Customization
Tips
Add Apps to Control Panel
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Advanced
Submitted by: Leo
This is great for all those apps you
just seem to head to the Control Panel for. But for this example I will use
Quake ;) You will need four things: 1. A copy of "Themes.Cpl" 2. A
Hex Editor (Hex Workshop) 3. Regedit 4. A brain :) Open Regedit and go down to
this key [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App
Paths] Add a new key name it something with Six letters ALL CAPS with a .EXE on
the end. Then edit the Default value, type in the path of the app you wish to
appear in the Control Panel I.e. "C:\Games\Quake\Quake.exe" :) Next
add a new string value and name it "Path" give it a value (using the
above e.g.) "C:\Games\Quake\Quake;" Open your favorite Hex Editor and
open "Themes.cpl" from your System directory, assuming you have Plus!
installed. Do a search for the second hexy range: 43006F006E00740072006F006C00.
Where it says ."D.e.s.k.t.o.p. .T.h.e.m.e.s" is the name that appears
on the icon, Change it to "Q.u.a.k.e" and 00 out the remaining
letters. Where it says "P.e.r.s.o.n.a.l.i.z.e. .y.o.u.r.
.c.o.m.p.u.t.e.r" this is the status bar text, change it to match i.e.
"Q.u.a.k.e" and 00 out the remaining letters. Where it says
"T.H.E.M.E.S...E.X.E" this is the what is referred to the registry,
change it to match the new key you made in App Paths, in this case its
"QUAKEQ.EXE' so change it to "Q.U.A.K.E.Q...E.X.E" save the file
as "Quake.cpl" or anything with a .CPL extension in your system
directory. Have a look in the Control panel now and Quake should be there. What
to do about the Desktop Themes icon, no problem just open up
"Quake.cpl" in icon editor (i.e. Microangelo ibrarian/Studio) And
replace it with a Quakey icon of choice, then rebuild icon cache with
Microangelo Engineer or reboot. Done.
Add Help to the Folder's Context Menu
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Intermed.
Submitted by: Gordon Ali
Open Regedit (found in
C:\Windows\Regedit). Navigate to KEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell. Click on the
'Shell' key. Select 'New' from the Edit menu, and then select 'Key'. Name the
new key 'Help' with no spaces and without the quotes. Click on the new 'Help'
key. Select 'New' from the Edit Menu, and then select 'Key'. Name the new Key
'Command' without the quotes. Click on the new 'Command' key. In the right
pane, double-click on the 'default' value. In the 'Value Data' or the Dialog
Box type C:\Windows\Winhlp32.exe | C:\Windows\Help\Windows.HLP' without the
quotes. Ensure that you have the pipe symbol between C:\Windows\Winhlp32.exe
and C:\Windows\Help\Windows.HLP. Close the dialog box and then close RegEdit.
Press F5 to refresh the system. Now, when you right click on any folder, the
Context Menu will allow you to launch Window's Help.
Adding Commands or Programs to Recycle Bin Menu
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Advanced
Submitted by: Ricardo Amaral
Andrade
To add commands or programs to
Recycle Bin's Menu (right-click) open REG Editor and go to
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}\Shell. Create
new key with anything you want and create other key inside this key as
"Command". In the right panel, double-click on "(Default)"
and put the path of program/command. Hit OK and test.
Adjusting the Volume
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
On the Audio page of the Multimedia
control panel applet, select the ‘Show volume control on Taskbar’ option. Once
enabled, clicking the speaker icon on the Taskbar will launch the volume
control slider. Double-clicking the speaker icon will launch the full volume
control applet.
Altering the Tip List
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Advanced
Submitted by: Bryon C. Gloden
Click on the Start Button then Run
and then type in Regedit. Click on HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE and then SOFTWARE then
Microsoft then Windows then CurrentVersion then explorer and finally Tips. Here
you can modify the tips that are displayed when Windows95 starts. If these tips
are no longer displayed when you start up your computer, you can click and the
Start Button and then Programs then Accessories and then click on Tips and
Tours. You can then place a check mark in the box telling it show the Welcome
Screen next time you start up Windows95!
Change Display Properties
Platform: Windows CE
User Level: Beginner
To quickly change Display
properties, Alt+tap on the desktop and select Properties from the shortcut
menu.
Change the Start Button Icon
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Beginner
Submitted by: Chris Folsom
The Start button icon is found in
the file USER.EXE in your \Windows\System directory. You cannot edit this file
while Windows is running, so copy USER.EXE and rename the new file something
like USER1.EXE. Just for good measure, make another copy and call it
USER_OLD.EXE, so if you ever want the original back, you have a copy of it.
Color Schemes
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
To change the Windows color scheme,
use your right mouse button to click the desktop; then click Properties and
select the appearance tab.
Configuring Explorer For All Drives Left Panel View
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Intermed.
Many of you have large HDD and have
partitioned it to many logical drives. Starting Windows Explorer you can see
only the contence of drive C: at the left panel. How about viewing all drives,
like "My Computer". How can you do this ? Right click Start button
and select Explore command, search for your Windows Explorer shortcut in
Programs and holding [Alt] key double click on the shortcut. Select the
Shortcut Tab and at the Target text box type after the /e switch the /select
switch, whitch it should look like this: C:\WINDOWS\EXPLORER.EXE /n,/e,
/select, C:\ Click OK and that was it! Now when you open Windows Explorer you
will see all the drives in left panel an the drive C: will be selected.
Cool 3d Screen Saver
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
Submitted by: Kris Barton
The new version of Windows95 (OSR2)
Comes with some Funky OpenGL screen savers. This trick works on both 95 and NT.
In screen savers select 3D Text, click on settings. Where it says OpenGL (the
text to use), put the word volcano. Now test the screen saver, it will start to
name off different Volcanoes in the world! If you have WindowsNT, you can also
put Not Evil as the text to see a disply of the NT product team!
Create a PC in a PC
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Intermed.
Submitted by: Sean Word
To personalize use of your PC if you
share it with members of the family, if you wish, you can create your own
personalized settings of Windows95 by going to MY COMPUTER, then
double-clicking on the CONTROL PANEL icon. Then double-click PASSWORDS.
Left-click on the tab "User Profiles". Make sure that the second
option, that users can customize their desktop settings, is checked. The next
person who logs into Windows95 can change settings without affecting the
settings you prefer. When Win95 starts, it will ask for your name. Then once
you are in Windows, you may use your own settings!
Custom Startup Screens
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
Ever get sick of the Windows95
startup and shut down screens? They are just standard bitmaps that can be
modified by any graphics program. The wait screen while booting is LOGO.SYS,
the wait screen while you shut down is LOGOW.SYS and the "It's now safe to
turn off your computer" screen is LOGOS.SYS. Be creative, and make your
system your own.
Customize Your Desktop
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
You can change the look and feel of
your Desktop by right clicking any open area on your desktop (not on a file)
and selecting Properties.
Desktop Color
Platform: Windows CE
User Level: Beginner
In CE 2.0 - To change the color of
the desktop simply make a small bmp file of the color you want, and tile it as
a background.
Desktop Display Properties
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
To quickly adjust your display
properties, right-click anywhere on the desktop and choose Properties.
Desktop Layout Tip!
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
Use your favorit paint program to make
a image that is the same WIDTH/HEIGHT as your screen is set too and draw box's
and give them names according to groups of icons then set it as your wall paper
and move the icons into the groups.. this is a real neat custom tip! I enjoy it
day after day as will you.
Details, Details
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Beginner
When you view a window's contents in
Details mode (select Details under the View menu), you can adjust the width of
any column. Just hold the cursor over the line between two column titles, and
when it changes to a double-pointed arrow, click and drag in either direction.
Changes affect the column to the left of the pointer. You can also adjust a
column's width to fit its widest entry. Hold the cursor over the line to the
left of the column you'd like to size, and when it changes to a double-pointed
arrow, double-click.
Easy Icons
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Beginner
Submitted by: Johannes Hansen
You create an icon in Win95, simply
select a *.bmp-file that you find suitable. Change the extension from .BMP to
.ICO. That is all there is to it.
Editing Sounds
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Beginner
Submitted by: George Carver
To change the startup, exit, aol
sounds, etc.. Open the Control Panel Menu, Then open the Sounds folder..Now
just select the sound you wish to change. And then choose BROWSE, the just find
a sound you wish to replace the old one with. And then press "OK"..
Now, be sure to select "OK" again on the Sounds Window.
Folder Icons
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
To change the icon for a folder,
select Options from the folder’s view menu. In the Options dialog, select the
File Types tab and scroll down the list to the Folder item. With the Folder
item selected, click Edit, then click the Change Icon button. Select a new
icon.
Fresh Wallpaper
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Beginner
Submitted by: The_BUG!
If you see an image while in your
browser that you want as Wallpaper, right click the image and select "set as
Wallpaper". Viola! New Wallpaper for your desktop! This works in both
IExplorer and Netscape.
Get Rid of the Arrows on Icons
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
Right click on desktop, select
properties, select appearance, in the item window select icon, change size to
30, click on apply and the arrows are gone.
Getting rid of the Little White
Arrows
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Advanced
Submitted by: Cameron Angus
Open Regedit, Search for IsShortcut,
and delete any instances of it. Go back to your desktop, press F5, and there
you go. No more little white shortcut arrows.
Hard Drive Icon
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Intermed.
Want to change the icon that Windows
95 uses to represent your hard drive? Create an .INF file that points to the
icon you have in mind. Open Notepad, and type the following: [autorun]
icon=PATH,# where PATH is the path of the icon you want to use and # is its
number in the file. Okay, let me explain that a little. In any icon file, such as
SHELL32.DLL in the Windows\System folder, the icons are numbered from zero to
whatever. To view the icons in these files, right-mouse click a folder
shortcut, choose Properties, click the Shortcut tab, and click the Change Icon
button. The Change Icon dialog box displays all the icons in the SHELL32 file.
Click the Browse button and navigate your way to any other icon file, such as
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\Pifmgr.dll, if you have it, to reveal its contents in the
Change Icon dialog box. So, if you wanted to use the fourteenth icon, the
globe, in the c:\Windows\System\SHELL32.DLL file, the line in the Notepad file
would read: icon=c:\windows\system\shell32.dll,13 (It's fourteenth in the list,
but remember, you have to start with zero.) Once you've named your icon, choose
Save As under Notepad's File menu, name the file AUTORUN.INF, and save the file
on the root of your hard drive. (This is a must.) Close Notepad. To see the
real-life version, open a My Computer window, click the old icon once, then hit
F5 on your keyboard. If you aren't happy with your choice, simply change the
icon reference in the AUTORUN.INF file. (Note: If you have multiple drives on
your system, you can change the icon for each of them. Just follow the steps
above, creating an AUTORUN.INF file on the root directory of each drive.)
Hidden Icons Available to Use
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Intermed.
Submitted by: Brad
The first thing most peopl need to
do is make sure they aren't hiding any files from view in their folders. So open
a floder (any folder) an click on View in the menu and go down to Options.Then
click on the View tab in the new dialog box that comes up and make sure the
Show all Files bullet is marked. Click Apply, then Ok to engage the change. You
must do this is order to target the file that contains hidden program icons.
Now, just to test the process, right-click on your desktop and go to New, then
Shortcut. You may get a dialog box that asks you to fill in a command line, but
you can just hit Cancel since this is only a test. Now right-click on the New
icon and go to Properties. Then click on the Shortcut tab in the dialog box
that appears. Then click on Change icon...In this test case it brings up
another dialog box which defaults to the icons we're used to. Click on
Browse...and locate the file 'pifmgr.dll' in your Windows\System folder. Click
on it, Click on Open, and it returns you to the previous dialog box, with your
new choices of icons that were previously inaccessible. Find the one you like,
click Ok. Then click Apply in the first dialog box, then Ok. You should have
your new icon on your desktop.
HPC Backgrounds
Platform: Windows CE
User Level: Intermed.
When converting a background image
it's best to convert the graphic on your desktop computer to 4 colors/grey
scale while using a dithered setting. Then move the file to your windows
directory on your HPC.
Icon Property
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
One of the properties of a shortcut
is its icon. You can change the icon of any shortcut by right-clicking,
selecting "Properties", going to the "Shortcut" tab, and
pressing the "Change Icon" button.
Icon Property, Part 2
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT User Level: Beginner Submitted by: ???
If you want to change a shortcut’s
icon, and only a few application icons are available to you, simply hit the
browse button and find SHELL32.DLL in your Windows System directory. It
contains over 70 icons you can use instead.
IntelliType Software
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
With the IntelliType 1.1 software
installed, these additional features are available: 9 additional Windows logo
key shortcut combinations. Generic application key support across old and new
applications. Enhancements to the standard Mouse Keys support in Windows 95.
Sonar, Screen Wrap, Snap To and Fast Move acceleration. Caps Lock Key Disable.
Key Lock states settings. Sound effects.
Keeping the Taskbar Visible
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
If your screen resolution is 800 x 600
or higher, you should keep the taskbar visible at all times. There are many
benefits to doing so. For instance, while you’re connected to the Internet you
can see the flashing red and green modem icon’s lights in the taskbar’s system
tray. If they’re not flashing, there’s no data being exchanged. It also lets
you instantly see all the other applications you have running at any time.
Make Icons 16-bit or 24-bit Color
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Intermed.
Go to RUN in the start menu and then
type in [regedit] then go to --->
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ControlPanel\desktop\WindowMetrics go to edit then new string
and type in [ Shell Icon BPP ]. After that double click on it and then type in
16 for 16-bit color 24 for 24-bit color and 32 for 32-bit color.
Make it Your Own
Platform: Windows CE
User Level: Beginner
Personalize your HPC by renaming My
Handheld PC. Highlight the icon, then tap the text once to rename. You might
try My Velo, or My HP, or Apollo. Be creative.
Making the Taskbar Vertical
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
If you’re a power user with a
newfangled PC with tons of memory and acres of screen real estate, you might
want to consider moving the taskbar to the right or left of the screen, in a
vertical orientation. It may seem a little disconcerting at first, but there
are two main reasons for this. First, a screen is 33% wider than it is tall.
That means you can spare more room horizontally. Secondly, as a power user you
will probably be running several programs at the same time, maybe over a dozen.
The vertical orientation allows the programs to line up neat and clean so it’s
easier to keep track of them.
More Icons
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
In Windows95 you can fined more
icons in windows/'moricons.dll'
Mouse Trails
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
The mouse pointer is easier to see
on laptop computers if you turn on pointer trails. Just double-click the Mouse
icon in Control Panel, and then click the Motion tab.
Moving the Taskbar
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
You can move the Taskbar to any edge
of your screen by dragging it with your mouse.
Moving the Taskbar
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
If you don’t like where the Taskbar
is located (by default at the bottom of the screen), you can drag it to one of
the other 3 edges of the desktop area.
Put Dial-up Networking on the Start Menu
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
To put a cascading Dial-up
Networking Folder on your Start Menu, right-click the Start Menu, select Open,
then create a new folder named: Dial Up
Net.{992CFFA0-F557-101A-88EC-00DD010CCC48}
Put the Control Panel on the Start Menu
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
To put a cascading Control Panel on
your Start Menu, right-click the Start Menu, select Open, then create a new
folder named: Control Panel.{21EC2020-3AEA-1069-A2DD-08002B30309D}
Put your Printers on the Start Menu
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
To put a cascading Printers Folder
on your Start Menu, right-click the Start Menu, select Open, then create a new
folder named: Printers.{2227A280-3AEA-1069-A2DE-08002B30309D}
Putting Your Own Items in SendTo
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
There's a folder in the WINDOWS
directory called SEND TO. By creating shortcuts in this folder to your
favorites applications, you can right click files, select Send To, and send the
file to any of the applications on the list. This is a great way to send
unknown file types to a default text editor, like Notepad.
Quick Screen Saver
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Beginner
Submitted by: Barry Kortekaas
To have instant access to your
screen saver, simply create a shortcut on the desktop pointing to the desired
.SCR file (usually located in \Windows\System).
Recycle Bin Context Menu
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Advanced
Submitted by: Esat Yilmaz
Make the Recycle Bin deletable and
renamable from its Context Menu, open REGEDIT and to to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}\ShellFolder,
double-click on the Attributes value in the right pane and change it from
"40 01 00 20" to "70 01 00 20".
Removing Arrows on Shortcuts
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
Submitted by: Taz
Use "Find" to locate
"piffile" folder as well as "inkfile" folder. When you have
found each of these open them and delete the "isshortcut" keys.
Restart your computer and you'll be rid of those pesky arrows.
Removing Run from the Start Menu
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Intermed.
Submitted by: Gordon Ali
Start the System Policy Editor
(Poledit.exe) found on your Windows95 CD. Select Open Registry from the File
Menu. Double-Click on the Local User Icon. Navigate to Local_User\Shell\Restrictions.
Check 'Remove 'Run' Command'. Click OK and select Save from the File Menu.
Click on the desktop, and press F5 to refresh the desktop so that this change
will take effect. If this does not work restart your system. Do not use this
same method to remove the 'Find' command, otherwise this disables the Find
command throughout your system!
Removing the Clock
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
To remove the clock from the Taskbar
do the following: 1) Right-click the Taskbar and selection the Properties item.
2) On the Taskbar Options page, uncheck ‘Show Clock’.
Removing the Little White Shortcut Arrows
Platform: Windows 95 User Level: Advanced Submitted by: Cameron Angus
Open Regedit, Search for IsShortcut,
and delete any instances of it. Go back to your desktop, press F5, and there
you go. No more little white shortcut arrows.
Rename your Recycle Bin
Platform: Windows CE
User Level: Intermed.
Are you bored with the standard name
of the 'Recycle Bin'? Start a CE registry editor and search for the key
'HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\{000214A1-0000-0000-C000-00000000046}\DisplayName' and
change the string 'Recycle Bin' in something like 'BioTrash'.
Saving Windows settings across reboots
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Intermed.
Submitted by: Rob Green
If you have different settings for
your explorer shortcuts (e.g. you might want a certain directory shortcut to
always appear down the left-hand side of the screen) you might find that these
settings won't be saved across reboots. To fix this problem, obtain tweakui
(32-bit shareware section), go to the explorer tab in tweakui and check 'Save
windows settings'. Arrange the window appearance for your icon and be sure to
use Close on the File menu. Then go back into tweakui and uncheck 'Save windows
settings'. This is useful if say, you have heaps of directories, or use other
directories across networks, and find yourself always copying files between the
two. Set explorer to take up 2/3rds of your screen, and your shortcut to the
other 3rd, (Maybe it could be a shortcut to open C: as opposed to exploring it)
Screen Saver
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
To change your screen saver, use
your right mouse button to click the desktop; then click Properties and select
the screen saver tab.
Sound Association (1 of 2)
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Intermed.
Windows 95 lets you attach sounds to
the events of any application on your system. Just add the applications and their
events to the Sounds dialog box first, using the Registry. Open the Registry
Editor (after backing it up) and navigate your way to
HKEY-CURRENT_USER\AppEvents\Schemes\Apps. There, you'll see a list of all the
applications whose events are currently listed in the Sounds dialog box.
(.Default is Windows.) Let's say you want to associate sounds with Microsoft
Word events. Right-mouse click the Apps key, choose New, and then select Key.
Rename the new key using the name of the program's EXE file (WINWORD.EXE, for
Microsoft Word), without the extension or path. With the new key selected,
right-mouse click (Default) in the right pane, choose Modify, and on the Value
data line, type the application name. Click OK. Now to add specific events.
Click the new application key with the right mouse button, choose New and then
Key, and rename the key with the name of an event (for a list of possible event
names, double-click the .Default key under
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\AppEvents\Schemes\Apps). Hit Enter and repeat these steps for
each event with which you'd like to associate a sound. Close the Registry
Editor when you're done. In our next tip, we'll show you how to associate
sounds with your new application events.
Sound Association (2 of 2)
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Intermed.
In our last tip, we showed you how
to make new application events appear in the Sounds dialog box: In the Registry
Editor, add a new application key (such as WINWORD.EXE, for Microsoft Word) to
HKEY- CURRENT_USER\AppEvents\Schemes\Apps. Then add event keys, such as
Minimize or RestoreDown, to this new application key. Once you've used the
Registry to add all the applications and events you want to be able to access
from the Sounds dialog box, head on over there and associate your sounds. Open
the Control Panel and double-click Sounds. Select an event, then click the down
arrow next to Name and take your pick of sounds. (If the sound you'd like to
use isn't in the list, click Browse, navigate your way to the file you want to
use, select it, and click OK.) Repeat these steps for every event with which
you'd like to associate a sound, and when you're done click OK.
Start Button Change
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Advanced
Submitted by: David
Change the start button to something
other than "Start". Boot into Dos. Edit /70 explorer.exe. Find
"S t a r t". Replace each character… spaces must contain a NUM
character. You can change the length by doing a "control P", I have
yet to get that to work.
Taking Out The Starting Logo
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Intermed.
Submitted by: Saúl Suárez
Chávez
To do this, edit your MSDOS.SYS file
and look for the phrase "Logo=1" and correct it to
"Logo=0". IMPORTANT: Do not modify the rest of the file, it could
make your system crash. To re-establish the logo just do the same thing, just
in the other way.
Theme Switching on the Fly
Platform: Windows 95
User Level: Beginner
Submitted by: Sheldon Rose
MS Plus! themes can be make the desktop
more fun but they can also be the wrong thing if you are doing "Real
Work" Making a quick change from that favorite fun time theme (In My Case
the Rogue High Colour Theme) to something more subtle a real snap. Just go into
explorer and click the theme you want. This does not restore the defaults it
loads a new theme so you have to create the themes you want to use. After a
theme has been installed to apply it Just click it and the new theme is applied
to the desktop...
Viewing Bitmaps
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
Microsoft Paint can serve as a
bitmap viewer. Simply drag a bitmap icon onto Microsoft Paint window to view
it. The current image will be replaced with the new bitmap.
Windows95 Logo
Platform: Windows 95/98/NT
User Level: Beginner
Submitted by: Heiko Szendeleit
If you have installed the PLUS!
package for Windows95 you will see a new Windows95 Logo while you start your
PC. If you like to get back your old Start-Bitmap you only have to delete or
remove the "logo.sys" from the root of drive "C:\".