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Speed Up Logoff, Restart & Shutdown Process in XP, Vista & Windows 7

eches — Sun, 17 May 2009 13:54:01 +0000

You may notice the shutdown and restart process appear to be sluggish sometimes. This often happens when there are too many applications added to the Startup. Apparently the easiest way to speed up these processes is by reducing the number of applications in the startup. Some people just can't give up their applications in the Startup list. Luckily there is a solution to these sluggish processes.

SystemBooster 2009 is a utility that can optimize your Windows Logoff, Restart and Shutdown processes. It consumes very less memory and speedups Shutdown, Restart and logoff process for Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP as well. It also allows you to remove Spyware Registry key and sub-key via its easy-to-use interface.

Requirements
You need to have .Net Framework 3.5

Download Link

Systembooster 2009 v2.1

Technorati Tags: windows 7, windows XP, Windows Vista, Speed Up Logoff, Restart, Shutdown, tips and tricks, productivity

Esnips Downloader: Download files from eSnips.com

eches — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 17:03:10 +0000

eSnips is a website that allows you to share your passions. You can upload almost everything; music, videos, photos, files, and anything you find on the web. You can control with whom your items are shared with just by getting into the sharing preferences and privacy setting on every folder.

Esnips is pretty much the same like Imeem; a holy grail to music lovers who hardly find their favorite songs on the net. Unfortunately, you can't easily download files from this site.

Esnips Downloader is a small application that allows you to download files (mp3, video etc) from esnips. It is very simple to use, just key in the esnips URL and hit download button. A download windows will pop up right after that. Don't forget to register with esnips first before using this application (it won't take long).

Happy downloading!

Download Esnips Downloader

Technorati Tags: How to, esnips downloader, download mp3 esnips, download video esnips, download files esnips

How to Create Partition or New Drive in Windows Vista

eches — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 07:01:59 +0000

Unlike Windows XP, Windows Vista comes with built-in tool to help you creating partition on your hard drive on the fly. This feature comes handy especially to those who like better management of their enormous hard drive or perhaps to those who love to dedicate new partition for additional operating system like Ubuntu or even to test drive Windows 7 Beta.

Step-By-Step on How to Create New Partition in Windows Vista

1. Right click on My Computer > Manage. Double click on "Storage" > "Disk Management (Local)"

2. You should see something like in the screenshot below.

3. Right click on logical drive or any active drive and choose "Shrink Volume...". Specify the size of space (in MB) for your new partition from the chosen drive.

4. For the sake of this how-to tutorial, I allocate 2 GB of space for the new partition(s). Right click on the free space created from the previous step and choose "New Simple Volume...".

5. Click "Next" when a popup shows up. Specify the space size of the new partition.

6. Assign drive letter for your new partition.

7. By default, you will be asked to format the new partition. You don't have to change anything on this page unless you want to rename the new partition to, for example, "Local Disk" instead of "New Volume". Just click "Next" and click "Finish".

8. It will take while to complete formatting the new partition, depending on how big the new partition is.

Ok, now you are done (no need to restart etc). You can even use the new partition to store your movies and songs (virtually everything) right away!

Technorati Tags: Windows Vista, create partition, built-in tool

How to Play .FLV Files in Windows Media Player

eches — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 04:54:38 +0000

As we all know FLV files cannot run on Windows Media Player and what I usually do is to open the related files with VLC player. VLC player is no doubt one of the versatile media players out there that can run many different video formats. However not everybody is willing to install another video player; they rather stick to Windows Media Player (though it only plays few video formats). If you are adamant of using Windows Media Player to play FLV files, here's 1 simple solution.

PlayFLV plugin basically binds FLV files to Windows Media Player so when you double click on the FLV files it will open directly in Windows Media Player. This plugin is essentially easy to install. All you need to do is download the small plugin and double click the file. It will be automatically installed on your system and you should be ready to enjoy watching FLV files on your Windows Media Player.

Key features

Plugin that enables Windows Media Player to playback FLV files
Features all default functions, such as zooming, skipping and full screen view
Creates file association: Double-click FLV files to play them in Windows Media Player
Very lightweight plugin
Free and open source

Download Link

Technorati Tags: flv files, windows media player, vlc player, WMP 11, WMP plugin

Auto Shutdown PC After Winamp Playlist Ends

eches — Mon, 05 Jan 2009 12:45:10 +0000

For those who love to listen to their favorite playlists in Winamp might be thinking of having a feature that will turn off PC after the playlist ends. This feature comes handy especially when you do listen to some of your "lullabies" before going to bed. Winamp Shutdown is a Winamp plugin that allows you to set your PC to shut down right after Winamp finishes playing the whole songs in the list.

The plugin is only 9kb and the installation is easy. Just make sure to close your Winamp before running the small plugin, otherwise it might not be working. If everything goes well, you should be able to see a new entry that reads "shutdown playlist has been ended" (like in the picture above) in the "help" menu.

Once playlist comes to an end, the following prompt shows up asking you whether to cancel the shut down (supposed you are still awake).

Download Winamp Shutdown

Technorati Tags: auto shutdown PC, winamp, winamp player plugin

How to Open .XLSX Spreadsheet Files Without Excel 2007

eches — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 16:29:27 +0000

Files with extension xlsx is the default extension for spreadsheets written in Microsoft Office Excel 2007. I really thought the extension was made backward-compatible and you don't have to worry when you are about to open the files in previous version of Microsoft Excel like Microsoft Office Excel 2003. In fact, That's not really the in case.

One way to get around the problem is by converting the .xlsx spreadsheet to the traditional .xls format using the Microsoft Office compatibility Pack. The FileFormatConverters.exe (27.5 MB) will help you to open, edit, and save .xlsx files in Office 2000, Office XP, or even Office 2003.

To install this download:

1. Ensure your system is up to date by installing all High-Priority/Required updates on Microsoft Update (required for Microsoft Office XP and 2003 users).
2. After installing all High-Priority/Required updates with Microsoft Update, download the Compatibility Pack by clicking the Download button above and saving the file to your hard disk.
3. Double-click the FileFormatConverters.exe program file on your hard disk to start the setup program.
4. Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the installation.

Download Microsoft Office compatibility Pack

Technorati Tags: microsoft office 2007, xlsx extension, excel 2007, spreadsheet files

How to Download Songs from IMEEM

eches — Sun, 28 Dec 2008 04:31:00 +0000

Imeem has been around for almost 5 years but I never used them before. Why should I, when I can get most of the songs just by googling them on the net? Unfortunately, there is rare moment where you can't find a song though you have been looking for hard enough. I finally found Grand Archives - Sleepdriving (Chuck 2x05) on Imeem but I can't find a way to download it on my computer.

Free Music Zilla really saves my day as it provides a useful free software that enables me to download any songs from Imeem. You need to install this small application and run it before playing any songs on Imeem. When the application is ready, play any songs on Imeem and don't forget to choose which songs you would like to download and hit the download button. The song will be saved as a .flv file.

This small application is also able of downloading songs from other social music sites like Free Last.fm, Pandora, Myspace, Esnips, MOG and iJigg.

Technorati Tags: download songs, download imeem song, free music zilla

How to check if BIOS update is needed

eches — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 23:40:54 +0000

We are always reminded to keep our softwares ranging from antivirus system to even games to be updated. The reasons can be either to make sure any security bug that might pose harm to the entire system is fixed up or it could be merely because the developers has new features or improvements on the softwares. The other essential part of our computer system that might be left out is BIOS. It probably does not need a regular update as much as other softwares but keeping it up to date will make sure your computer is capable of running the latest form of hardwares that might not be supported by current version of BIOS.

Do I need a BIOS upgrade?

According to Phoenix Technologies,

In most cases the only reason to get a BIOS upgrade is to add support for a new form of hardware you are adding to your system (such as a new CPU, or larger hard disk) that is not supported by your current BIOS. Most operating systems do not use the BIOS once the operating system is up and running, so you should not upgrade the BIOS in an attempt to fix a software bug unless the system/motherboard manufacturer has identified the BIOS as the cause of the problem.

BIOS Agent is a small useful software that is useful in detecting your BIOS version. All you need to do is just click on the "Get BIOS Info" on the bottom left and shortly after that, all information related to your BIOS will be fetched onto the screen.

With all information at hand you can simply cross check the BIOS version displayed in BIOS checker with the vendor's website.

If your BIOS needs to be upgraded, the installation is pretty straightforward like an ordinary software. It is advisable, however, to use an uninterrupted power supply (UPS) during the upgrade as a power failure might cause data corruption to the BIOS. Of course you don't want this happen because you will not be able to turn your motherboard on.

Technorati Tags: BIOS version checker, BIOS update

How to delete Googleupdate.exe in Windows

eches — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 17:23:21 +0000

Whenever you install Google applications like Chrome in your windows, a file (GoogleUpdate.exe) is also installed together. Basically this file will run in the background and its main function is to look out for updates for the installed applications. While I'm sure most people don't bother to keep this little program to run in the background, there are definitely some people who hate unnecessary processes like GoogleUpdate.exe which might take some of your memory (I doubt GoogleUpdate.exe would significantly chew up your memory).

Anyway, here is how you can get rid of GoogleUpdate.exe.

1. Go to Control Panel > Scheduled Tasks (Windows XP) or type in "taskschd.msc" in the start menu search box.

2. Find GoogleUpdateTaskUser, right-click it and select delete option. This will effectively stop it from auto restarting after reboot.

3. If it is active, you need to end the process before proceeding with the deletion.

That's it!

Technorati Tags: disable Googleupdate.exe, how to tips, tips and tricks

How to Recover Lost Files in Windows Vista

eches — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 11:23:06 +0000

When I deleted or overwrote a file by mistake (Windows XP), I simply Ctrl + Z to undo an action and most of the time it works like a charm at restoring files. Windows Vista however has Shadow Clone (also known as Volume Snapshot Service or VSS) feature that will allow users to restore current files with the ones previously saved.

Methods for Creating Shadow Copies

This feature is purposely built in Vista for Windows Vista's backup utility, System Restore and the Previous Versions. Here's a partial excerpt from Microsoft's site on how shadow copies are created.

There are two methods for creating shadow copies: making either a complete copy (a full copy or clone) or copying only the changes to the volume (a differential copy or copy-on-write). Each method results in two data images — the original volume and the shadow copy volume. The functional difference between the two is that the original volume maintains full read/write capabilities, whereas the shadow copy volume is read-only. This read-only status ensures that the shadow copy volume remains a point-in-time copy until its status is changed by the administrator for a specific purpose.

How to user this feature?

To restore a shadow copy that’s stored on your computer, simply right-click the file and click Restore previous versions. When you select the option, the Previous Versions tab is selected in the properties window (see picture below). There is none in the list since I turn off the restore system. Anyway, if the restore system is turned on and there are changes recently on a file, the list of previous version of the file or folder that you want to restore should come up. Simply click Restore, and the file or folder is restored.

Technorati Tags: recover lost files, Windows Vista, how-to, Windows Vista tips, Windows Vista tricks

How to Remove Firefox Extension Delay

eches — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 01:12:17 +0000

Everybody loves Firefox because its wide range of plugins or extensions to choose from. Wondering where to look for Alexa ranking plugin or anything under the sun; you can always find them in its large repository over at Firefox Add-On. There is, however, a small thing that bugs Firefox user when they are about to initiate a plugin installation; the notorious 3-second delay.

You might wonder why it's there in the first place and here is the explanation.

Firefox’s solution, from bug 162020, is to delay enabling the “Yes”/”Install” buttons until three seconds after the dialog appears. I believe that this is the only possible fix other than completely denying untrusted content the ability to pose the dialog. Unfortunately, this fix is frustrating for users who install extensions often.

Some users have been intentionally lowering the delay to 0 seconds, which frustrates me. These users think the delay was added merely to force everyone to read the dialog. I surprises me that these users were not able to figure out the security hole given the fix.

If you use Firefox plugin lightly like me you might not be as disturbed as people who love to play around with new plugins in Firefox Add-Ons arsenal.

Solution

This can be done in any version of firefox.

1. Type in "about:config" in address bar.
2. Click on "I'll be careful, I promise!"
3. Find "security.dialog_enable_delay" and set it to zero and you are done!

Please be reminded, removing the delay might expose you to unexpected security breach. You may want to read this article to get better picture of the situation and why the delay is implemented in Firefox in the first place. As far as my laptop is concerned, it never fails to be up and running as usual like every other day :)

Technorati Tags: Firefox, 3-second delay, tips, tricks

Vista Shutdown Timer: Schedule your Vista shutdown

eches — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 08:46:51 +0000

I've been using Windows Vista for almost a month but I never write any post related to Windows Vista tips yet. There a lot of cool things in Windows Vista and new things that I learn along the way, so you can expect more Windows Vista tips in the near future. Let just start with Vista Shutdown Timer. This is a software I've been looking since I switched to Vista. You may, however, use CMD tips even though it's slightly different command line from Windows XP.

For those who are not really into CMD, you may use Vista Shutdown Timer. Bear in mind though, this little software (184KB in size) also has manual for you to use the CMD command line (click on the top right corner twice to get the manual, so you can learn the command line parameters).

Vista Shutdown Timer is an easy to use sleep-timer for Windows and is a single EXE file (no registry, installation etc needed). The interface is very intuitive and everything is self-explanatory. Don't be confused with the name of this tool which suggests it is only meant for Windows Vista. In fact it can also be used in Windows 2000 and XP. Download this free software and see more info over at Vista Shutdown Timer.

[via]

Technorati Tags: Windows Vista, Vista Shutdown, tips, tricks, CMD

Free Up Your Drive Space by Removing Duplicate Files

eches — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 12:58:16 +0000

My 200 GB external hard drive had reached its bottleneck with the additions of TV series Chuck and it's time to do housekeeping; removed unnecessary files & old videos etc. There were not so many files I was willing to remove, so I need to scrutinize a little bit harder (which folder takes up significant amount of space & see what can be deleted) to free up some space otherwise there will be no room for new fresh tv series. It turned out my mp3 folder took up roughly 35 GB of space. A quick check on the mp3 folders, expose duplicate songs and some of them got up to 3 duplicates!

I knew it long time ago but I keep procrastinating so the number of duplicates grows out of hand. So here are few softwares I found on Google that are able to help me in doing the housekeeping.

1. Heatsoft Clone Cleaner (HCC)

HCC comes in 2 version free and premium. The free version is more than enough to do the job but of course premium one provides additional features such as checking for duplicates in multiple drives and the ability to exclude subfolders from checking for duplicates. The only downside is it keeps asking me to upgrade to PRO version.

2. Duplicate File Finder

Duplicate File Finder is a simple, but effective tool to locate duplicate files in one or more selected search paths. It scans the files and compares them based on Byte for Byte Comparison, which ensures 100% accuracy. You can then choose to delete the selected duplicate or original files. The program is multi threaded and performs scans quickly. For 200 GB it only takes roughly 5 minutes to complete. It's totally free!

3. Double Killer

Double Killer is able to scan for duplicates by using names, sizes, dates and CRC32. They are not 100% accurate and if you want to use raw binary comparison, you need to Purchase the PRO version.

4. Easy Duplicate File Finder

This software is able to exclude system folders such as windows and program files. It says that it search for true duplicates (files with same contents) and it scan pretty fast!

I used Heatsoft Clone Cleaner Lite to clear up the duplicates (roughly 3 GB. What a waste of space!) and will be using this software in the future.

Technorati Tags: remove duplicate files, free up drive space, windows xp, computer tips, tricks, freeware

How to Disable Restart After Installing Windows Update

eches — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 23:59:33 +0000

Automatic Updates is an integral part of Microsoft Windows that allows important security updates from Microsoft server to be downloaded and installed automatically. When the download and installation process is done, it will ask whether we want to restart now or later. The problem arises when we choose to restart later. A Windows Update popup will come out anytime afterwards and it reads “Updating your computer is almost complete. Your computer needs to be restarted for updates to take effect. Windows will restart your computer automatically in 5:00 minutes. Do you want to restart your computer now?”

There are 2 ways to remove the annoying popup from bugging you.

1st method: Stop the Automatic Updates Service

1. Go to Control Panel > Administrative Tools and double click on Services
2. Find "Automatic Updates" from the list of services, right-click on it and click stop

Alternatively, you can stop Automatic Updates Service by using command prompt.

sc stop wuauserv

This command will automatically stop the Automatic Updates Service like the above steps.

2nd method: Modifying Group Policies
There is problem, however, related to the first method. The problem with the aforementioned method for disabling Automatic Updates restart message is that it is a 1 time fix. A better solution is to modify some group policy settings so that your computer will always be updated but at the same time you will not asked to restart anymore.

Run gpedit.msc which should open the Group Policies window. Proceed to Local Computer Policy > Computer Configuration > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Update

You’ll now see a bunch of options on the right hand side related to Windows Automatic Update. Here is where we can configure your message to disappear! There are basically two settings that we can manipulate to get what we want.

No auto-restart for schedule Automatic Updates installations - It will disable automatic restart and disable the dialog box asking you to restart now or later

Re-prompt for restart with scheduled installations - It lets you edit the interval of the appearance of the dialog box in minutes.

So no more annoying popup from Windows :)

Technorati Tags: tips, tricks, windows update, windows xp, windows Vista

Object Fix Zip: Recover corrupt ZIP archive files

eches — Mon, 28 Jul 2008 14:58:30 +0000

Usually big files with the size of more than 100MB need to be separated to smaller chunks, say 100MB each (for Rapidshare) where you need to download all of them before you can unzip the original ZIP file. Unfortunately, there are times where one or more of them get corrupt. When I first came across this problem I simply re-download the corrupt file; it's not really a big deal if you have a high speed broadband connection but that's not really the case when you only have the so-called "broadband connection" with the speed is just slightly better than dial up. There must be some kind of ways to save your day.

Object Fix Zip is a small utility that can be used to dispel your frustration where it allows the corrupt ZIP archive files to be recovered and repaired easily. Basically it tries to reconstruct a specified Zip file by creating a new fresh ZIP archive file while recovering the contents of the faulty Zip file where possible. This software is designed for testing, fixing and processing of corrupt or unusable ZIP archive files that are partially damaged or not completely downloaded.

Here are the full list of features for Object Fix Zip

Repairs corrupt or partially damaged ZIP archives.
Extract files from ZIP archives with CRC errors.
Extracts files from partially downloaded ZIP archives.
Extracts multiple ZIP archives with a single operation.
Supports all ZIP archive files created with any PkZIP and WinZIP compatible archiver software, except for those using strong encryption.
Easy-to-use, intuitive wizard-driven interface.
Supports all Windows versions, including Windows® 95/98/Me/NT/2000/XP/2003/Vista.
Freeware!

If you download big files on regular basis, you may want to have this useful software in your possession. If a corrupt file can be saved, why bother to waste your time re-downloading the same file again? :)

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