the shortcut, enter 'SHUTDOWN -s -t 01' to shutdown the system or 'SHUTDOWN -r -t 01' to restart the system. Name the shortcut and give it an appropriate icon from the '%SystemRoot%\system32\SHELL32.dll' location. You now have a quick shortcut to shutdown or restart your system! Perfect for getting out of the office right at 5:00PM on the dot! ... OR at any time you like

To change the interval that Windows updates the time using the internet time servers via regedit, navigate to: 1. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Services \W32Time\TimeProviders\NtpClient 2. Select "SpecialPollInterval" 3. 3. Change decimal value from 604800 to a different value in seconds. i.e.: 172800 (2 Days) or 86400 (1 Day) and so on. not recommended to chang this unless you are on a broadband connection.

If you just opened a number of separate, related windows (a folder inside a folder, and so on), there's an easier way to close them all than one-at-a-time: * Hold down the shift-key as you click the X caption button in the upper-right corner of the last window opened. Doing so closes that window and all windows that came before it.

Like many other audio players, Windows Media Player rushes out to the Internet to find information for you when you play a CD. Some of this information, such as song titles and album art, is useful, but Media Player also identifies your copy of Media Player to the site where it's getting data. Why? According to the help file, "The server uses this unique identifier to monitor your connection. By monitoring your connection, the server can make adjustments to increase the playback quality and to alert you about events that occur when receiving streams over the Internet." If you're disturbed by this exchange of information, here's how to stop it. In Windows Media Player, click Tools > Options and go to the Player tab. Notice the option that says "Allow Internet sites to uniquely identify your player?" Turn it off.

One of the coolest new features in Windows XP is its album thumbnail generator, which automatically places the appropriate album cover art on the folder to which you are copying music (generally in WMA format). But what about those people that have already copied their CDs to the hard drive using MP3 format? You can download album cover art from sites such as cdnow.com or amguide.com, and then use the new Windows XP folder customize feature to display the proper image for each folder. But this takes time you have to manually edit the folder properties for every single folder and you will lose customizations if you have to reinstall the OS. There's an excellent fix, however. When you download the album cover art from the Web, just save the images as folder.jpg each time and place them in the appropriate folder. Then, Windows XP will automatically use that image as the thumbnail for that folder and, best of all, will use that image in Windows Media Player for Windows XP (MPXP) if you choose to display album cover art instead of a visualization. And the folder customization is automatic, so it survives an OS reinstallation as well. Your music folders never looked so good! Album cover art makes music folder thumbnails look better than ever!

Windows XP's integrated CD burner is powered by the Roxio engine but lacks the familiar Easy CD Creator interface. There is no CD Burner icon on the desktop or in the start menu. So where is this promised CD burner? There are two answers, depending on if you want to burn audio or data CD's. To burn data CDs Open a folder. Look at the folder options on the left of your screen. You should see an option to Copy All Items to CD or Copy to CD, depending on your folder view. You can also right-click a file or folder and choose Send To and then CD drive. I appreciate that XP has made it as easy to drop files to a CD as it is a Zip disk. It does not copy the files immediately. Instead, it places them into a repository and waits for further instruction on when and where to burn the CD. Now, place a blank CD into your CD drive or navigate to your CD drive in My Computer, and choose to write the files to a CD. To burn music CDs The Windows Media Player was always a monstrosity, and now it now includes a new function -- CD burning. Select a song in your My Documents folder, and choose Copy to Audio CD from the folder options on the left. Surprise! Up pops the Windows Media Player, waiting for you to choose Copy to CD. Hit the record button, and have a good time. Limitations of the incorporated CD burner You cannot create bootable CDs with the Windows XP CD burner, nor can you create a CD from an image (like a .iso file). If you want this functionality, you need to install your favorite CD burning software. Don't try to install Easy CD Creator 5 just yet -- Windows XP won't let you. Roxio will have XP patches available on their website soon, but only for their latest edition of CD creator. Roxio will not support Easy CD Creator 3.X and 4.X for Windows XP, and the user will be required to purchase the upgrade to Easy CD Creator 5 Platinum. Windows XP does not have a CD burning interface, but it has CD burning artfully integrated into the operating system. However, third-party CD burning software is still necessary for those who want to burn more than the occasional audio CD.

Some programs designed for earlier versions of Windows won't run under Windows XP. Until you can get your hands on a program upgrade for Windows XP, you can try running the program in one of Windows XP Compatibility Modes by following these steps: 1. Double-click the desktop shortcut called Run in Compatibility Mode that's automatically installed there when you install Windows XP to open a full-size Help and Support window with instructions and controls for starting an application in Compatibility Mode. You can also open this window by clicking Start on the Windows taskbar and then clicking Help and Support on the Start menu. Next, click the Find Compatible Hardware and Software for Windows XP link and then click the Program Compatibility Wizard link at the bottom of the window navigation pane. 2. Read the instructions on the Welcome to Programs Compatibility Wizard screen, paying particular attention to the warning about not using Compatibility Mode on programs, such as anti-virus software and backup tools, that specifically prohibit their use on future editions of the operating system before you click the Next button. 3. In the next screen, click the radio button indicating how you want to locate the program you want to run: I Want to Choose from a List of Programs, I Want to Use the Program in the CD-ROM Drive, or I Want to Locate the Program Manually. 4. If you selected the I Want to Choose from a List of Programs radio button, click the name of the program you want to run in the list that appears before you click Next. If you selected the I Want to Locate the Program Manually radio button, type the path to the program in the text box that appears or click the Browse button and locate it in the Please Select Application dialog box and select the Open button before you click Next. 5. In the next screen, called Select a Compatibility Mode for the Program, click the radio button for the version of Windows under which your program used to run or was designed to run: Microsoft Windows 95, Microsoft Windows NT 4.0 (Service Pack 5), Microsoft Windows 98/Windows Me, or Microsoft Windows 2000. 6. In the next screen called Select Display Settings for the Program, click the check box or boxes for the display settings that are recommended for running the program. These check box options include: 256 Colors, 640 x 480 Screen Resolution, and Disable Visual Themes. 7. Click the Next button to advance to the Test Your Compatibility Settings screen where you can verify your selections for the program. 8. If your settings are correct, click the Next button to run the program in compatibility mode. If Windows XP can run the program in the selected Compatibility Mode, the program then launches in a separate window. If Windows can't run the application, you receive an alert box indicating that there's a problem. In such a case, you have to contact the software manufacturer and get an upgrade for the application that's specifically designed for the Windows XP operating system. Note that when you exit the program that you're running in compatibility mode, Windows automatically returns you to the Program Compatibility Wizard in the Help and Support window.

In its ever-expanding push toward computer domination, Microsoft launched a concept called the .NET Passport. (Soon after installation, Windows XP urgently asks you to sign up for one.) In theory, the Passport sounds great: Give Microsoft a user name and password, and you have a Passport. When you visit any Passport-aware Internet sites, you type in your same Passport name and password. You no longer have to remember different user names and passwords for every place that you visit or shop on the Internet. In fact, when you move from one Passport-enabled site to another, you don't even need to log on again. With the Passport, your personal data travels with you: name, address, and, if you purchased anything, your credit card number. Microsoft says its .NET Passport enables software, Internet services, and computer gadgetry to work together and share information, making the Internet easier for everyone to use. Think about it, though. No entity should govern your Internet use

The My Music folder is the place where Windows automatically saves all the audio clips you download from the Internet or save on your hard drive with Windows Media Player. The My Music folder, like My Pictures, is an automatic part of the My Documents folder. To open the My Music folder from the Windows XP desktop, click the Start button and then click My Music (normally third from the top in the right-hand column in the Start pop-up menu). To open this folder from another folder, such as My Computer, click the Address bar drop-down button (on the right side) and then click My Documents at the top of the pop-up list (right below Desktop at the very top). You can then open My Music by double-clicking that folder icon (the one with the music note in it) in the My Documents window. Like the folders in My Pictures, the folders in My Music appear in thumbnail view. To play a particular audio file that you've saved in the My Music folder with Windows Media Player, right-click the file icon and then click Play on the shortcut menu. Windows Media Player opens and begins playing your selection. To play all the audio files in a particular folder, click the folder icon before clicking the Play All hyperlink in the Music Tasks section of the My Music folder. To play all of the audio clips and tracks saved in the My Music folder, make sure that no folder or file is selected before you click the Play All hyperlink.

If you

I'm glad you like it rick

Actually I think microsoft can not be trusted 100%. You are right mate.

PowerToys are additional programs that developers work on after the product has been released to manufacturing, but before the next project has begun. These toys add fun and functionality to the Windows experience. We've taken great care to ensure that PowerToys operate as they should. But please note that these programs are not part of Windows and are not supported by Microsoft. For this reason, Microsoft Technical Support is unable to answer questions about PowerToys The PowerToys are installed into the directory you specify during setup. Typically this is the system32 directory. To uninstall the PowerToys, Open the control Panel. Launch the Add/Remove Programs control panel applet. Find the PowerToys for Windows XP entry, and choose Modify/Remove. From here you can remove specific toys or all of them. Faster User Switcher Note: You cannot use this toy if fast user switching is not enabled. What it is: With Fast User Switching enabled on Windows XP, this PowerToy allows you to switch users without having to use the logon screen. Special requirements: This PowerToy requires a Windows key on your keyboard. How to use: Press the Windows key then the Q key to activate; release and press Q to switch to a different user tile, then release both Q and Windows key to switch to that user. Shell Player What it is: This PowerToy plays MP3 files and WMA files from the taskbar. How to use: Right click on the taskbar, click toolbars, then click "Audio Player." If the taskbar is locked and you want to resize the player, you will have to unlock it. This will allow you to access the play list editor and view all the buttons. Task Switcher What it is: Replaces the existing Alt + Tab application switching mechanism of Windows XP. It provides a thumbnail preview of windows in the task list and is compliant with the new Windows XP visual style. How to use: (NOTE: You must log off and then log on again for the changes to take effect). Use just as you do the existing Alt + Tab mechanism by pressing the Alt key and the Tab key to activate. While holding down the Alt key, press the Tab key to cycle through running applications. To move backwards, press Shift + Alt + Tab. Release all keys when the desired application is highlighted. Open Command Window Here What it is: This PowerToy adds an "Open Command Window Here" context menu option on file system folders. This gives users a quick way to open a command window (cmd.exe) pointing at a selected folder in the Explorer UI. How to use: After installation, right click on the folder you would like to have a quick launch command window for. Tweak UI What it is: Provides access to system settings that are not exposed in the Windows XP default user interface. How to use: Go to Start, All Programs, Accessories, TweakUI for Windows XP. PowerToy Calc What it is: Graphing calculator How to use: Go to Start, All Programs, Accessories, PowerToy Calc Bulk Resize for Photos What it is: Allows you to make a new, resized copy of your selected pictures in the same folder they are currently located in. You can opt to resize one or many pictures (as a batch). How to use: Right click any image(s) and select Resize Pictures in the context menu. ISO Image Burner What it is: Allows you to burn an ISO Image using a CD-ROM burner that is compatible with Windows XP How to use: Go to Start, All Programs, Accessories, ISO Burner Slide Show Generator What it is: Generate a slideshow when burning a CD How to use: Add only images to a CD-ROM using Windows XP Explorer, then Write these files to disk. A new task is presented in the wizard for generating the autorun for the slideshow. Virtual Desktop Manager What it is: Manage up to 4 desktops from the Windows Shell Taskbar. How to use:Right click on the taskbar, click toolbars, then click "Desktop Manager." If the taskbar is locked and you want to resize the manager, you will have to unlock it. Background Wallpaper switcher What it is: Allows you to switch the background image periodically. How to use: Access this PowerToy by right clicking the desktop, click properties. It has added a new tab that will allow you to specify the interval as well as the directory to obtain the images from. Taskbar Magnifier What it is: Allows you to magnify part of the screen from the taskbar. How to use:Right click on the taskbar, click toolbars, then click "Taskbar Magnifier." If the taskbar is locked and you want to resize the magnifier, you will have to unlock it. Slide Show Wizard What it is: This wizard helps you create a slide show of your digital pictures. When you're done, you can put your slide show on the Web so that your family and friends can view it. How to use: Launch the Wizard from the Start Menu under All ProgramsPowertoys for Windows XPSlide Show Wizard. Follow the steps of the wizard to select and arrange your pictures, choose from a few simple options, and then save a Web-ready HTML slide show to a folder.

A very important new feature in Microsoft Windows XP is the ability to do a boot defragment. This basically means that all boot files are placed next to each other on the disk drive to allow for faster booting. By default this option is enabled but some upgrade users have reported that it isn't on their setup. 1. Start Regedit. 2. Navigate to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Dfrg\BootOptimizeFunction 3. Select Enable from the list on the right. 4. Right on it and select Modify. 5. Change the value to Y to enable and N to disable. 6. Reboot your computer.

You've read the reviews and digested the key feature enhancements and operational changes. Now it's time to delve a bit deeper and uncover some of Windows XP's secrets. 1. It boasts how long it can stay up. Whereas previous versions of Windows were coy about how long they went between boots, XP is positively proud of its stamina. Go to the Command Prompt in the Accessories menu from the All Programs start button option, and then type 'systeminfo'. The computer will produce a lot of useful info, including the uptime. If you want to keep these, type 'systeminfo > info.txt'. This creates a file called info.txt you can look at later with Notepad. (Professional Edition only). 2. You can delete files immediately, without having them move to the Recycle Bin first. Go to the Start menu, select Run... and type 'gpedit.msc'; then select User Configuration, Administrative Templates, Windows Components, Windows Explorer and find the Do not move deleted files to the Recycle Bin setting. Set it. Poking around in gpedit will reveal a great many interface and system options, but take care -- some may stop your computer behaving as you wish. (Professional Edition only). 3. You can lock your XP workstation with two clicks of the mouse. Create a new shortcut on your desktop using a right mouse click, and enter 'rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation' in the location field. Give the shortcut a name you like. That's it -- just double click on it and your computer will be locked. And if that's not easy enough, Windows key + L will do the same. 4. XP hides some system software you might want to remove, such as Windows Messenger, but you can tickle it and make it disgorge everything. Using Notepad or Edit, edit the text file /windows/inf/sysoc.inf, search for the word 'hide' and remove it. You can then go to the Add or Remove Programs in the Control Panel, select Add/Remove Windows Components and there will be your prey, exposed and vulnerable. 5. For those skilled in the art of DOS batch files, XP has a number of interesting new commands. These include 'eventcreate' and 'eventtriggers' for creating and watching system events, 'typeperf' for monitoring performance of various subsystems, and 'schtasks' for handling scheduled tasks. As usual, typing the command name followed by /? will give a list of options -- they're all far too baroque to go into here. 6. XP has IP version 6 support -- the next generation of IP. Unfortunately this is more than your ISP has, so you can only experiment with this on your LAN. Type 'ipv6 install' into Run... (it's OK, it won't ruin your existing network setup) and then 'ipv6 /?' at the command line to find out more. If you don't know what IPv6 is, don't worry and don't bother. 7. You can at last get rid of tasks on the computer from the command line by using 'taskkill /pid' and the task number, or just 'tskill' and the process number. Find that out by typing 'tasklist', which will also tell you a lot about what's going on in your system. 8. XP will treat Zip files like folders, which is nice if you've got a fast machine. On slower machines, you can make XP leave zip files well alone by typing 'regsvr32 /u zipfldr.dll' at the command line. If you change your mind later, you can put things back as they were by typing 'regsvr32 zipfldr.dll'. 9. XP has ClearType -- Microsoft's anti-aliasing font display technology -- but doesn't have it enabled by default. It's well worth trying, especially if you were there for DOS and all those years of staring at a screen have given you the eyes of an astigmatic bat. To enable ClearType, right click on the desktop, select Properties, Appearance, Effects, select ClearType from the second drop-down menu and enable the selection. Expect best results on laptop displays. If you want to use ClearType on the Welcome login screen as well, set the registry entry HKEY_USERS/.DEFAULT/Control Panel/Desktop/FontSmoothingType to 2. 10. You can use Remote Assistance to help a friend who's using network address translation (NAT) on a home network, but not automatically. Get your pal to email you a Remote Assistance invitation and edit the file. Under the RCTICKET attribute will be a NAT IP address, like 192.168.1.10. Replace this with your chum's real IP address -- they can find this out by going to www.whatismyip.com -- and get them to make sure that they've got port 3389 open on their firewall and forwarded to the errant computer. 11. You can run a program as a different user without logging out and back in again. Right click the icon, select Run As... and enter the user name and password you want to use. This only applies for that run. The trick is particularly useful if you need to have administrative permissions to install a program, which many require. Note that you can have some fun by running programs multiple times on the same system as different users, but this can have unforeseen effects. 12. Windows XP can be very insistent about you checking for auto updates, registering a Passport, using Windows Messenger and so on. After a while, the nagging goes away, but if you feel you might slip the bonds of sanity before that point, run Regedit, go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/Advanced and create a DWORD value called EnableBalloonTips with a value of 0. 13. You can start up without needing to enter a user name or password. Select Run... from the start menu and type 'control userpasswords2', which will open the user accounts application. On the Users tab, clear the box for Users Must Enter A User Name And Password To Use This Computer, and click on OK. An Automatically Log On dialog box will appear; enter the user name and password for the account you want to use. 14. Internet Explorer 6 will automatically delete temporary files, but only if you tell it to. Start the browser, select Tools / Internet Options... and Advanced, go down to the Security area and check the box to Empty Temporary Internet Files folder when browser is closed. 15. XP comes with a free Network Activity Light, just in case you can't see the LEDs twinkle on your network card. Right click on My Network Places on the desktop, then select Properties. Right click on the description for your LAN or dial-up connection, select Properties, then check the Show icon in notification area when connected box. You'll now see a tiny network icon on the right of your task bar that glimmers nicely during network traffic. 16. The Start Menu can be leisurely when it decides to appear, but you can speed things along by changing the registry entry HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Control Panel/Desktop/MenuShowDelay from the default 400 to something a little snappier. Like 0. 17. You can rename loads of files at once in Windows Explorer. Highlight a set of files in a window, then right click on one and rename it. All the other files will be renamed to that name, with individual numbers in brackets to distinguish them. Also, in a folder you can arrange icons in alphabetised groups by View, Arrange Icon By... Show In Groups. 18. Windows Media Player will display the cover art for albums as it plays the tracks -- if it found the picture on the Internet when you copied the tracks from the CD. If it didn't, or if you have lots of pre-WMP music files, you can put your own copy of the cover art in the same directory as the tracks. Just call it folder.jpg and Windows Media Player will pick it up and display it. 19. Windows key + Break brings up the System Properties dialogue box; Windows key + D brings up the desktop; Windows key + Tab moves through the taskbar buttons. 20. The next release of Windows XP, codenamed Longhorn, is due out late next year or early 2003 and won't be much to write home about. The next big release is codenamed Blackcomb and will be out in 2003/2004.

Here's a great tip to speed up your browsing of Windows XP machines. Its actually a fix to a bug installed as default in Windows 2000 that scans shared files for Scheduled Tasks. And it turns out that you can experience a delay as long as 30 seconds when you try to view shared files across a network because Windows 2000 is using the extra time to search the remote computer for any Scheduled Tasks. Note that though the fix is originally intended for only those affected, Windows 2000 users will experience that the actual browsing speed of both the Internet & Windows Explorers improve significantly after applying it since it doesn't search for Scheduled Tasks anymore. Here's how : Open up the Registry and go to : HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE/Software/Microsoft/Windows/Current Version/Explorer/RemoteComputer/NameSpace Under that branch, select the key : {D6277990-4C6A-11CF-8D87-00AA0060F5BF} and delete it. This is key that instructs Windows to search for Scheduled Tasks. If you like you may want to export the exact branch so that you can restore the key if necessary. This fix is so effective that it doesn't require a reboot and you can almost immediately determine yourself how much it speeds up your browsing processes.

Introduction: Registry Editor is an advanced tool for viewing and changing settings in your system registry, which contains information about how your computer runs. Windows stores its configuration information in a database (the registry) that is organized in a tree format. Although Registry Editor enables you to inspect and modify the registry, normally you do not need to do so, and making incorrect changes can break your system. An advanced user who is prepared to both edit and restore the registry can safely use Registry Editor for such tasks as eliminating duplicate entries or deleting entries for programs that have been uninstalled or deleted. Folders represent keys in the registry and are shown in the navigation area on the left side of the Registry Editor window. In the topic area on the right, the entries in a key are displayed. When you double-click a entry, it opens an editing dialog box. You should not edit your registry unless it is absolutely necessary. If there is an error in your registry, your computer may not function properly. If this happens, you can restore the registry to the same version you were using when you last successfully started your computer. For instructions, see Related Topics. Registry Editor Keys The navigation area of the Registry Editor displays folders, each of which represents a predefined key on the local computer. When accessing the registry of a remote computer, only two predefined keys, HKEY_USERS and HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE, appear. HKEY_CURRENT_USER Contains the root of the configuration information for the user who is currently logged on. The user's folders, screen colors, and Control Panel settings are stored here. This information is referred to as a user's profile. HKEY_USERS Contains the root of all user profiles on the computer. HKEY_CURRENT_USER is a subkey of HKEY_USERS. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE Contains configuration information particular to the computer (for any user). HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT Is a subkey of HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software. The information stored here ensures that the correct program opens when you open a file by using Windows Explorer. HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG Contains information about the hardware profile used by the local computer at system startup. The following are the data types currently defined and used by the system: REG_BINARY Raw binary data. Most hardware component information is stored as binary data and is displayed in Registry Editor in hexadecimal format. REG_DWORD Data represented by a number that is 4 bytes long. Many parameters for device drivers and services are this type and are displayed in Registry Editor in binary, hexadecimal, or decimal format. REG_EXPAND_SZ A variable-length data string. This data type includes variables that are resolved when a program or service uses the data. REG_MULTI_SZ A multiple string. Values that contain lists or multiple values in a form that people can read are usually this type. Entries are separated by spaces, commas, or other marks. REG_SZ A fixed-length text string. REG_FULL_RESOURCE_DESCRIPTOR A series of nested arrays designed to store a resource list for a hardware component or driver. Caution Incorrectly editing the registry may severely damage your system. Before making changes to the registry, you should back up any valued data on your computer. Note: To open Registry Editor, click Start, click Run, type , and then click OK. To safely use Registry Editor for such tasks as eliminating duplicate entries or deleting entries for programs that have been uninstalled or deleted, you should be prepared to both edit and restore the registry.

Introduction Registry Editor is an advanced tool for viewing and changing settings in your system registry, which contains information about how your computer runs. Almost the entire settings are stored in the registry. For example, when you resize an application window, the window position (x,y points) is stored in the registry so that the settings are retained permanently. This is just an example, there are much more data stored in the registry, right from your user account names and passwords (if configured to store in the registry). Although Registry Editor enables you to inspect and modify the registry, it's advisable to use Registry Editor only if the GUI does not provide the option you're looking for. Making incorrect changes in the registry can break your system. It's highly advisable to backup the registry before editing any portion of it. Backing up the XP Registry - Three methods: Method 1: Using System Restore One way to backup the registry is to create a System Restore snapshot. System Restore returns your computer to a previous snapshot without losing recent personal information, such as documents, history lists, favorites, or e-mail. It monitors the computer and many applications for changes and creates restore points. You restore these snapshots when your configuration isn't working. This method is unreliable in case you want to rollback the registry changes made a longtime ago, in which case the System Restore might have purged that particular restore point - due to space constraints or due to a recent system restore point or even a Restore point corruption. Please remember, System Restore points get deleted for many reasons, making it unreliable, especially in the long run. Method 2: Backing up the selected branch of the registry by exporting (Reliable) This method is preferred if you're making changes to a specific key/area of the registry. To backup a selected branch/key in the registry, try this: * Click Start, and then click Run. * In the Open box, type regedit, and then click OK * Locate and then click the key that contains the value that you want to edit * On the File menu, click Export. * In the Save in box, select a location where you want to save the Registration Entries (.reg) * In the File name box, type a file name, and then click Save. (Backing up a selected branch/key of the registry) Now that you've created a Registry backup for that particular key. Save the REG file in a safer location in case you want to undo the registry changes made. You can restore the settings by just double-clicking the REG file. It automatically merges the contents to the Registry. Method 2 (a) : Export registry keys using a command-line (Console Registry Tool) You can use the Console Registry Tool for Windows (Reg.exe) to edit the registry. For help with the Reg.exe tool, type reg /? at the Command Prompt, and then click OK. Example: To export the key [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\IOLO] and it's sub-keys, try this from Command Prompt: REG EXPORT HKCU\Software\IOLO C:\IOLO.REG To view the REG contents type notepad C:\iolo.reg in Start, Run dialog. Console Registry Tool is extremely handy for network admins and also for home users. Method 3: Backing up the whole registry ("System state") For backing up the whole registry, use the NTBackup utility to back up the System State. The System State includes the registry, the COM+ Class Registration Database, and your boot files. NOTE: NTBACKUP is not installed by default in Windows XP Home Edition.

To create a duplicate of an user profile with a different user name, try this: Create a new user account Logon to that account to initialize the newly created profile Log off from the newly created profile Login as built-in Administrator Open Control Panel System applet Click the Advanced tab Click Settings under User Profiles Select a profile to copy from and choose Copy To Browse to the profile to copy to (C:\Documents and Settings\username) A new profile is now created which is the duplicate of your user profile.

If you don't need to see the XP boot logo, 1. Run MSCONFIG 2. Click on the BOOT.INI tab 3. Check the box for /NOGUIBOOT

Well Done

While I do not like to argument any one. But I really do think rick is right, But at the end it is up to you N1K Thanks