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1) Easy Automated Shutdowns
There are actually many tools--- including free utilities and code-it-yourself shortcuts--- that can do this easily. But first, please note that automated shutdowns proceed exactly the same way as do manual shutdowns. Anything that would interfere with a manual shutdown may likewise interfere with an automatic shutdown, and prevent it from working the way you want. For example: If your PC routinely hangs at shutdown--- a common issue with older systems, where the PC may freeze at the "It's safe to shut down..." screen--- trying to shut down automatically won't help. But if your PC normally can shut down manually without problems, odds are it can shut down automatically with no trouble as well. Likewise, if you normally leave documents open, or leave apps or utilities running that lock files or otherwise "own" a chunk of your PC, an automatic shutdown may not be able to occur; or, if it does occur, may cause loss of data for whatever was left open or running. (Same as with a manual shutdown.) To use an automatic shutdown safely, you need to plan for it to happen, and not walk away from your system with documents left open and unsaved, etc. That said, there's a raft of automatic shutdown tools and techniques available, as any search will show. One good free utility I've used many times is Steve Gibson's "Wizmo," or "Windows Gizmo" tool. Among many other things, Wizmo lets you set up commands to tell your system to standby, hibernate, logoff, exit, reboot, or shutdown. Wiizmo includes what Steve amusingly calls the "Damit" variations (as in "Reboot, Damit!") which can force a reboot (or whatever) "even if programs or device drivers have refused to give Windows their permission to be shutdown." This can actually force through some of the simpler "hang at shutdown" issues, but must be used with caution, as Steve thoroughly explains on the Wizmo pages. To use Wizmo or any similar tool: Read the directions for setting up the tool, and then use (say) Windows Task Scheduler to activate the tool or issue the tool's shutdown commands at the desired time. With some tools, you may be able to issue the commands directly from Task Scheduler, but you also can make an ultra-simple script or batch file to issue the command. Using Wizmo as an example of the latter, you'd use Notepad to create a simple text file containing only the command: wizmo shutdown You'd then save the file, name it something like "shutdown.bat" and set up the Task Scheduler to run the batch file at the desired time. If your PC is likely to be in sleep or suspend mode when you want the automatic shutdown, reboot (or any other event) to happen, you'll need to use Task Scheduler's "wake my PC to do this task" option. Note that this option may not work for power-off modes like "hibernation" (where the PC is totally inert) but can work to rouse a PC from the lighter states of slumber, where the PC is still alive and powered on, albeit barely so. All Windows versions (98 and above) have a form of Task Scheduler built in, but the exact commands vary slightly from version to version: Search your PC's help file (or the pages at http://support.microsoft.com/ ) for the Task Scheduler info that pertains to your specific Windows version. You can grab a free copy of Wizmo at http://grc.com/wizmo/wizmo.htm . Many other options: Click to email this item to a
friend 2) "Flaw in Certificate Enrollment"Microsoft Windows 98/SE/ME/NT/2K/XP all share a common mechanism for "enrolling" web based digital security certificates. There's a low-probability way of forcing the mechanism to malfunction and delete any or all certificates you may have on your system, leading (possibly) to your being unable to access certain sites or functions: A kind of "denial of service." Denial of service is serious, so Microsoft rates this problem as "critical,"
but I think the number of people likely to be at serious risk for this
particular problem is rather low. Still, for more info and a patch, see: Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )-------------- 3) Defrag/Scandisk At BootReader Broni Synowiec writes:
The problem of Defrag constantly restarting--- and thus never finishing--- has been around for a long time, as
these reader solutions--- from 1999!--- show: And there are actually many ways to force a defrag- or scandisk-at-restart (when nothing else is running, so there's nothing to cause constant restarts), although the specifics vary depending on what version of Windows you're running, and what exactly you're looking for. Some examples: Freeware/Trialware/Commercial Software: Free stuff for various Windows versions: Some general help: Click to email this item to a
friend 4) Sound Emulator For Old DOS SoftwareIn "Most Old Software Never Dies--- Even In XP" ( http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2002/2002-08-22.htm#4 ) we discussed how most older Windows and DOS programs actually can run fine under XP--- except for software that wants to control the hardware directly. (Win NT/2K/XP doesn't allow anything but itself to control the system hardware; that's one of the reasons why these versions of Windows are more stable than Win9x/ME). For example, some older games want to "talk" directly to a sound card, and/or look for a specific type of sound card or emulator: Often, that of the Classic SoundBlaster 16. This can be a problem for newer systems--- unless you use the software reader "Hallic" was first to mention:
Thanks Hallic! Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )-------------- 5) New Firewall Guide, And MoreFrequent contributor "axcel216" has been busy with four new pages on his free site:
Thanks, George! Click to email this item to a
friend 6) Another Way To Suppress Desktop Icons
Thanks, Leo. Indeed, there are very few (if any) valid "one size fits all" solutions; that's one of the reasons why I often include general search links as part of the discussions here, so readers can find software that exactly suits their needs, if a specific item I reference doesn't cut it. For example, a simple Google search on "hide icons" turn up some 195,000 pages, with many excellent options right on the first page: http://www.google.com/search?q=hide+icons There's almost always a solution to every computing problem, but it may take a little digging! <g> Click to email this item to a
friend 7) New Month, New Chances!It's a new month, and right now your chances are the best they'll ever be! To have a shot at winning a no-strings $30 Gift Certificate for any item The more times you make a recommendation, the greater your chances are of winning! Or, if you'd like to try to win $10,000(really!), try this link (full details also available here): http://www.recommend-it.com/l.z.e?s=143182 Either way, thank you, and good luck! Click to email this item to a
friend 8) How To Remove Windows/MSN Messenger
Actually, some of the newer versions of Messenger are easily uninstalled via Control Panel's Add/Remove Software applet: That'd be the first place to check. Win9x/ME/2K users also can check If you can't find what you need there, there are still several options. For XP: Further: Remove WM Integration from All Versions of Outlook Express: Remove WM Integration from All Versions of Outlook Express: Other ways/related info: And note: As part of its anti-trust settlement, Microsoft is developing a version of Windows without (or with the ability to make optional) Messenger, IE, and other "middleware." It's due out this fall, and it's not yet entirely clear whether this will be only available for new releases of Windows, or will be some kind of retroactive patch for previously-shipped versions. We'll have to see. Click to email this item to a
friend 9) They Loaded The CodeDo you have a home page or website? (It doesn't matter what size.) Please click over to http://www.langa.com/code.htm , and maybe you can join the hundreds and hundreds of LangaList readers who have "Loaded the Code!" (If you've already "Loaded The Code" and are wondering if your site will appear here or on the Langa.Com web site, please see http://www.langa.com/link.txt ) Speaking of which: Here's another eclectic sample of reader sites--- some professional, some very personal: View A Randomly-Chosen Reader Site Manually Browse All Posted-to-Date Sites Starting At IBBS Computer Help King family TechZones Computer Security/Maintenance Tips "JerryBuilt" Site Nana's Nook Jaguar Club (California) Eagles (the rock group) Fan Page Hang Gliding Mary Beth's Icons, Cursors, Etc Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )-------------- 10) Just For GrinsReader "kdt15" sends along this story which is cute, but--- well, read the story first. Then we'll talk about it. 8-)
The story is worth a grin for sure, but it's false--- an urban legend. The "space pen" is real, but was developed privately by the Fisher Pen company for reasons having nothing whatsoever to do with space: They wanted to produce a universal ballpoint pen refill that could be used in almost any pen under almost any circumstances. Their design--- a pressurized cartridge filled with "thixotropic" semisolid ink--- took about 2 years and 2 million (private) dollars to develop. In 1967, NASA chose the already-existing pen for use in space; it was first launched in 1968 on the Apollo 7 mission. (See http://www.spacepen.com/usa/index2.htm ) But even absent that info, the "$12 billion" is a clue that this is a hoax item. Twelve billion dollars is about the entire current annual budget for NASA! Or, to compare hardware to hardware, an entire Saturn V heavy-lift vehicle cost $113 million in 1960s dollars. Even in today's dollars, it's way less than $12 billion: Some people who want to resurrect the Saturn V estimate that reviving that *entire program* would cost maybe $6 billion in 2002 dollars. So: $12 billion, in the 1960s, for just a pen? I don't think so. And then there's this: Pencils make lousy writing implements in zero-G because the "leads" break and shed small particles. Pencil "lead" is actually graphite, which is a good electrical conductor. Just imagine what could happen when small bits of conductive graphite drift inside electrical equipment.... It's still a cute story. 8-) And it survives mainly because people *want* to believe in enormous government waste. That waste surely exists, but consider this: The entire annual cost of all NASA operations--- manned flight, unmanned flight, ground ops, even retirement pay for former employees--- amounts to a whole 0.4% of the total US federal budget. (In fact, NASA has the smallest budget share of any major US government agency.) I'm all for rooting out waste, but surely it makes sense to start with the 99.6% portion of the pie first. <g> See
http://www.truthorfiction.com/rumors/spacepen.htm Click to email this item to a
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--------------( the above is an advertisement )-------------- 11) Plus! Edition Highlights:
Today's LangaList Plus! Edition contains all ten items above, plus about 30% more content including: Reader suggestions about a very cool new visual search engine and a weird "rorrim" site; an easy repair for a problem that even Microsoft tech support failed to solve (a problem that can keep you from getting to Windows Update); and more real-life info on reader experiences with various Linux distributions. What are you waiting for? C'mon! It's just a buck a month! <g> Full Plus! Edition info: http://www.langa.com/plus.htm Click to email this item to a
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