Types of Windows Tweaks.

There are various methods for editing the registry to have Windows XP change its behaviour. I am often asked what Windows XP Tweaks are available. The answer to that question is just about ANY tweak you could imagine...To give you a an example; suppose you have installed on your PC one of those free CD's that help you get connected to the internet. They usually contain a version of Internet Explorer that has been "branded" with a companies name and logo. So suppose you wanted to get rid of the companies name that appears in the blue bar at the top of the browser. Well, this information is stored in a "subkey" in the Windows XP the registry. So by removing this "subkey" you will remove the companies name from the browser.Sounds simple eh? But just HOW do you actually perform this and all the other Windows XP Tweaks? Windows XP Tweaks - The Methods

1)Software: The number one method I recommend to clients is purchase a commercial program that will do the tweaking for you. This way you do not have to go anywhere near the registry data yourself. These programs often allow you to see some sort of preview of the change, or make it a synch to reverse the change should you not like it.Just type in the search term "windows xp tweaks" at Google, and the search engine will give you links to websites that sell this software.Or take a look at this great package: http://www.updatexp.com/windows-xp-tweaks.html

2) Manual Editing: If you know your way around the registry it is possible to manually edit the registry using the Registry Editor. There are many specific Windows XP Tweaks available on the Internet. Just use a search engine like http://www.google.com/ to locate these manual changes.

3) Registry Patches: When you use the Registry Editor to make any manual change it is possible to save this change as a file and then "apply" it to another Windows XP machine. For example if you have a PC at home and at work and you wish to have the same tweak on each machine. Just create a registry patch by opening Registry Editor and selecting the branch you wish to export. (eg where you just made the changes). Go to the File menu and select Export and type a filename then hit OK. You now have a file ending with the extension .reg that can be applied to another Windows XP machine. To do this open up the registry editor on the target PC and from the file menu select Import and select the patch. Then click OK. The patch will then be applied and a dialog box will pop up telling you the patch was applied successfully. As you can see it is very easy to make registry patches, however making sure you have selected the correct branch and data contained in it, is much more difficult! Always back up you registry first!A quick search on the Internet will reveal lots of registry patches created by other XP users that you can download and use on your machine. However make sure you trust the source you are getting theses files from...

4) Visual Basic Scripting: Many Windows XP Tweaks are created by programmers using the Windows Visual Basic Scripting language. For the novice user of Windows XP Tweaks making your own Visual Basic files is not an option. However, the reason I mention them here is that if you find a website that offers Windows XP Tweaks and the file format offered is .vbs . Then you will know that this type of the registry change will be performed using this scripting method. Essentially all you do is double click the file and the script will run and make the changes to the registry. Then a dialog box will appear informing you that the changes were made successfully. Again, always be sure you are downloading files from a trusted source! It is worth mentioning here that some Anti Virus programs might perceive this file to be a virus. It is unlikely to be so but better safe than sorry.... try to use one of the other methods described in this article to achieve the same result.

5) Advanced Properties: There are many Windows XP Tweaks that can be performed simply by altering the "advanced settings" for that particular function. An example here would include changing the Windows XP system colours. I would encourage all confident users of Windows XP to delve deeper into their desktop operating system!