Windows XP Hacks

Preston Gralla, the author of more than 20 books, is also a freelance journalist and columnist. He has written for major national newspapers and magazines, including PC Magazine, Computerworld, the Los Angeles Times, the Dallas Morning News (where he was the technology columnist), USA Today and several others. A well-known technology expert, Preston has also appeared on many TV and radio programs and networks, including CNN, MSNBC and NPR. In addition, he's won a number of awards for his writing, including for "Best Feature in a Computer Magazine" from the Computer Press Association. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Credits Preface Chapter 1. Startup and Shutdown 1. Customize Multiboot Startup Options 2. Change the Picture that Appears on the XP Startup Screen 3. Speed Up Boot and Shutdown Times 4. Halt Startup Programs and Services 5. Create Multiple Startup Profiles with Advanced Startup Manager 6. Miscellaneous Startup and Shutdown Hacks 7. Control User Logins by Hacking the Registry Chapter 2. The User Interface 8. Customize the GUI with TweakUI 9. Control the Control Panel 10. Hack the Start Menu and Taskbar 11. Clean Up the Most Frequently Used Programs List 12. Rename and Change "Unchangeable" Desktop Icons and System objects 13. Remove "Unremovable" Desktop Icons 14. Create Your Own XP Themes and Find Thousands Online 15. Give XP a Makeover with WindowBlinds 16. Hacking Your Way Through the Interface 17. Remove "Uninstallable" XP Utilities 18. Create Transparent Windows 19. Make Your Own Cursors and Icons 20. Windows XP to Windows 2000: Retro is Cool Chapter 3. Windows Explorer 21. Generating Folder and File Listings for Printing or Editing 22. Control Windows Explorer with Command-Line Shortcuts 23. Empower Windows Explorer with PowerDesk 24. Better File Rename 25. Find Files Faster by Mastering the Indexing Service's Query Language 26. Hiding Folders and Files with the Encrypting File System 27. Forcing Windows Explorer Into True Usefulness 28. Customize Folder Icons and Balloon Text 29. A Power User's Hidden Weapon: Improve the Context Menu 30. Take Your Work on the Go with Offline Files and the Briefcase 31. Get More Hard Disk Space by Using NTFS Compression 32. Put a Command-Line Prompt on Your Desktop Chapter 4. The Web 33. Stop Pop Ups, Spyware, and Web Bugs 34. Take a Bite Out of Cookies 35. Read Web Pages Offline 36. Better Internet Searching from Your Desktop 37. Hack Internet Explorer with the Group Policy Editor 38. Speed Up File Downloads 39. Surf Anonymously Without a Trace 40. Secrets of Web Site Hosting with Internet Information Services (IIS) 41. Run Java Applets Without Crashes or Problems Chapter 5. Networking 42. War Driving for WiFi Access 43. Test Your Security with Shields Up! 44. Tweak DNS Settings for Faster Internet Access 45. Fix Windows Media Player's Privacy Problems 46. Protect Your Computer with the Internet Connection Firewall 47. Use a Proxy Server to Protect Your PC 48. ZoneAlarm: The World's Best Free Firewall 49. Optimize Your Residential Gateway 50. Punch an Escape Hole Through Your Firewall 51. Close Down Open Ports and Block Protocols 52. Troubleshooting Network Connections with ping, tracert, and pathping 53. Troubleshooting Network Connections with netsh, netstat, and ipconfig 54. Speed Up Network Browsing 55. Extend the Range of Your Wireless Network 56. Install NetBEUI for Better Peer-to-Peer Networking 57. Check WiFi Network Performance with QCheck to Help Improve Throughput 58. Control Another PC with Remote Access 59. Make Servers Always Available by Mapping a Hostname to a Dynamic IP Address 60. Renewing