Optimizing Windows 7 : Tips And Tricks [part 1/2] A Tutorial on Optimizing

[deadmad7 4]

Note: Before I start this tutorial want to tell you guys that I take absolutely no responsibility if you go beyond the limit (which you won't if you use your brains) and do something that screws up your computer. None of the tips and tips and tweaks or whateveryouwantocallthem are illegal or require any downloading. Some basic stuff in this tutorial. Everything will be in the Windows 7 Operating System itself. Nothing for you techies here, go way

 

Why this tutorial?

 

Did you just but the new Windows 7 OS that everyone is talking about recently? The one that your friends and family have been gloating about? Opened the package and installed with the CD to find out that you want MORE? Then, this is the tutorial for you, because thats exactly what I felt after I installed.

 

What you've learn :

 

God Mode

Hack Your Wallpaper

Hack Annoying UAC

Modify the Start Menu (three of 'em)

Lets Get it Started :

 

God Mode -

 

I bet when you saw God Mode, you immediately thought the Video Games God Mode where you never die or have unlimited HP nor does it give infinite battery power life or lets you hack into your neighbor's WIFI. It basically displays every option in the Control Panel in a nice and organized way. You might want to do this if you change your settings alot or don't like go to the control panel.

 

1. Right Click on the desktop

2. Create a new folder with the name {ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}

3. You'll find a folder with the name 'God-Mode' in the desktop with a monitor icon.

4. Open the folder and find every option you can imagine.

 

Hack Your Wallpaper -

 

When install Windows 7 , you are firstly prompted with some settings such as Language and Time. These settings affect the kind of wallpapers that you find in your computer (believe it or not). So, can you find the theme packs for United States, United Kingdom, South Africa, India, Australia in your computer? I know I can, because i did this simple trick.

 

1. Open up the Start Menu

2. Enter ' C:\Windows\Globalization\MCT '

3. You will see a window with some theme packs with names like MCT-AU, MCT-CA, MCT-GB, MCT-US, and MCT-ZA. Each subfolder has wallpapers for a specific country: AU for Australia, CA for Canada, GB for Great Britain, US for the United States, ZA for South Africa and so on.

4. Select the countries that you want and open them.

5. Exit all the windows

6. Go to Desktop > Right Click > Personalize > Select the theme pack

 

Hack the Annoying UAC

 

User Access Control or simply UAC is a new feature in Windows Vista and now in Windows 7. It prompts up a fadeout screen every time the computer needs your permission to preform a access. It is supposed to guard you against Malware, Spyware and Virus problems, annoying you the whole way. It pops up everytime you open a program or open up a game. Tired of it? Well, now you can do this to stop it.

 

1. Start Menu > Control Panel > User Accounts and Family Safety

2. Choose User Accounts > UAC Settings

3. A bar-like level thing should be found on the screen.

4. This is the tricky part, each level does a different action. Choose the one that most suits you.

 

Always Notify me

This is the UAC that is in Windows Vista. When you make changes to your system, when software is installed or when a program tries to make a change to your system, a popup notifies you.

 

Notify me only when programs try to make changes to my computer

This is the default option, found when you first install it. When a program makes a change, a prompt appears and your desktop goes dark, just like it does in Vista.

 

Notify me only when programs try to make changes to my computer (do not dim my desktop)

This is the same on as above without dimming the screen, on a pop-up.

 

Never notify me

It never popups or annoyings, but comes with a risk, you are prone to many types of Virus and Malware. Highly unrecommended by Microsoft. Highy recommended by ME.

 

5. Choose the option you want.

6. Save it and reboot.

 

Modify the Start Menu

 

Search the Internet from the Start Menu -

 

This option allows you to browse through search results in the start menu. Its very convenient and you don't have to open up a browser to search something fast.

 

1. Open up Start Menu

3. Enter ' GPEDIT.MSC '

3. Go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar

4. Add Search Internet link to Start Menu

5. You should see 'Search the internet' in the start menu search bar now

 

Change the Shut down button -

 

The default action of the Start Menu's Shut down button is to turn off your PC. If you want to make the button do somethign else like restarting your PC, you click the arrow to the right of the Shut down button and select an action from the drop-down menu.

 

What if you never shutdown your computer but always make it to go to sleep mode? You can change the Shut down button's default action to be Sleep -- or Switch user, Log off, Lock, Sleep or Hibernate.

 

To change this option, right-click the Start button and select Properties. Inside the Start Menu tab, go to Power Button Actoin and select the ' Sleep ' option to be the default. Click OK and again click OK.

 

Add Video Library to Start Menu -

 

When you open your start menu you see the Pictures, music and documents option but not the Video option. This may come up handy if you have alot of movies in your computer and want to access them fast.

 

1. Right-click the Start button and select Properties.

2. On the screen that appears, go to the Start Menu tab and click Customize.

3. In the small window that appears, go to the button and find 'Video' now set the option to ' Display as a link ' .

4. Restart your computer.

 

I hope you like this tutorial. Its my first attempt at a tutorial . Don't flame please. If I get postive response I might consider making more.

[TheDarkHacker 0]

Nice!!Microsoft's new operative system is great and i use it always.I have Ubuntu too , but i am not working with it too much because of my websites , which need a lot of photoshoping.I can't use GIMP ;)I use some registry hacks to remove the arrow the shortcuts and a registry hack so when i use small taskbar icons,they are not grouped. There are many special effects and nice Peek.About the "Annoying UAC"...Maybe you think it is annoying and stupid but sometimes it is great firewall thing. I have also disabled UAC warnings but if you don't have some experience with malware and all other software which can harm your computer.

[deadmad7 4]

Thanks. I'm going to add the removal of shortcut arrow and the registry edits too! And How to hack the Peek button and Hack Aero Theme also. And about the 'annoying UAC' I explained about the Malware stuff , i don't think you saw though

 

User Access Control or simply UAC is a new feature in Windows Vista and now in Windows 7. It prompts up a fadeout screen every time the computer needs your permission to preform a access. It is supposed to guard you against Malware, Spyware and Virus problems, annoying you the whole way. It pops up everytime you open a program or open up a game. Tired of it? Well, now you can do this to stop it.

[Rigaudon 0]

Very nice post for a first tutorial, though I question your word choice of "hack". Hacking refers a side-effect, or loophole, in the code in which the user may benefit from it in some way. What you've described I don't think is hacking since there are built-in functions to do them.However, these tips and tricks are very nice. Keep up the good work.

[deadmad7 4]

Very nice post for a first tutorial, though I question your word choice of "hack". Hacking refers a side-effect, or loophole, in the code in which the user may benefit from it in some way. What you've described I don't think is hacking since there are built-in functions to do them.

 

However, these tips and tricks are very nice. Keep up the good work.

No, you are wrong, HACK is definitely the right word and so is Tweaks, Tips and tricks. As by the Dictionary.com -

 

Hack verb (used with object)

 

Computers. to devise or modify (a computer program), usually skillfully.

And this is EXACTLY what this is doing, modifying the computer and doing it skillfully. It's just that normal people have a mis consumption of hacking as movies like War Games and other generally computer movies where they hack banks and hack the government. Also, I'm a Semi-Pro WordPress Developer and when you modify some html, and do something backend, its called a 'Hack'. Anyways , now you know. BTW I said called it whatever you want in the beginning because I knew it will come down to this. And I also know there are built-in functions, mostly for this one but the Part 2 will have extreme hacking for techies.

 

Thanks, on the comment though.