This article covers the following:Setting up a workgroup in Windows XP. Setting up a workgroup in Ubuntu 8.10. How to share out files from your Windows XP computer on your home network so you can access them with Ubuntu 8.10. How to access files shared by your Windows XP computer on your home network in Ubuntu 8.10. How to share files out from Ubuntu 8.10 to a...

As a long-time Windows user I’ve seen a few BSODs in my day. The version of Windows I had the most BSODs with was Windows 3.10. Not 3.11. Not 3.11 WFWG. Just plain ol’ 3.1. I never really had BSOD trouble with Windows 95, 98, NT, 2000 or XP unless I had a hardware failure (usually right before the hard drive was about to go FUBAR on me). There is...

For those of you out there that run a dual-boot system with Windows XP and Ubuntu, you’ve noticed that Ubuntu is the default OS that loads on each system startup. There is a way to change this so that XP is the default OS instead. Full documentation: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/GrubHowto/ChangeDefaultOS What that documentation instructs you to...

One of the lesser known – but very handy – features of Windows XP is the ability to select multiple separate running applications in the taskbar as a group, then using the right-click context menu to do things you more or less can’t do anywhere else. To select running apps in the taskbar, you click the first one so it’s...

I’ve mentioned on the PCMech Live show many times my disdain for the fact that if you’re one of the few running a 64-bit processor, your options for native 64-bit applications are few and far between on the consumer end. Chances are very high that the computer you’re using right now has a 32-bit CPU in it. Here’s the short-short...

There are utilities like the freeware CCleaner software that can easily let you list and modify auto-run programs from the Windows XP system registry like this: Above: In CCleaner, click Tools (large icon on left) then Startup (white button in middle column) to see this list. However if you’re the type that would rather do this the "old fashioned...

One of the lesser-known features in Windows (ever since Windows 2000 and possibly even as far back as Windows 98) is the ability to have multiple application bars aside from the main taskbar itself. See video below for details on how to do...

Although I’m 99% sure the ATI manager software has this ability also, with the nView software by nVidia you can easily make your Windows XP taskbar transparent. Here’s how it’s done: 1. Download and install the latest nVidia driver set. 2. Go to the Control Panel and double-click the NVIDIA nView Desktop Manager icon. See below for example. ...

A freeware utility called Rename Master is all you need to mass-rename any type of file you want to in Windows XP or Vista. While it’s true you can mass-rename file extensions from the command line in Windows, it’s not so easy to touch a specific part of a filename. But with Rename Master you can do this easily. See video below for...

Admittedly this information is old, however I had to reinstall XP on a laptop recently and after updating it with SP3 and whatever other patch/fix I needed to install, the Language Bar appeared in the taskbar. It’s a safe assumption to say the vast majority of Windows users have absolutely no use for this – myself included. So here’s how to get...

Windows Vista may have improved in the last year, but there is no doubt that the latest Microsoft operating system suffers from the initial problems with it’s launch. And, for many, those problems persist. For one reason or the other, Windows Vista still manages to annoy many. Some like it. Others wish they could go back to XP.The process of downgrading...

You probably already know the story by now. According to Microsoft’s sales policy, as of June 30, 2008 you can no longer (easily at least) purchase a new computer preloaded with Windows XP. Whether or not you like or agree with this and regardless of anyone’s opinion of Windows Vista, this is just the way it is. Windows XP On A New System: Your...

If you run an older computer  there are certain services you can safely disable in Windows XP. This won’t make your computer blazingly faster by any means but it will gain you a "few extra horsepower", so to speak. To access your running services:Go to Control Panel. Double-click the Administrative Tools icon. Double-click the Services...

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