InfoWorld
Lead with Knowledge
HOME/ SITEMAP
SUBJECT INDEXES
App Development
Broadband
Business Intell.
Business News
Business Strategies
Careers & Mgmt
Collab. Software
Content Mgmt
CRM
Database
E-Business
End-User Apps
End-User Hardware
Enterprise Apps
Ethics
Government
Licensing
Middleware
Mobile Computing
Networking
Online Community
Operating Systems
Processors
Security
Servers
Storage
Telecomm.
Web Services
Web Technologies
Wireless
XSPs
NEWS
CTO ZONE
TEST CENTER
FEATURES
COMMUNITY
OPINIONS
RESEARCH
EVENT
WEBCASTS
ABOUT InfoWorld
ABOUT US
About InfoWorld
Services
Advertise
Contact us
Employment
WHITE PAPERS

Learn to secure your PCs from new and unknown hacker attacks.

Free IDC White Paper - Discover Secure File Sharing for the Enterpriseattacks.
SEARCH:  
Home  //  Article
Print Article    Email Article
Window Manager
Brian Livingston
Try out some of these quick tricks found in the brand-new book,Windows 2000 Secrets

WINDOWS 2000 will be officially introduced by Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates in San Francisco on Feb. 17. This launch will be part of the Windows 2000 Expo Feb. 15-17 at Moscone Center, where vendors will demonstrate their wares for the Windows NT successor (see www.windows2000expo.com).

Sunbelt Software, an NT developer and information publisher, recently issued a survey of 1,032 corporate customers running the latest beta versions of Win2000 Professional. Compared with NT 4.0 Workstation, 75 percent said Win2000 was "somewhat," "much more," or "an order of magnitude" more reliable. As for Windows 95 or 98, 90 percent said Win2000 was more reliable. Over 50 percent said Win2000 was "an order of magnitude" better at preventing crashes than Windows 9x (see www.sunbelt-software.com).

To help new Win2000 users find out what it can really do, my latest book, Windows 2000 Secrets (IDG Books), will appear in bookstores Feb. 17. My co-authors are Bruce Brown and Bruce Kratofil of BugNet, the database of PC problems and work-arounds, some of which are featured elsewhere in InfoWorld (see www.bugnet.com).

The new book is an unauthorized manual to tricks and undocumented features. Other books go deeper into heavy-duty Advanced Server administration topics, but Windows 2000 Secrets is for anyone who uses Win2000 Professional or Server and wants to know the hidden powers common to both products.

Meanwhile, I've put together 10 pointers so you can start taking advantage of them now. Most of the book's secrets take a page or two to explain. But I found 10 quick tricks.

1. One-click access to powerful computer management. Windows 2000 includes a versatile tool called the Computer Management Console. Power users will want to become familiar with this feature. It deserves its own shortcut on the Windows Desktop, where it's just a mouse-click away. To do this, click Start, Settings, Control Panel. Open the Administrative Tools submenu, then right-click the Computer Management icon and click Create Shortcut. Drag the new shortcut that appears, called "Computer Management (2)," onto your Desktop. Select the icon and press F2 to rename the shortcut -- or just to get rid of the "(2)." You can also drag this icon onto the Start button to place a convenient shortcut on the top level of your Start menu.

2. Safe Mode may be a big surprise. Sooner or later, some hardware problem will cause Windows 2000 to start up in "Safe Mode." This mode loads only a simple set of services so you can fix whatever part has gone bad. Unfortunately, USB (Universal Serial Bus) devices aren't loaded, for safety's sake. This disables any USB keyboards or mice you may have plugged into your system. For now, I don't recommend USB keyboards or mice, which you'll need to troubleshoot your PC.

3. Get rid of folder windows, quick! If you have Windows Explorer's "Folder Options" set to open a new window whenever you look in a new folder, your screen will be filled with windows in short order. Rather than close each window individually, you can close all the folder windows by holding down the Shift key when you click the Close button.

4. Turn on your numeric keypad. Using today's keyboards, most people want the separate numeric keypad to be turned on at all times. But Windows 2000 defaults to leaving the numeric keypad off. You can turn the keypad on when Windows 2000 starts up by changing a single character in the Registry. Click Start, Run, then type regedt32 and click OK. In the Registry Editor that appears, select the HKEY_USERS window. Double-click the .Default folder to open it, then open the Control Panel folder, then select the Keyboard icon. Double-click "InitialKeyboardIndicators" label in the right pane, then change the digit 0 (zero) to 2. Click OK and close the Registry Editor. The next time you restart, the NumLock light will be on -- even before you log in. The NumLock state will be preserved on a per-user basis after that.

I'll continue this list next week. Meanwhile, send me your favorite quirks and undocumented features of Win2000. I'll send a free book to the first person who sends a tip I use.


Brian Livingston 's latest book is Windows 2000 Secrets (IDG Books). Send tips to brian_livingston@infoworld.com. He regrets that he cannot answer individual questions.



RELATED SUBJECTS

Operating Systems
MORE >
SUBSCRIBE TO:    E-mail Newsletters  InfoWorld Mobile InfoWorld Magazine
Home  //  Article Print Article    Email Article
Back to Top
 ADVERTISEMENT
 

SPONSORED LINKS

Download the J.D. Edwards CRM white paper. Visit jdedwards.com/crmpaper
Introducing Primus Quick Resolve. Click to download a fact sheet.
Download the J.D. Edwards CRM white paper. Visit jdedwards.com/crmpaper
Gateway: Your Reliable IT Provider of Business Technology Solutions
Learn to secure your PCs from new and unknown hacker attacks.

SUBSCRIBE
E-mail Newsletters
InfoWorld Mobile
Print Magazine

Web-based training
ABOUT INFOWORLD  |  SITE MAP  |  EMPLOYMENT  |  PRIVACY  |   CONTACT US

Copyright 2001 InfoWorld Media Group, Inc.