85 Windows 7 tips, tricks and secrets

Whether you've just bought a new PC running Windows 7 or you've been using it for a while, there are bound to be things you didn't know you could do.
Whether it's tweaks to get the desktop the way you want it, tips for troubleshooting or ways to squeeze more performance from Windows 7, we've got it covered.
We've updated our popular Windows 7 tips article with a load of new ones, including how to recover locked-up apps, how to extend your jumplists, leave a Windows 7 Homegroup, and more. Read on for 85 tips to help you get the best from Windows 7.

1. Problem Steps Recorder
As the local PC guru you're probably very used to friends and family asking for help with their computer problems, yet having no idea how to clearly describe what's going on. It's frustrating, but Microsoft feels your pain, and Windows 7 will include an excellent new solution in the Problem Steps Recorder.
When any app starts misbehaving under Windows 7 then all your friends need do is click Start, type PSR and press Enter, then click Start Record. If they then work through whatever they're doing then the Problem Steps Recorder will record every click and keypress, take screen grabs, and package everything up into a single zipped MHTML file when they're finished, ready for emailing to you. It's quick, easy and effective, and will save you hours of troubleshooting time.
2. Burn images
Windows 7 finally introduces a feature that other operating systems have had for years - the ability to burn ISO images to CDs or DVDs. And it couldn't be much easier to use. Just double-click the ISO image, choose the drive with the blank disc, click Burn and watch as your disc is created.
3. Create and mount VHD files
Microsoft's Virtual PC creates its virtual machine hard drives in VHD files, and Windows 7 can now mount these directly so you can access them in the host system. Click Start, type diskmgmt.msc and press Enter, then click Action > Attach VHD and choose the file you'd like to mount. It will then appear as a virtual drive in Explorer and can be accessed, copied or written just like any other drive.
Click Action > Create VHD and you can now create a new virtual drive of your own (right-click it, select Initialise Disk, and after it's set up right-click the unallocated space and select New Simple Volume to set this up). Again, you'll be left with a virtual drive that behaves just like any other, where you can drag and drop files, install programs, test partitioning software or do whatever you like. But it's actually just this VHD file on your real hard drive which you can easily back up or share with others. Right-click the disk (that's the left-hand label that says "Disk 2" or whatever) and select Detach VHD to remove it.
The command line DISKPART utility has also been upgraded with tools to detach a VHD file, and an EXPAND command to increase a virtual disk's maximum size. Don't play around with this unless you know what you're doing, though - it's all too easy to trash your system.
4. Troubleshoot problems
If some part of Windows 7 is behaving strangely, and you don't know why, then click Control Panel > Find and fix problems (or 'Troubleshooting') to access the new troubleshooting packs. These are simple wizards that will resolve common problems, check your settings, clean up your system and more.
5. Startup repair
If you've downloaded Windows 7 (and even if you haven't) it's a good idea to create a system repair disc straight away in case you run into problems booting the OS later on. Click Start > Maintenance > Create a System Repair Disc, and let Windows 7 build a bootable emergency disc. If the worst does happen then it could be the only way to get your PC running again.
6. Take control
Tired of the kids installing dubious software or running applications you'd rather they left alone? AppLocker is a new Windows 7 feature that ensures users can only run the programs you specify. Don't worry, that's easier to set up than it sounds: you can create a rule to allow everything signed by a particular publisher, so choose Microsoft, say, and that one rule will let you run all signed Microsoft applications. Launch GPEDIT.MSC and go to Computer Configuration > Windows Settings > Security Settings > Application Control Policies > AppLocker to get a feel for how this works.
7. Calculate more
At first glance the Windows 7 calculator looks just like Vista's version, but explore the Mode menu and you'll see powerful new Statistics and Programmer views. And if you're clueless about bitwise manipulation, then try the Options menu instead. This offers many different unit conversions (length, weight, volume and more), date calculations (how many days between two dates?), and spreadsheet-type templates to help you calculate vehicle mileage, mortgage rates and more.
Don't take any Windows 7 applet at face value, then - there are some very powerful new features hidden in the background. Be sure to explore every option in all Windows applets to ensure you don't miss anything important.

CALCULATE MORE: The new Calculator is packed with useful features and functionality
8. Switch to a projector
Windows 7 now provides a standard way to switch your display from one monitor to another, or a projector - just press Win+P or run DisplaySwitch.exe and choose your preferred display. (This will have no effect if you've only one display connected.)
9. Get a power efficiency report
If you have a laptop, you can use the efficiency calculator to get Windows 7 to generate loads of useful information about its power consumption. Used in the right way, this can help you make huge gains in terms of battery life and performance. To do this you must open a command prompt as an administrator by typing 'cmd' in Start Search, and when the cmd icon appears, right-click it and choose Run as administrator.
Then at the command line, just type in 'powercfg -energy' (without quotes) and hit Return, and Windows 7 will scan your system looking for ways to improve power efficiency. It will then publish the results in an HTML file, usually in the System32 folder. Just follow the path it gives you to find your report.
10. Understanding System Restore
Using System Restore in previous versions of Windows has been something of a gamble. There's no way of telling which applications or drivers it might affect - you just have to try it and see.
Windows 7 is different. Right-click Computer, select Properties > System Protection > System Restore > Next, and choose the restore point you'd like to use. Click the new button to 'Scan for affected programs' and Windows will tell you which (if any) programs and drivers will be deleted or recovered by selecting this restore point. (Read our full Windows 7 System Restore tutorial.)
11. Set the time zone
System administrators will appreciate the new command line tzutil.exe utility, which lets you set a PC's time zone from scripts. If you wanted to set a PC to Greenwich Mean Time, for instance, you'd use the command
tzutil /s "gmt standard time"
The command "tzutil /g" displays the current time zone, "tzutil /l" lists all possible time zones, and "tzutil /?" displays details on how the command works.
12. Calibrate your screen
The colours you see on your screen will vary depending on your monitor, graphics cards settings, lighting and more, yet most people use the same default Windows colour profile. And that means a digital photo you think looks perfect might appear very poor to everybody else. Fortunately Windows 7 now provides a Display Colour Calibration Wizard that helps you properly set up your brightness, contrast and colour settings, and a ClearType tuner to ensure text is crisp and sharp. Click Start, type DCCW and press Enter to give it a try.
13. Clean up Live Essentials
Installing Windows Live Essentials will get you the new versions of Mail, Movie Maker, Photo Gallery and others - great. Unfortunately it also includes other components that may be unnecessary, but if you like to keep a clean system then these can be quickly removed.
If you left the default "Set your search provider" option selected during installation, for instance, Windows Live will install Choice Guard, a tool to set your browser home page and search engine, and prevent other programs from changing them. If this causes problems later, or you just decide you don't need it, then Choice Guard may be removed by clicking Start, typing msiexec /x and pressing [Enter].
Windows Live Essentials also adds an ActiveX Control to help upload your files to Windows Live SkyDrive, as well as the Windows Live Sign-in Assistant, which makes it easier to manage and switch between multiple Windows Live accounts. If you're sure you'll never need either then remove them with the Control Panel "Uninstall a Program" applet.
14. Add network support
By default Windows Live MovieMaker won't let you import files over a network, but a quick Registry tweak will change this. Run REGEDIT, browse to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows Live\Movie Maker, add a DWORD value called AllowNetworkFiles and set it to 1 to add network support.
15. Activate XP mode
If you've old but important software that no longer runs under Windows 7, then you could try using XP Mode, a virtual copy of XP that runs in a window on your Windows 7 desktop. But there's a big potential problem, as XP Mode only works with systems that have hardware virtualisation (AMD-V or Intel VT) built-in and turned on. If you've a compatible CPU then this may just be a matter of enabling the option in your BIOS set-up program, however some high profile brands, including Sony Vaio, disable the setting for "security reasons". And that blocks XP Mode from working, too.
One solution has emerged, but it's a little risky, as essentially you'll have to alter a byte in your laptop firmware and hope this doesn't have any unexpected side-effects. Gulp. If you're feeling brave then take a look at the Feature Enable Blog for the details, but don't blame us if it goes wrong.
A safer approach might be to use VirtualBox, a virtualisation tool that doesn't insist on hardware support, but then you will need to find a licensed copy of XP (or whatever other Windows version your software requires) for its virtual machine.
16. Enable virtual Wi-Fi
Windows 7 includes a little-known new feature called Virtual Wi-Fi, which effectively turns your PC or laptop into a software-based router. Any other Wi-Fi-enabled devices within range - a desktop, laptop, an iPod perhaps - will "see" you as a new network and, once logged on, immediately be able to share your internet connection.
This will only work if your wireless adapter driver supports it, though, and not all do. Check with your adapter manufacturer and make sure you've installed the very latest drivers to give you the best chance.
Once you have driver support then the easiest approach is to get a network tool that can set up virtual Wi-Fi for you. Virtual Router (below) is free, easy to use and should have you sharing your internet connection very quickly.

If you don't mind working with the command line, though, maybe setting up some batch files or scripts, then it's not that difficult to set this up manually. See Turn your Windows 7 laptop into a wireless hotspot for more.
17. Recover locked-up apps
If an application locks up under a previous version of Windows then there was nothing you could do about it. A new Windows 7 option, however, can not only explain the problem, but may get your program working again without any loss of data.
When the lockup occurs, click Start, type RESMON and click the RESMON.EXE link to launch the Resource Monitor.
Find your frozen process in the CPU pane (it should be highlighted in red), right-click it and select Analyze Wait Chain.
If you see at least two processes in the list, then the lowest, at the end of the tree, is the one holding up your program. If it's not a vital Windows component, or anything else critical, then save any work in other open applications, check the box next to this process, click End Process, and your locked-up program will often spring back to life.

18. Fault-Tolerant Help
Windows 7 includes a new feature called the Fault Tolerant Help (FTH), a clever technology that looks out for unstable processes, detects those that may be crashing due to memory issues, and applies several real-time fixes to try and help. If these work, that's fine - if not, the fixes will be undone and they won't be applied to that process again.
While this is very good in theory, it can leave you confused as some applications crash, then start working (sometimes) for no apparent reason. So if you'd like to check if the FTH is running on your PC, launch REGEDIT, and go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\FTH - any program currently being protected by the FTH will be listed in the State key.
Experienced users may also try tweaking the FTH settings to catch more problems, and perhaps improve system stability. A post on Microsoft's Ask The Performance Team blog (bit.ly/d1JStu) explains what the various FTH Registry keys mean.
19. Automatically switch your default printer
Windows 7's location-aware printing allows the operating system to automatically switch your default printer as you move from one network to another.
To set this up, first click Start, type Devices, and click the Devices and Printers link.
Select a printer and click Manage Default Printers (this is only visible on a mobile device, like a laptop - you won't see it on a PC).
Choose the "Change my default printer when I change networks" option, select a network, the default printer you'd like to use, and click Add.
Repeat the process for other networks available, and pick a default printer for each one.
And now, as you connect to a new network, Windows 7 will check this list and set the default printer to the one that you've defined.

20. Explore God Mode
Windows 7 has changed Control Panel a little, but it's still too difficult to locate all the applets and options that you might need. God Mode, however, while not being particularly godlike, does offer an easier way to access everything you could want from a single folder.
To try this out, create a new folder and rename it to:

The first part, "Everything" will be the folder name, and can be whatever you want: "Super Control Panel", "Advanced", "God Mode" if you prefer.
The extension, ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C, must be entered exactly as it is here, though, including the curly brackets. When you press [Enter] this part of the name will disappear, and double-clicking the new folder will display shortcuts to functions in the Action Centre, the Network and Sharing Centre, Power options, troubleshooting tools, user accounts and others - more than 260 options in total.

21. Right-click everything
At first glance Windows 7 bears a striking resemblance to Vista, but there's an easy way to begin spotting the differences - just right-click things.
Right-click an empty part of the desktop, for instance, and you'll find a menu entry to set your screen resolution. No need to go browsing through the display settings any more.
Right-click the Explorer icon on the taskbar for speedy access to common system folders: Documents, Pictures, the Windows folder, and more.
And if you don't plan on using Internet Explorer then you probably won't want its icon permanently displayed on the taskbar. Right-click the icon, select 'Unpin this program from the taskbar', then go install Firefox, instead.
22. Display the old taskbar button context menu
Right-click a taskbar button, though, and you'll now see its jumplist menu. That's a useful new feature, but not much help if you want to access the minimize, maximize, or move options that used to be available. Fortunately there's an easy way to get the old context menu back - just hold down Ctrl and Shift as you right-click the taskbar button.
23. Desktop slideshow
Windows 7 comes with some very attractive new wallpapers, and it's not always easy to decide which one you like the best. So why not let choose a few, and let Windows display them all in a desktop slideshow? Right-click an empty part of the desktop, select Personalise > Desktop Background, then hold down Ctrl as you click on the images you like. Choose how often you'd like the images to be changed (anything from daily to once every 10 seconds), select Shuffle if you'd like the backgrounds to appear in a random order, then click Save Changes and enjoy the show.

DESKTOP SLIDESHOW: Select multiple background images and Windows will cycle through them
24. RSS-powered wallpaper
And if a slideshow based on your standard wallpaper isn't enough, then you can always create a theme that extracts images from an RSS feed. For example, Long Zheng has created a few sample themes to illustrate how it works. Jamie Thompson takes this even further, with a theme that always displays the latest BBC news and weather on your desktop. And MakeUseOf have a quick and easy tutorial showing how RSS can get you those gorgeous Bing photographs as your wallpaper. Or you can watch our custom theme video tutorial.
25. Customise the log-on screen
Changing the Windows log-on screen used to involve some complicated and potentially dangerous hacks, but not any more - Windows 7 makes it easy.
First, browse to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Authentication\LogonUI\Background in REGEDIT, double-click the DWORD key called OEMBackground (not there? Create it) and set its value to 1.
Now find a background image you'd like to use. Make sure it's less than 256KB in size, and matches the aspect ratio of your screen as it'll be stretched to fit.
Next, copy that image into the %windir%\system32\oobe\info\backgrounds folder (create the info\backgrounds folders if they don't exist). Rename the image to backgroundDefault.jpg, reboot, and you should now have a custom log-on image.
Alternatively, use a free tweaking tool to handle everything for you. Logon Changer displays a preview so you can see how the log-on screen will look without rebooting, while the Logon Screen Rotator accepts multiple images and will display a different one every time you log on.
26. Recover screen space
The new Windows 7 taskbar acts as one big quick launch toolbar that can hold whatever program shortcuts you like (just right-click one and select Pin To Taskbar). And that's fine, except it does consume a little more screen real estate than we'd like. Shrink it to a more manageable size by right-clicking the Start orb, then Properties > Taskbar > Use small icons > OK.
27. Enjoy a retro taskbar
Windows 7 now combines taskbar buttons in a way that saves space, but also makes it more difficult to tell at a glance whether an icon represents a running application or a shortcut. If you prefer a more traditional approach, then right-click the taskbar, select Properties, and set Taskbar Buttons to "Combine when taskbar is full". You'll now get a clear and separate button for each running application, making them much easier to identify.
28. Remove taskbar buttons
One problem with the previous tip is the buttons will gobble up valuable taskbar real estate, but you can reduce the impact of this by removing their text captions. Launch REGEDIT, browse to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\WindowMetrics, add a string called MinWidth, set it to 54, and reboot to see the results.
29. Restore the Quick Launch Toolbar
If you're unhappy with the new taskbar, even after shrinking it, then it only takes a moment to restore the old Quick Launch Toolbar.
Right-click the taskbar, choose Toolbars > New Toolbar, type "%UserProfile%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch" (less the quotes) into the Folder box and click Select Folder.
Now right-click the taskbar, clear 'Lock the taskbar', and you should see the Quick Launch toolbar, probably to the right. Right-click its divider, clear Show Text and Show Title to minimise the space it takes up. Complete the job by right-clicking the bar and selecting View > Small Icons for the true retro look.
30. Custom power switch
By default, Windows 7 displays a plain text 'Shut down' button on the Start menu, but it only takes a moment to change this action to something else. If you reboot your PC a few times every day then that might make more sense as a default action: right-click the Start orb, select Properties and set the 'Power boot action' to 'Restart' to make it happen.
31. Auto arrange your desktop
If your Windows 7 desktop has icons scattered everywhere then you could right-click it and select View > Auto arrange, just as in Vista. But a simpler solution is just to press and hold down F5, and Windows will automatically arrange its icons for you.
32. Disable smart window arrangement
Windows 7 features interesting new ways to intelligently arrange your windows, so that (for example) if you drag a window to the top of the screen then it will maximise. We like the new system, but if you find it distracting then it's easily disabled. Run REGEDIT, go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop, set WindowArrangementActive to 0, reboot, and your windows will behave just as they always did.
33. Browse your tasks
If you prefer the keyboard over the mouse, you will love browsing the taskbar using this nifty shortcut. Press Windows and T, and you move the focus to the left-most icon on the taskbar. Then use your arrow keys to change the focus to other icons, and you get a live preview of every window.
34. Display your drives
Click Computer in Windows 7 and you might see a strange lack of drives, but don't panic, it's just Microsoft trying to be helpful: drives like memory card readers are no longer displayed if they're empty. We think it's an improvement, but if you disagree then it's easy to get your empty drives back. Launch Explorer, click Tools > Folder Options > View and clear 'Hide empty drives in the computer folder'.
35. See more detail
The new and improved Windows 7 magnifier offers a much easier way to zoom in on any area of the screen. Launch it and you can now define a scale factor and docking position, and once activated it can track your keyboard focus around the screen. Press Tab as you move around a dialog box, say, and it'll automatically zoom in on the currently active control.
36. Extend your jumplists
By default a jumplist will display up to 10 items, but it can often be useful to extend this and add a few more. Right-click Start, select Properties > Customize and set "Number of recent items to display in Jump Lists" to the figure you need.
37. Disable Aero Peek
Hover your mouse cursor over the bottom right hand corner of the screen and Windows 7 will hide open windows, showing you the desktop. Seems like a good idea to us, but if the feature gets in your way then it's easy to turn off. Simply right-click the Start orb, select Properties > Taskbar and clear the "Use Aero Peek to preview the desktop" box.
38. Pin a drive to the taskbar
The taskbar isn't just for apps and documents. With just a few seconds work you can pin drive icons there, too.
Right-click an empty part of the desktop, select New > Text File, and rename the file to drive.exe. Drag and drop this onto your taskbar, then delete the original file.
Right-click your new "drive.exe" taskbar button, then right-click its file name and select Properties. Change the contents of both the Target and Start In boxes to point at the drive or folder of your choice, perhaps click Change Icon to choose an appropriate drive icon, and you're done - that drive or folder is now available at a click.

39. Expand your taskbar previews
Move your mouse cursor over a Windows 7 taskbar button and you'll see a small preview of the application window. To make this larger, launch REGEDIT, browse to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Taskband, right-click in the right hand pane and create a new DWORD value called MinThumbSizePx. Double-click this, choose the Decimal option, set the value to 350 and reboot to see the results. Tweak the value again to fine-tune the results, or delete it to return to the default thumbnail size.

40. Hiding the Windows Live Messenger icon
If you use Windows Live Messenger a lot, you'll have noticed that the icon now resides on the taskbar, where you can easily change status and quickly send an IM to someone. If you prefer to keep Windows Live Messenger in the system tray, where it's been for previous releases, just close Windows Live Messenger, edit the shortcut properties and set the application to run in Windows Vista compatibility mode.
41. Customise UAC
Windows Vista's User Account Control was a good idea in practice, but poor implementation put many people off - it raised far too many alerts. Fortunately Windows 7 displays less warnings by default, and lets you further fine-tune UAC to suit your preferred balance between security and a pop-up free life (Start > Control Panel > Change User Account Control Settings).
42. Use Sticky Notes
The Sticky Notes app is both simpler and more useful in Windows 7. Launch StikyNot.exe and you can type notes at the keyboard; right-click a note to change its colour; click the + sign on the note title bar to add another note; and click a note and press Alt + 4 to close the note windows (your notes are automatically saved).
43. Open folder in new process
By default Windows 7 opens folders in the same process. This saves system resources, but means one folder crash can bring down the entire shell. If your system seems unstable, or you're doing something in Explorer that regularly seems to causes crashes, then open Computer, hold down Shift, right-click on your drive and select Open in New Process. The folder will now be launched in a separate process, and so a crash is less likely to affect anything else.
44. Watch more videos
Windows Media Player 12 is a powerful program, but it still won't play all the audio and video files you'll find online. Fortunately the first freeware Windows 7 codecs package [shark007.net/win7codecs.html] has been released, and installing it could get your troublesome multimedia files playing again.
45. Preview fonts
Open the Fonts window in Windows XP and Vista and you'll see the font names, probably with icons to tell you whether they're TrueType or OpenType, but that's about it. Windows 7 sees some useful font-related improvements.
Open the new fonts window and you'll find a little preview for every font, giving you a quick idea of how they're going to look.
The tedium of scrolling through multiple entries for each family, like Times New Roman, Times New Roman Bold, Times New Roman Bold Italic and so on, has finally ended. There's now just a single entry for each font (though you can still see all other members of the family).
And there's a new OpenType font, Gabriola, added to the mix. It's an attractive script font, well worth a try the next time you need a stylish document that stands out from the crowd.
46. Restore your gadgets
Windows 7 has tightened up its security by refusing to run gadgets if UAC has been turned off, so limiting the damage malicious unsigned gadgets can do to your system. If you've disabled UAC, miss your gadgets and are happy to accept the security risk, though, there's an easy Registry way to get everything back to normal. Run REGEDIT, go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Sidebar\Settings, create a new DWORD value called AllowElevatedProcess and set it to 1. Your gadgets should start working again right away.
47. New WordPad formats
By default WordPad will save documents in Rich Text Format, just as before. But browse the Save As Format list and you'll see you can also save (or open, actually) files in the Office 2007 .docx or OpenDocument .odt formats.
48. Protect your data
USB flash drives are convenient, portable, and very easy to lose. Which is a problem, especially if they're carrying sensitive data. Fortunately Windows 7 has the solution: encrypt your documents with an extension of Microsoft's BitLocker technology, and only someone with the password will be able to access it. Right-click your USB flash drive, select Turn on BitLocker and follow the instructions to protect your private files.

PROTECT YOUR DATA: Your USB flash drives can easily be encrypted with BitLocker
49. Minimise quickly with shake
If you have multiple windows open on your desktop and things are getting too cluttered, it used to be a time-consuming process to close them all down. In Windows 7 you can use the Aero Shake feature to minimise everything in seconds, using a cool mouse gesture. Grab the title bar of the window you wish to keep open and give it a shake, and rejoice in a clear desktop area.
50. Configure your favourite music
The Windows 7 Media Centre now comes with an option to play your favourite music, which by default creates a changing list of songs based on your ratings, how often you play them, and when they were added (it's assumed you'll prefer songs you've added in the last 30 days). If this doesn't work then you can tweak how Media Centre decides what a "favourite" tune is- click Tasks > Settings > Music > Favourite Music and configure the program to suit your needs.
51. Customise System Restore
There was very little you could do to configure System Restore in Vista, but Windows 7 improves the situation with a couple of useful setup options.
Click the Start orb, right-click Computer and select Properties > System Protection > Configure, and set the Max Usage value to a size that suits your needs (larger to hold more restore points, smaller to save disk space).
And if you don't need System Restore to save Windows settings then choose the "Only restore previous versions of files" option. Windows 7 won't back up your Registry, which means you'll squeeze more restore points and file backups into the available disk space. System Restore is much less likely to get an unbootable PC working again, though, so use this trick at your own risk.
52. Run As
Hold down Shift, right-click any program shortcut, and you'll see an option to run the program as a different user, handy if you're logged in to the kids' limited account and need to run something with higher privileges. This isn't really a new feature - Windows XP had a Run As option that did the same thing - but Microsoft stripped it out of Vista, so it's good to see it's had a change of heart.
53. Search privacy
By default Windows 7 will remember your PC search queries, and display the most recent examples when searching in Windows Explorer. If you're sharing a PC and don't want everyone to see your searches, then launch GPEDIT.MSC, go to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Explorer, double-click "Turn off display of recent search entries..." and click Enabled > OK.
54. Tweak PC volume
By default Windows 7 will now automatically reduce the volume of your PC's sounds whenever it detects you're making or receiving PC-based phone calls. If this proves annoying (or maybe you'd like it to turn off other sounds altogether) then you can easily change the settings accordingly. Just right-click the speaker icon in your taskbar, select Sounds > Communications, and tell Windows what you'd like it to do.
55. Rearrange the system tray
With Windows 7 we finally see system tray icons behave in a similar way to everything else on the taskbar. So if you want to rearrange them, then go right ahead, just drag and drop them into the order you like. You can even move important icons outside of the tray, drop them onto the desktop, then put them back when you no longer need to keep an eye on them.
56. Extend your battery life
Windows 7 includes new power options that will help to improve your notebook's battery life. To see them, click Start, type Power Options and click the Power Options link, then click Change Plan Settings for your current plan and select Change Advanced Settings. Expand Multimedia Settings, for instance, and you'll see a new "playing video" setting that can be set to optimise power savings rather than performance. Browse through the other settings and ensure they're set up to suit your needs.
57. Write crash dump files
Windows 7 won't create memory.dmp crash files if you've less than 25GB of free hard drive space, annoying if you've installed the Windows debugging tools and want to diagnose your crashes. You can turn this feature off, though: browse to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\CrashControl, create a new DWORD value called AlwaysKeepMemoryDump, set it to 1, and the crash dump file will now always be saved.
58. Protect your data
If you have confidential files in a particular folder or two, and would like to keep them away from other network users, then right-click the folder, select Share With > Nobody, and they'll be made private, for your eyes only (or your user account, anyway).
59. Reorganise the taskbar
Windows 7 taskbar buttons are now movable - feel free to drag, drop and otherwise reorganise them to suit your needs. And then remember that each button can be launched by holding with the Windows key and pressing 1 to activate the first, 2 the second and so on, up to 0 for the tenth.
60. Repair your PC
If Windows 7 won't start, you may not need an installation or repair disc any more, as the repair environment is now usually installed on your hard drive. Press [F8] as your PC starts, and if you see a "Repair Your Computer" option, choose that to see the full range of Windows 7 recovery tools.

61. ReadyBoost revamped
If you were unimpressed by ReadyBoost in Vista, it may be worth trying the technology again under Windows 7. The operating system now allows you to combine multiple USB drives, each with larger caches, to deliver an extra speed boost.
62. Fixing Windows 7 N
If you have Windows 7 N then this means you'll be missing key multimedia applications, like Media Player, Media Centre, DVD Maker and more. But that's not all. You also won't have some of the subsystems required by third-party apps like Nero MultiMedia Suite, which means that even if they install, you could have problems getting them to work correctly.
Fortunately there's an easy fix, though, as the missing components are available in the form of Microsoft's Windows Media Pack. If you're currently having media-related issues on a Windows 7 N installation, grab your copy from support.microsoft.com/kb/968211.

63. Find bottlenecks
From what we've seen so far Windows 7 is already performing better than Vista, but if your PC seems sluggish then it's now much easier to uncover the bottleneck. Click Start, type RESMON and press Enter to launch the Resource Monitor, then click the CPU, Memory, Disk or Network tabs. Windows 7 will immediately show which processes are hogging the most system resources.
The CPU view is particularly useful, and provides something like a more powerful version of Task Manager. If a program has locked up, for example, then right-click its name in the list and select Analyze Process. Windows will then try to tell you why it's hanging - the program might be waiting for another process, perhaps - which could give you the information you need to fix the problem.

FIND BOTTLENECKS: Resource monitor keeps a careful eye on exactly how your PC is being used
64. Keyboard shortcuts
Windows 7 supports several useful new keyboard shortcuts.
Alt+P
Display/ hide the Explorer preview pane
Windows Logo+G
Display gadgets in front of other windows
Windows Logo++ (plus key)
Zoom in, where appropriate
Windows Logo+- (minus key)
Zoom out, where appropriate
Windows Logo+Up
Maximise the current window
Windows Logo+Down
Minimise the current window
Windows Logo+Left
Snap to the left hand side of the screen
Windows Logo+Right
Snap to the right hand side of the screen
Windows Logo+Home
Minimise/ restore everything except the current window
65. Drag and drop to the command line
When working at the command line you'll often need to access files, which usually means typing lengthy paths and hoping you've got them right. But Windows 7 offers an easier way. Simply drag and drop the file onto your command window and the full path will appear, complete with quotes and ready to be used.
This feature isn't entirely new: you could do this in Windows XP, too, but drag and drop support disappeared in Vista. There does seem to be a new Windows 7 complication, though, in that it only seems to work when you open the command prompt as a regular user. Run cmd.exe as an administrator and, while it accepts dropped files, the path doesn't appear.
66. Customise your jumplists
Right-click an icon on your taskbar, perhaps Notepad, and you'll see a jumplist menu that provides easy access to the documents you've been working on recently. But maybe there's another document that you'd like to be always available? Then drag and drop it onto the taskbar icon, and it'll be pinned to the top of the jumplist for easier access. Click the pin to the right of the file name, or right-click it and select "Unpin from this list" when you need to remove it.
67. Faster program launches
If you've launched one instance of a program but want to start another, then don't work your way back through the Start menu. It's much quicker to just hold down Shift and click on the program's icon (or middle-click it), and Windows 7 will start a new instance for you.
68. Speedy video access
Want faster access to your Videos folder? Windows 7 now lets you add it to the Start menu. Just right-click the Start orb, click Properties > Start Menu > Customize, and set the Videos option to "Display as a link". If you've a TV tuner that works with Windows 7 then you'll appreciate the new option to display the Recorded TV folder on the Start menu, too.
69. Run web searches
The Windows 7 search tool can now be easily extended to search online resources, just as long as someone creates an appropriate search connector. To add Flickr support, say, visit I Started Something, click Download the Connector, choose the Open option and watch as it's downloaded (the file is tiny, it'll only take a moment). A "Flickr Search" option will be added to your Searches folder, and you'll be able to search images from your desktop.
A multitude of other ready-made searches, such as Google and YouTube, can be downloaded from the windowsclub.com website.
70. Schedule Media Centre downloads
You can now tell Windows Media Centre to download data at a specific time, perhaps overnight, a useful way to prevent it sapping your bandwidth for the rest of the day. Launch Media Centre, go to Tasks > Settings > General > Automatic Download Options, and set the download start and stop times that you'd like it to use.
71. Multi-threaded Robocopies
Anyone who's ever used the excellent command-line robocopy tool will appreciate the new switches introduced with Windows 7. Our favourite, /MT, can improve speed by carrying out multi-threaded copies with the number of threads you specify (you can have up to 128, though that might be going a little too far). Enter robocopy /? at a command line for the full details.
72. Load IE faster
Some Internet Explorer add-ons can take a while to start, dragging down the browser's performance, but at least IE8 can now point a finger at the worst resource hogs. Click Tools > Manage Add-ons, check the Load Time in the right-hand column, and you'll immediately see which browser extensions are slowing you down.
73. An Alt+Tab alternative
You want to access one of the five Explorer windows you have open, but there are so many other programs running that Alt+Tab makes it hard to pick out what you need. The solution? Hold down the Ctrl key while you click on the Explorer icon. Windows 7 will then cycle through the Explorer windows only, a much quicker way to locate the right one. And of course this works with any application that has multiple windows open.
74. Block annoying alerts
Just like Vista, Windows 7 will display a suitably stern warning if it thinks your antivirus, firewall or other security settings are incorrect.
But unlike Vista, if you disagree then you can now turn off alerts on individual topics. If you no longer want to see warnings just because you've dared to turn off the Windows firewall, say, then click Control Panel > System and Security > Action Centre > Change Action Centre settings, clear the Network Firewall box and click OK.
75. Parallel defrags
The standard Windows 7 defragger offers a little more control than we saw in Vista, and the command line version also has some interesting new features. The /r switch will defrag multiple drives in parallel, for instance (they'll obviously need to be physically separate drives for this to be useful). The /h switch runs the defrag at a higher than normal priority, and the /u switch provides regular progress reports so you can see exactly what's going on. Enter the command
defrag /c /h /u /r
in a command window to speedily defrag a system with multiple drives, or enter defrag /? to view the new options for yourself.
76. Fix Explorer
The Windows 7 Explorer has a couple of potential annoyances. Launching Computer will no longer display system folders like Control Panel or Recycle Bin, for instance. And if you're drilling down through a complicated folder structure in the right-hand pane of Explorer, the left-hand tree won't always expand to follow what you're doing, which can make it more difficult to see exactly where you are. Fortunately there's a quick fix: click Organize > Folder and Search Options, check "Show all folders" and "Automatically expand to current folder", and click OK.
77. Faster file handing
If you hold down Shift while right-clicking a file in Explorer, then you'll find the Send To file now includes all your main user folders: Contacts, Documents, Downloads, Music and more. Choose any of these and your file will be moved there immediately.
78. Create folder favourites
If you're regularly working on the same folder in Explorer then select it in the right-hand page, right-click Favourites on the left-hand menu, and select Add to Favourites. It'll then appear at the bottom of the favourites list for easy one-click access later.
79. Disable hibernation
By default Windows 7 will permanently consume a chunk of your hard drive with its hibernation file, but if you never use sleep, and always turn your PC off, then this will never actually be used. To disable hibernation and recover a little hard drive space, launch REGEDIT, browse to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Power, then set both HibernateEnabled and HiberFileSizePerfect to zero.
80. Create a new folder shortcut
When you need to create a new folder in Windows 7 Explorer, don't reach for the mouse. Just press Ctrl+Shift+N to create the folder in the active Explorer window, then type its name as usual.
81. Open a jumplist
Most people right-click a Windows taskbar icon to view its jumplist. You can also hold the left mouse button over the icon, though, then drag upwards to reveal the jumplist and choose the option you need, a more natural action that should be just a little faster.

82. Search quickly
If you'd like to search for something in an Explorer window then there's no need to use the mouse. Simply press [F3] to move the focus to the search box, enter your keyword and press [Enter] to run the search.
83. Search file contents
There's no obvious way in the Windows interface to search the contents of files that haven't been indexed, but all you need to do is start your search with the "content:" search filter. So entering content:Microsoft , for instance, will find all documents (whether they're actually indexed or not) that contain the word Microsoft.
84. Close in a click
Hover your mouse cursor over a Windows taskbar button will display a preview thumbnail of that application window. You don't need that app any more? Then middle-click the thumbnail to close it down.
85. Leave the Homegroup
Homegroups are an easy way to network Windows 7 PCs, but if you don't use the feature then turning it off can save you a few system resources.
Click Start, type Homegroup, and click "Choose homegroup and sharing options". Click Leave the Homegroup > Leave the Homegroup > Finish.
Now click Start, type services.msc and press [Enter] to launch the Services Control Panel applet.
Find and double-click both the HomeGroup Listener and HomeGroup Provider service, clicking Stop and setting Startup Type to Disabled in each case, and the services won't be launched when you need reboot.

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Remove AUTORUN.INF from infected computers

Remove Autorun.inf Manually here i have given  3 methods .Choose anyone Method to remove the Virus…
1st Method :
Start–>Run–> Type Cmd –>Click Ok
so just type this stuff
at c:\ prompt
attrib a*.inf -h -a -s -r
del autorun.inf
Note : Then Change the Drive Letter C,D,E,F,G….and repaeat the Same Process..
Example :

2nd Method:
This Method is Simple and Easy,

Here is a simple code to remove autorun.inf: (start copying from the next line down):
cd\
c:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
d:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
e:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
f:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
g:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
h:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
i:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
j:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
k:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
l:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
m:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
n:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
o:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
p:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
q:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
r:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
s:
attrib -r -s -h autorun.inf
del autorun.inf
Copy this in a NOTEPAD file, then save the notepad file as : “file.bat” and then run it to remove all the rubbish of autorun.inf
3rd Method :
Autorun Eater:
Autorun Eater was born due to increase of malwares using the ‘autorun.inf’ tactic to infect users unknowingly be it from flash drives, removable hard disks or any other removable storage device.

Download: Autorun Eater

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Add Background Wallpaper on your Pendrive

Just Copy the below code to notepad,then save it as “desktop.ini”
[.ShellClassInfo]
IconFile=%SystemRoot%\system32\SHELL32.dll
IconIndex=127
ConfirmFileOp=0
[{BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}]
Attributes=1
IconArea_Image=“YourPictureName.jpg”
IconArea_Text=”0xFFFFFF”
VeBRA sources – don’t delete the tag above, it’s there for XXXXX purposes -
[ExtShellFolderViews]
{BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}={BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}
{5984FFE0-28D4-11CF-AE66-08002B2E1262}={5984FFE0-28D4-11CF-AE66-08002B2E1262}
[{5984FFE0-28D4-11CF-AE66-08002B2E1262}]
PersistMoniker=Folder.htt
PersistMonikerPreview=%WebDir%\folder.bmp
1. Where “YourPictureName.jpg” is, delete that and replace with your picture name for example “superman.gif”
2. Put “desktop.ini” and your chosen picture in yourUSB Drive then Hidden it.
3. Refresh and Enjoy with your new background.
4.You can also try on C,D,E F drives.

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Hacking Movies for Computer Lovers

Hacking Movies for Computer Lovers
Here is a list of 10 Best movies for computer lovers. Most of these hacker movies are good escapist fun. You can’t learn hacking into computers by watching these movies. But surely you can get some keywords regarding hacking into remote box.
1. Tron (1982)

Tron , a poetical “cyberadventure” where the cyber world is a methaphorical representation of the “real” one.A classic! A hacker is transported into the digital universe inside a computer, and must survive combat as a cyber gladiator in order to stop the villanous Master Control. The imagination behind this movie made big ripples in the science fiction world, and today, Tron is a cult classic that every computer user should see at least once.
2. Wargames (1983)

This movie is very old, but it is still a pivotal film in many viewers’ minds. A young man finds a back door into a military central computer in which reality is confused with game-playing, possibly starting World War III. A preposterous plot, but a compelling commentary on nuclear war and the destruction of the human race. You have to see this movie just to say you have seen it.
3. Die Hard 4: Live Free or Die Hard (2007)

Leave it to Bruce Willis to save the world from uber hackers. Macintosh advertising personality, Justin Long, plays the reluctant programmer caught up in an digital terrorism scheme. Like Swordfish, this movie has over-the-top violence and outrageous action sequences, but if you liked the Die Hard series, definitely see this .
4. The Italian Job (2003)

Modern heist movies always involve some sort of hacking. This particular heist movie is extremely entertaining, especially when the supposed true inventor of “Napster” is the main hacker. At least 20 minutes of hacking footage in this actioner. An explosive guy, a safe-cracker, a computer genius, a wheel-man and a man with a spectacular plan of stealing 35 million without using a gun.
5. Swordfish (2001)

Over-the-top violence, preposterous situations, sexy women, and outstanding special effects make this a great popcorn rental. No, don’t bring your brain to watch this, but if you like techno-thrillers, definitely rent this. A secretive renegade counter-terrorist co-opts the world’s greatest hacker (who is trying to stay clean) to steal billions in US Government dirty money.
6. Untraceable (2008)

Recently my friend Desigan gave this movie to me.Its an entertaining thriller about a crazed young computer geek who becomes the deranged moderator of his own “Kill With Me” live internet feed where he displays new victims being slowly tortured to death. The more hits he gets at his site, the faster the people featured on his webcam die.
FBI agent Jennifer Marsh is tasked with hunting down a seemingly untraceable serial killer who posts live videos of his victims on the Internet. As time runs out, the cat and mouse chase becomes more personal.
7. Sneakers (1992)

Complex but lighthearted thriller about computers and cryptography, government and espionage, secrets and deception and betrayal. The story revolves around two college buddies who take different paths in life. One becomes an ethical hacker, and the other…well, he is not quite so noble. Some great plot twists and comic scenes make this a good way to spend a Saturday afternoon at home.
8. The Score (2001)

Edward Norton and Robert De Niro are fabulous in this heist flick. In a clever plot to rob a Montreal customs house of some royal artifacts, Norton and De Niro must break into the security systems with the help of a socially-awkward hacker who lives in his mother’s basement. Ten minutes of hacking, and 100 minutes of phenomenal robbery storytelling!
9. Foolproof (2003)

A lower-budget movie about hobby bank robbers, this was a delightful surprise to many viewers. Ryan Reynolds and his friends “virtually” rob banks for fun, but are blackmailed into doing a heist for real. This is a good action rental.
10. Revolution OS (2001)

This documentary tells the story about the Linux operating system, and how it forwarded the philosophy of “open source” and free intellectual property. Not an action movie, but definitely interesting for people who want to learn more about why computer culture is the way it is. There’s a scene where Bill Gate’s is responding to the issue of free software.I think the OpenSource movement is revolutionary, but I’m not sure this film brings this across.

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Download Free Driver Software for Your PC

Are you looking for drivers? Have you missed driver cd pack? Don’t worry here is a cool site Bravofiles.com with lots of drivers.You can download different types of device drivers and software utilities for your computer.Bravofiles.com got a great collection of drivers for Motherboards, Video cards, Sound cards, Modems, Laptops, Scanners, Printers and much more.

Get drivers for almost all brands of Laptops and PC: Bravofiles.com

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LibreOffice 3.3 – Best Alternative to OpenOffice.Org

LibreOffice is the free open source office suite for Linux, Windows and Macintosh operating systems.The Document Foundation company released the first stable release of LibreOffice. LibreOffice 3.3 is available for both 32-bit and 64-bit architectures.LibreOffice will be a best alternative to Oracle’s OpenOffice.org office suite.  LibreOffice 3.3.0 will be the default office suite for the upcoming Ubuntu 11.04 (Natty Narwhal) operating system.It comes with six feature-rich applications for all your document production and data processing needs: Writer, Calc, Impress, Draw, Math and Base.OpenOffice.org is being replaced by the new LibreOffice suite in many Linux distributions like KNOPPIX, Pardus and Ubuntu.  

 

Download: LibreOffice 3.3.0

 

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7 Things You Didn’t Know VLC Could Do

VLC media player is one of the most popular player for  most people.It as got almost all codecs.VLC can do a lot of other things beyond your imagination. Find out how many of these listed below you knew, and how many you did not.I would like to share it here

 

Checkout,

 

Take Snapshots of Your Favorite Movie Scenes in VLC

1. Rip DVDs:

VLC includes a basic DVD ripper. You probably would never use it when there are better DVD rippers available, but it helps to know that you can in fact, get a decent quality DVD rip with VLC. To rip a movie follow these steps: Go to the Media menu and choose Convert–>Save. Click on the Disc tab.

• Here you can adjust the Starting Position and rip only specific titles or chapters.
• Enter file name making sure to end with .MPG, and start ripping.
• Click Save.

2. Record videos:

With the new VLC, you can record videos during playback. The record button is hidden by default. To see it, click on View–>Advanced Control. The record button will now appear. Clicking on the button while playing a movie or video will start recording. Clicking again will stop recording.

3. Play RAR files:

Do you know VLC can play videos zipped inside RAR files? They play like normal video files and you can even use the seek bar. If the RAR file is split into several files, no problem. Just load the first part (.part001.rar ) and it will automatically take the rest of the parts and play the whole file.

4. Play in ASCII mode:

VLC media player has an amusing ability, to playback movies in ASCII art. To enable ASCII mode, open VLC media player and click on Tools –>Preferences. Open the section “Video” section and under “Output” select “Color ASCII art video output” from the drop down menu. Save it. Now play any video file to enjoy the ASCII art.

5. Listen to online radio:

VLC includes hundreds of Shoutcast radio stations. You just need to enable it through Media –>Services Discovery –> Shoutcast radio listings. Now, open the Playlist and browse through the stations.

6. Convert Audio and Video formats:

In VLC you can convert video and audio files from one format to another. Several different formats are supported like MP4, WMV, AVI, OGG, MP3 etc. To access the converter:

* Go to Media –>Convert/Save.

* Load the file you want to convert using the Add button and click Convert.

* Now choose the output format and output file location.

7. Download YouTube and other online videos:

First grab the URL of the YouTube video page. Now click on Media –>Open Network stream. Paste the URL and click Play.

Once VLC starts streaming the video, click Tools –>Codec Information and at the bottom of the window you will see a Location box. Copy the URL and paste it on your browser’s address bar. The browser will now download the file which you can save it to your hard disk. Alternatively, you can record the video.

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MyPaint – An Open Source Graphics Application

Are you looking for a nice graphics application for Linux? Then go for MyPaint. It’s a fast and easy open-source graphics application for digital painters. You can create excellent artwork using MyPaint application.MyPaint is available for Windows, Linux & Mac OS X operating systems.

Download:

MyPaint for Windows | Linux | Mac OS X

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Easter Egg

Easter Egg:
What is an "Easter Egg"?
The term "Easter Egg", as we use it here, means any amusing tidbit that creators hid in their creations. They could be in computer software, movies, music, art, books, or even your watch. There are hundreds of them, and they can be quite entertaining, if you know where to look.

Operating Systems

Windows XP Easter Eggs
"0" Blank File, and Clock AVI File
For Windows XP, If you look in your "My Computer\C:\WINDOWS\" In this folder, after all other folders, you find a text file named "0". If you open it, nothing will be in there, hence the filename "0". Another thing would be a file called "Clock". It's an AVI file. It can open it in Windows Media Player. It's a very simple and plain animation.

These 2 files, were probably left in by the Microsoft Programmers as Easter-Eggs for anyone that could find them.
Con Folder
1. In any windows or dos try to make a folder named 'con'.
2. You will be presented by an error that it already exists, or other error preventing you creating this directory.
"Quotes" in windows XP
Ok, there is a secret file in Windows XP called "quotes". In order to get there you must be somewhat familiar with how to use Windows, simply open up My Computer (explorer) and double click on your main drive (probably C:) next navigate to: C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\DRIVERS\etc This is where the quotes file is. Open the file named quotes in your favorite text editor (notepad, MS Word) then look at the quotes put there by the MS developers!

Easier way to force win in Solitaire
Here is how to make you instantly win a game of solitaire. Simply press Alt + Shift + 2.
Windows 2000
Boss key for games included with Win2k
1) Start->Program Files->Accessories->Games->Mine Sweeper
2) While playing the Mine Sweeper game or any other Microsoft-supplied game...
3) Hit the ESC key and window will close.
4) The task bar will contain "Budget.xcl" instead of the name of the program that was running.
Bill Gates
1. Right click the mouse, go to properties and backgrounds.
2. Choose clouds tiled as your background.
3. Click apply then ok, and go back to the main screen.
4. Click on my computer, and then change the name to my microsoft, don't move the mouse.
5. A video of bill gates, and some other software developers will appear if you don't move the mouse.
Teapots are still here...
The teapots in the 3D Pipes screen saver from Win95 and NT still work:
1. Change your screen saver to 3D Pipes(OpenGL).
2. click Settings
3. Change the settings to Multiple Pipes, Traditional joints, with Mixed joint type. Set the resolution to max.
4. Click OK
5. Watch
Volcano Screensaver
1) Right click on "Properties" on the desktop.
2) Go to the "Screensaver" menu.
3) Go to the 3-D text screensaver and open the properties.
4) In the text box, type "volcano" (without quotes).
Enjoy! Note: this is the same egg that has already been listed in Windows 95, Windows 98 and Windows NT
Windows NT Easter Eggs
Volcano
1. Right click on the desktop and select Properties. Or open Control Panel from the Start button/Settings menu and select Display.
2. From the Display Properties, select Screen Saver.
3. Select 3D Text (OpenGL) as your screen saver type.
4. Click on the Settings button to configure the screen saver.
5. Change the text that the screen saver will display to "Not Evil".
6. Click OK to save the changes. Click the test button or wait until the screen saver kicks in the next time.
7. This will show the names of all the members of the Windows NT developer team.
8. You can also try the changing the text to "Volcano".
9. This will display the names of a bunch of volcanoes all over the world.
Pipes Screensaver
1. Open Control Panel
2. Open Desktop
3. Select 3D Pipes (OpenGL) as the screen saver
4. Click Setup, and set the joint style to mixed.
5. When the screen saver comes on - look closely. Every once in a while, a 'teapot joint' will appear.
OpenGL Eggs
1. Run Control panel
2. Select desktop
3. Select 3D Test (OpenGL) screen saver
4. Select setup
5. Enter "MUSIC"
6. Press OK to save settings (or try test first)
7. Press OK to save
8. The screen saver will display a list of bands when it comes up
Programmers
1. Go to the Main Menu and select Control Panel.
2. From Control Panel, select Desktop.
3. Select Open GL 3D text as your screen saver type.
4. Click on Options to configure the settings for the screen saver.
5. Change the text that the screen saver will display to "I love NT".
6. Either wait for the screen saver to come up or hit test. The names of all of the programmers will float in and out in 3D Text.
7. This also apparently works if you put "I love NT" in other languages as well... I know "j'aime NT". Try any languages you can think of.
8. If "I love NT" doesn't work, try "I like NT". For instance, "Me amo NT" doesn't work, but "Me gusta NT" does.
FreeCell Instant Win
1. Start a new game.
2. Hold down CTRL+SHIFT+F10
3. Follow the instructions.
4. Double click on a card to do it.
5. You can make it so when a person makes their first move, they lose the game!
They ARE Evil
1. Go to Control Panel
2. Double click Display
3. Go to Screen Saver Tab
4. Change Screen saver to 3D Text
5. Go to Settings
6. Change Display text to "not evil"
The Shadow Knows
1. While at your desktop, press [F1], to display the Help Topics: Windows Help dialog box.
2. Click on the find Tab. (If you haven't done the mumbo - jumbo before, follow the Wizard along...)
3. Click the Options... button, then select the All the words you typed in any order radio button.
4. In the Show words that dropdown list, make sure the begin with the characters you type options is selected, then click OK.
5. Once you return to the Find tab, select the text box at the top and type Who knows who built this tool? (Make sure you capitalize the W and include the question mark.)
6. Hold down the [Shift][Ctrl] key combination as you click the Clear button.
7. Now, click the Options... button once more, only this time, select the radio button titled At least one of the words you typed.
8. In the Show words that dropdown list, choose the contain the characters you type option, then click OK.
9. In the Find tab, type The Shadow knows! in the text box at the top. Make sure you capitalize the letters T and S and that you include the exclamation point.
10. Finally, hold down the [Shift][Ctrl] key combination as you click the Clear button. You should now see the Easter Egg in action.

Windows ME

Teacup Screen Saver
1. right click on desktop
2. click properties
3. click screen saver tab
4. choose 3D pipes
5. click settings
6. choose multiple pipes
7. choose traditional with mixed joints
8. resolution to max
9. solid texture
10. click OK
11. watch screen saver and every so often, the joint will be a teacup.

Volcano Names Screensaver
1. Go to Display Properties (under Control Panel)
2. Click on 'Screen Saver' tab
3. Select the '3D Text (Open GL)' Screensaver.
3. Hit the 'Settings' Button.
4. Change the text to 'volcano'.
You will have a screen saver listing different volcano names from the Northwest of the United States, where Microsoft is located.

Windows 98 & 98 SE

Windows 98 Team
1. In the Windows directory go to "Application Data\Microsoft\WELCOME"
2. Create a Shortcut for the file Weldata.exe by right clicking on the file and selecting "Create Shortcut"
3. Right click on the newly created shortcut and select "Properties"
4. In the shortcut tab, add the following at the end of the "Target" edit box " You_are_a_real_rascal". This causes the application WELDATA.EXE to be called with the argument 'You_are_a_real_rascal'
5. Now in the "Run" combobox select "Minimized"
6. Click OK and double click the shortcut & ENJOY!
Registration Wizard hidden credits
1. Click Start, Run, and type WELCOME.EXE to load the Welcome to Windows program.
2. Click REGISTER NOW.
3. When the first screen of the WINDOWS 98 REGISTRATION WIZARD comes up, hold down CTRL-SHIFT and right click on the image to the left.
4. Voila.. hidden credits from the program's creators.
Reference to Wassily Kandinsky in Setup
In the actual Windows 98 setup files, there is a file called "DOSSETUP.BIN". If you look at the contents of this file with Notepad, Wordpad, DOS's EDIT, or any other text editor, you will find the following phrase near the end of the file:

Wassily Kandinsky was the great Russian painter who participated in the Expressionist movement in Germany, taught at the Bauhaus, and edited the Blue Rider Almanac.
Hearts Card Look
1. Press Start Button and then press "Run".
2. Type "regedit".
3. Goto: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ CurrentVersion\Applets\Hearts
4. Insert a new String called "ZB".
5. Then Type "42" as String.
6. Start Hearts
7. Press CTRL+ALT+SHIFT+F12 to see the Cards of the others.
Eject your PC!
1.Press Start.
2.Then Programs.
3.Then Applications.
4.Right click on calculator, then properties.
5.Click change icon. Double click the normal calculator icon.
6.Press Ok.
7.Press Start.
8.Wait a couple of seconds.
Windows 98 Team 2
1. Double click on the clock to bring up the date & time properties
2. Click on the 'Time Zone' tab
3. Hold down the Ctrl Key, ( here's the hard part,) Click and hold the mouse button down on Cairo Egypt.
4. With the mouse button still down, drag the pointer to Baton Rouge, LA.
5. Release the mouse button, but continue holding control.
6. Click the mouse button, and drag from Baton Rouge to Redmond, WA, release the button, and if it was done right, the same movie as was played in the 'Windows 98 Team' will play. Just a different way to get to it.

Windows 95

Bill Gates' Horse, Nugget
1. Start Windows 95.
2. Wait until you see the mouse cursor in the middle of a black screen.
3. Press in the following keys in this order (Do not type commas):
4. Ctrl, F6, Right shift, Delete, then click the right mouse button.
5. If you do it before the black screen is replaced by wallpaper, it shows Bill Gates' horse, Nugget.
3D Text Screen Saver Volcano Names (same as Windows NT)
1. Right click on desktop
2. Click properties
3. Click on screen-saver tab
4. Choose 3-D text, and click on settings
5. Type in the text box- "volcano"
6. Click ok, and enjoy
Computers Theme Wait cursor
If you select the "Computers" theme, the cursor for "Wait" will be a small monitor with a red and blue image. There is a series of bits running through it. I thought that is probably a "W" for Windows or something, but if you decode it properly - it's a plus-sign!
The Shadow Knows
1. Go to the start menu and click Help.
2. Click the tab marked Find.
3. At this point you may get a wizard asking you to set up Find. If you do, use the defaults.
4. In the Find dialog box click Options.
5. Set the top section to: All the words you typed in order, set the next section to: begin with the characters you typed.
6. Click OK to return back to the main dialog box, and enter in the top box exactly: Who knows who built this tool?
7. Hold down Shift and Control while clicking the Clear button.
8. Click Options again, and set the top section to: At least one of the words you typed, set the next section to: contain the characters you type. And click OK to return back to the main dialog box.
9. In the top box enter exactly: The Shadow knows!
10. Hold down Shift and Control while clicking the Clear button.
True Type Fonts
1. Get property.zip from Microsoft's web site
2. Install the True Type Font Properties extension ttfext.dll
3. Restart windows?
4. start/settings/control panel/fonts/
5. Right click on Times New Roman
6. Select properties
7. Select Tab reading "TrueType Credits"
Product Team Credits
1. Right Click on the Desktop.
2. Select New... then Folder.
3. Name the folder "and now, the moment you've all been waiting for".
4. Right Click on the folder and rename it to "we proudly present for your viewing pleasure".
5. Rename it again to "The Microsoft Windows 95 Product Team!"
6. Open the folder and the Windows 95 credits will be displayed. The folder will remain around so anytime you want to view the credits again, all you have to do is re-open the folder.

DTP Applications

Adobe Illustrator

Credits
Press CTRL, ALT and click on the Venus picture on the top of the toolbar. The credit screen comes up and all the developers names are anagrammed.

Corel Draw

Credits
Click on Help > About CorelDraw. Double click on a balloon icon and Enjoy the Program credits. To exit out, press ESC.
Elvis falls!
Hold down Shift + Ctrl and click on Help > About CorelDraw. Double click on an icon picture and click the right mouse button. Watch as Elvis falls in a parachute!
 

Corel Photo-paint

Fire the balloon
Click Help > About. Hold down Ctrl + Shift and double click the Corel Balloon picture. Click and hold the right mouse Button to fire up the balloon. Double click the sky icon in the right hand upper corner for more effects.
Picture
Hold down Ctrl + Left shift and click on Help > About. Release the keys and double click an icon picture in the About box.
 

Dreamweaver

More eggs
Select any picture in your web page and open up the properties palette. Hold down Ctrl and double-click Preview Picture on the Properties palette. To see more eggs, continue holding Ctrl and double-clicking Preview Picture.
Welcome to Foghorns
Select the Help box. Search help for "Target". Select "Welcome to Foghorns Homepage!

Excel 2000

Credits
Launch Excel and press F5. Type: x2000:|2000 and press Enter. Hold Ctrl + Shift. Click the Chart Wizard and enjoy the credits.
Game!
Open Excel and on the blank worksheet, click File > Save As and choose Save as web page. Click on Publish and Add interactivity and save the file with any name you like. Load the page with Internet Explorer and go to row 2000 Column WC. Highlight all of row 2000 and press Tab to make column WC the active column. Hold down Ctrl + Alt + Shift and click on the Office Icon. Use the arrow keys to drive your car. The "0" key to drop paint slicks. The space bar to shoot. The "H" key for headlights. Note: You need DirectX for this to work.
 

FreeHand

Different Photos!
Hold down the Ctrl key and click on Help > About to see the development team photos! Depending on your version, it will display different pictures.
Easter Egg
Hold down the Ctrl and click on Help > About Freehand for the Easter Egg.

Internet Explorer

See your self!
Open IE 5.5 Click on Help > About. Hold down Ctrl + Shift + Alt and click on acknowledgements.
Star Trek Space map!
Open up IE and click Tools > Internet Options > General > Languages. Click on the Add Button. Type "ie-ee" (no quotes) and click OK. More "User Defined [ie-ee]" to the top of the list. Exit back to where you can browse in IE again. Click on Search toolbar button and click Customize. Also, select Previous Searches. in search assistant, click on Fine Yourself. in the box that says "Please specify where you would like to be found" type in anything to g to to a star trek space map!
 

Outlook 2000

Catch it!
In the "Find a contact" box on the toolbar, type "Ren Hoek" and press Enter. Select Tools > Macro > Macros. In the Macro Name box, type "OL2KRocks" and click the Create button. The "About Microsoft Outlook: dialog appears. Hole down Ctrl + Alt + Shift and click OK. The Outlook 2000 teams credits appear. Try to catch the names as they fly across to the mailbox.
Outlook Website
In, Outlook, select File > New > Contact. In the Full Name box type "Ren Hoek". Click Save and Close. Go to the Contacts page and select the new contact. Open Help > About. Hold down the Ctrl > Shift + Alt and click OK. Credits are displays and a link to a hidden Outlook Website!

Paint Shop Pro 6

See your self!
Open PSP (Paint Shop Pro) and click on Help > About Paint Shop Pro. Hold Ctrl + Shift and double click on the About window. Type "paintshoppro" without quotes
Easter Egg
Click Help > About Paint Shop Pro. hold down Ctrl and double click with the mouse.

Power Point 2000

Easter Egg
Click Help > about PowerPoint. Hold down Ctrl + Alt + Shift. Triple click the background line sin the text box.
zOOm
Click help > About > Microsoft PowerPoint. Click the PowerPoint Logo. (double click in 2000). Use the arrow keys to speed up/down or zoom in/out.(95)

Windows Screensaver

Volcano!
Right click on the desktop and click on Properties. On the Screensaver tab, select the 3D Text screensaver and open its properties. In the text box, type "volcano".

Other Easter Eggs

At Ease

Scrolling Credits
1. hold down shift and option
2. go to the apple menu and select about at ease
3. wait and look
4. when you are done looking, click
5. sing the hokie pokie
Get to Finder without Password
1. Make Sure the LC 2 has Claris works 3. and Mavis Beacon Teaches typing and only 4mb of Ram...
2. Make sure no programs are running except for At Ease...
3. Now Start up Claris Works and if it gives you a window asking what kind of document to open just click cancel...
4. Now go to the Menu that shows you what programs are open and go back to At Ease...
5. Now that you have Claris Works running in the background you can now start Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing...
6. Instead of having Mavis Beacon open, you will have it go to finder...
7. Then just go to the menu that shows you what programs are running and go back to Claris Works and close Claris Works it you be back at finder...
Programmers "At Ease"
1. While holding down the Option key, choose "About At Ease" from the Apple menu.
2. Wait, and you'll get secret credits at the bottom of the dialog box.
3. Click to get rid of the dialog box. Now, once again, choose "About At Ease" from the Apple menu without holding any keys down.
4. Carefully point the tip of your cursor at the head of the upper middle Weeble head.
5. Amaze your friends as a headshot of programmer Gene Tyacke replaces the little Weeble head.
6. Try this for Scott Marcy's Weeble head just below Tyacke's.

Borland C++

Developer Credits (v 5.02)
1. Click Help, About
2. Hold down Control + Shift
3. Double click the text which appears below "Borland C++"
4. A screen will appear which lists the 5.02 development team
Curious George
1. Open Borland C++ Builder 3
2. In the code editing window enter #pragma curious_george
3. This works in any project which uses pramgas
4. I have tested this in an application and a console mode app
5. enjoy the warning message
The Hidden Cat
1. Create a C source with an editor, an type in
the following code:
#pragma keeka
void main(void) {return 0;}
2. Save with a name of your choice (e.g. "egg.c")
3. Compile the source with:
bcc32 egg.c
4. Watch the message the compiler displays!
This should work inserting the "#pragma" line in any C source ... I've not tested it with other version of the compiler.
Oh, yes, it's like the "Curious George" egg ...
Command-line compiler team
1. Run "bcc32.exe -Team"
2. Enjoy the compiler team

AutoCAD

Growing Windows
1. right-click on any tool bar
2. click in any area on the toolbars pop up
3. repeat step 2 many times!
Display Credits
1. go to HELP, then ABOUT
2. Double-Click on the Logo picture
Release 14 Team
1. Select "About Autocad" from the Help menu
2. Hold down Control+Shift
3. Click in the graphic area of the help box displayed
Picasso!!!
1. Open a drawing with text in it - not the line text, but "fat" characters.
2. Centering over a curved part of a character, zoom in using the wheel on the mouse.
3. Keep reentering it so that half the screen is the color of the letter and half is the background.
4. Enjoy the art!
Release 2000 Team
1. Select "Dimension style" from the Dimension toolbar, or go to the dimension pull down menu and select "style"
2. Hold down Control+Shift
3. Click on the Preview graphic area of the Dimension style manager box.
4. A movie will pop up in a new window with a large "T"
5. select play from the menu and you will see a 3D movie with a picture of the Team members at the end.

Automap
Rotating Car
1. Hold down SHIFT key while selecting Help and then Help About.
2. There's a red car appearing on the right side of the dialog that comes up

Technical Specs
1. Run Automap Streets
2. Click on Help
3. Hold the Shift Button & Press System Info
4. A Secret Technical Settings Window Appears

Canvas

Credits Scroll (v5.0.3)
1. Hold down the CTRL key
2. Select "About Canvas" from the help menu
Canvas 8 music
Open up canvas 8 and hold down ctrl-shift-apple and click on about canvas!!

Enfish Tracker Pro

Hitchiker's Guide
1. Size the main window so you can see the desktop.
2. Type anything into the find box (e.g. your name) and click apply.
3. Create a new text file on the desktop and rename it to ZAPHOD.42
4. Drag it into the Tracker window.
5. Look at the icon and type.
Funny Install Message
1. When you first install Eudora Light, you have at the right of the Help Menu, an extra menu called "Eudora Pro" which give you informations about Eudora Pro Software
2. You can remove
this menu choosing the command menu "Remove this menu"
3. Note the message about the command on the status line
"Have you ever cutt off a tree branch while sitting on that
branch?"
4. It is a joke!!
Add Spikes to Animation
1. Open Ewan
2. Click Help|About
3. Double-click with the right mouse button to add spikes to the animation

Flash

Macromedia Hidden Game
1. Click Help > About Flash
2. Quickly, *double* click the Macromedia logo with the two upward pointing arrows, to the right of the About Box.
3. Click the "thanks" button to the right to make th logo bounce up and down.
4. Click the "team" button to the right to play the rather cool "Gary's Car Jump Game!"
5. Try to get past 12 cars, that's as far as I got! :)
Bouncing logo
Go to the About Box of flash, then point your mouse on the M logo. There's a small clickable spot there that makes the logo bounce (just like in the doubleclick egg).
Alien Containment Facility
If you look at the Flash 4 CD-ROM, there is a directory called "Third Party" where third party software resides. In that directory, there is another called The Alien Containment Facility.
Open up the index.htm or the Flash movie. Click the first enter button to get to the main screen. Click the Menu button to get to the main menu. Click the first button "What is a Flashpack?" On the robot interface (named Login Z) you'll see four screws, one in each corner. Right click on the screw in the upper right hand corner and choose zoom in.
Keep doing this until the screw is big enough to click on. When you click on it, you'll see it has a secret "Enter" button underneath. You'll probably have to zoom in as far as you can to see the movie. Once you've clicked on the enter button, right click anywhere in the Flash movie and choose "Show All" to get back far enough to see everything.
 

Xteq X-Setup

Xteq X-Setup Easter Egg
"To see the Xteq X-Setup 4.0/5.0 Easter Egg press F3 to bring up an undocumented menu. The OK button doesn't work, so just click the X in the upper right corner to close it.

Note: The F3 menu has been removed from newer versions of X-Setup, starting with 5.5 and above.
BMW
1. Go "Help -> About..."
2. In the right lower corner there is a blue window with Greetings and Credits, double-click in the field from the left of the picture (it's where "The newest information... " is written.
3. In the blue window you'll see the running line BMW 328i.
Pretty useless egg, but anyway...
Zoom Zoom Car
Go to "help and choose "about". Notice, off to the side, the bar that says the logo and "Do more faster". If you click this once, it obviously transports you to the Xteq home page, but double clicking it will cause a little animated Text car to zoom across in the animated "thank you" box. The graphics aren't all that great, but its pretty entertaining
 
ARCserve
Developer Credits
1. In ARCserve Manager, go to Help | About
2. Hold down Shift-Ctrl and double-click in the About screen; credits will scroll by.
3. Repeat Shift-Ctrl-dbl-Click to see various pictures of the development team.
4. There is an AVI movie of the developers morphing into each other. Anyone know how to activate this?
Bomber Game
1. ARCserve console (Windows)
2. Click Help then About
3. CTRL and SHIFT and click on ARCserve graphic
4. Type GAMESERVE (don't press enter)

Director

Cool Credits
1. Enter Director from the desktop or whatever!
2. Go to the help menu and the about director
3. Wait until the credits show and click the left mouse button
4. Look at the positions of the workers.. Cool!
Hidden Song
1. Click on Help|About
2. Wait for a while...
3. While waiting you can watch the credits and play around with the dancing logos
4. After a while you will see a smiley pop out
5. Click and drag on this smiley and release
6. You will be treated to a song
Bill is Evil
In Director 8 and 8.5, open the Message window and type:

I like Bill

Note the change to the Director user interface! After you are done being ill, you can revert to the normal user interface style by typing:

Bill is Evil

Here's the full scoop on Egg.

During the Director 8 beta cycle, one of the Director engineers, Glenn Ruehle made an attempt to give Director a user interface make-over. Unfortunately it wasn't very well received by the beta list and so, instead of pursuing it further, the code was commented out. Realizing that someone might want to see the user interface example in the future, he added a simple method for revealing it.
 

Acrobat Reader

Woof
1. Start acrobat reader
2. Select Help>About Plug-ins>Acrobat Forms
3. hold in Control+Alt+Shift and click on the credits button.
Whale sound in Adobe Acrobat 4.0
1. Open Adobe Acrobat 4.0
2. Go to Help>About Plug-ins>Acrobat Annotations
3. Hold down Ctrl and left-click on Credits
4. You will then hear the sound of a whale, see the Plug-in logo change to a whale, and see the Credits button change to Harpoon.

Corel Printhouse

A Blimp and Fireworks
1. Go to Help>About.
2. Double Click on the the Icon with the Balloon on it.
3. You got a Blimp and Fireworks, the more you click, the more fireworks. You can also move the Blimp around with the keypad.
Hidden Credits
1: go to help / about
2: double click on the image shown in the pop-up window
3: cursor arrow will change into a hand and credits will start scrolling from the bottom of the image upwards.
4: have fun by changing scrolling direction by grabbing the credits roll with the hand cursor

Cakewalk Pro Audio

Screen Chess (v6.0)
1. Open up Help menu
2. Open up about
3. Press Ctrl-Shift and Click on the jumping cake
4. Try and rearrange your screen ;)
Mozaic Screen
1. Go to help/about windows
2. Hold ctrl/alt/shift
3. Double-click on logo
4. Watch and have fun
Credit Mosaic (v8.0)
1. Go to help/about windows
2. click on Computer that appear
4. Enjoy it!

Acrobat Exchange

Woof
Select the Help menu
Select About Plug-ins
Select Acrobat Forms
Hold down Control
Press the Credits button
Listen to 'Woof' and see the paw of a dog appear.
The Credits button should say 'Woof' now.
You can repeat as long as you press Control and press on the Woof/Credits button.
Harpoon
Select the Help menu
Select About Plug-ins
Select Acrobat Annotations
Hold down Control
Press the Credits button
You'll hear a sound (probably a whale) and see the picture of a whale appear. The Credits button should say 'Harpoon' now.
You can repeat as long as you press Control and press on the Harpoon/Credits button.
3Self-Sign Signature
Select the Help menu
Select About Plug-ins
Select Acrobat Annotations
Hold down Control
Press the Credits button
The credits window will break open
The names of the people who worked on the project will pass by
They will Self-Sign the window with their signatures
They wish you good night!
The window will close again.
You can repeat by holding down Control and pressing the credits button.

Delphi

Star Wars intro in version 5
Open the About Delphi dialog.
Hold down the Alt key, while you type JEDI.
Development Team
-In the menu, Click Help_About...
-while holding the ALT key type "team"
a long list of the actual creaters of delphi will scroll down your screen
Hidden Information
1. Make the about box appear by going in Help/About
2. hold the ALT key and at the same time type VERSION (for version number)
3. hold the ALT key and at the same time type AND (for picture of Anders Hejlsberg with a wink)
4. hold the ALT key and at the same time type TEAM(for a list of those responsible for this fine product)
5. hold the ALT key and at the same time type DEVELOPERS (for a list of the R&D folks specifically)
Delphi 6
In about hold down Alt and type one of the following: "team", "jedi", or "quality"

3D Mark

TicTacToe Game in the About Box
1. Run 3D Mark 99
2. Run Result Browser
3. Click on "Help" and select "About Result Browser"
4. Double-click on the free space under the icon
5. A TicTacToe Game appears
6. It has not been tested if this Easter egg runs with earlier releases of 3D Mark too
3DMark 2001 Cow game
On 3Dmark 2001, start a new project, then click the 'edit' button in the 'project' area. Type in "Holy Cow!" without quotes. Then press OK, and click on 'Game demo'. Enjoy!

3D Atlas

3D Waving Flag
1. Go to a country postcard
2. Get the flag displayed large size
3. Option-click on it
4. You get a flag waving in the wind
5. You can wave the pole around with the mouse
6. Arrow Keys control the wind direction
Developers Appear in Country Photos
1. Go to any country postcard
2. Hold down Command and Option and click on any 3. photo in the list
4. See one of the developers overlayed on the photo
5. do the same to another photo
6. get a different developer
7. repeat as long as you like
Hidden Video of Developers Faces
1.Open My Computer
2.Right-click on "TLCOEM2" or whatever your copy is called
3.Click on "Open"
4.Open the AVI folder
5.Open the file called RTTNHEAD
6.If you have Windows Media Player, you will see it. Cool,eh?
 
Agent 97
List of Credits
1.Launch Agent 97 and select the Settings tab.
2.Place the mouse pointer over the Connectix logo
3.Double click (right mouse button) the Agent 97 logo.
4.Greetings from the Agent 97 team will appear.
Dancing Radio Mast
open agent 97
go on groups then properties. (don't use the shortcut)
go to 'when to purge'
check all the boxes and change the value of percent to 55
click OK and then press 26205453702337(when using a mobile phone to type anything, this spells 'bob likes beer'
then press control+Alt+insert and press the radio mast icon on the tool bar
hay presto, all singing all dancing radio mast!!
 

ACT!

Team Photo
1. Run ACT_LOAD.EXE /CHICKEN
2. Dialog opens with a picture of the team.
ACT! 2000 "Special Thanks" list
Under the Help menu, choose About ACT!. If it's ACT! 5.00 or 5.01 then hold Shift+Control and click the Credits tab. For 5.03 hold Shift+Control and click on the logo in the upper left corner of the About window.
This will display a list of the people who developed ACT! 4, not ACT! 2000. This is why I submitted it, the developers for ACT! 2000 didn't notice the easter egg...hehehe

Apple Error Codes

Really New!
1. Start the Apple Error codes 98
2. Click on Job's head
Apple Crash
1. Start the Apple Error codes 98
2. Choose Sad Mac Error Codes
3. Click on the Icon where the arrow is pointing at.
4. Now you here the sound when a Mac crashes

After Dark

All Sorts of Things Swimming
1. Open After Dark 4.0
2. Choose Fish World
3. After screen saver opens, hit CAPS LOCK
4. Fish will run about and a flying toaster will swim
Fish see a Hook
1. Enter After Dark
2. Select the Fish screen saver
3. Press caps lock
4. Watch them run!
Santa Clause
1. Set the date on your computer to Dec. 25
2. Activate the "Voyeur" screen saver
3. Within a moment or two you'll see St. Nick Flying in the background!!
Choose your weapons
Choose the screensaver "Rock,Paper,Scissors" in version 4.0.
Press the "caps-lock" key.
The option to choose to be either R(rock),P(paper),S(scissors) vs. the computer. Once you press the key of the "weapon" of your choice, sit back and watch the short "battle to the death"
Changing Colors
Choose from many screensavers in the 4.0 version and change colors or patterns or backgrounds.
Try pressing the "caps-lock" key while running the following screensavers:
Super Guy--background
Hula Twins--background
Out 'n About--background
Bad Dog--folder locations and content
Swirling Magic,Mandlebrot,Satori,Nirvana--changes colors
Tunnel--toggles the tunnel direction in and out

Adaptec Toast

Credits Sandwich
1. Hold down the "Option" key
2. Pull down the apple menu
3. Select "About Adaptec Toast..."
Extra Menu Items
1. Hold down the alt key
2. Click the bar at the bottom left of the window
3. A new set of options appears
4. Including eyes, moon phases, and the US national debt
Particle Animation Titles and Staff Slide Show
1. Open Adobe Illustrator 6
2. Select About Adobe Illustrator uder Apple Menu
3. Click on the Adobe logo in the splash screen
4. Enjoy the slide show!
5. To see again, you must restart the program
Developer Anagrams
1. Open AI7
2. Option-click on the Venus on top of the toolbox
3. Team members' names appear as anagrams
Debug Window
1. Open Adobe Illustrator 7.0
2. Hold down Ctrl-Alt-Option and 0 "zero" keys
3. You have debug window
Days until Christmas
1. Hold down the option key
2. Click on the "Selection" menu at the bottom of a window
3. Count the days 'til Christmas.

After Effects

See the Real Creators
1. Open Adobe After Effects.
2. While holding down the ALT key, click on the HELP menu and choose "About After Effects."
3. Instead of seeing the standard splash screen, you get a "pretty" looking screen with the developer's names ;-)
Property label change
1. Launch After Effects and create a new project.
2. Create a new composition.
3. Import any type of footage into the project and drag it to the timeline to create a layer, then select it on the timeline.
4. From the menu, choose Layer -> Mask -> New Mask.
5. Work your way down to the "Masks" property on your layer by clicking on the triangles. You should eventually reveal lines that let you control four mask properties: Mask shape, feather, opacity and expansion.
6. Hold down ALT, SHIFT and CONTROL, then click on the words "Mask Expansion" (the label for the property right next to the little stopwatch icon).

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