Open No-Extension Files with Notepad by Default
There are files out there, on your hard drive, that don’t have extensions. This means there is no default application to open these files with. Being a geek, however, you want to see what’s inside.
Category Archives: Microsoft
Disable Shutdown
Sometimes you may want to disable to the shutdown of a system, such as a kiosk or a mission critical computer. With the below registry tweak, the shutdown command will be disabled. To re-enable the shutdown command, simply change the 1 to a 0 (zero).
Preventing Orphaned GPOs
When you remove a computer from a domain there are a few steps you should take to ensure that its GPO settings are removed properly as well.
Configure the IE6 Popup Blocker via Registry
This registry tweak will allow you to toggle the Internet Explorer popup blocker. By extrapolating the information here, you can actually control popups in other programs as well, such as MSN Messenger, Windows Explorer, and others. This hack has been tested on Windows XP SP2 and SP3, but not Vista. You can try with Vista, but your mileage… Read More »
Don’t Save Desktop Configuation
The default behavior for XP is to save the desktop configuration on exiting the operating system. To prevent saving the desktop configuration, make the following registry edit:
Turn Off System Beeps
This tweak prevents the system beeps from being audible without altering any other audio settings.
Reset Shell Folders Default Paths
Windows stores the location of per-user special folders under the following registry key:
Turn Off Low Disk Space Checks
This will prevent Windows Vista from checking the space on your hard drive and popping up the notorious “Hey, you”re running out of space!” warning balloon.
Hack User Account Control
Windows Vista’s User Account Control (UAC) is the new operating system’s most universally reviled feature. Sure, it helps protect you, but it also annoys you to no end.
NoDriveTypeAutoRun and AutoPlay
This registry hack will control what happens to AutoPlay when you put a CD into the drive caddy. Researching NoDriveTypeAutoRun, reminds me of a tip that I was given for playing chess; when you find a good move, look for an even better one. Previously I had known about plain AutoRun, but now I have found a more… Read More »