Announcements

Running Windows XP?

Then Read This!

Are you a Windows XP user (or are you going to be)? Want to learn how to run it better? Faster? With less headaches? Do you want to learn about all the new features and take full advantage of them?

Then I have a must have program for you.

It's called Learning Windows XP and it's fantastic. I thought I knew XP pretty well, so I was surprised when I picked up a few tricks during testing. After I get my newsletters together I'm going to finish the rest of the program and try to get completely up to speed :-)

This software uses multimedia presentations to show you exactly how all the new (and old) stuff works. You can scroll through topics in order, or jump to a topic index and select the exact presentation you want to see.

And the presentations are absolutely fantastic. By using audio and video, they teach you exactly how to do just about anything you'd ever need to do in Windows. Every step is shown on a sample screen within the program. It's like having Bill Gates sitting down and showing you - step by step - how to operate Windows. Every mouse move, every click is shown. No guesswork required!

As for topics, it covers it all! Some of the more popular are CD burning, performance, remote desktop, remote use, security, using the built in firewall, troubleshooting, automatic updates, running older software, networking, digital music, user switching, file transfers, offline viewing, working with files and folders, reliability, safe mode, search companion, file encryption, taskbar, windows messenger, and tons more.

If you're running Windows XP (or you're about to), this is a must have program. Even if you've been using XP for awhile like I have, you'll be surprised how much you may have missed (I was)!

Your price on this is only $12.97 ($29.95 retail) and US shipping is free! And yes, it has our 30 day satisfaction guarantee - if you're not happy, return it for a refund. Nothing to lose, but lots to gain! Here's the link:

http://www.worldstart.com/store/learning-windows-xp.htm

PS - Considering how expensive computers and operating systems are, isn't it worth $12.97 to be able to make the most of your XP eXPerience? This CD will make working with XP more enjoyable and far less frustrating. Give it a try, you'll be glad you did :-)

Computers 101

Q: Is there a way to get my internet browser to open quicker?

A: Sure, you can hit the Stop button or start typing the web address (usually to have it overwritten during said typing). Another option is to set your browser to start with a blank page, but then you kiss your regular homepage goodbye. That's no good.

A better way is to make a blank web page that sits on your desktop. When you click your blank page, your default browser will launch and load the page. Since the page has nothing on it, there is no waiting involved - it loads almost instantly. From your blank page, you can go to the site you *really* needed by selecting it from your Favorites menu or typing in the URL.

So, how do you set this up? Easy:

1. First, you need to make a blank page. The best way to do this is to open Windows Notepad (Start button, Programs, Accessories, Notepad).

OR -

You can download a blank page I made. Right-click the link below and select Save Target As from the resulting menu. When prompted, save the page to your Desktop. If you just click it with your left mouse button, you'll end up going to a blank page, but it won't get downloaded. If you decide to download this page, skip to step 3.

Download the blank page - Right-click here

2. Next, click the File menu, Save as. Navigate to your C:\Windows\Desktop and save the file as "blank.htm" (no quotes). To get to your Desktop folder quickly, click the little desktop icon on the Save As dialog box.

3. That's it. The file should now be on your desktop. Anytime you want to bypass your regular homepage and just get the browser running, click it. In fact, I've even dragged it to my quick-launch toolbar for easier access.

Oh, here's a bonus idea for our more advanced users who know how to program in HTML or have access to some kind of web page creation software. If that's you, try making a page similar to the one above, but with links to your most frequently accessed sites.

A page with 20 or so of your favorite links won't make this page load that much slower (we're talking 10ths of a second), but it will make getting to your favorite sites much easier.

~ Steve

Have a question for the newsletter? Submit it at the link below:
http://www.worldstart.com/submitquestion.htm

Tip of the Day

Internet Explorer: Clear your drop down address bar

Is your drop down address bar full of old addresses that you will never use again? Mine isn't, because I have fixed that problem by getting rid of them. Want to know how? Then keep reading.

Warning: This tip involves entering the registry. If at any point you get confused or are not completely sure what I mean, STOP, and re-read the steps to make sure you are doing this exactly right. If followed correctly these procedures are completely safe. I would also not recommend messing around in the registry unless you know what you are doing.

First click the Start button.  Then click on Run. Enter "regedit" (no quotes), and click OK. This will bring up the registry editor. 

Under the My Computer directory open the HKEY_CURRENT-USER directory by double clicking it. Next open the Software directory in the same way. Under the Software directory open the Microsoft directory. Under Microsoft open the Internet Explorer directory. Under the Internet Explorer directory, open the TypedURLs directory.

Now the section on the right will be filled with a bunch of text that at first may seem rather meaningless, and the address below will be displayed at the bottom of the Window:

"My Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\TypedURLs"

If this is the case you are in the right place. If not, go back and make sure you have followed the steps correctly.

All the entries in the right are actually just a list of all the address you have entered. You can now click on any entry and press delete to get rid of it. For each one you delete you must confirm that you want to delete it by clicking yes in the box that appears. If it is easier for you, you can delete multiple entries at once by selecting them using either a box or the control key.

When you are finished simply close the registry editor window. (Unless you want to see something else you can do in the registry which is explained below) All those useless URLs are gone! Whenever that address bar gets full again, just do the same thing.

Since we are here in the registry let's change the message in the title bar of Internet Explorer. Just go back to the Main directory under the Internet Explorer directory. Now there is some more stuff in that right window. Scroll to the bottom and look for an entry entitled "window title" double click it to change its value.

Enter the text you want to be displayed in the title bar, and click OK. Now you can close the registry editor. If there was no entry named "window title" you can make one. Click on Edit, go to new, and click on "String Value." Name it window title and set the value as indicated above.

Now open Internet Explorer and you can see your text in the title bar, and all those old addresses are gone!

~ Kyle Larson

Have a tip for the newsletter? Submit it below:
http://www.worldstart.com/writers-guidelines/index.htm

Amanda's Cool Site of the Day

Ask Oxford

Are you passionate about language? Well so are the publishers of Ask Oxford. You can get a lot out of this site. Like what you ask? Well there is a Word of the Day section, Games, Quotations, and an Ask the Experts section.

For those of you who like odd trivia, you'll enjoy the section that gives you the history of a word and where it originated. There is even a Question and Answer section for those of you have deep probing language questions.

Do you have a cool, non-commercial site that you want to share?
Send it to Amanda at amanda@worldstart.com