Doctor Computer » Software

Windows 7 GodMode Control Panel

DC — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 06:03:09 +0000

For Windows users who like to tweak their systems, there’s a newly found hack to enable most, if not all, Control Panel actions and more to be displayed in one folder listing. This “GodMode” is enabled by creating a new folder and entering a folder name followed by a period and the following text and hexadecimal string {ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}

For example, you could create a new folder and name it

GodMode.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}

Ultimate Control Panel.{ED7BA470-8E54-465E-825C-99712043E01C}

You can use the GodMode Control Panel to perform the tasks under the following sections:

Action Center
Administrative Tools
AutoPlay
Backup and Restore
BitLocker Drive Encryption
Color Management
Credential Manager
Date and Time
Default Programs
Desktop Gadgets
Device Manager
Devices and Printers
Display
Ease of Access Center
Folder Options
Fonts
Getting Started
HomeGroup
Indexing Options
Internet Options
Keyboard
Location and Other Sensors
Mouse
Network and Sharing Center
Notification Area Icons
Parental Controls
Performance Information and Tools
Personalization
Phone and Modem
Power Options
Programs and Features
Recovery
Region and Language
RemoteApp and Desktop Connections
Sound
Speech Recognition
Sync Center
System
Taskbar and Start Menu
Troubleshooting
User Accounts
Windows CardSpace
Windows Defender
Windows Firewall
Windows Update

Activating Windows 7 Using Upgrade Version After a Clean Install

DC — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 05:41:00 +0000

I recently had to wipe my hard drive and reinstall Windows 7 Professional in an attempt to rid myself of a persistent system freezing issue. I later realized that a hardware component of my system was the actual culprit to the freezing issue, but that’s another matter entirely.

In any event, I took my Windows 7 Professional Upgrade DVD and started the process of installation on a fresh drive. Upon the first appearance of the activation window, I entered my product key and tried activation. Windows responded that the key was invalid. No matter, this actually happened the first time I installed my copy of Windows 7 back in October, so I knew I could bypass this screen by deleting the product key and pressing enter. I would have 30 days to reenter my product key and activate Windows.

A few days later after reinstalling all my programs and getting the system configured, I tried activating again. And again. And again. I tried other methods to no success after being on hold with Microsoft phone support for longer than I cared.

That’s when I stumbled onto this method of activating Windows 7 that I had not seen before. I don’t know the original source, but I obtained the below instructions from mydigitallife.info.

Clean Install and Activate Windows 7 with MediaBootInstall Registry Hack

After booting up, ensure that no Windows Updates pending task which requires a system reboot to finish installing.Tip: Normally, an orange-colored shield icon will be displayed next to Shutdown button in the Start Menu Power Button or at notification tray area if a restart is required. If reboot is required, restart the computer to allow any pending updates is installed.
Run Registry Editor (RegEdit).
Navigate to the following registry key:HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup\OOBE
In the right pane, change the value data for MediaBootInstall from 1 to 0. Leave the base as Hexadecimal.
Open an elevated command prompt as administrator.
Run the command below to reset Windows 7 activation status:
slmgr.vbs -rearm
Reboot the computer.
Run the Activate Windows utility (accessible from bottom section of Control Panel -> System and Security -> System, or type Activate Windows into Start Search), type in the upgrade product key and activate Windows.

Netbook GMA Graphics

DC — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 14:33:53 +0000

If you have a netbook with Intel Graphics Media Accelerator video, you should visit GMABooster.

The author of this site has created a free utility that will unlock the standard speed of your video chipset. I say the “standard” speed because these netbooks are assembled with the video chipset underclocked. I installed the software on my ASUS Eeepc 1000HE netbook and it improved the video capabilities noticeably.

Be sure to check if the software for your video chipset is available for download, and consider donating to the author so he can develop further GMABooster software for other GMA chipsets.

ZoneAlarm

DC — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:24:30 +0000

A little late on this posting, but anyways… If you are still without an internet connection and use ZoneAlarm as your firewall, please see the following news item from ZoneAlarm.

ZoneAlarm Fix

Microsoft Update KB951748 is known to cause loss of internet access for ZoneAlarm users on Windows XP/2000. Windows Vista users are not affected.

Microsoft Update KB951748 – Workaround to Sudden Loss of Internet Access Problem

If you are not interested to read the full article, here’s how to fix this issue.

Stop ZoneAlarm by right clicking the system tray icon and selecting “Shutdown ZoneAlarm”
Download and install the latest free version here. If you don’t use the free version, please visit ZoneAlarm.com and download the appropriate software.
Restart your computer when prompted and your internet connection should be fixed.

Converting Movies From Your Digital Camera

DC — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 20:01:08 +0000

Have you ever tried converting those movie files taken with your digital camera to more friendly format? Well, here is a FREE video conversion software that will do just that.

MP4Cam2AVI

MP4Cam2AVI is MPEG4/MJPEG to AVI converter/joiner for MPEG-4 camcorders and digital photo cameras. It makes MPEG-4 camera clips DivX/XviD compatible and playable with any DVD-MPEG4 player like regular MPEG-4 movie.

MP4Cam2AVI – MPEG4/MJPEG to .AVI converter/joiner for digital cameras