Using the MSCONFIG Utility

Procedure for using MSCONFIG to remove Windows programs loaded at startup -- by Ted Beerman

Using MSCONFIG Utility.

This utility is available with Windows 98 and ME (Millenium Edition). It can be used to speed up the performance of the PC as well as diagnosed problem programs. [Note from Bryan Powell 2/10/04: this should work for Windows 2000 and XP also].

Check system free resources
Right click My Computer and then Properties
Click on the tab "performance."
Note that resources should be 80% or higher
This can be improved by reducing items in the startup

Start - Run
Type msconfig [enter key]
click on startup tab
uncheck unnecessay items
click "apply" then close and reboot

After reboot, check system free resources again.

Note: It is not necessary for ANY items to be in the startup; however, some are advisable. Following are examples.

Retain:
Any item pertaining to Anti Virus software and Firewall
Palm Pilot syncronization
Special printer initialization programs

Definite omissions:
Easy CD Creator and Direct CD (program loads automatically when a blank cd is inserted)
Anything named "reminder" (program to remind you to register software)

Items can be re-activated anytime by re-placing a check mark next to the item and rebooting.

1/7/03: Also, Patrick Douglas Crispen’s Internet Tourbus has information on MSCONFIG. Patrick also recommends Paul "Pacman" Collins' Start-Up Applications page, which has a massive list of W98 start-up files and what they do.

Using scanreg to repair damaged portions of registry

Use F8 key during boot to bring up Windows Startup Menu. Select Command
Prompt Only option. At the prompt:

scanreg /fix repairs damaged portions of registry and removes dead space);

other useful commands:

scanreg /backup (backs up the registry);
scanreg /restore (displays a list of available registry backups, the date and time created, and option to restore)

Starting your PC in Safe Mode

To start a PC in Safe Mode, restart the computer and hit the F8 key at the top of the keyboard. Repeat hitting the F8 key until a Windows Startup Menu appears. Select Safe Mode with the arrow keys and press ENTER key. Windows will start with minimal drivers and allow user to diagnose problems as well as maximize effectiveness of Defrag and Scandisk utilities. When work is complete, restart computer and it will start in Normal Mode.

Generating PDF documents

PDF documents are convenient because they are readable across several platforms and can be accessed via URLs. They preserve formatting characteristics of the original document.

For Mac and PC: The Acrobat Reader is a free download from Adobe.com. To create PDFs, you may purchase the full version of Adobe Acrobat. For PCs: Kulawat of Milford says print from any application “to file” and tag it “.ps”. This will create a PostScript document. Then use the free PostScript-to-PDF converter in Ghostscript .
For pre OS X Macs: use the freeware extension PrintToPDF.
PDF generation is part of the Print function in Mac OS X.

Removing spyware

These are programs that seize your computer and attempt to put messages on your screen. Chris of Kettering: "Is the word you are looking for "Spyware?" I know that some of the music sharing programs that I download will attempt to install programs such as new.net, which is a vicious little program that infects deep within the bowels of your system. To the naked eye, an attempt to remove it via "Add/Remove" on your system often will not get rid of the program and will disable your internet connection." Ted: new.net is truly nasty. Randy from Oxford: "I think the "spyware" elimination program name you may be thinking of is AD-AWARE. I've used it for a couple of years ; it works well and its FREE."
--AdAware is available from LavaSoftUSA.com.

Macintosh maintenance tips

OS X users: Repair Permissions should be run regularly.
Go to Applications>Utilities>Disk Utility. Select your disk and click on Repair Permissions.

Earlier OSs: Rebuilding the desktop is a good maintenance tip for all users. Many recommend this monthly, plus doing it after every install of new software. Re-start your Mac. While it is loading, hold down the Option and Command (Apple) keys simultaneously until you see the Rebuild prompt. Tell it OK and go get a cuppa coffee. Helps prevent crashes and out-of-memory messages.
Also useful:
--run Disk First Aid after a crash
--go to System Folder>Preferences and remove the Finder Preferences file, then restart

Is there a free FTP server for Windows?

We found several freeware and shareware choices at tucows.com. Search in Windows for 'FTP server' (no quotes).

Virus protection

Recommendations from Patrick Douglas Crispen's Internet Tourbus:

1) Get a good anti-virus program like Symantec or McAfee;
2) Update viruses definitions regularly (once per week or better);
3) Don't open attachments;
4) Get the latest Microsoft patches to Windows and to Outlook.

Help Desk also recommends turning off Outlook's Preview function.