Vista's ReadyBoost

Vista's ReadyBoost

The Windows Vista operating system has a new feature that is designed to give users a quick, simple and cheap way to boost the performance of their Vista powered PC. It is called ReadyBoost and trust me, it does just that! So, what is ReadyBoost? How does it work and how effective is it? Well, let’s take a look!

Basically, ReadyBoost allows you to use a flash memory stick (flash drive) or SD card on your computer to store commonly used files so that you can access them much faster than off of your hard drive. Turning the ReadyBoost feature on couldn't be any easier as well. To do so, just plug a flash drive, SD card or whatever flash device you'd like to use into your computer. You'll then see this dialogue box pop up:

Click the "Speed up my system" link and you'll be taken to the ReadyBoost panel for the flash drive, which looks like this:

Just select Use this device and then set the amount of space you want to use. Vista will then create what is essentially a paging file on that drive and you will then be able to use it for quicker access. Note: This will only work with USB 2.0 devices or SD cards.

The advantage of ReadyBoost is that it is much faster to cache to a USB drive than to your hard drive. That then speeds up your system and enhances its overall performance. For example, acting as a fast store for frequently accessed data, the average random 4K document read from a flash device is about ten times faster than accessing the same information from the hard drive. That's pretty darn fast, if you ask me. Check it out!

For Firefox (Fan-TAB-ulous!)

Fan-TAB-ulous!

Multi-tab browsing in Firefox makes managing multiple web pages a breeze! Remember how Ctrl + T opens a new tab? Well, what about Ctrl+ Page Up and Ctrl+Page Down to switch between those tabs? Want to navigate between tabs even faster? Check these out:

Ctrl+1: Switch to the first tab
Ctrl+2: Switch to the second tab
Ctrl+3: Switch to the third tab
Ctrl+4: Switch to the fourth tab
Ctrl+5: Switch to the fifth tab
Ctrl+6: Switch to the sixth tab
Ctrl+7: Switch to the seventh tab
Ctrl+8: Switch to the eighth tab
Ctrl+9: Switch to the LAST tab

Even if you've got a ridiculous amount of tabs open, Ctrl+9 will always go to the farthest tab on the right.

But what about Ctrl+0? Well, because you can switch the size of the font with Ctrl+= or Ctrl+-, there needs to be a way to set it all back to defaults, right? That's where Ctrl+0 comes in. Use it to put the text in Firefox back to normal.

Wonderful!

Free Program Wise Disk Cleaner!!

Wise Disk Cleaner

As a general rule, I like to think that I keep my PC in pretty good shape. I run regular cleanings, scan for viruses and check for updates on a pretty regular basis. So, when I came across this weeks free download I thought "Yeah right, this probably won't do much for my pc". Boy, was I wrong! This program found 126 un-needed files on my computer!

This weeks download is called Wise Disk Cleaner Free Edition. This fairly simple program will scan your system for un-needed files and remove them. I know that this doesn't seem like much of a task, but the challenge is not really in being able to remove files, its being able to remove the correct files. What separates a bad utility from a good utility is the ability to do the job right. That is why I like this program. It will scan your system and truly only remove files that can be removed without causing harm to your system. If you stick to the default settings, it will do the job right.

After downloading the program, it will walk you through the rest. Just follow the wizard and you will be set to go!

If you want to try out Wise Disk Cleaner Free, you can download it here: http://download.cnet.com/Wise-Disk-Cleaner/3000-2086_4-10613345.html

Recycle Bin Trashed?

Recycle Bin Trashed?

I had a rather distressed Worldstart reader contact me yesterday to tell me that their recycle bin had pulled a Harry Houdini and escaped from their desktop. This is worrisome, to say the least, but, as always, there is a solution. Actually, there are a couple of solutions depending on your Operating System, so let's get to them!

In Windows Vista, Right-Click on your Desktop to bring up the Personalize Appearance and Sounds window.

Click “Change Desktop Icons”

From here, you'll see a list of check boxes, one of which being the Recycle Bin. If it's not checked, then do so and hit Apply.



You should now have your Recycle Bin icon back of your desktop!

If you happen to be a Windows XP user, click here. That tip should help you get your XP Recycle Bin back where it belongs.

Clear your Internet History

Clear your Internet History

We all want privacy—especially when using the internet. Not that you're visiting questionable sites, but who wants snoopy co-workers or nosey family members tracing your steps through cyberspace? With the click of a toolbar button (or Ctrl+H) your browsing history will be on display for all to see. Want to avoid this? Whether you use Internet Explorer or Firefox, here's what you can do...

To clear out the History with Internet Explorer, hit the Tools/Internet Options. On the General tab, you'll see a Browsing History area. Click the "Clear History" button and you're all set. In some versions of IE it might say "Delete" instead. There is also an option to "Delete Browsing History on Exit", which comes in handy, too.

Also, if you click the "Settings" button in this area you can set your history limit. You can use it to set how many days something stays in History from 0 to 99. By selecting 1 it will delete your History every day so if you forget to clear, you're tracks are covered.

For Firefox users simply go to go to Tools>Clear Private Data. A box will pop up, giving you options on what types of data you'd like to delete.

You can also go to Tools>Options and under the Privacy Tab you'll see an option for how long to keep your history. You can use it to set how many days something stays in History. By typing in 1 it will delete your History every day so if you forget to clear, you're tracks are covered. Like Internet Explorer, there is also and option to delete history upon exit if you desire.

But History isn't the only place where you're vulnerable. As you surf the web, every page, every graphic, cookie, etc. is saved in your temporary internet files. Why is this? Well, for one, if you visit a page often it brings up the files from the cache rather than getting them online, thus making the page appear quicker. Someone could go to this folder and view the cached pages if they knew how. The good news is that you can dump them with Disk Cleanup.

Here's a tip on Disk Cleanup for Windows XP:
http://www.worldstart.com/tips/tips.php/1848

..and one for Vista, too!:
http://www.worldstart.com/tips/tips.php/4344

There are also software programs that will empty your temp files automatically and monitor your cookies, only allowing in those that you specify.

In addition, clearing out your Temporary Internet files frees up space and increases security.

Here's to stealthy surfing!

How to Disable Autorun

Autorun is a feature that's been included with Windows since 1995, and what it does is looks for a file on an inserted CD called Autorun.inf. If it finds it, then it executes any program associated with it. This is fine for trusted software, but it can also execute malicious programs like viruses and spyware, too. The safe computer user disables Autorun altogether.

Steve's Warning: Messing around in your registry is risky business! Worldstart cannot be held responsible for any damage done to your computer or operating system from editing your registry. That is all. :)

Here's how you do it in Windows XP.

Click: Start>Run and type in "Regedit" without the quotes.

You're now in the Registry Editor, a dark and scary place within Windows. Be ye not afraid, though. We'll only be here a moment!

Click: HKEY_LOCALMACHINE>SYSTEM>CurrentControlSet>Services>Cdrom Then double click "Autorun". Don't worry about anything else in here except the number. Change the value from 1 to 0.

Click OK and Restart your computer. See? Wasn't that easy?

Okay, so what about Vista?

The same process applies here with a slight twist at the end:

Type "Regedit" into the Search Bar, minus the quotes.

Click : HKEY_LOCALMACHINE>SYSTEM>CurrentControlSet>Services>Cdrom, then double-click "Autorun" and change the value from 1 to 0. Click OK just like before.

Here's the M. Night Shyamalan twist at the end. Click your Start button and type "Autoplay" into your Search Bar and hit Enter.

Uncheck the box that says "Use AutoPlay for all media and devices".

Restart. Just to be thorough.

Pat yourself on the back, you've successfully edited the registry and are safer as a result! :)

~Andrew