Windows XP and 2000 Tips & Tricks UPDATE, November 4, 2002

Windows XP and 2000 Tips & Tricks UPDATE, Obrought to you by the
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November 4, 2002—In this issue:

1. COMMENTARY

2. FAQS

Q. How can I configure the number of customized folders that Windows XP remembers?

Q. How can I clear my customized folder settings in Windows XP?

Q. Why does text appear in the bottom left of my screen after I install Windows Media Player (WMP) 9 beta on Windows 2000?

Q. How can I remove the Windows XP notification area (i.e., system tray) from the task bar?

Q. How can I stop Windows from caching a .dll file after I close the program that was accessing it?

Q. How do I use the Windows XP alternative TCP/IP configuration?

3. ANNOUNCEMENTS

4. CONTACT US
See this section for a list of ways to contact us.

1. COMMENTARY
(contributed by John Savill, FAQ Editor, [email protected])

This week, I describe how to configure the number of customized folders that Windows XP keeps track of, how to clear customized folder settings in XP, and why text might appear on screen after you install Windows Media Player (WMP) 9 on Windows 2000. I also tell you how to remove the XP notification area from the taskbar, how to stop Windows from caching .dll file information, and how to use XP's alternative TCP/IP configuration settings.

Around the industry this week, Win2K received the Common Criteria (CC) certification, the highest security evaluation yet for an OS. For details, see http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/server/evaluation/news/bulletins/cccert.asp.

I also have a word of warning: Be very careful if you receive and open an e-card from FriendGreetings.com. If you open the e-card and accept the license agreement for the ActiveX control, the control can send the entire contents of your Microsoft Outlook contact list to the company so that the company can send cards to everyone on your list.

2. FAQS

Q. How can I configure the number of customized folders that Windows XP remembers?

A. XP lets you customize different appearance settings for different folders (e.g., some folders might display details while others display thumbnail images). XP remembers these settings for as many as 400 customized folders and stores this information under the HKEY_CURRENT_USERSoftwareMicrosoftWindowsShellBags registry subkey. However, you can increase or decrease the number of customized folders that XP remembers by performing the following steps:

Q. How can I clear my customized folder settings in Windows XP?

A. To clear any customized folder settings, perform the following steps:

Q. Why does text appear in the bottom left of my screen after I install Windows Media Player (WMP) 9 beta on Windows 2000?

A. In the beta-test version of Win2K and later Windows versions, text appeared on screen to indicate that the user was running a beta version. This text typically stated "Microsoft Windows 2000 Professional, For Testpurpose only, Build 2195." To stop the text from appearing, you needed to set the HKEY_CURRENT_USERControl PanelDesktopPaintDesktopVersion registry value to 0. However, after you install WMP 9, this text can reappear. To prevent this text from displaying on screen after you install WMP 9, perform the following steps:

Q. How can I remove the Windows XP notification area (i.e., system tray) from the taskbar?

A. To hide the notification area, perform the following steps:

Q. How can I stop Windows from caching a .dll file after I close the program that was accessing it?

A. Windows caches .dll files to speed disk I/O. However, even after you close the calling program, the .dll file remains cached. To stop Windows from caching .dll files after you've closed the calling program, perform the following steps:

Q. How do I use the Windows XP alternative TCP/IP configuration?

A. Laptop users often experience problems when moving between networks in which DHCP servers aren't consistently used (e.g., moving between an office that uses DHCP to assign IP addresses and a home network that uses static IP addresses). If you configure your computer to use DHCP and no DHCP server is available, the machine will typically use an IP address in the range 169.254.0.1 to 169.254.255.254 with a subnet mask of 255.255.0.0. The actual IP address will depend on what IP addresses other machines on the local subnet have selected (XP will perform a limited test to ensure the Windows TCP/IP component doesn't use an address already in use). Because the local TCP/IP stack assigns no WINS, DHCP, or gateway information, all IP communication is limited to machines in the local subnet.

XP lets you create an alternative IP configuration that you can use when your system can't find a DHCP server. This alternative configuration lets you specify an IP address, subnet, gateway, and the other typical network settings. To create this alternative IP configuration, perform the following steps:

XP stores the custom connection configuration settings under the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetServicesTcpipParametersInterfaces registry subkey.

3. ANNOUNCEMENTS
(brought to you by Windows & .NET Magazine and its partners)

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4. CONTACT US
Here's how to reach us with your comments and questions: