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KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES
Did you install Windows 95 using floppies? Tired of reading about options that are on the CD, but not your disks (for example, our last tip on mouse pointers)? You'll be happy to know that the features that are on the Windows 95 installation CD (but not the disks) are available for download from Microsoft's Web site. For FREE. Point your Web browser to

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/downloads/default.asp
Under Select a Product or Feature, choose Windows 95; and under Select a Category, choose Administrative Tools and Accessories. Click Go, and you'll see a list of all available components. Select the one you want, such as Windows 95 Accessories - Mouse Pointers, and follow the download instructions.

NOW THAT'S A MOUSE WITH PERSONALITY!
B. Sancomb writes, "I've seen a number of Windows 95 systems with animated pointers. Where can I get these and how do I use them?"

Windows 95 comes with a number of extra pointers, including some that are animated. To use them, you'll need to install them off the installation CD. Open the Control Panel, select Add/Remove Programs, and on the Windows Setup tab, double-click Accessories. Select Mouse Pointers, click OK twice, and insert the installation CD when asked.

To use the newly installed pointers, open the Control Panel again, only this time, double-click Mouse. Select the Pointers tab and you'll see a list of currently selected pointers. Select the pointer you'd like to change (such as Normal Select), click the Browse button, then you'll see a box full of pointers. (*.ani files are animated--select one to see its preview in the Preview box.) When you find the one you want, select it and click Open. Repeat these steps for each pointer you'd like to change, then click Apply or OK to use them.

Don't have the installation CD? You can still use these fancy mouse pointers. Stay tuned for our next tip.

THOSE THREE LETTERS MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Are you the type of person who likes to see the facts in plain black and white? Don't want to rely on pictures (icons) to determine the type of each file? Then ask Windows to display file extensions. Select View, Options, select the View tab, and deselect Hide MS-DOS File Extensions. Click OK and from now on, you'll see every file's complete name (including the dot and three-letter extension) right there on-screen.

(Note: If you've installed IE 4.0, select View, Folder Options, select the View tab, and under Advanced Settings, deselect Hide File Extensions.)

FOR THE NON-MSN-ERS IN THE GROUP
T. Byers asks, "How do I go about deleting the MSN icon from my desktop? I don't use MSN and want to free up some desktop space."

One way to delete this icon is to edit the Registry. (As always, back up your Registry files--User.dat and System.dat, both hidden files in the Windows folder--first.) Open the Registry Editor--select Start, Run, type

regedit

and click OK--then navigate your way to

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\explorer\Desktop\NameSpace.

Click on each of the keys under NameSpace until "The Microsoft Network" appears under Data in the right pane. Once you've located the correct key, right-mouse-click it (in the left pane), select Delete, and click Yes to confirm. Close the Registry Editor, refresh your desktop (click it once, then press F5), and watch as the MSN icon disappears!

FAST FOLDERS
Want quick access to any folder on your system (or on a network drive)? As long as you know the exact location of the folder (and you're a fast typist), you can open any folder directly from the Run dialog box.

Select Start, Run, and in the resulting dialog box, type the path of the folder you want to open. For example, you might type

c:\mydata\personal

to open the Personal folder (on your own system), or

\\Tipworld\Win95

to open the Win95 folder on a networked computer named Tipworld. Regardless of where the folder is located, click OK, and a window appears on-screen, displaying the folder's contents. No shortcuts or tiresome double-clicks necessary!

SNEAK FILE PEEKS
Wish you could peek inside your files, without actually opening those files--for example, if you can't remember which file is which? Try Quick View. Right-mouse click any file, select Quick View, and there's your file, in its most basic form. (If you don't see Quick View in the context menu, Windows 95 doesn't have a file viewer for that type of file. Them's the breaks.) Drag and drop another file icon into the open Quick View window to display its contents there. When you finally find the one you were looking for, click the icon underneath the File command to open the file in its native application.

(Note: If you haven't already, you'll need to install Quick View off the Windows 95 installation CD. Open the Control Panel, select Add/Remove Programs, and on the Windows Setup tab, double-click Accessories. Select Quick View, click OK twice, and insert the installation CD when asked.)

OUTTA SIGHT TOOLBARS
In our last tip, we showed you how to create a toolbar out of any folder (or folder shortcut), assuming you have IE 4.0 or Windows 98 installed: Click and drag the folder over to any screen edge, let go, and a toolbar appears. Think this toolbar thing is a great idea, but wish it didn't take up so much of your desktop real estate? Just like the Taskbar, each toolbar offers an Auto Hide option.

Right-mouse click a blank area of the toolbar and select Auto Hide. When you need an item on the bar, move your mouse pointer over to that edge of the screen, and the toolbar pops into view. Move the pointer off the bar and it disappears from view.

IT'S A FOLDER. NO, IT'S A TOOLBAR!
Do you have a folder filled with items to which you'd like REALLY quick (as in one-click) access? If you've installed Internet Explorer 4.0 (or Windows 98), you can convert any folder into a toolbar that runs the length of one of your screen edges. Each folder item appears as a toolbar item, right there for the clicking.

Click and drag the folder (or folder shortcut) you'd like to make into a toolbar over to the screen edge of your choice (such as the right edge). Let go, wait a few seconds, and a toolbar appears, complete with each folder item.

(Note: Hidden files will not appear on the toolbar, even if you have the 'Show all files' option selected.)

PERFECT TYPING, EVERY TIME--PART 1 OF 2
B. writes, "Is it possible to make a Windows 95 hotkey or a macro that will allow you to insert your name and address into any application by pressing a key, such as F7?"

The easiest way to set up this shortcut is to use a shareware program, such as Perfect Keyboard 98 Pro. You can download this utility from

http://www.pcworld.com/fileworld/file_description/frameset/0,1458,2807,00.h tml
After downloading and opening pkeybp.zip, double-click Setup.exe and proceed with the installation. (Opt to load the application at Startup--shortcuts created using this program are only available if it's running.)

PERFECT TYPING, EVERY TIME--PART 2 OF 2
In our last tip, we mentioned that you can insert blocks of text, such as your name and address, into any application at the press of a key using the shareware program Perfect Keyboard 98 Pro. You can download this utility from

http://www.pcworld.com/fileworld/file_description/frameset/0,1458,2807,00.h tml
Assuming you've downloaded and installed this utility, let's walk through adding a new shortcut item to the samples.pkd file--the file that appears when you first open the program. (You may as well; there's a good folder structure already set up for you. If you'd prefer to start a file from scratch, select File, New, and so on.)

First, set up a new sub-folder under the Basic folder. Right-mouse click the Basic folder and select Add sub-folder. Right-mouse click the folder, select Properties, and type a name for the folder, such as 'Personal Info', under Label. Click OK.

Now to actually create the shortcut item. With the new folder selected, select Insert, Item. In the resulting dialog box, in the box under Macro, type the text you want this shortcut to insert. (For example, your name and address.) In the Text shortcut box, type a period immediately followed by the text you'd like to type to insert this information, such as your initials. If you wish, click inside the box under Key shortcut and type the key you'd like to press to insert this information, such as F7. Click OK, minimize the program window, and from now on, as long as Perfect Keyboard 98 Pro is running in the background, pressing the key shortcut key (or typing the text shortcut--beginning with a period and ending with a space) will insert the specified text.

GROUP WINDOW CLOSINGS
In a previous tip, we listed a number of Windows 95 keyboard shortcuts. In response, H. Dingman writes:

"I have another shortcut key to add to your list: Alt+Shift+F4 will close a window AND all of its parent windows. So for example, if you have opened My Computer, then Program Files, then Microsoft Office, and so on, you now have a desktop cluttered with many open folders (assuming you have the 'browse folders' option set to open all folders in separate windows). Alt+Shift+F4 will close them all with a single keystroke."

(Tip-in-a-tip: As an alternative to the above technique, hold down Shift as you click the 'X' caption button of the last folder window you opened.)

DLL ICON FILES BARE ALL
In previous tips, we've mentioned that when you're trying to change a shortcut's icon (right-click the shortcut, select Properties, click the Shortcut tab, and click Change Icon), if you click the Browse button to look for more icon files, it's hard to know which files contain icons. One option is to obtain some shareware to identify these icon files for you, but if you want a solution that doesn't involve a third-party utility, try this technique for identifying .DLL icon files, suggested by reader B. Garrison: "Change the default icon for dll files to "%1". Then, any dll's that contain icons will display them in the Change Icon window."

Open the Registry: select Start, Run, type

regedit

and click OK. Navigate your way to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\dllfile\DefaultIcon. (Note that there's no dot before 'dllfile' - you'll need to scroll down past all the file extensions to find it.) In the right pane, right-mouse click (Default), select Modify, replace the text on the Value data line with

%1

(that's 1, as in numero uno, not L as in last) and click OK. Close the Registry Editor and restart Windows 95. The next time you're browsing for icon files in the Change Icon dialog box, look at the icon next to each .dll file. If it's different from the default, it has icons inside.

(Note: As always, before following these steps, back up your Registry files, System.dat and User.dat. Both are hidden files located in the Windows folder.)

NARROW YOUR SEARCHES
J. Martin writes, "When I right-mouse click the Start button and select Find, the directory that appears on the Look in line is c:\windows\profiles\[user]\start menu. Is there a way to change this directory to something a bit more useful?"

There is, but similar to yesterday's tip--where we changed the focus of the Explorer window that appears when you right-mouse click Start and select Explore--this Registry change will affect more than just the Start button. From now on, right-mouse clicking ANY folder shortcut and selecting Find will open the Find window with its focus on the same folder. If you don't mind this limitation, do the following:

Open the Registry Editor: select Start, Run, type

regedit

and click OK. Navigate your way to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\shell\find\ddeexec. In the right pane, right-mouse click (Default) and select Modify. On the Value Data line, replace both instances of '%I' with the path of any folder. (Just be sure to leave everything else intact.) For example, this line might now read [FindFolder("c:\pcworld\tipworld", c:\pcworld\tipworld)]. Click OK and close the Registry Editor.

(Note: As always, before following these steps, back up your Registry files, System.dat and User.dat. Both are hidden files located in the Windows folder.)

WHO WANTS TO EXPLORE THE START MENU?
Want to change the focus of the Explorer window that appears when you right-mouse click Start and select Explore? It can be done, with a little Registry-editing, but here's the catch: From now on, selecting Explore in the context menu of ANY folder will open Explorer to the folder you specify. If you can live with this limitation, here's the technique, suggested by reader M. Whitco:

Open the Registry Editor: select Start, Run, type

regedit

and click OK. Navigate your way to HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Folder\shell\explore\ddeexec. In the right pane, right-mouse click (Default) and select Modify. On the Value Data line, replace both instances of '%I' with the path of any folder. (Just be sure to leave everything else intact.) For example, this line might now read [ExploreFolder("c:\ABC Files", c:\ABC Files, %S)]

Click OK and close the Registry Editor. From now on, right-mouse clicking Start (or any other folder) and selecting Explore takes you right to the folder you specified.

(Note: As always, before following these steps, back up your Registry files, System.dat and User.dat. Both are hidden files located in the Windows folder.)

ONE FOR THE KEYBOARD WIZZES
R. Markovic writes, "I'm what some people mightcall a keyboard wiz, but there's one shortcut I haven't discovered. How do I switch the focus to the desktop so I can right-mouse click it (for example, to select Properties, to bring up the Display Properties dialog box)? I currently have to click the desktop to switch the focus there, and then press Shift+F10 to display its context menu."

Placing the focus on the desktop involves a number of keystrokes, but if you're fast on the keyboard, anything beats the mouse. Press: Ctrl+Esc, Esc (to place the focus on the Start button), then Shift+Tab (to place the focus on your first desktop item), then Tab.

Now the focus is on the desktop. Press Shift+F10 to display its context menu.

(Note: This series of keystrokes will work whether all windows are minimized or not.)