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  Updated 01/14/05

Welcome to Windows 98, the third eddition or as Microsoft calls it, Millennium

Page 2

<l==========Back to the Main Win Me Index       Win Me Tips========l>

Increase Reboot Speed

Warning: This tip is only for the most advanced users. Tweaking the Registry is very risky. Always back up the Registry before you make any changes.

To increase the reboot speed of your computer,

1. select the Start menu, Search,
2. then choose For Files Or Folders.
3. In the Named box, enter msdos.sys;
4. in the Look In box, enter C:, then
5. click on Find Now.
6. Once the file appears, right-click on it,
7. and select Properties.
8. Deselect the Read-Only
9. and Hidden attributes,
10. then choose OK.
11. Next, right-click on msdos.sys,
12. choose Open With from the menu,
13. enter Notepad as the opening program,
14. then choose OK.
15. Under Options, enter BootDelay=0 or BootDelay=1 on its own line. (This represents delays of 0 and 1 second respectively, both of which are faster than the 2-second default.)
16. Save your changes, and close Notepad.
17. Now, to return msdos.sys to its read-only and hidden states,
    1. right-click on it,
    2. select Properties,
    3. check the Read-Only
    4. and Hidden boxes,
    5. then choose OK.
18. Finally, quit and
19. restart your computer.

Lock Your Desktop Settings

Warning: This tip is only for the most advanced users. Tweaking the Registry is very risky. Always back up the Registry before you make any changes. To lock your desktop settings, from the Start menu, choose Run, then enter RegEdit. Under

HKEY_CURRENT_USER, select Software/Microsoft/Windows/CurrentVersion/Policies/Explorer.

In the right-hand pane, right-click on NoSaveSettings, then select Modify. To disable Windows' ability to save settings on exit, add a numeral one (1) to the current value. Save your changes, quit RegEdit, then restart your computer.

Autorun Failure in Windows Me

Q - How do I make my Win Me computer run CDs automatically?

A - To find out what the solution is, click below: http://eletters1.ziffdavis.com/cgi-bin10/flo?y=eOka0C6pKC0FMz0fBJ0Au

Resolving ICS Upgrade Conflicts

If you receive this error message: WUAUCLT Has Caused An Error In Unknown or WUAUCLT Will Now Close, chances are you upgraded to WinME from a Win98 Second Edition system using ICS (Internet Connection Sharing). To resolve the problem, uninstall ICS, then reinstall it. From the Start menu, select Settings, Control Panel, then double-click the Add/Remove Programs icon. On the Windows Setup tab, click Communications, Details, then deselect the Internet Connection Sharing checkbox. Click OK to close the dialog box, then restart the computer. Connect to the Internet directly (without using ICS), accept the Automatic Updates End User License Agreement, and reinstall ICS through the Add/Remove Programs icon, following the on-screen instructions to run the Home Networking Wizard.

Delete Images in the My Pictures Folder

If you receive an error message which says: Cannot Delete Filename, Access Is Denied, The Source File May Be In Use, you may have tried to delete an image from the My Pictures folder or from another folder. Microsoft notes that if Web view is enabled, and you open the My Pictures folder or any customized folder that uses the Image Preview template, selected images display in the Image Preview window and are considered in use. So, while the image is being drawn, a Generating Preview...message displays in the Image Preview window, and the file locks up so you cannot delete it. To disable Web view, select Folder Options from the Tools menu, then click the General tab's Use Windows Classic Folders option.

Eliminating the Win9x Logon Dialog

Q: On bootup, Windows Me asks for a user name and password. The user name comes up automatically as administrator but the Password is left for me to enter. I have no password and don't know what it used to be, but I finally discovered the dialog box goes away if I press Escape. However, since it interrupts my reboot, it's annoying. I also discovered that replacing the administrator username with my name (I changed the owner name in the registry) will work without a password - I don't want one - when I press the dialog's OK button.

But how can I get rid of the dialog altogether?

A: About 10 people asked me this question every month, so it must be time to do a recap.

Unlike the tight security you'll find on Win2k or WinXP, password 'security' on Windows 9x or Me is a snap to bypass. To get rid of that annoying logon screen, do this:

• Click Start, Settings Control Panel.
• Double-click the Network applet.
• On the Configuration tab, select Windows Logon as the Primary Network Logon, then close the dialog box.
• Delete any file in the \Windows folder with the extension .pwl.
• Reboot.
• The password prompt will appear one last time. Press Enter (don't press Escape) and you'll never see it again.

Shrink Windows Me Index.Dat Files in Windows Me

Q. How do I shrink index.dat files in Windows Me. I can't delete them from the DOS prompt. I'm running Windows Me and can't get to a DOS prompt. How do I get rid of these files now?

A. Internet Explorer puts index.dat files in the C:\Windows\Cookies folder and/or the C:\Windows\Temporary Internet Files folder, depending on your version of IE. Index.dat files keep growing as you surf the Web, and the only way to shrink them is to delete them (Windows will automatically re-create smaller versions). But Windows always keeps these files open, so they're difficult to delete.

One way to delete your index.dat files is by logging on as a different user. Select Start, Settings, Control Panel and launch the Users applet (if Users isn't visible, click the view all Control Panel options link on the left side of Control Panel).

If your system doesn't already have more than one user setting, this approach will bring up the Enable Multi-user Settings Wizard. As you walk through the wizard, create the User name noindex and don't enter a password. On the Personalized Items Settings page, check Downloaded Web pages. When you're finished with the wizard, Windows will ask whether you want to restart your system. Answer in the affirmative.

Windows will log you off, and then log you back on as 'noindex'. Once Windows is running, select Start, Log Off noindex and log back on as yourself. Windows will tell you that you haven't logged in with this name before--click Yes, then log off and back on again with the user name 'noindex'.

Now you can delete all index.dat files except those intended for the user 'noindex'. Since 'noindex' doesn't surf the Web, these index.dat files won't grow. When you're done, log off and then back on again as yourself.

Change Windows Me's Default File View

Q. When I open a folder or Windows Explorer in Windows Me, the files are always displayed as large icons, and I have to change the display each time to Details view. Is there any way to make Details view the default on my system?

A. Change one folder to look the way you want it to, by selecting your preferred view (Large Icons, Details, Thumbnails, or what have you) from the View menu. Then, to make this view global, select Tools, Folder Options, click the View tab, and click the Like Current Folder button.

If you would prefer not to devote such a big chunk of Explorer's real estate to displaying a file's description, simply turn the description off. Choose the General tab in the Folder Options dialog box, select Use Windows classic folders in the Web View section, and click OK.

Fix system files without reinstalling Windows

Q. How do I restore a lost or corrupted Windows .dll file? There has to be an easier way than doing a complete reinstallation of Windows.

A. First, find out what .cab file the damaged .dll file is stored in on the Windows CD-ROM. A .cab file is like a .zip file--it holds one or more compressed files. I'll show you how to restore the file in both Windows and DOS.

To find the file in Windows, insert your Windows CD or Restoration disc; then double-click My Computer, right-click the CD-ROM drive, and select Find (or Search in Windows Me and 2000). Your CD-ROM drive will be highlighted in the 'Look in' field. Type *.cab in the top text field, and enter the name of the missing or damaged file in the 'Containing text' field. Click Find Now (or Search Now, as in Figure 1). For examply: Containing Text = Lost.dll

When the search is done, one .cab file should be listed. The file you want is inside that .cab file. To extract it, double-click the .cab file to open the archive as if it were a folder. Find the desired .dll file, and double-click it. In the resulting dialog box, select the appropriate restoration location, such as C:\Windows\System.

If double-clicking the .cab file doesn't bring up anything, consider using CabView, one of the Windows 95 Power Toys. It's available from Microsoft.

If a damaged file prevents you from running Windows, or if the OS won't let you overwrite the file, restore the old file via DOS. Use your start-up disk to access the CD-ROM drive from DOS.

What? You don't have a start-up disk? Create one now! Select Start, Settings, Control Panel, and double-click the Add/Remove Programs icon. Click first the Startup Disk tab and then the Create Disk button, and follow the instructions.

Put your start-up disk in your floppy drive, click Start, Shut Down, and choose the Restart option. As your computer reboots, you'll see a menu. Select Start computer with CD-ROM support, and you'll eventually see an A> prompt. Above the prompt will be a message with your CD-ROM's drive letter (probably one letter after its usual one).

At the prompt, type x:, where x is the CD-ROM's new drive letter, and press Enter. Type cd \win98 (for Windows 98) or cd \win9x (for Windows Me), and press Enter.

The prompt should now read something like 'E:\win98>'. Type dir *.cab /p and press Enter. When you're prompted to press any key, press Ctrl-C.

The next command is a bit more complicated. Type extract /a /l c:\windows\system topname.cab dllname, where topname is the file name immediately under '..' near the top of your screen, and dllname is the name of the file you need to restore. The command should look something like

extract /a /l c:\windows\system base4.cab winmm.dll

When you're sure you've typed it correctly, press Enter. Tip: before beginning this exercise type:
DOSKEY then hit enter. Now if you want to redo a command simply hit the up arrow key until you come back to a previous command, beats typing.

When the prompt returns, remove the floppy and reboot your computer. Your damaged file should be restored.

To leran more about the DOS extract commmand see Bohunky0 Explains DOS Extract Command

Q. Running an antivirus program with the latest virus signature >files should automatically delete all dormant viruses found on >my PC, right?

A. Yes, in most cases. However, for example, it will not automatically remove all viruses from Windows Me systems. Infected files located within the Windows Me Restore directory are Windows-protected and cannot be removed manually or with an antivirus program. Therefore, most antivirus software companies provide special removal instructions for Windows Me users, and Microsoft has even posted a Knowledge Base article about it: #263455.

Windows Me boosters
Waiting for Windows XP got you down? Windows Millennium is the OS of the moment, but it's not without its flaws. We dug up some fixes, patches, and just plain enhancements to make Windows Me smarter, faster, stronger, and more fun. Check out 15 downloads that'll help plug the holes in Windows Me. In C|Net Software (This page in C|Net Software no longer applies and has been removed, thanks to reader Charles)

<l==========Back to the Main Win Me Index 

Creating an Me Startup Disk Manually

Q: My Windows Me system crashed and I can no longer get Windows to start up at all. I was going to use my startup disk to get the system back up and running, but all I can find is my old Windows 98 startup disk; I don't seem to have an Me disk. Is it okay to use this old disk to boot, and then try correcting the problems and loading Windows Me? Or is there another way around my problem?

A: It all depends how badly your system has crashed. You can certainly boot with a Win 98 disk and take a look around from DOS. If necessary, you can reinstall Windows from your Windows Me CD (make sure you boot with CD-ROM support enabled).

However, if you'd like to create a Windows Me startup disk, you can do that, too. Although Me doesn't have a DOS-based startup disk creation utility, you can use your Windows 98 disk to create a Windows Me boot disk from DOS.

To do this, you'll need your Win 98 startup disk and a blank floppy. You'll also need to have the \Windows\Command\Ebd folder present on your hard disk. This is the Emergency Boot Disk folder. You can check for it by loading DOS (use your Win 98 boot disk to start your system and choose the Start Computer Without CD-ROM Support option) and then typing:

DIR c:\windows\command\ebd

and pressing Enter. You should see a listing of the files in the directory scroll by if it's present; otherwise you'll see the message File Not Found, and you're out of luck. (Of course, if you installed Windows to a folder other than c:\windows, then you'll need to substitute your installation folder's name in place of 'windows' in the command above.)

Once you've established the \windows\command\ebd folder is present, you're ready to roll:

1. Restart your computer using your Win 98 startup disk.
2. Select the option Start Computer Without CD-ROM Support from the menu.
3. When the DOS prompt appears, type:

FORMAT a: /s

4. and press Enter (don't worry about the case of the command - DOS will ignore upper and lowercase). Insert a blank floppy in the drive when prompted. When prompted for a label, use something descriptive like StartupMe and when asked if you wish to format another disk, press N.
5. When the formatting has finished, keep the floppy in the drive and type the following commands, pressing Enter after each one:

ATTRIB -h -s -r *.*
DEL *.*
COPY c:\windows\command\ebd\*.*

That's it. You can now reboot with your newly created Me Startup disk in the drive, and you'll be presented with the regular Win Me Startup Menu. Choose Start Computer With CD-ROM Support.

Computer May Not Hibernate with More Than 192 MB of Memory

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q296/7/73.asp

"When you are running several programs on Windows Millennium Edition (Me) on a computer that has 192 megabytes (MB) or more of random access memory (RAM), you may not be able to hibernate the computer. Instead, the screen may turn black for a few seconds, and then the desktop reappears. This problem occurs because a calculation that is made to determine the amount of memory to be allocated for the hibernation file may return incorrect results in a large-memory situation when the computer is under a heavy memory load (over 192 MB of RAM installed with several programs running). This may cause the hibernation attempt not to work. A supported fix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem described in this article and should be applied only to systems experiencing this specific problem." My fix? GET RID OF WINDOWS ME!!!

Auto Update for Win Me isn't working.

The Automatic Updates feature replaces the Critical Update Notification tool that is included in Microsoft Windows 98 and Microsoft Windows 95. It is intended to automatically deliver critical updates that are available on the Windows Update Web site with little user interaction by utilizing the available bandwidth of your connection to the Internet. If no connection exists, Automatic Updates are suspended until the next connection occurs before checking for or downloading updates.

Automatic Updates are designed to check for updates every 24 hours. If there are no updates available, Automatic Updates resets and then checks again in 24 hours after the Internet connection is established. If the download is interrupted, Automatic Updates resumes at a later time when there is available bandwidth.

You can configure Automatic Updates by using the Automatic Updates tool in Control Panel. There are three settings:

• Automatically download updates and notify me when they are ready to be installed.
• Notify me before downloading any updates and notify me again when they are ready to be installed.
• Turn off Automatic updating. I will update my computer manually.

 

The default setting is "Automatically download updates and notify me when they are ready to be installed".

The first time you run Automatic Updates, a small globe icon appears on the right side of the taskbar. If you click this icon, a wizard starts and prompts you to read and accept the End User License Agreement. When you do so, the End User License Agreement starts the Automatic Updates process. Note that is you do not accept the End User License Agreement, you must connect to the Microsoft Windows Update Web site to manually install the critical updates:

http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com

When the update package is ready to be installed, a balloon appears above the right side of the taskbar. If you then click this balloon or the Automatic Updates icon, you receive a dialog box that contains the following three buttons:

• Details: Provides a description of the package(s) that are available.
• Remind Me Later: So you can install the downloaded package at a later time.
• Install: Immediately installs the package(s).

Disable Anti-Virus software when downloading and installing critical updates
It may be a good idea to disable any antivirus software that is running during the update process as this may cause problems.

The Windows Me Hotfixes

Using the Qfecheck.exe tool to determine which builds of WinMe are installed successfully
Determine which version of Win Me you have and how many builds have been informaed thus far. To check this information click Start | Run and type Qfecheck.exe and hit enter or click okay. This will give information of builds installed and will also indicate an unsucessful intalation. Once Qfecheck.exe starts you can get more information on the program by clicking the help button.

If you have Norton System Doctor installed on your Win Me based machine
If you have the Symantec Norton System Doctor running be sure to disable it while you are updating your Win Me componants as Sys Dr. will conflict witht the installation process. See the below section for more instruction of Norton System Doctor.

0 byte OEM.INF folders
The Windows\Inf folder contains many Oem*.inf files that are 0 kilobytes (KB) in size. If the Windows Me-based computer has Norton System Works 2001, with the System Doctor installed and running, these Oem*.inf files are written when you update your Windows Me-based computer.

RESOLUTION

To work around this issue, delete all Oem*.inf files in the Windows\Inf folder that are 0 KB in size.

To delete all of the 0 KB files, follow these steps:

1. Set Windows to show all files. To do so, open Windows Explorer, on the Tools menu, click Folder Options, click the View tab, and then select the Show hidden files and folders option.
2. Click Start, point to Search, and then click For Files or Folders.
3. In the Search for files or folders named box, type oem*.inf.
4. Verify that the Look in box shows C:\Windows\Inf.
5. Click Search Now.
6. In the Search Results window, sort the files by size by clicking on the header of the Size column. If you cannot see the Size column, maximize the Search Results window.
7. Select all of the 0 KB files:
   
   1. Click the first 0 KB Oem.*inf file to highlight it.
   2. Scroll down the list to the last 0 KB Oem.*inf file, and while holding down the SHIFT key, click to highlight it.
      
8. Press the DELETE key.
9. Click Yes when you are prompted to confirm the deletion.
10. Close Windows Explorer.
11. Disable Norton System Doctor while installing the Windows Me updates.
    
    To disable Norton System Doctor, click the Norton icon in the taskbar. Click the traffic light icon in the window that appears. This opens the Norton System Doctor window. Close the Norton System Doctor window, and then click Disable on the dialog that appears that prompts you to minimize or disable Norton System Doctor.

I realize that this isn't exactly what you were hoping for. Unfortunately Microsoft doesn't have a fix for Win Me in this problem category. I suspect that one may be forth coming once MSIE 6.0 final version is released. Microsoft is gathering allot of data with this product and should be coming up with a bunch more fixes soon.

On a side note, here is a Microsoft Knowledgebase Article which relates to this issue.
How to Extract and Replace a Protected File in Windows Me

Checkpoints That You Create Do Not Restore Your Computer

http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q290/7/00.ASP
"When you attempt to restore a checkpoint that you created after September 8, 2001 in Windows Millennium Edition (Me), the restore procedure does not work after you restart your computer. This problem occurs because the algorithm that is used to calculate the checkpoint file name does not work after September 8, 2001. A supported fix is now available from Microsoft, but it is only intended to correct the problem described in this article and should be applied only to systems experiencing this specific problem. To resolve this problem immediately, download the fix as instructed or contact Microsoft Product Support Services to obtain the fix."

MAKE WINDOWS DIAL 10 DIGITS

PROBLEM: Ten-digit dialing has come to your local calling area and all the dialing settings in Windows 98 are no longer working.

SOLUTION: In Windows 98, go to the Control Panel and select Telephony. On the Dialing Properties tab, click Area Code Rules. In the dialog box select; "always dial 10 digits" (located at the top). In Windows Millennium Edition, double-click Dial-up Networking in Control Panel, select the connection you need to change, right-click, and then turn on the Area Code rules check box. When that is checked, the connection will dial the area code.

What to do if you suspect a virus has penetrated your Restore Files

Windows ME Info:
NOTE: Windows ME utilizes a backup utility that backs up selected files automatically to the C:\_Restore folder. This means that an infected file could be stored there as a backup file, and your VirusScan will be unable to delete these files. These instructions explain how to remove the infected files from the C:\_Restore folder.

Disabling the Restore Utility

1. Right click the My Computer icon on the Desktop.
2. Click on the Performance Tab.
3. Click on the File System button.
4. Click on the Troubleshooting Tab.
5. Put a check mark next to "Disable System Restore".
6. Click the Apply button.
7. Click the Close button.
8. Click the Close button again.
9. You will be prompted to restart the computer. Click Yes.
NOTE: The Restore Utility will now be disabled.
10. Restart the computer in Safe Mode.
11. Run a scan with your favorite Virus Scanner
12. After removing the desired files, restart the computer normally.
NOTE: To re-enable the Restore Utility, follow steps 1-9 and on step 5 remove the check mark next to "Disable System Restore". The infected file's are removed and the System Restore is once again active.

System Restore & McAfee's QuickClean
Can they live together? No! Is there a fix? Yes!
Update on the fix
The Disappearance of CrashGuard