One thing is for sure with any computer operating system, the older it becomes, the occurrence of broken or "things don't work like they used to"  become more frequent.

Take shortcuts for example. You know…the ones on your desktop or in the start menu.

You click on a shortcut that you have not used in a while, and chances are, it works as expected or you get the dreaded Problem with Shortcut error warning:

So to fix it, you re-point to the new location of the source or delete it. Now you wonder, how many more shortcuts do I have that are broken?

Well you could go one by one and click on each shortcut on your desktop or start menu and fix them. But that would take a be ridiculously long time (who wants to do that anyway).

Instead there is an easier way…

…and that way is to use a utility called ShortcutsMan from nirsoft.net.

ShortcutsMan is a standalone program,that does not require any installation or additional DLLs. To use it, just download it, copy the executable (shman.exe) to any folder you prefer (after it's unzipped) and run it.

A few seconds after running ShortcutsMan utility, a list of all your desktop and Start menu shortcuts will load in the main window.

Now. what's cool about ShortcutsMan, it wall automatically display broken shortcuts in pink. No need to hunt them down, one by one.

To try fixing a broken shortcut,  just check the box next to a broken shortcut (you can select more than one shortcuts at once), and either delete them, resolve them or save the shortcut's details to HTML/Text/XML file.

The first thing I usually do is have ShortcutsMan fix the shortcut by resolving it. This process searches your computer and points it to a valid file name (typically the orignal file name may have been changed or moved to another folder).

To resolve, select the check box next to the broken shortcut (pink color), then right click on it and select Resolve Selected Shortcuts.

If it can not resolve, then I usually delete the shortcut (otherwise if I really used it often…it wouldn't be broken in the first place). You can also edit and fix shortcuts yourself directly in ShortcutsMan by right clicking on a shortcut and select Edit.

ShortcutsMan is a great utility to have around to help clean up your system of dead shortcuts. If anything, having the capability to display all shortcuts on my desktop or under the Start menu in one interface is a big time saver. Either they get fixed or deleted. Real simple.

You can download ShortcutsMan from nirsift.com.

Autorun is the most likely way to infect your computer. To prevent this we can disable autorun feature in Windows.

Press Start button ->Run.

In window that has appear type gpedit.msc and press OK button.

At the left part of "Group policy" window select "Computer configuration"->"System". Select "Turn off Autoplay" at the left part of screen when "System" is select.

Double click on "Turn off Autoplay". Point to "Autoplay" and in the drop-down list select "All drives".

Press "Apply" and "OK" buttons.

When facing a system crash or startup up problems on Windows Computers, troubleshooting the problem can be difficult to resolve. The first step with recovery is to use Windows Safe Mode option during startup. One Safe Mode option that will help troubleshoot boot problems is to enable Boot Logging which will create a log and help identify the device or driver that is causing the problem during startup.

When Boot Logging is enable, Windows boots normally, until the device or driver that is causing the problem either crashes the system or completes starting up but causes an error message in the Event Log. While booting, Windows creates a log file that lists every step processed that is attempted and completed.

You can then reboot in to Safe Mode and review the log file named ntbootlog.txt. The log is stored in the %SYSTEMROOT% directory (normally C:\Windows or C:\WINNT folder). Below is an example of ntbootlog.txt log file on Windows XP (Vista log is similar):

Service Pack 2 5  4 2007 10:45:44.500
Loaded driver \WINDOWS\system32\ntkrnlpa.exe
Loaded driver \WINDOWS\system32\hal.dll
Loaded driver \WINDOWS\system32\KDCOM.DLL
Loaded driver \WINDOWS\system32\BOOTVID.dll
Loaded driver ACPI.sys
Loaded driver \WINDOWS\System32\DRIVERS\WMILIB.SYS
Loaded driver pci.sys
Loaded driver isapnp.sys
Loaded driver compbatt.sys
Loaded driver \WINDOWS\System32\DRIVERS\BATTC.SYS
Loaded driver intelide.sys
Loaded driver \WINDOWS\System32\DRIVERS\PCIIDEX.SYS
Loaded driver MountMgr.sys
Loaded driver ftdisk.sys
Loaded driver dmload.sys
Loaded driver dmio.sys
Loaded driver PartMgr.sys
Loaded driver VolSnap.sys
Loaded driver atapi.sys
Loaded driver vmscsi.sys
Loaded driver \WINDOWS\System32\DRIVERS\SCSIPORT.SYS
Loaded driver disk.sys
Loaded driver \WINDOWS\System32\DRIVERS\CLASSPNP.SYS
Loaded driver fltmgr.sys
Loaded driver sr.sys

To enable Boot Logging on Windows XP and Vista, boot your Computer, and during startup continually press F8 until the menu screen appears:

NOTE: screen shot is from XP. Vista menu will look slightly different than XP.

Press F8 to display the Advanced Menu screen and select Enable Boot Logging

You will be returned to the menu screen and you should see Enable Boot Logging in blue displayed at the bottom of the screen (don't worry if this screen is not displayed and Windows starts to boot):

If the problem does not cause Windows to crash, and after startup has completed, you can review the ntbootlog.txt file. Look for any signs of problems loading device drivers. If you find problems, go into Device Manager and disable the device or uninstall the program, then reboot again. If the problem does not occur then you know it was that device and you should check the vendor website for new drivers or known issues.

If your problem does cause Windows to crash, reboot into Safe mode by selecting Safe Mode from the Advanced Menu screen. When reviewing ntbootlog.txt file, look for events that were attempted to load but not completed. More than likely the problem will be toward the end of the file (since that was the last item logged before crashing). When you identify the problem, either uninstall the application or go in to Device Manager and disable the device. Reboot your Computer and see if the problem still exist. If it boots without crashing, check the vendor website for new drivers or known issues.

If you are still having problems, enable Boot Logging again to see if new events are logged after you have disabled the device or uninstalled the program. If you are unable to fix the problem, you may need to have a Computer shop troubleshoot the problem for you.

Notes on Boot Logging:

• Boot Logging can only be enabled from Safe Mode. Once it is enabled, it only logs during the current boot. It will not log during the next reboot unless you enable it again from Safe Mode.
• If an existing ntbootlog.txt files exist, the next time Boot Logging is enabled, Windows will append to the existing log file.
• It is a good idea to have Windows create a new log when there are no problems or after you have added new devices. This will allow full logging to occur and will let you compare with a log when problems exists.

Microsoft released a free tool called Windows 7 USB/DVD  Tool to help you install Windows 7 on all netbooks in simple steps.

Here are the five simple steps that you need to follow to create a bootable USB flash drive to install Windows 7 from USB device:


Note: You need a USB flash drive with a minimum of 4 GB of free space. And also please backup your data from USB first.

1. Download Windows 7 USB/DVD Tool and install it http://download.cnet.com/Windows-7-USB-DVD-Download-Tool/3000-18513_4-10972600.html


2. Run the program, browse to your Windows 7 ISO image using the Browse button.

3. In this step, you need to select your media type. As we are here to create a bootable USB, simply click on USB device button.

4. Select your USB flash drive from the drop down box and click on Begin copying button.

5. The Windows 7 USB/DVD tool will take a few minutes to complete the procedure.

6. You are done. Reboot you machine and start installing Windows 7

 How to install Windows XP from USB drive

Installing Windows XP from USB drive is a rescue when you have no CD/DVD Drive or when you don’t want to carry installation CD in your pocket:)
What you need is:
- Windows XP installation CD or ISO Image
- USB Drive (at least 1Gb capacity)
- Some special utilities (download here: Flash.zip (495.25 kb))

Preparing USB Drive

Step 1. Please, download and extract the pack of utilities. It will be perfect if you extract it to the root of your hard drive, e.g. D:\Flash\

Step 2. Prepare Windows installation files. If you have a CD, just insert it into your CD drive, if it's impossible – unpack ISO file into specific directory, e.g. D:\Wininst

Step 3. Now open the folder D:\flash\usb_prep8 and run file usb_prep8.cmd

ATTENTION! Don't close this window until the installation is finished!!!

Plug in your USB drive and press any key. PeToUSB utility will start.

With the help of this utility we will format your USB drive. Be careful – after starting the utility, all data on your flash drive will be lost!
If you have flash drive with the capacity more than 4Gb, choose NTFS instead of FAT system.
To start formatting press Start, then press Yes twice.

After completion press OK, then close the program.

Step 4.  Run command Prompt (press Start button, in WinXP choose Run, then type ‘cmd’, in Win Vista & Win 7 type ‘cmd’ into a search field). In cmd window type the command: D:\flash\bootsect\bootsect.exe /nt52 E:
Replace the letter E with the letter of your USB Drive.
Press Enter.

Step 5. You can close this window and return to usb_prep8 program. As you can see, there is some new information in it.

Type 1 to choose point 1, press Enter. After that you need to choose the path to the Windows installation files.

Choose necessary directory and press OK. Now you're back in the menu. Choose point 3. Now you need to type in the letter of your flash drive. In my case it's E. Type it in and press Enter.

Now, go for point 4.
When the program asks you to format T drive – let it perform the formatting. Then press any key.

Program starts copying Windows setup files to the tempdrive. It will take a few minutes. After that press any key, then Yes, and wait until these files are copied to your USB drive.

In the end of copying the program asks you to change migrate.ini file. Press Yes. Then agree with unmounting drive and press any key for the couple of time.

Installing Windows using USB drive

Step 1. First of all, allow your PC booting from the flash drive. Open BIOS (by pressing DEL, F2, F8, ESC buttons - it depends on the model of your PC), enable USB Legacy support if it's disabled, and change the boot order of devices so that USB Device was on the first place. After all, save your changes and reboot your PC.
Also, you can use boot menu (F8, F12, ESC) if it is supported by your motherboard and choose the device to boot from.

Step 2. Choose point 1 – TXT mode setup. Windows will start pre-configuring your PC, e.g. will format HDD, copy files, etc.
After reboot choose point 2 – GUI mode setup. Windows will continue installation in graphic mode. Use this mode after the second reboot as well.

At last, open boot.ini file (go to control panel -> system properties -> advanced -> startup and recovery - > settings -> edit).

Find there text disk(1) if any and replace it with disk(0), press Save and exit.

the end.

I hope this informations was helpful for you ^^

It's strongly recommended that you create restore point prior to installing any new program on your PC. Note, that system restore points are automatically created when installing drivers or updates.

To Create a System Restore Point in Windows 7:

1. Right click on Computer > choose Properties.

 2. On the left pane choose Advanced System Properties.

 3. Switch to 'System Protection' tab and click 'Create' button:

 4. Name this restore point (you can use the name of the program).

5. It can take up to several minutes to create a restore point.

6. Done. New Restore Point has been created.

 1. With the Windows XP CD-ROM in the CD-ROM drive, click Start,

     and then click Control Panel.

 2. Double-click Add or Remove Programs.

 3. Click Add/Remove Windows Components.

 4. In the Windows Components Wizard, click Accessories and Utilities (the words, not the check box), and then click Details.

 5. Use the appropriate method.

• If the Games check box is not checked (no games are installed), and you want to install all of the games, click to select the Games check box, click OK, and then click Next.
• If the Games check box is not checked (no games are installed), and you want to install one or more of the games, click Games (the word, not the check box), and then click to select the check boxes for the games you want to install. Click OK, click OK, and then click Next.
• If the Games check box is checked and the background of the check box is white (all games are installed), and you want to uninstall all of the games, click to clear the Games check box, click OK, and then click Next.
• If the Games check box is checked and the background of the check box is white (all games are installed), and you want to uninstall only some of the games, click Games (the word, not the check box), and then click to clear the check boxes for the games you want to uninstall. Click OK, click OK, and then click Next.
• If the Games check box is checked and the background of the check box is gray (one or more games are installed), and you want to uninstall all of the games, click to clear the Games check box, click OK, and then click Next.
• If the Games check box is checked and the background of the check box is gray (one or more games are installed), and you want to uninstall only some of the games, click Games (the word, not the check box), and then click to clear the check boxes for the games you want to uninstall. Click OK, click OK, and then click Next.

By default, Windows XP includes FreeCell, Hearts, Minesweeper, Pinball, Solitaire, and Spider Solitaire.

Before you do anything else, close Outlook. You should also note that we’ll be modifying system generated files here, so proceed with caution or not at all.

Open up windows explorer window and then paste the following text into the address bar, which should bring you to a folder with a single folder inside with a really long name.

%userprofile%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Protect

What you’ll need to do is just rename that folder to something else (I suggest appending -old onto the end of it so that you could easily rename it back if things go wrong)

Now re-open Outlook, and then type in your password hopefully for the last time, making sure to check the box to remember it. You should now see that the original folder was re-created again.

At this point Outlook should remember your passwords, but you can close Outlook and reopen it to make sure. If you encounter problems with this, you can remove the new folder and then rename the -old folder back to the original name to put everything back the way it was.

To run an application as an Administrator you can right click on its shortcut or main executable file, and then select "Run as Administrator" option. However, doing this can be quiet annoying if you use this application very often. This article describes how to simplify that process.

Let's consider an example, 

choose trusted application, i.e. its executable file:

Right click on it and choose Properties, go to Compatibility tab and check the check-box "Run this program as an Administrator", click O.k. to accept changes.

If you’d like to display a clean Windows 7 taskbar, you will have to hide the notification area and the system clock which appears on the right side if the Windows taskbar.

To hide the notification area or the system tray which appears in the right side of your Windows taskbar, type gpedit.msc in start search box and hit Enter to open the Group Policy Editor.

Navigate to User configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar.

Now double click on the entry Hide the notification area’ Select Enabled button, click Apply > OK.

To hide the System Clock, double click on the entry Remove clock from the system notification area. Select Enabled button, click Apply > OK.

To revert back to the default settings, you have to set it as Disabled or Not Configured.

You can also easily hide the system clock by the following method:
Right click System Clock > Customize notification icons > Turn system icons on/off.

Thats it!