... Windows Tips 'n Tricks 2 ...
As he teaches, so he learns.

Cab files are found in the C:\Options\Cabs folder. You can use System File checker to copy individual replacement files from the cabs folder (Start-Run- type sfc). Choose "Extract one file from installation disk," and browse to the Options\Cabs folder. Highlight the file you need, or just run sfc to check for corrupted files.

Remember, if you replace a file, it will be the one in the cabs, and you may have updated, so you might be replacing a newer version with an older one. Use sfc carefully, as it's not always the best solution for replacing files, and sometimes it's better to get a newer version from another source. You can also completely reinstall windows from the cabs without losing any data or programs, but you will lose any customized windows settings you have made, and need to reconfigure them.

By default, Windows 98 uses a portion of RAM as a disk cache, which speeds up performance on systems with more than 64MB of RAM. Unfortunately, this chunk of memory isn't available for applications, and that means your less-than-64MB-of-RAM PC will slow to a crawl if you have more than a couple of programs running at once. Luckily, you can disable this feature by modifying the Windows Registry.

1. Run Regedit. (Select Run from the Start menu. Then type "regedit" and click OK.)
2. Click the plus (+) sign in front of "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE", then System, CurrentControlSet, Services, VxD, and then click the VMM folder.
3. Right-click in an empty space in the right window pane and select New, then Binary Value.
4. Enter "MapCache" (without the quotes) as the name--you don't need a value--and then hit Enter.
5. Exit Regedit and then restart Windows.

You can disable Write behind caching for all drives by taking a few simple steps.

First, go to the Control Panel and choose the "System" icon. Next, click the Performance tab, then File System. Now choose the Trouble Shooting tab. Select the last option, Disable write behind caching for all drives and click OK. This forces Windows to write data immediately to disk rather than holding it in memory and writing it later.

1. Click Start and choose Programs + Accessories + Calculator to start the Calculator.
2. Press NumLock on your keyboard's numeric keypad.
3. Perform your calculation using the numeric keypad.

Turning on the NumLock feature enables you to use the numeric keypad to enter numbers and operands (* for multiplication, + for addition, - for subtraction, / for division). You can also perform other operations by using the following keys (not all of which are on the numeric keypad):

• Press Enter for = (equals)

• Press F9 for +/- (to make the number a negative or positive)

• Press % (Shift + 5) for percent

• Press Delete for CE (Clear Error)
• Press Esc for C (Clear)

• Press r for 1/x (calculates the reciprocal of the displayed number)

• Press Ctrl + L for MC (clears any number stored in the memory)

• Press Ctrl + P for M+ (adds the displayed number to any number already in the memory)

• Press Ctrl + R for MR (recalls the number stored in the memory; leaves the number in the memory)

• Press Ctrl + M for MS (stores the displayed number in the memory)

Remember: When you're finished using the Calculator, press NumLock again to turn off that feature.

Have you ever manually copied a large number from Calculator to another location, only to realize later that the two numbers don't match? You should have let Windows do the copying for you.

With your calculator on-screen, follow these steps:

1. Press Ctrl + C (or choose Edit + Copy on the Calculator keypad's pull-down menu).
2. Switch to the application into which you want to paste the result.
3. osition the cursor where you want the result to appear.
4. Press Ctrl + V (or choose Edit + Paste).

Looking for a calculator that's just a bit more advanced than the one that comes with Windows 95 (and that isn't saying much)? Look no further than the Calculator itself. In one quick click, this seemingly average applet gets smart.

Open the Calculator by selecting Start, Programs, Accessories, Calculator. Not much to look at, eh? But now select View, Scientific, and watch the Calculator grow. To switch back to the basics, select View, Standard.

You've done it a dozen times today: pressed the Caps Lock key when you really wanted the Shift key. To stop this bother, turn on an alarm sound that alerts you whenever you press Caps Lock, Num Lock, or Scroll Lock.

1. Click Start, Settings, Control Panel.

2. Double-click the Accessibility Options icon.

3. Click the Keyboard tab and then click to put a check mark in the Use ToggleKeys box.

4. Click OK.

That oughta slow down any wayward fingers.

To quickly eject a CD from the CD-ROM drive, open My Computer or Windows Explorer, right-click on the CD-ROM icon, and choose Eject from the context menu. The drive door will open and you can remove the CD. This feature especially comes in handy for PCs that are tucked in an out-of-the-way spot, making it difficult to reach the eject button on the front of the case.

Keep your CD-ROMs clean by keeping them in a jewel case or paper envelope. Dust and pet hair are the biggest culprits.

When you type words like "resume" or "voila," do you just ignore the fact that they're supposed to have accents, because you aren't sure how to add them? (Ironically, that's what I've done in this tip's text just to show you the wrong way.) No one will notice, right? Wrong. We all know it should be "résumé" (and voilá) … don't give anyone the chance to assume you didn't know any better.

Whether you want that little encircled "c" that means Copyright, or that lifted TM that means trademark or one of those funny accents from Spanish and French that are unknown to English: the Character Map is your tool. Use it (or better yet, a keyboard combination) to add the proper foreign characters to your word processing documents.

1. Click on Start.
2. Open Programs + Accessories + System Tools + Character Map.
3. Click on the character you want. It will temporarily grow larger so you can see it up close.
4. .If this is a character you want to use, click on Select.
5. Click on any other characters you'll be wanting, and after each, click on Select.
6. Click on Copy. Then click on Close.

All of those characters will be ready to paste into any Windows program.

When you get the hang of this character stuff, you can add a character to a document using a simple keystroke … no Character Map necessary. Inside the Character Map, scroll the fonts until you see the character you want, then select the character, and you'll see a four-digit number next to Keystroke: Alt + in the lower-right corner of the dialog box. Memorize it. Now, from inside any document, turn on the Num Lock key on your keyboard, then hold down the Alt key and type this four-digit number (on your numeric keypad). Magically, the character appears.

There are two opinions about opening the computer cabinet. One is that whenever you open the computer cabinet, leave the computer plugged in and TURNED OFF so that the metal frame is properly grounded. Ground yourself by touching the frame from time to time. No metal of any kind inside the frame except those tools needed to remove screws if you need to move components.

That idea doesn't sit well with me. Most power supplies I have seen are enclosed and I myself don't see it as to big of a risk. The machine should be grounded to avoid static discharge which would kill it. Play it safe - take a length of wire and make a ground strap. Bare one end which you wrap around your wrist and the other is connected to GROUND (and if you don't know ground from a live circuit, stop reading and take the machine to a shop to be cleaned).

Now you are grounded and their is no need to leave the power cord plugged in. In fact, make SURE the power is off and the cord unplugged lest you cross a live connection. The ground strap will discharge static electricity from you to ground rather than your chipset while rummaging around inside. You can buy these straps, but why pay for what you can pick up at home? Of course, I know many techs do without. I've never heard of anyone blow a chip but then again who knows.

Once you get it open, look around inside without poking anything in there. If you can see the fan on top of the CPU, turn the computer on for second to see that the fan is turning. Stay clear of the ventilating fans if they are exposed. They are usually covered in the power supply box. If the CPU fan is not turning, get this problem fixed immediately.

Note if there is enough accumulated dust inside the cabinet to make you want to clean it. Dust (and smoke) will cling to the CPU, SIMM's, fan and anything else and it does hold in heat and will eventually kill a chip ... so a dusting we go. Now close the cabinet and turn on the computer to make sure it is still working. Now you know that you can open and close the computer without it stopping working. There will probably not be enough dust for you to want to do any dusting. However:

If you feel that dusting is needed, use a compressed air can outside the cabinet with a plastic extension tube to blow the dust from inside the computer. Use the vacuum outside the computer to collect the dust in the air created by the compressed air. Try not to touch or disturb any wires or cables inside the computer while you are dusting.

Close up the computer and turn it on. With luck it will still be working. If not go back and carefully make sure that all the cable connectors are firmly in place.

Windows 98 lets you set icons up as though they were Web hyperlinks, where a single click is all you need.

1. Open Explorer.
2. Select View, Folder Options.
3. elect Web Style.
4. Click OK.

The "Clipboard" is a special area inside memory where Windows 98 keeps track of information that's been cut or copied. The "Clipboard Viewer" is a program that lets you see the information that's currently on the Clipboard.

To see the Clipboard Viewer, click the Start button and choose Programs from the menu. Choose Accessories and then Systems Tools. Finally, choose Clipboard Viewer, which displays any information you've cut or copied recently.

The Clipboard holds only one thing at a time. Each time you cut or copy something else, you replace the Clipboard's contents with something new. That's why I would suggest one of many clipboard extenders (and free), one like TextClip.

There's a clock on the Taskbar. Way over on the right, in the Tray. See it? If not, it may have been turned off. To turn it back on:

1.Right-click the Taskbar.
2.Choose Properties.
3.Check the Show clock box.
4.Click OK.

To change your computer's time to run on a 24-hour clock (e.g., 6:00 PM becomes 18:00), adjust your regional settings. Click the Start button, point to Settings, and select Control Panel. Double-click the Regional Settings icon and click the Time tab. Select "H:mm:ss" (or "HH:mm:ss," if you want a leading zero for single-digit hours) from the Time Style drop-down menu and click OK.

E-mail this tip to a friend - Browse the Archives It's handy to be able to use your taskbar to quickly close a program that's minimized. Simply pull up the taskbar and right-click on the minimized program, then select Close to close the program. Note that this may not work for ALL programs. Also, you can minimize a task from the toolbar by right-clicking the item on the toolbar and selecting minimize.

To quickly close an application from the keyboard, simply hold down the ALT key while you press F4. This will close down the active application.

You can quickly close multiple programs and folders at the same time with this nifty little trick: Hold the Ctrl key while you click on each program's or folder's button on the taskbar. Then right-click on one of the buttons and choose Close from the context menu. The programs and folders you selected will close at once.