Category Archives: Windows XP

Rip high-quality MP3s in Windows Media Player 8

The relationship between Windows Media Player 8 and the MP3 audio format is widely misunderstood. Basically, WMP8 will be able to playback MP3 files, but encoding (or “ripping” CD audio into MP3 format will require an MP3 plug-in. So during the Windows XP beta, Microsoft is supplying a sample MP3 plug-in for testing purposes, but it”s limited to… Read More »

Add/Remove optional features of Windows XP

To dramatically expand the list of applications you can remove from Windows XP after installation, navigate to C:\WINDOWS\inf (substituting the correct drive letter for your version of Windows) and open the sysoc.inf file. Under Windows XP Professional Edition RC1, this file will resemble the following by default:

Create a Shortcut to Lock Your Computer

Leaving your computer in a hurry but you don’t want to log off? You can double-click a shortcut on your desktop to quickly lock the keyboard and display without using CTRL+ALT+DEL or a screensaver.

Fix Movie Interference in AVI files

If you have any AVI files that you saved in Windows 9x, which have interference when opened in Windows XP, there is an easy fix to get rid of the interference: Open Windows Movie Maker.Click View and then click Options.Click in the box to remove the check mark beside Automatically create clips. Now, import the movie file that… Read More »

Windows XP Setup.INI

WinXPs setupp.ini controls how the CD acts. IE is it an OEM version or retail? First, find your setupp.ini file in the i386 directory on your WinXP CD. Open it up, it’ll look something like this:

Create an administrator command prompt shortcut

When I am working in command prompt the majority of the things I do require an administrative level command prompt.  I normally have to right click on my command prompt shortcut and then select Run As Administrator. However, there is an easy way to modify the shortcut so that you no longer have to right click on it and… Read More »

Disable Network Printer Search

When browsing through shared folders and network computers Explorer can slow down when it is searching the local network for printers. This sounds like a great feature and may be useful for some but I would rather disable it to get maximum performance when browsing through folders.

Identify Faulty Device Drivers

If you are having problems with lockups, blue screens, or can only get to safe mode, often the problem is due to a faulty device driver. One way to help identify them is through the use of the Verfier program    1. Start / Run / Verifier    2. Keep the default of Create Standard Settings    3.… Read More »