I don’t know about you, but ever since the 2007 change in daylight savings time, my installation of Windows XP has had a difficult time (so to speak) maintaining consistently accurate time. Ever since the change, Windows XP has been randomly resetting its clock (as indicated via the Taskbar) to display time incorrectly. Specifically, WinXP will automatically (i.e., without user intervention) set the time to be one hour earlier than the actual time. For example, if the time is actually 3:00pm, Windows will suddenly display the time as 2:00pm. This has caught me off-guard on several occasions now, as I would work with an incorrect assumption concerning the time, only to find myself running an hour late to an appointment. Clearly, something needs to be done..

The first thing that comes to mind is to switch operating systems. For reasons that extend far beyond wonky time-keeping, I have been wanting to switch to open-source for years. If you have the luxury, time, and resources to accommodate such a switch, then perhaps Linux or Mac will serve you better with much more than the keeping of accurate time.

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To rename the Recycle Bin in Windows XP, create a new text.txt file in your favorite directory and add the following lines:

REGEDIT4
[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\CLSID\{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}\ShellFolder]
"Attributes"=hex:50,01,00,20"CallForAttributes"=dword:00000000

Next, rename the file extension from ".txt" to ".reg" — the other part of the file name may be whatever you prefer (e.g., RecycleBin.reg). Then, double-click the file to have Windows import it into the Registry. Now go right-click your Recycle Bin and use the new option to Rename it.

To remove renaming functionality for the Recycle Bin, replicate the same file you created initially, and replace the last line (i.e., the third line) with the following:

"Attributes"=hex:40,01,00,20"CallForAttributes"=dword:00000000

Again, double-click the file to import it into the Registry.

Trying to backup your Outlook Express .dbx files on Windows XP may prove difficult if you can’t find them. Well, fret no more, my friend. Here is the generalized path to the Outlook Express folder, which contains all of the .dbx files for a particular user. Copy, paste, and shortcut:

C:\Documents and Settings\[username]\Local Settings\Application Data\Identities\{12345678-1234-ABCD-EFGH-1234567890AB}\Microsoft\Outlook Express

* [username] = each user will should have their set of .dbx files.
* {12345678-1234-ABCD-EFGH-1234567890AB} = represents a unique alphanumeric string.

Recently, I had the opportunity to completely reformat the 5.58GB hard drive on my trusty Sony Vaio PCG-F430 laptop. During the process of reformatting, I decided to install both Windows 98 Second Edition and Windows XP Professional on a partitioned C drive. Additionally, I needed to establish a wireless connection to the local network. The entire process consumed around five hours and required plenty of research, analysis, and patience. Upon completion, the project proved quite beneficial, as I now enjoy the benefit of a Win-98(SE)/Win-XP(SP2) dual-boot, wirelessly networked laptop. This article outlines the entire process and will benefit anyone attempting a similar operation..

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Within the right-click context menu is the option to create "New" file items. While the list of available documents within the "New" submenu often contains several useful file types, such as .txt or .zip, it also contains lots of unnecessary entries.

To clean up the "New" right-click context menu, open the Registry Editor, regedit.exe, and Find all instances of "ShellNew". Examine the search results. Every ShellNew branch belongs to a specific type of file. As each ShellNew branch corresponds to an entry in the "New" right-click context menu, delete the ShellNew branch for each "New" file type that you would like to remove. And that, as they say, is that.

This brief tutorial explains how to add a background image to any folder in Windows XP.

First, make sure all hidden files are visible on your system. Then, open the folder for which you wish to add a background image. Within the folder, right-click and select Properties » Customize tab » Customize. There, choose any icon, click Apply and OK.

That process should have created a "desktop.ini" file. Open that file with a text editor and add these lines of code:

[ExtShellFolderViews]
{BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}={BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}
[{BE098140-A513-11D0-A3A4-00C04FD706EC}]
IconArea_Image=C:\path\folder\background.jpg

To customize this according to your needs, edit the path in the last line to reflect to the location of the image you wish to use as the background image for that folder. Refresh the folder and the new background should appear.

Finally, to remove the default icon chosen during the creation of the desktop.ini and restore the default folder icon, delete these lines of code from within the desktop.ini file:

[.ShellClassInfo]
IconFile=%SystemRoot%\system32\shell32.dll
IconIndex=(some number)

There are several files that appear not to have extensions in Windows XP. Perhaps the best known example is the HOSTS file. Files such as the HOSTS file that appear to be "extensionless" actually contain an invisible period "." — or dot — at the end the file name. It is this invisible dot that will enable us to select a specific program with which to open files with no extensions.

As web developers, we are constantly checking and consulting server-generated error_log files. Like the HOSTS file, the error_log files appear to have no associated extension. In Windows XP, opening extensionless files requires opening the "Open with…" dialogue box and scrolling through a long list of file types. And, although there is a checkbox option within the dialogue box enabling users to "Always use the selected program to open this kind of file," the option is "greyed out" and useless. Thus opening an extensionless file requires four or five extra "clicks", as well as the extra time it takes to jump through the hoops. This may not sound like a big deal, but try opening any number of files by this method and the extra clicks begin to add up.

After opening our millionth error_log file using the "Open with" method, we decided to confront the problem and devise a solution. After a bit of research, we were presented with several options: editing the registry, installing software, or tweaking Windows "Folder Options". After fiddling with the registry and installing some software with no real progress, we decided to try the heretofore unsuccessful "Folder Options" method. Sure enough, armed with an invisible dot and a slight tweak, we were finally able to convince Windows XP to associate extensionless file types with Notepad, our program of choice for such files.

The Solution

Although this solution is relatively risk-free ¹, requiring no registry editing or software installation, the process is fairly sensitive, requiring careful attention. Below are two methods: the first associates extensionless files with Notepad, while the second does such with WordPad. Both assume a Windows XP operating system.

Here is the method of associating extensionless file types with Notepad in WinXP:

1. Open Windows Explorer and go to the "Tools › Folder Options › File Types" menu.
2. Click the "New" button and type ".txt" in the "File Extension" field.
3. Click on the "Advanced ››" button and the "Associated File Type" should read "Text Document". If it is blank, or says something else, close everything out and start over, making sure to follow the steps in order.
4. Finally, in the "File Extension" field, replace the ".txt" with a single dot, "."
5. Click "OK" and exit. Find or create an extensionless file and check it out.

Here is a similar method of associating extensionless file types with WordPad in WinXp:

1. Open Windows Explorer and go to the "Tools › Folder Options › File Types" menu.
2. Click the "New" button and type ".txt" in the "File Extension" field.
3. Click on the "Advanced ››" button and the "Associated File Type" should read "Text Document". If it is blank, or says something else, close everything out and start over, making sure to follow the steps in order.
4. Open the "Associated File Type" dropdown menu. Scroll down and select "Wordpad Document".
5. Finally, in the "File Extension" field, replace the ".txt" with a single dot, "."
6. Click "OK" and exit. Find or create an extensionless file and check it out.

Footnotes

• ¹ It is always a good idea to backup your registry and other critical documents before implementing any system changes.