Bits'n'Bytes

As heard on CJCD

Episode 11

Okay, I'll be honest with you. When Windows XP first came out, I hated it. It had quirks and kinks that needed to be ironed out, the desktop looked like a scene out of a smurf cartoon, and all the menus were different from what I was used to. Like most people, I'm not too keen on change. Once I'm comfortable with something, I want it to stay the way it is…

Well, now XP has been out for a few years and some of the kinks have been ironed out and I've gotten more used to it. I've even found a few features I find really handy…

My favourite, of course is the system restore feature of XP. Ever turned your computer on to find you can't access the internet any more? This can happen when you get a virus or during the removal of some types of spyware. Once you've figured out what probably caused the problem, a quick fix is to restore your system to a previous time. Windows XP actually saves a bunch of data at different times so if something bad happens, you can tell your computer to go back to a time when it was working. It's kinda like a mini backup of your computer, but it's done right on your hard drive. You don't need a tape reel or a CD or DVD burner - it's all done automatically. Once you've set your computer to use the data from a day when it all worked fine, you can go ahead and do your virus and anti spyware scans to get rid of whatever caused the problem in the first place.

System restore doesn't work all the time, but when it does it's a real time saver.

Another thing I like about XP is that I can make it look like the Windows 98 I was so comfortable with. By going to the control panel and selecting the Taskbar and Start Menu icon, I can change my Start Menu to what Microsoft calls the Classic Start Menu. Then, go to the Display Properties icon and change the Appearance to Windows Classic Style and voila - your machine looks just like a vintage Windows 98 machine - well, it will if you get rid of the smurfscape.

If you need a hand with anything XP, be sure to give us a call - we'll be glad to help.

Stay tuned next week for some interesting information on blogging.

I’m Computer Dave, thanks for your time.