Now fortified
with 12 key vitamins and minerals, here's -
-=+ NOISES FROM THE BASEMENT +=-
Vol. 2, Issue 7 May 2,
2001 ISSN 1531-5258
1) Windows Tips - "In The Beginning, Part III"
2) File Find! - "FlexRestart"
3) Sites-Seeing - "New 7 Wonders\Rent-A-Relative"
4) Email Funny - "Eye Spy"
5) MOUS Tips - "They Call Me Mr. Freeze"
6) They Said It - quotes to give one pause
7) Hodgepodge - that what fits no where else
~ ~ ~
Welcome, new readers! Welcome back, old
friends!
- and -
AOL users - your links are at bottom!
____________________________________________________
1) Windows Tips -
"In The Beginning, Part III"
This week brings the third installment of a series examining
the various files that Windows may use in the startup process.
Why is an understanding of these files important to the
average computer user? Because they are
responsible for
controlling your computer's environment.
Many times, the
problems that occur when you run Windows or other applications
happen because there are conflicts with drivers, terminate-
and-stay-resident programs (TSRs), and other settings that
are loaded when your computer starts. In order to troubleshoot
these problems, you have to know where to look!
Remember,
be safe and create a backup copy before experimenting with
any of these files. Now, on to this
week's files -
~ ~ ~
The AUTOEXEC.BAT file was once a major player of the startup
process. Today, the AUTOEXEC.BAT file is
but a relic, provided
for backwards-compatibility with MS-DOS-based and older
Windows-based programs. The AUTOEXEC.BAT will be found in
your root directory, though you may not have one or it might
be blank. If present, the AUTOEXEC.BAT file typically loads
MS-DOS programs (.com or .exe extensions), and may also
contain the PATH command.
~ ~ ~
Another artifact of previous versions of Windows is the
CONFIG.SYS file, also provided for backwards compatibility
with MS-DOS-based and earlier Windows-based programs.
The CONFIG.SYS file loads low-level MS-DOS-based drivers.
If present, you'll find it in your root directory.
~ ~ ~
Our last file this week is the WININIT.INI file. This file is
used to complete the installation of various components for
Windows and third-party products. When a
program needs
to copy or remove a file that is in use, instructions are
written to the WININIT.INI file. Windows checks for the
presence of the WININIT.INI file during the boot process
and, if found, performs the instructions. If present, the
WININIT.INI file will be found in your Windows folder.
Note: don't confuse this with the WININIT.EXE file.
Next week: The final three startup
files.
-=++=- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ + ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
-=++=-
2) File Find! -
"FlexRestart" [360
Kb/EXE]
Many times, installing new programs requires a system
reboot as the final step of the process.
In most cases this
is overkill, as it is sufficient to simply restart Windows,
without going through memory testing, the loading of DOS
and its associated configuration files and drivers.
This utility will intercept reboot requests from any program
or Windows itself and change them to restart Windows only,
which results in quicker reboots. It
replaces the Shutdown
menu on the Start button with a pop-up menu, where you
can choose from: Quick Restart, Reboot, Shutdown, Log off,
Exit to DOS, Suspend, Launch screen saver, or Force
Applications to terminate:
http://www.basementnoises.com/free4u/dl87.htm
-=++=- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ + ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
-=++=-
3) Sites-Seeing -
"New 7 Wonders\Rent-A-Relative"
If you were asked to name what you consider to be the new
"Seven Wonders of the World", what would they be? Would
the Eiffel Tower show up on your list? The Great Wall of
China? The Taj Mahal? The Statute of Liberty?
You now have a chance to participate in the first-ever global
Internet vote to determine the New 7 Wonders of the World.
Choose from among 25 prospective contenders for this honor.
Truly a global effort, over 2 million votes have been received
from 234 countries to date. Voting ends
June 30, 2001; see
if you agree with the results so far:
http://www.new7wonders.com/e/index.html
~ ~ ~
Rent-A-Relative was started with the purpose of helping
those who were unable to attend important family functions.
It's a simple enough idea: whenever you can't attend a family
event, call R-A-R and they’ll arrange a substitute.
From that straightforward concept they expanded their
services to include surrogates for court appearances,
hospital procedures, and dental visits.
Fathers-to-be can
even arrange for a stand-in in the delivery room!
You'll find fees that are downright reasonable, but for those
of you on a budget - try the cardboard cutout option!
http://www.rent-a-relative.com
-=++=- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ + ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
-=++=-
4) Email Funny -
"Eye Spy" [61 Kb/EXE]
Everyday, our privacy suffers assaults from multiple
different directions. Remind yourself of
this fact by
scattering a half-dozen pairs of Big Brother's eyes around
your Desktop, for that truly paranoid feeling.
Beware:
they like to hide among your desktop icons when they start.
The main reason I like this little gem is that it contains a
bit of nifty coding: not only do the Desktop eyes follow
the movement of your cursor, but the program icon on the
Taskbar button has a set of eyes that follow you, too!
http://www.basementnoises.com/free4u/dl88.htm
-=++=- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ + ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
-=++=-
5) MOUS Tips -
"They Call Me Mr. Freeze"
When working with an Excel worksheet, you might want to use
column and row headings descriptive of the contents – “Months
of the Year” as column headings and “Expense Categories” as
row headings, for example. The problem
with this is, as you
scroll right or down, eventually the column/row headings will
scroll off-screen.
Excel gives you the option to "freeze" or lock those headings
so that they are always visible. You can
freeze rows alone,
columns alone, or both columns and rows.
The key to what
Excel will freeze is the cell you select, prior to applying the
Freeze Panes command:
a) Rows always freeze above a selected
cell. To freeze rows
ONLY, select the cell *in column A*
below the row(s) you
want to freeze;
b) Columns always freeze to the left of
a selected cell. To
freeze columns ONLY, select the
cell *in row 1* to the right
of the column(s) you want to
freeze;
c) To freeze BOTH rows and columns,
select the cell *below
and to the right of* the row(s) and
column(s) you want
to freeze.
After you have selected the appropriate cell, complete the
freeze process by selecting Window | Freeze Panes. Your
headings should now be visible no matter where you scroll
on your sheet.
To remove frozen panes, simply select Windows | Unfreeze Panes.
-=++=- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ + ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
-=++=-
6) They Said It
"Where a calculator on the ENIAC is equipped with 18,000
vacuum tubes and weighs 30 tons, computers in the future
may have only 1,000 vacuum tubes and weigh only 1.5 tons"
- Popular Mechanics, 1949
-=++=- ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ + ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
-=++=-
7) Hodgepodge
"The Indian Rope Trick", where a man climbs a "magically"
suspended rope and disappears at the top, has been a part
of popular folklore for over 50 years.
Newly discovered
information sheds light on how it was done - in the week's
Bizarro feature. Take a look at the
Photo Funny, too – this
week George W. Bush shared some personal photos with
the press - so I decided to share a few, too:
http://www.BasementNoises.com
G'nite, and thanks for reading!
=====================================================
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compliments to:
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My standard "Your Mileage May Vary" Caveat:
NFTB does not assume responsibility for your use of
information given. Tips are tested on a
machine with
Windows 98 and Office 2000 Professional installed.
As I am firmly convinced that all systems are unique little
creatures in and of themselves, any given tip or suggestion
might just not be available to you. Why?
Murphy Rules!
All advice should be weighed against your own abilities
and circumstances and applied accordingly.
It is up
to you, the reader, to determine if advice is safe and
suitable for your current situation.
Any product or brand names mentioned in this ezine
and associated website are trademarks or registered
trademarks of their respective owners.
NOISES FROM THE BASEMENT is a BTB Management Services
publication e-published every Wednesday and always
delivered directly to your e-porch, rain or shine!
Noises From The Basement
ISSN: 1531-5258 - Library Of Congress, Washington D.C., USA
Copyright (c) 2001, Dave Gretz
All Rights Reserved.
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