
Windows 3.1 Tips - Page 6



*1. ROUTINE HARD DISK CHECKUPS--PART 3 OF 3          
          
April 23rd, 1999          
          
In the first tip in this series, we showed you how to run ScanDisk, an
 MS-DOS utility that checks your hard disk for errors: Exit your Windows
 session; at the command prompt, type "scandisk" (without quotes) and
 press Enter; wait while ScanDisk tests the file structure; enter Y to
 proceed with the surface scan. (If ScanDisk finds any errors, press Enter
 to select the Fix It option.) In our last tip, we showed you a few
 commands that you may find useful when you run ScanDisk. 

Today, we explain how to customize ScanDisk's options at the system level
 so that you don't have to type in multiple commands every time you run it.
 To do so, you have to make some changes to the scandisk.ini file: 

1. Open Notepad, which is in Program Manager's Accessories group. 
2. Choose File + Open. 
3. Navigate your way to C:\dos and select Scandisk.ini. 
4. Click Open. 
5. Under [Custom], change any of the values after the equal (=) signs to
 match your preferences. (Just follow the instructions that are within
 the file.) 
6. Choose File + Save. 

The next time you want to run ScanDisk, exit to a DOS prompt, type 

scandisk /custom 

and press Enter. ScanDisk does its thing based on the information in the
 scandisk.ini file.


*2. TURN THOSE *.INI FILES INSIDE OUT          
          
April 26th, 1999          
          
Want to dig down into the meat and potatoes of Windows 3.x? Then you need
 a crash course on two very important system files, Win.ini and Sys.ini.
 Much of what Windows does--and how it does it--is determined by the
 settings in these files. 

Where do I take this class, you ask? Why, right in the comfort of your
 own home, for free. Just download the reading from Microsoft's Web site
 and dig in at your own pace. (For example, you may only want to look up
 one setting at a time, as necessary.) 

To download the file: 

1. Point your Web browser at 

http://support.microsoft.com/support/downloads 

2. Navigate your way to Microsoft Windows\Windows 3.x and all earlier
 versions\Updates and Utilities (just follow the appropriate links). 
3. Click the WRI.EXE: Win 3.1 WDL: SYSINI.WRI, WININI.WRI link (it's near
 the bottom of the list) to begin downloading WRI.EXE. 
4. When the download is complete, double-click the resulting file, wri.exe,
 to extract its contents. 

In this file is all the information you could ever want about sys.ini
 and win.ini inside Sysini.wri and Winini.wri, respectively. (If nothing
 else, the file is a handy reference.)


*3. THE FEWER FONTS WINDOWS HAS TO REMEMBER, THE BETTER          
          
April 27th, 1999          
          
Did you know that Windows loads all your installed fonts into memory at
 start-up? It follows, then, that the fewer fonts you have installed on
 your system, the faster Windows starts. If you take a few minutes to
 uninstall the fonts you don't use, you'll experience the fastest Windows
 start-up this side of the Mississippi! (Okay, so we're exaggerating. But
 the start-up will be faster than it was.) 

To uninstall fonts: 

1. Open the Control Panel (it's inside Program Manager's Main group). 
2. Double-click Fonts. 
3. In the Installed Fonts list, select each font you want to uninstall.
 (Tip: Hold down Ctrl as you select each one.) 
4. Click the Remove button. 
5. Click Yes to All to confirm that you really want to remove the
 selected fonts from memory (and from the Installed Fonts list). 
6. Click Close. 

The next time you start Windows, you should notice less of a delay
 (depending on how many fonts you uninstalled, of course). 

If you change your mind and want to use one of the fonts you just
 uninstalled, you can always reinstall it. We show you how in our next tip.


*4. WAIT! COME BACK!          
          
April 28th, 1999          
          
In our last tip, we showed you how to uninstall unused fonts so that
 Windows doesn't waste time loading them into memory at start-up: Open
 the Control Panel, double-click Fonts, select each font you want to
 uninstall, click Remove, click Yes to All to confirm, and click Close.
 If you change your mind and want to use an uninstalled font, you can
 reinstall it with only a few quick clicks: 

1. Open the Fonts Control Panel (open the Control Panel and
 double-click Fonts). 
2. Click the Add button. 
3. Navigate your way to the Windows\System directory. (In the List of Fonts,
 you see all fonts on the system, regardless of whether they're installed.) 
4. Select each font you want to install (hold down Ctrl as you click each
 one to select more than one at a time). 
5. Click OK. 

They're ba-a-ack!


*5. GET OUT AND STAY OUT          
          
April 29th, 1999          
          
In the first tip in this series, we showed you how to uninstall unused
 fonts so that Windows doesn't waste time loading them into memory at
 start-up: Open the Control Panel, double-click Fonts, select each font
 you want to uninstall, click Remove, click Yes to All to confirm, and
 click Close. 

Where do these uninstalled fonts go? Absolutely nowhere. They're still
 sitting there on your hard disk; you've just instructed Windows to ignore
 them. So how do you physically remove fonts from your hard disk (for
 example, to free up disk space, assuming you intend NEVER to use these
 fonts again)? Here's how: 

1. Open the Fonts Control Panel (open the Control Panel and
 double-click Fonts). 
2. In the Installed Fonts list, select each font you want to permanently
 delete from your system. (Tip-in-a-tip: Hold down Ctrl as you select
 each one.) 
3. Click the Remove button. 
4. In the Remove Font dialog box, select Delete Font File From Disk. 
5. Click Yes to All to confirm (or if you want to be really safe,
 click Yes to confirm them a font at a time). 

Remember: After you delete these fonts, they're gonzo. (As a last resort,
 you can always get them back by reinstalling Windows, but who wants
 to go through that?)


*6. NO-NAME ICONS--PART 1 OF 2          
          
April 30th, 1999          
          
Ever see a Program Manager icon on someone else's system that didn't have
 a name under it? (Hey, how'd they do that?) Actually, that icon does
 have a name, but it's made up of nonprinting characters. Here's how you
 can use nonprinting characters for your icons: 

1. Switch to Program Manager and click once on the icon that you
 want to appear nameless. 
2. Press Alt + Enter to open that icon's Properties dialog box. 
3. Select the icon's name (on the Description line). 
4. Hold down the Alt key as you enter a nonprinting character. Not sure
 what a nonprinting character is? Not to worry. Today, just hold down
 Alt and enter 0160. And stay tuned because tomorrow's tip sheds
 light on the whole business. 
5. Click OK. 

Presto! A no-name icon!


*7. WINDOWS RIDES IN ON A *.WAV          
          
May 4th, 1999          
          
Have you wondered why your friend's Windows 95/98 system plays a sound
 every time Windows starts and yours doesn't? You don't need to upgrade
 to have this same multimedia experience. Windows 3.x can play
 any *.wav file at start-up. 

1. Open the Control Panel (double-click its icon in Program Manager's
 Main group). 
2. Double-click Sound. 
3. Under Events, select Windows Start. 
4. Under Files, select the *.wav file you want to hear at start-up. 
5. Click OK. 

Ready to try out your new setting? Exit and restart Windows (switch to
 Program Manager, press Alt + F4, and click Yes to confirm; then type
 "win" (sans quotes) at the command prompt and press Enter).
 Did you hear that?


*8. START YOUR DAY WITH A SONG          
          
May 5th, 1999          
          
In our last tip, we showed you how to make Windows 3.x play a *.wav file
 at start-up: Open the Control Panel; double-click Sound; under Events,
 select Windows Start; under Files, select a *.wav file; then click OK.
 Now, we explain how you can take this multimedia thing one step further.
 Did you know you can play an entire song at start-up? Just create in
 Program Manager's StartUp group a program item that represents your
 favorite *.mid file. 

First, make sure that no sound is set to play upon starting Windows:
 Open the Control Panel and double-click Sound, select Windows Start,
 and then select None under Files. Then do the following: 

1. Double-click Program Manager's StartUp group to open it. 
2. Choose File + New. 
3. Select Program Item. 
4. Click OK. 
5. In the Command Line text box, type the path of the *.mid file you
 want to play when you start Windows. For example: 

C:\windows\canyon.mid 

6. If you want, enter a description in the Description text box to
 label the icon. 
7. Select Run Minimized. 
8. Click OK. 

-From now on, whenever Windows starts, the Media Player kicks in and
 plays the *.mid file you named in Step 5. (As long as you have your
 speakers turned on, that is!)


*9. MAKE A LIST, PRINT IT TWICE          
          
May 6th, 1999          
          
Want to print out a listing of all the directories on your system
 (and all the files in them)--that is, a directory listing? All it
 takes is a simple DOS command: 

1. Open Program Manager's Main group and double-click MS-DOS Prompt. 
2. At the command prompt, type 

CD\ 

and press Enter to switch to your root directory. 

3. At the command prompt, type the following but--and this is VERY
 important--replace the dollar sign with the "greater than" sign,
 the one above the period on your keyboard. (We can't print the dollar
 sign due to HTML conflicts.) If necessary, also substitute your
 printer port for LPT1. 

DIR $ LPT1 

4. Press Enter. 

That's all there is to it! (Note: In some cases, you may have to press
 your printer's form feed button to start the list printing.)


*10. C IS FOR CLOSE          
          
May 7th, 1999          
          
Want a quick way to close the active window by using your keyboard? 

1. Press Alt + spacebar. 
2. Press C. 

See ya later, window! 

(Note: You can also press Alt + F4,
 but the above technique is less of a stretch on the fingers.)
