Windows 95 Tips #20



*1. QUICK VIEW TO PREVIEW FILES         
     
Want to view a file without taking the time to open the application in
which it was created? Try Quick View, an applet that allows you to view the
contents of a file in seconds. (Note: The file type must be supported
by Quick View.) 

First, make sure Quick View is installed on your system. Right-click any
*.txt or *.doc file and make sure you see a Quick View command in the
resulting menu. If not, with the Windows 95 installation CD in your CD-ROM
drive, open the Control Panel and double-click Add/Remove Programs. Click
the Windows Setup tab and, in the list of components, double-click
Accessories. Select Quick View and click OK twice. 

Ready to try it out? Right-click the file you want to preview and select
Quick View. (If you don't see a Quick View command, that file type isn't
supported.) Instantly, Quick View opens with a quick (albeit rough)
preview of the file. Click the icon just below the File menu to open that
file in its native application. 

(Tip-in-a-tip: You can preview one file after another in the same Quick
View window. Drag a file icon into the open Quick View window, and its
contents will replace those of the previous file.)


*2. REGULAR MAINTENANCE WITH SCANDISK         
     
Would you let your car go more than 3,000 miles without an oil change? Of
course not. And just the same, you shouldn't let your system go too
long--say, a month or more--without maintenance. On a regular basis, use
ScanDisk to check your hard disk for errors (and fix them, in most cases),
and use Disk Defragmenter to reunite the data that's scattered all over
your system. Together, these routines can help ensure that your system is
running clean and strong. 

To run ScanDisk, select Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools,
ScanDisk. Select the drive you want to scan, then choose Standard or
Thorough. (Standard checks the files and folders on your hard disk.
Thorough does that AND checks the drive itself for damaged or unusable
areas.) Assuming you aren't an expert at fixing drive errors, make sure
Automatically Fix Errors is selected, then click OK. When ScanDisk finishes
(it can take quite a while--especially the Thorough check), you'll see a
dialog box detailing the results. 

In our next tip, we'll discuss the second part of the maintenance routine,
Disk Defragmenter. (You should run ScanDisk before you run Disk
Defragmenter, because you can't defragment a disk with errors on it.)


*3. REGULAR MAINTENANCE WITH DISK DEFRAGMENTER         
     
In our last tip, we mentioned that you should run ScanDisk and Disk
Defragmenter on a regular basis in order to keep your system in tip-top
shape. We also showed you how to run ScanDisk (which you should run first,
before defragmenting): Select Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools,
ScanDisk; select a drive; choose Standard or Thorough; make sure
Automatically Fix Errors is selected; then click OK. Now for the second
part of the maintenance routine--Disk Defragmenter. 

Before you begin, disable your screen saver: Right-click the desktop,
select Properties, click the Screen Saver tab, select (None) under Screen
Saver, then click OK. To start the defragmenting process, select Start,
Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Disk Defragmenter. Select the drive
you want to defragment, click OK, then click Start. (Often, you'll see a
message telling you that only a certain percentage of your disk is
defragmented. It's up to you to decide whether you want to proceed.) When
the Defragmenter finishes--and just to warn you, it takes a while--restart
Windows 95.


*4. EMPTYING THE RECYCLE BIN TO REMOVE DELETED ITEMS         
     
If you need to free up hard disk space, a good place to start is your
Recycle Bin. Remember that when you delete items, they aren't actually
removed from your system. Rather, deleting items only moves them to the
Recycle Bin, another folder on your system. To remove deleted items from
your system once and for all (and regain the space they're wasting), empty
the Recycle Bin. 

To empty the Recycle Bin--after checking inside to make sure there's
nothing you want back--right-click its desktop icon and select Empty
Recycle Bin. Click Yes to confirm, and those deleted items are
really deleted. 

(Tip-in-a-tip: If you see something in the Recycle Bin that you don't want
to send off into oblivion, right-click it and select Restore to send it
back where it came from.)

15. TRY A DESKTOP PATTERN         
     
Does your desktop wallpaper slow down your Windows 95 startup? (If you
aren't sure, try removing it and see if that startup moves along a little
faster--chances are it will.) If it's a faster startup you're after, but
you can't bear to look at a plain-Jane, solid-color desktop all day,
there's a happy medium. Try a pattern. 

Right-click the desktop, select Properties, and on the Background tab,
select any pattern. Click OK, and a two-color pattern appears all
over the desktop. 

To change the color of the pattern (not black--the other color), just
change your desktop's background. Right-click the desktop, select
Properties, and click the Appearance tab. With Desktop selected under Item,
click the down arrow under Color (on the Item line), select a new color,
then click OK. 

In our next tip, we'll show you how to make your own pattern (or edit an
existing one).


*6. EDITING A DESKTOP PATTERN         
     
In our last tip, we showed you how to use a pattern on your desktop (a good
choice if fancy wallpaper is slowing down your startup, but you still want
a snazzy desktop): Right-click the desktop, select Properties, select any
pattern (on the Background tab), and click OK. 

Do you have your own idea for a pattern? Or do you like one of the
patterns, but wish it were a bit different? Time for a little pattern
editing. Right-click the desktop and select Properties. On the Background
tab of the Display Properties dialog box, with None selected under
Wallpaper, select the pattern you want to change (or select a pattern
that's close to the one you want to create). Click the Edit Pattern button
to open the Pattern Editor. 

The rest is just a matter of clicking. Click any square within the enlarged
pattern to toggle its color between black and your desktop's background
color. When the sample matches the look you have in mind, type a name for
the pattern, click Add, then click Done. You can now choose your custom
pattern by name from the Pattern list.       


*7. HIDING START MENU ITEMS         
     
Want to hide some of the items in your Start menu from someone else who is
using your system? Just mark the top-secret items hidden. As long as your
system is set to hide "hidden" files, those items stay out of sight. 

Right-click the Start button, select Open, and navigate to an item you want
to "remove" from your Start menu. Right-click the item, select Properties,
and in the resulting Properties dialog box, select Hidden. Click OK, then
repeat these steps for each item you'd like to hide. Restart Windows 95,
click Start, and the hidden items are nowhere in sight. 

(Note: If the items still appear in the Start menu, in any Explorer window,
select View, Options, and on the View tab, select Hide Files Of These
Types. If you have Internet Explorer 4 or higher installed, select View,
Folder Options, and on the View tab, select Do Not Show Hidden Files.)


*8. CUT AND PASTE TO MOVE AN ITEM         
     
The next time you need to move an item--a folder, file, shortcut, or
whatever--don't waste time moving and sizing the originating and
destination windows just so. You can move an item from one place to another
using a simple cut-and-past operation. 

Right-click the item(s) you want to move and select Cut. (Note: For
multiple items, hold down Ctrl as you click each one, then right-click the
selection and select Cut.) Navigate your way to the item's destination,
right-click a blank area there--for example, on the white area inside a
window--and select Paste.


*9. PRINT SYSTEM SETTINGS         
     
Want a printout of all your system settings--a handy resource for
troubleshooting hardware problems? Ask the Device Manager to make one for
you. Hold down the Alt key as you double-click My Computer. In the
resulting System Properties dialog box, click the Device Manager tab. Click
the Print button, select the type of report you'd like to print,
then click OK.


*10. REMOVING THE SPEAKER ICON FROM THE TASKBAR TRAY         
     
Do you have loads of icons in the tray of your Taskbar (the area on the
right, next to the clock, assuming you have the Taskbar at the bottom of
the screen)? If you frequently work in silence, you may wish to remove the
volume control to regain more Taskbar space. 

Right-click the little yellow speaker icon and select Adjust Audio
Properties. Deselect Show Volume Control On The Taskbar, click OK, and
you've got one less icon in the tray.
