Windows 7 tips and tricks

Two Microsoft employees have posted helpful Windows 7 tips, tricks and secrets this week.

Tim Sneath has posted 30 secrets/tips on his blog. Some of the highlights include the following:

Get Quick Launch toolbar backTwo Microsoft employees have posted helpful Windows 7 tips, tricks and secrets this week.

• Right-click the taskbar, choose Toolbars / New Toolbar
• In the folder selection dialog, enter the following string and hit OK: %userprofile%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Quick Launch
• Turn off the "lock the taskbar" setting, and right-click on the divider. Make sure that "Show text" and "Show title" are disabled and the view is set to "small icons".
• Use the dividers to rearrange the toolbar ordering to choice, and then lock the taskbar again.
  

Windows Vista taskbar

Right-click on the taskbar and choose the properties dialog. Select the "small icons" checkbox and under the "taskbar buttons" setting, choose "combine when taskbar is full".

Starting explorer from "My Computer"

To do this, navigate to Windows Explorer in the Start Menu (it's in the Accessories folder). Then edit the properties and change the target to read:
%SystemRoot%\explorer.exe ::{20D04FE0-3AEA-1069-A2D8-08002B30309D}

Old behaviour for Windows Live Messenger

Navigate to C:\Program Files\Windows Live\Messenger\ and set the properties of msnmsgr.exe to Vista compatibility mode. This will place the Messenger icon back in your system tray and remove the 2 annoying tabs on the taskbar.

If you're wondering about the fish in the Windows 7 fish then it's a Betta Fish and also has 7 bubbles to signify Windows 7.

Brandon Paddock has posted a full list of the Winkey combinations for Windows 7 on his blog too.



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WEP and WPA Security

SUMMARY: What are the differences between WEP and WPA security in a wireless network?

By default, most routers are configured to offer virtually no security features, allowing anyone to access your network. Unfortunately, this allows others to use packet sniffing software to record your traffic, potentially including the names of sites you visit, electronic mail texts, and the passwords used to access non-secure webpages.

If you are setting up a wireless network at your home or business, in your wireless router configuration you may have come across the option to use either WEP or WPA security to help encrypt your data. What are the basic differences between the two?

(Note this article covers only the basics and does not discuss enterprise implementations of these protocols.)

* WEP, or Wired Equivalent Privacy, is an older method for securing wireless networks from snoopers by encrypting information sent to and from the router from computers and other network devices. While WEP is supported by most all devices that support wireless security, this type of encryption is relatively easy to break. Thus, if you use WEP security, many hackers will still be able to see what websites you visit, what search terms you use, etc. Note that accessing HTTPS (HTTP Secure) websites over WEP will offer limited protection.

* WPA, or Wi-Fi Protected Access, is a much more secure method of encrypting information sent over wireless networks. Several different types of WPA security are available, the one most users will run across is called WPA-PSK. This uses a 8-63 character passphrase that must be stored on the router and sent by each device that wishes to access the network. The longer the passphrase, theoretically the stronger the protection, so if you implement this protocol, please do not use passphrases such as "computer" or your first name. These can easily be guessed by hackers.

While WPA offers more security, it is not supported by some older devices and operating systems.

* WPA2 is like WPA but offers a stronger encryption algorithm, among other features. As with WPA, some older operating systems and hardware do not support this standard. As with the WPA protocol, use a longer passphrase to increase your network security. Baca Selengkapnya..