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March 20, 2009
Vista Secrets
Dear Larry,
Thank you for setting me up with a new computer recently. I
didn’t think I was going to like Windows Vista based on what I had heard, but
now I can’t understand what all the complaining was about. It’s simple to use
and works the same way Windows XP did. No doubt, however, you can offer us new
Vista users some tips to make our computing lives better, right?
V. G.
Dear V. G.,
Sure as shootin’! Try these on for size:
If you operate in multiple time zones, you can configure Vista
to display up to three different times when you hover your mouse over the clock
in the bottom right corner of the task bar. Right-click the time, click Adjust
Date/Time, then click the Additional Clocks tab to set them.
Vista went a little overboard with all its warnings. You can
turn them off by clicking Start, Control Panel, User Accounts, Turn User Account
Control Off.
Want more gadgets in the sidebar? Visit
http://vista.gallery.microsoft.com/vista/sidebar.
Watch TV. Chances are, your new Vista computer supports an
internal TV Tuner device which would allow you to watch TV on your PC (if that
sort of thing excites you). Furthermore, you can use Windows Media Center to
access a program guide, record television shows, and play them back at your
convenience. Granted, it’s not TiVo, but at least the capability is built into
your computer.
If you have children, check out Vista’s parental controls.
Click Start, Control Panel, Parental Controls, then click the link “What can I
do with Parental Controls” for more information.
Get more from your laptop battery by setting up an intelligent
power management scheme. Click Start, Control Panel, Power Options, and create a
power plan that controls how your computer behaves when running on battery. For
example, control such things as when your computer turns off the screen or
sleeps, how bright your screen is, what should happen when you close the lid,
etc. Also, most laptops these days have an external switch to disable wireless
communication. If you’re not using WiFi, turn it off with the switch and buy
yourself another 30 minutes of battery power.
Having trouble running an old program under Windows Vista? Try
right-clicking the program’s icon, then click Properties, followed by the
Compatibility tab. A few options in there may be all you need to give your old
software the added kickstart it needs.
Need to take a picture of part of the screen? You can count on
the new Snipping tool to accommodate you. Click Start, All Programs,
Accessories, Snipping Tool and select the portion of the screen you want to
capture and where you’d like to save the image.
Want faster access to all of these menu choices? Use the Start
search box. For example, click Start, then type snip in the Start Search box at
the bottom of the menu. Only the programs containing that word (e.g., Snipping
Tool) will appear at the top.
This is Larry Schneider, logging off.
