A couple of versions ago, Microsoft added a clicking noise to Internet Explorer, so that each time you click on a link with the mouse, you hear an audible click.
You may find it annoying after a while.
This feature can be turned off in the Control Panel.
In Windows XP open the Sounds, Speech and Audio Devices (it's just Sounds & Multimedia in Windows 2000) then Sounds and Audio Devices, then on the Sounds tab, scroll down to the section for Windows Explorer.
Click the event called "Start Navigation," and change the setting to "none" from the dropdown box.
Click OK to apply the change, and from now on you can navigate clicklessly through cyberspace.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Friday, July 18, 2008
Media Player Privacy
When playing CDs with newer versions of Media Player, this handy little application will go out to the Internet and return with handy information for you such as information about the CD such as the play list, album cover, artists, etc.
However, in the latest version, another feature has been added that may have privacy implications.
When you open the Media Player (Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Entertainment -> Media Player) and choose Options from the Tools Menu, you will see an option called "Allow Internet sites to uniquely identify your player?"
What this does is to potentially allow other sites to monitor what you are listening to or watching with Media Player.
In the Help File, it claims that the purpose of uniquely identifying your player (using an identifier that your Media Player sends) is to monitor the connection quality when streaming audio or video files.
That's probably all it is being used for -- for now.
To turn off this feature, all you have to do is clear (click) the check box and click OK
However, in the latest version, another feature has been added that may have privacy implications.
When you open the Media Player (Start -> All Programs -> Accessories -> Entertainment -> Media Player) and choose Options from the Tools Menu, you will see an option called "Allow Internet sites to uniquely identify your player?"
What this does is to potentially allow other sites to monitor what you are listening to or watching with Media Player.
In the Help File, it claims that the purpose of uniquely identifying your player (using an identifier that your Media Player sends) is to monitor the connection quality when streaming audio or video files.
That's probably all it is being used for -- for now.
To turn off this feature, all you have to do is clear (click) the check box and click OK
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Create a Shortcut to Lock Your Computer
Leaving your computer in a hurry but you don’t want to log off? You can double-click a shortcut on your desktop to quickly lock the keyboard and display without using CTRL+ALT+DEL or a screensaver.
To create a shortcut on your desktop to lock your computer:
Right-click the desktop.
Point to New, and then click Shortcut.
The Create Shortcut Wizard opens. In the text box, type the following:
rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation
Click Next.
Enter a name for the shortcut. You can call it "Lock Workstation" or choose any name you like.
Click Finish.
You can also change the shortcut's icon (my personal favorite is the padlock icon in shell32.dll).
To change the icon:
Right click the shortcut and then select Properties.
Click the Shortcut tab, and then click the Change Icon button.
In the Look for icons in this file text box, type:
Shell32.dll.
Click OK.
Select one of the icons from the list and then click OK
You could also give it a shortcut keystroke such CTRL+ALT+L.
This would save you only one keystroke from the normal command, but it could be more convenient.
To create a shortcut on your desktop to lock your computer:
Right-click the desktop.
Point to New, and then click Shortcut.
The Create Shortcut Wizard opens. In the text box, type the following:
rundll32.exe user32.dll,LockWorkStation
Click Next.
Enter a name for the shortcut. You can call it "Lock Workstation" or choose any name you like.
Click Finish.
You can also change the shortcut's icon (my personal favorite is the padlock icon in shell32.dll).
To change the icon:
Right click the shortcut and then select Properties.
Click the Shortcut tab, and then click the Change Icon button.
In the Look for icons in this file text box, type:
Shell32.dll.
Click OK.
Select one of the icons from the list and then click OK
You could also give it a shortcut keystroke such CTRL+ALT+L.
This would save you only one keystroke from the normal command, but it could be more convenient.
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