Windows NT Tips #6


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The Windows NT Tip of the Day

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*1.   WHERE IS THE SERVICE PACK?         
  
Windows NT Workstation 4.0 
Subscriber Del G. wants to know where to download Service Pack
 4: "Also, I am using the original version of Windows NT
 Workstation 4.0 (no Service Packs). Do I have to install all
 the previous Service Packs before I install Service Pack 4?" 

To download Service Pack 4, go to  

http://www.pcworld.com/r/tw/1%2C2061%2Ctw-0406%2C00.html 

You'll find information on the service pack as well as
 download instructions. 

The answer to your second question is no. Service Pack 4
 contains all the upgrades and bug fixes in previous
 Service Packs.


*2.   A WINDOW OF A DIFFERENT COLOR

Windows NT Workstation 4.0

"I often need to write batch files in Windows NT Workstation
 4.0. Is there a way to change the color of the Command Prompt
 window in a batch file? For example, I'd like a particular
 batch file to begin with the default, white on black. When the
 batch file reaches a specific point in its execution, I'd like
 to change the window to red on white. When the batch file
 finishes running, I'd like to change the colors back to
 the default."

You can use the Windows NT Workstation 4.0 Color command to set
 the Command Prompt window colors. To make the change, try a
 batch file similar to the one shown below. To generate the
 batch file, double-click the Command Prompt icon to open the
 Command Prompt window. Type

edit test.cmd

and press Enter. This opens the text editor, Edit.com.
 Now enter the following:

@echo off 
pause 
color FC 
pause 
color 07 

After you type the code, choose File, Save to save the file in
 the current folder. At the prompt, type 

test 

and press Enter. When the batch file starts, the window appears
 in its default white on black. Press a key to continue past
 the pause, and the window changes to red on white. Press a key
 again, and the window returns to the default colors. 

To set the window colors, use the following numbers for the
 foreground and background: 

0 = Black 
1 = Blue 
2 = Green 
3 = Aqua 
4 = Red 
5 = Purple 
6 = Yellow 
7 = White 
8 = Gray 
9 = Light blue 
A = Light green 
B = Light aqua 
C = Light red 
D = Light purple 
E = Light yellow 
F = Bright white 

The first number is the background color and the second is the
 foreground. To get the default, white on black, enter 

color 07 

If you'd like to use light red on a green background, type  

color 2C 

and press Enter.


*3.   FIND THE KEY         
  
Windows NT Workstation 4.0 
We recently described a method of finding the CD Key using
 RegEdit. As reader Ronnie R. (and several other readers)
 pointed out, you can get the CD Key by right-clicking My
 Computer and choosing Properties. When the System Properties
 dialog box opens, click the General tab. You'll find the CD
 Key under Registered User.


*4.   LOG ON THE PUBLIC         
  
Windows NT Workstation 4.0 
We discussed automatic log-on (the tip that will never die) last
 month. Since then, we have received mail from several users who
 would like to have automatic log-on available to people other
 than the administrator. One subscriber works in a library and
 needs to allow members of the public to log on. The question is,
 can you log on a person other than the administrator? 

The answer is yes, you can. Let's look at the library example.
 Say the user name in this case is Public and the password is
 public. Let's make the necessary changes to last month's
 REG file. 

To create the REG file, run Notepad and enter the file as shown.
 Where you see BLANK LINE GOES HERE, press Enter. 

REGEDIT4 
BLANK LINE GOES HERE  
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows 
NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon] 
BLANK LINE GOES HERE  
"DefaultUserName"="Public" 
"AutoAdminLogon"="1" 
"DefaultPassword"="public" 
BLANK LINE GOES HERE  

Choose File, Save As, and name the file Public.reg. Locate a
 folder for the new file and click Save. To use the file, locate
 it and double-click its icon. You'll get a dialog box saying
 the file has been merged and so forth. Click OK in this dialog
 box to continue.  

We're assuming that you already have a user named Public and
 you've already set all the policies and so forth. 

Now restart the computer. You may get an error message telling
 you that the password or name is incorrect. If so, the log-on
 dialog box appears. Enter the name and password--for example: 

Public 

and  

public 

and click OK. Now you're in Public. If you restart the computer,
 the system automatically logs on to Public with no input from
 the users. When you need to log on as an administrator, click
 Start, Shut Down. When the Shut Down Windows dialog box appears,
 select the 'Close all programs and log on as a different user?'
 radio button. Click Yes and hold down Shift while the system
 starts. This time, you'll get the startup dialog box, where
 you can enter 

Administrator 

and your password. When you're ready to go back to Public, use
 the same method to restart and change the log-on to
 the following: 

Public 

and  

public


*5. WHAT HAPPENS ON JANUARY 1, 2000?         
  
Windows NT Workstation 4.0 
A number of readers have asked what Windows NT Workstation 4.0
 will do when January 1, 2000, rolls around. We suggest not
 waiting until New Year's Day to find out. All you have to do is
 double-click the Time display in your taskbar. When the
 Date/Time Properties dialog box opens, click the arrow at the
 right side of the Date list box and select January. Now use the
 spin box to set the year to 2000 and click OK to save your
 changes and close the dialog box. 

Run your programs and see what happens. If you use a spreadsheet
 program such as Excel, do some calculations that require dates.
 Check any other programs that use dates. If you can determine
 what breaks now, you won't have to deal with surprises on
 New Year's Day.


*6. LOAD FROM HERE         
  
Windows NT Workstation 4.0 
Reader J. J. asks how to change the default address for NT
 source files: "When I install new hardware, the system always
 asks for Windows NT Workstation 4.0 at a:\. How can I change it
 to d:\i386?" 

You can change the source to point at the \i386 folder on your
 installation CD using RegEdit. If you decide to do this, be
 careful and back up your Registry first.  

With your backup ready, click Start, Run, type in 

regedit 

and press Enter. When RegEdit opens, navigate to
 HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion.
 In RegEdit's right pane, you'll see a key named SourcePath.
 Double-click its icon and enter into the Edit String dialog box 

d:\i386  

(assuming that D: is your CD-ROM drive) 

Click OK to save your change and close the dialog box. Now
 choose Registry, Exit to close RegEdit. Restart the computer
 and the system will now look in d:\i386 for its files.


*7. INVESTIGATE THE HARDWARE         
  
Windows NT Workstation 4.0 
Would you like to take a really good look at what hardware your
 system ects? If so, you need to try Windows NT Workstation
 4.0's Hardware Query Tool. This tool can check all the hardware
 installed in your computer--Plug and Play or not. 

To use the program, put your Windows NT Workstation 4.0
 installation CD into the CD-ROM drive. The disc should
 autostart. If it doesn't, open My Computer and double-click
 the CD-ROM icon. When the opening screen appears, click Browse
 This CD. Navigate to \Support\Hqtool and insert a blank floppy
 disk into drive A:. Now double-click the Makedisk.bat icon to
 open the program. Makedisk.bat creates a bootable floppy disk.  

With your new floppy disk in A:, restart the computer. Follow
 the dialog boxes in the Hqtool program. and it will investigate
 your system and present a report. You can print or save the
 results of the hardware report.


*8. WHERE'S THE PLUS PAK?         
  
Windows NT Workstation 4.0 
Reader Al F. asks why there's no Plus Pak for Windows NT
 Workstation 4.0. 

Actually, your Windows NT Workstation 4.0 CD includes many of
 the Plus Pak features, and installs them during Setup. Let's
 take a look at the Plus features available to Windows NT
 Workstation 4.0 users. 

To see the Windows NT Workstation 4.0 Plus Pak features,
 right-click the desktop and choose Properties. When the
 Properties dialog box opens, click the Plus tab. You can now
 select the check boxes of the features you want to use.  

If your video supports high color, you can select the check box
 labeled "Show icons using all possible colors." You can also
 select the check box labeled "Smooth edges of screen fonts."
 This much improves the appearance of your screen fonts. 

You can also change the My Computer, Network Neighborhood, and
 full and empty Recycle Bin icons. Just click the icon, then
 click Change Icon. When the Change Icon dialog box opens,
 select a new icon and click OK. If you don't like any of the
 icons presented in the Change Icon dialog box, click Browse and
 locate an icon in a new file. After you select your new icon,
 click OK to close the dialog box and record your selection. 

After you've made all your selections in Plus, click OK to close
 the Properties dialog box and save your changes.


*9. DIAL IT YOUR WAY         
  
Windows NT Workstation 4.0 
Reader Sherry L. sent this dial-up question: 

"I'm tired of fooling around trying to get Microsoft Internet
 Explorer 3 to disconnect from the ISP on exit. I recall seeing
 a tip somewhere on how to dial the ISP, run Microsoft Internet
 Explorer 3, then disconnect when you close Explorer.
 How is this done?" 

If you'd rather not fool with all the problems of Windows NT
 Workstation 4.0 Dial-up Networking, you can write a batch file
 that dials your ISP, runs Microsoft Internet Explorer (or some
 other browser), then hangs up when you're finished. 

To create this batch file, run Notepad and enter the
 following code: 

"c:\winnt\system32\RasPhone - d
 Insert your ISP as listed in Dial-Up"
 "c:\Program Files\Plus!\Microsoft Internet\IEXPLORE.EXE"
 "c:\winnt\system32\rasdial Your ISP server as listed in
 Dial-Up /disconnect" 

Make sure you don't forget the quotation marks when you enter
 the code. Now choose File, Save As. Name the file Dial.cmd
 (Dial isn't important, but the CMD extension is) and save it
 in a convenient folder. 

You can place a shortcut to Dial.cmd on the desktop. Once the
 shortcut is in place, right-click the icon and choose
 Properties. When the Properties dialog box opens, click the
 Shortcut tab. Now click the arrow at the right side of the Run
 list box and choose Minimized. This prevents the MS-DOS window
 from showing up when you run the file. 

The path names in the batch file may not be the same as yours.
 Use Windows NT Explorer to locate the necessary file locations
 and substitute your path for the ones shown.
