Windows XP: 10 Things To Do First Top Tips and Tweaks for Customization and Convenience Eric Grevstad
Mon 12/10/01 -- What's the first thing you should do after installing Windows XP? Our half-joking answer is, "Add more RAM" -- our 128MB system is working fine, but we definitely wish we had 256MB. Our serious answer is to make sure your system's up to date, protected from viruses, and working the way you want before you start loading your applications and getting to work.
You don't have to be a Windows wizard or expert administrator, either; just a few minutes' tinkering with system settings and changing a few of Win XP's less desirable defaults can make a big difference. We've tapped Microsoft's and other Web sites (one of the best is TweakXP.com) and mixed their advice with a few of our own favorite tips to create a top-10 to-do list: Here's what you should do as soon as Windows XP Setup has finished and you've logged in from the Welcome screen for the first time.
1. Install and update your antivirus software, and run Windows Update while you're at it. How many hundreds of "Re:(blank)" e-mails or attachments from strangers does it take to convince you? Windows XP's new Personal Firewall won't protect you from Goner, Sircam, ILOVEYOU, or any of the other epidemics that infest Internet Explorer, Outlook, and Outlook Express on a daily basis, so you should put your antivirus program CD into the drive the moment you take the Win XP disc out -- and as soon as the virus-fighter's installed, run its online update to fetch the latest, up-to-date virus signatures.
Second in importance to regular antivirus updates is Microsoft's own Windows Update -- there have already been more than half a dozen patches and upgrades to Windows XP, ranging from compatibility improvements with Nero 5.5 and McAfee VirusScan to cures for glitches in Remote Assistance and XP's CD-burning code and support for additional Webcams, camcorders, and TV tuners in Windows Messenger.
We're paranoid on principle, so we've changed Windows Update's default setting of automatically downloading available updates without telling you. You can instruct the OS to ask your permission before downloading, or do nothing until you launch Windows Update manually (from the "All Programs" listing on the Start menu), by going into System Properties. The latter is the System module in Control Panel, also available by right-clicking My Computer in the Start menu and selecting Properties. Once there, click on the "Automatic Updates" tab.
2. Save hard disk space. Like previous versions of Windows, XP sets aside a hefty 10 percent of your hard disk to store deleted files in the Recycle Bin; that made sense when PCs had 200MB hard disks, but is a whopping waste of 2GB to 10GB today. Right-click the Recycle Bin, choose Properties, then move the "Maximum size of Recycle Bin" slider to 5 percent or less.
While you're at it, go into System Properties and the System Restore tab -- on our desktop, Windows XP set a hoggish maximum of 12 percent of our hard disk to hold restore points (data used by System Restore to revert your PC to an earlier, working state after a crash, software-installation glitch, or other faux pas). Slide that sucker down to size, too -- or consider turning off System Restore and devoting disk space to the more thorough and versatile super-undo protection of Roxio's GoBack instead.
3. Turn on ClearType. Notebook LCD viewers will be astonished by the sharper text that Microsoft's new sub-pixel-tweaking typography feature delivers, and we're getting hooked on it on our CRT monitor as well. Alas, ClearType is turned off by default. Go into the Display module in Control Panel, or right-click an empty space on the desktop and choose Properties. Select the "Appearance" tab, then "Effects," and pull down the "Use the following method to smooth edges of screen fonts" menu to change Standard to ClearType.
To get even more out of ClearType, you can visit Microsoft's Web site at http://www.microsoft.com/typography/cleartype and activate ClearType from there, choosing among six font-display or line-thickness options. If you crave ClearType even on the Welcome login screen, launch the Registry Editor (REGEDIT from the Run command on the Start menu), find the key HKEY_USERS/.DEFAULT/Control Panel/Desktop in the left panel, and right-click the item FontSmoothingType in the right panel. Select Modify, then change its value to 2.
4. Speed up the Start menu. No, it's not your imagination; the Start menu can be a little leisurely. Make it appear quicker by using the Registry Editor to change the value of HKEY_CURRENT_USER/Control Panel/Desktop/MenuShowDelay from 400 (the default) to 100.
Also, don't be shy about customizing the Start menu. Not only can you promote your favorite applications from the "All Programs" submenu by right-clicking them and selecting "Pin to Start menu," you can demote entries with "Unpin from Start menu" (or, for the recently used applications in the lower half of the left column, "Remove from this list").
And by right-clicking the Start menu and selecting Properties, you can tweak to your heart's content -- not only switching between the new and Classic menu layouts, but exploring the "Advanced" options to change My Computer from a link (window) to a menu, or rid of My Pictures and My Music, or turn off the "My Recent Documents" record of files you've accessed.
