Seven useful Windows 7 tips and tricks

by Ed Rhee November 9, 2011 10:57 AM PST

Windows 7 is a good operating system right out of the box, but tweaking some of the settings and using keyboard shortcuts can enhance the Windows experience. Here are seven useful Windows tips and tricks to help you get more out of Windows 7: 1. Bypass the Recycle Bin The Windows Recycle Bin is a good safeguard against accidental file deletions. However, when you know you want to permanently delete a file, you can bypass it. Instead of pressing the Del key, press Shift+Del, then Shift+Enter to confirm. If you prefer, you can also permanently disable the Recycle Bin. First, right-click on the Recycle Bin, then choose Properties. Click on the drive you want to disable the Recycle Bin for, then select "Don't move files to the Recycle Bin. Remove files immediately when deleted." Click the OK or Apply button to save the changes.

(Credit: Screenshot by Ed Rhee) 2. Open Windows Explorer faster Are you still mousing over to a Windows Explorer icon or double-clicking on My Computer to browse your files? Try pressing Windows Logo+E instead, to instantly launch Windows Explorer. 3. Enable underlining of keyboard shortcuts Windows has many menu shortcut keys, but they're hidden by default. To enable the underlining of the shortcuts, go to Control Panel > Ease of Access Center > Change how your keyboard works. Click on the box next to "Underline keyboard shortcuts and access keys," then hit the OK or Apply button to save.

(Credit: Screenshot by Ed Rhee)

On the left, underlining is disabled. On the right, underlining is enabled. (Credit: Screenshot by Ed Rhee) 4. Bypass the Windows splash screen Disabling the Windows splash screen can shave a couple seconds from your total boot time. Launch the Windows Run command (Windows Logo+R), then type msconfig. Under the Boot tab, check the box next to "No GUI boot." Hit the OK or Apply button to save the changes.

(Credit: Screenshot by Ed Rhee) 5. Lock Windows quickly Whether you're at the office, library, or cafe, it's always a good idea to lock Windows before you step away. To lock Windows quickly, press Windows Logo+L. 6. Show hidden files, folders, and drives To view files, folders, and drives that Windows hides, open the Windows search box (Windows Logo) and type folder. Next, select Folder Options from the search list and navigate to the View tab. Under Hidden files and folders, check the box next to "Show hidden files, folders, and drives."

(Credit: Screenshot by Ed Rhee) 7. Rename multiples files To rename multiple files in Windows, highlight the files you want to rename, then hit the F2 key. Rename the first file, then hit Enter. All your files will be renamed and a number in parenthesis will be added to the end of the name. If you change your mind, you can hit Ctrl+Z to undo the rename.

Original file names to rename. (Credit: Screenshot by Ed Rhee)

New file names. (Credit: Screenshot by Ed Rhee) That's it. If you know of any other cool Windows tips and tricks, feel free to share them in the comments. Ed Rhee Ed Rhee, a freelance writer based in the San Francisco Bay Area, is an IT veteran turned stay-athome-dad of two girls. He focuses on Android devices and applications while maintaining a

review blog at techdadreview.com. Ed is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CBS Interactive. Topics: Computer Tags: Windows, Windows 7

See all Windows 7 coverage. Popular headlines Add appointments to your Android's lock screen How to see your retweets on Twitter How to find the best deals on Foursquare The best sites to track Black Friday deals How to edit photos with iDarkroom HD How to restore Google Reader followers to Google+ 36 comments Join the conversation!Add your comment (Log in or register)

1 2 Next

thanks - some I was aware of and use regularly, others will be useful Posted by craiglawrence3 (8 comments ) November 9, 2011 12:03 PM (PST) Like (2) Reply Link Flag E-mail No GUI boot. That I didn't know. Thanks! Posted by TheFutureIsNow (42 comments ) November 9, 2011 12:19 PM (PST) Like (4) Reply Link Flag E-mail Aren't all these present in Vista? Nothing new here, that I can see. Posted by echavis64 (1 comment ) November 9, 2011 12:31 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail Also some I knew about, but some I didn't. The NoGUI boot one is really nice. Didn't know about it. Posted by oramac1968 (22 comments )

November 9, 2011 1:02 PM (PST) Like (2) Reply Link Flag E-mail 20 quid says this article gets pounded like a prossie whilst I'm typing this comment. I actually make use of all of them with the exception of the underline one which I disable everytime because it just looks blerck. I made use of the F2 rename multiple files option the other day when I was working with the AVI files Fraps makes. Hella useful tool if you ask me. Posted by WinOSXBuntu (1283 comments ) November 9, 2011 2:31 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail Seems I lost 20 quid, b*llocks, where's Shellcodes when you actually DO need him. U_U Posted by WinOSXBuntu (1283 comments ) November 9, 2011 2:32 PM (PST) Like (2) Reply Link Flag E-mail Nice tricks! Posted by chun96 (2 comments ) November 9, 2011 6:25 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail ITS SO NICE PLZ GIVE THIS TYPE OF MORE SUGGESSIONS QUICKLY AND ALSO FOR LAPTOPS TO DO FASTER WORK Posted by LUV1432 (1 comment ) November 9, 2011 10:19 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail Please don't shout. It hurts my eyes. Posted by db32--2008 (53 comments ) November 10, 2011 7:10 AM (PST) Like (5) Link Flag E-mail Just a repackaging of an old story. Nothing Win7 specific as far as I can see. My only question is why it was released so long after Win7. Posted by farker1 (93 comments ) November 9, 2011 11:40 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail Thanks for the Heads~UP! "ROCK~ON" John Posted by jwljr972msn (1 comment ) November 10, 2011 12:54 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail Thanks. Nice set of tips. Posted by qazwaxone (64 comments ) November 10, 2011 1:34 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail I'll add one, because it's my favorite. You can just press the windows key and then start typing whatever file or program you want to open. (Maybe that one was obvious to most readers here, but you'd be surprised how many users aren't aware of it.) I hardly even use the "All Programs" mess anymore. Total waste of time to scroll and weave through menus and submenus when you can pull up pretty much anything you want with just a few key presses. (I also don't know if this was a feature of Vista. I skipped from XP to 7.) Posted by jmjanzen (4 comments ) November 10, 2011 6:31 PM (PST) Like (1) Reply Link Flag E-mail Thnks I didnt no that. If I need to access my pics, I can juse hit the Logo button AND TYPE "PICTURES" and it should bring all my pics up, Right??? Posted by tonya28 (1 comment ) November 11, 2011 1:40 PM (PST) Like Link Flag E-mail

The tricks are nice I enjoyed. Try cleaning your computer quickly of all junk and temporally files that make your computer slow.Click start get run then type shift 5 type temp again shift 5 then enter looks like this(%temp%) and then delete all.You can also type prefetch in the run command and delete plenty of dirty that clogs the computer. Gray Posted by graymulwanda (1 comment ) November 10, 2011 11:13 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail Press Window Logo key+TAB key. Any Applications you have opened will start to shuffle. Posted by webbrmkvc (3 comments ) November 11, 2011 1:46 AM (PST) Like (1) Reply Link Flag E-mail I always love learning things to speed up my computer. But being a computer novice, just what is GUI? Posted by jonsie9 (1 comment ) November 11, 2011 3:34 AM (PST) Like (1) Reply Link Flag E-mail GUI stands for Graphic User Interface. Posted by laurojar (1 comment ) November 11, 2011 4:51 AM (PST) Like Link Flag E-mail My fav shortcuts (NOT hi-tech, but used hundreds of times per day): 1. CTRL+C = copy 2. CTRL+V = paste 3. CTRL+Z = undo 4. CTRL+S = save (careful, NOT "save as") 5. CTRL+F = find (any word you type--great on the web & in PDF's) 6. ALT+PrtSc = copy (al la PrtSc) this window only 7. ALT+TAB = change between windows without the odd GUI Enjoy! (if they're new) Posted by nbeltz (1 comment ) November 11, 2011 5:09 AM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail You'd think people would know these, but it's simply astonishing how few do. And I'd like to add: CTRL+ALT+TAB = keeps app switcher open and can be navigated with the tab key (SHIFT sends it backwards) or the arrow keys. Posted by rauj13 (2 comments ) November 11, 2011 4:11 PM (PST) Like (2) Link Flag E-mail Alt + PrtSc is nice1 Posted by samirthapa (2 comments ) November 12, 2011 12:12 AM (PST) Like Link Flag E-mail wht is NoGUI boot?? Posted by vamsiiiii (1 comment ) November 11, 2011 9:17 AM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail It means you won't see the Windows logo when your computer turns on.

Posted by rauj13 (2 comments ) November 11, 2011 4:12 PM (PST) Like Link Flag E-mail You guys have some alsome upgraded new stuff since 2003 when i use to get my software from you! And i haven't seen spybot on any of your site at all. you must have replace it with a differant name. But man have evaled.keep doing what your doing ! Posted by ranstrd66 (1 comment ) November 11, 2011 3:06 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail Regarding point 3 "Enable underlining of keyboard shortcuts", this really isn't necessary unless you permanently want to see the shortcut keys. Normal, typical usage is to press Alt, which does the same thing but only at that moment. It would be worth mentioning this. Posted by Maeldor (72 comments ) November 11, 2011 6:40 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail Similar to the no gui boot, What I like to do as well is go to win logo-start search-type in msconfig-go to the startup tab at top right and click on "disable all" then apply. That disables everything that the computer has to get up and running before it can even let you do anything. So if you have 30-40 things selected in there, the pc won't use the cpu to boot those up first before anything. Really makes a difference. You would be surprised at how many things you probably have in there. Posted by andrewoffutt (1 comment ) November 11, 2011 8:30 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail Although this is great advice, if you have items that you DO want to start when the computer starts (AV, perhaps, or a program that you find essential), it is best to simply audit msconfig. Normally, leaving AV, Google Updater (I use Chrome), and whatever you deem NECESSARY at startup should be fine. I mean, it is still YOUR computer. As an example, when my computer loads, I have Microsoft Security Essentials, Google Updater (helps keep Adobe Flash updated, since it's inherent in Chrome; admittedly still installed because of IE9, but definitely installed separately without the updater), and Windows Live Mesh (because I love remoting home when I'm at work to work on my computer) start up when my computer starts. The only other thing in my startup catalog in msconfig is MS Office 2010, and that's disabled. There's no need to prefetch Office-especially with an SSD. Just my 4 pennies... Oh, and if you really want to do away with the million things in your startup, simply go to the program that is starting up and change the preference. That'll solve the problem. Any good program has this selection. Getting used to taking control of the programs you have goes a long way in building comfort with your PC, while becoming quite anal about the things you install... But, Andrew's way does primarily work (I disable MSO 2010 this way). Although I have seen times where a program will generate another instance of a start up item to comply with what the user told it to do... Posted by G-Systems (41 comments )

November 13, 2011 9:29 PM (PST) Like Link Flag E-mail how to make a folder invisible Posted by sandythesmarty13 (1 comment ) November 12, 2011 12:16 AM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail Go into it's properties (by right clicking the icon) and select "hidden"... Of course, if you follow the tip in the article (showing hidden folders and items), then that's out of the picture... Posted by G-Systems (41 comments ) November 13, 2011 9:32 PM (PST) Like Link Flag E-mail You can also disable Windows services to speed up your PC. But misconfiguration may crash the system. And this link can help you to disable only unnecessary services. http://www.blackviper.com/2010/12/17/black-vipers-windows-7-service-pack-1-serviceconfigurations/ To disable the services, Click Start Type Services and Go to Services. Posted by samirthapa (2 comments ) November 12, 2011 12:21 AM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail it's great... but still learn... hopefully i can used this with smoothly and convinience Posted by henny_rosalia (1 comment ) November 12, 2011 6:44 AM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail I have a question that I can't find a correct answer to; I have a Dell Inspiron 9300 Laptop a few years old. I use a wireless mouse instead of the mouse pad. How can I disable the mouse pad? I've asked several people and sites without success. Does anyone have any suggestions??? I'm using Windows 7 Home. Thanks. Posted by dbonnie24 (1 comment ) November 12, 2011 1:00 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail I have an older Dell Inspiron as well. If you go to the Dell touchpad properties, you should see a "Device Select" option and a check box that says, "Disable Touchpad/Pointing Stick when external USB mouse is present." Posted by techdadreview (37 comments ) November 12, 2011 8:33 PM (PST) Like Link Flag E-mail Re. the Dell touchpad. I have a Dell M5030, and here's what I did. Click Start, type Microsoft Mouse, in the Search field, and when the Mouse menu comes up, You'll see a picture of your touchpad. Click on the touchpad image, to change its settings. You can choose to deactivate the touchpad, when another mouse is plugged into the USB port. If there's no mouse plugged in, the touchpad will work, as usual, automatically. Hope that helps! Posted by lara_r73 (1 comment ) November 12, 2011 5:42 PM (PST) Like Reply Link Flag E-mail

1 2 Next

Join the conversation

Comment

Add your comment

The posting of advertisements, profanity, or personal attacks is prohibited. Click here to review our Terms of Use.
o

36 comments

o o o o o

23 inShare More

<div align="center"><a href="http://ad.doubleclick.net/click;h=v2|3E72|0|0|%2a|a;247344225;00;0;71494449;4307300|250;44487961|44505749|1;;;pc=cbs549290%3fhttp://www.lincoln.com/crossovers/mkx/expe riencemkx/?bannerid=346004|71494449|247344225|0&referrer=N3016.Cnet" target="_blank"><img src="http://i.i.com.com/cnwk.1d/Ads/12455/11/190/20111012/12_MKX_MB_300x250_webST D.jpg" height="250" width="300" border="0" alt="Click Here" /></a><img src="http://ad.doubleclick.net/imp;v1;f;247344225;00;0;71494449;300|250;44487961|44505749|1;;cs=l;pc=cbs549290;%3fhttp://ad.doubleclick.net/ dot.gif?2011.11.14.05.54.46" width="0" height="0" border="0" alt="" style="position:absolute; top:0px; left:0px" /></div>