Computer Blogging

This is a simple tip which a member’s question prompted me to post here.

If your I.E. opens minimised or in a smaller window than you would like, here is a work around.

Open Internet Explorer but dont maximize it.
Drag the corners of the window until it completely fills the screen or is at the size you want it to be.
Do not use the maximize button to enlarge the window.
Hold down the Ctrl key, and use the mouse to click on File and then Exit.
Do not use the “X” in the upper right corner to close the window.

Internet Explorer should now open in a full window.
If it still opens to a smaller size repeat the above but this time us the “Shift” key instead of the “Ctrl” key.

Are you ready for Windows Vista? Well, it has finally showed up in the Amazon database, although only for pre-order. They state it will be ready to ship on January 30th, 2007, but I believe there will likely be another delay or two.

You can see the Windows Vista Upgrade Prices or pre-order if you like.

Also, if your computer has not been bought in the last year or so, you may have to do an upgrade or purchase a new PC to get the same or better performance out of the new OS

What is Windows Live Marketplace? Windows Marketplace is a online shopping and download site dedicated to offering you a broad selection of software and hardware for your Windows PC. Windows Marketplace also uses Microsoft’s “Digital Locker” technology.

The digital locker allows you to download and install the products you have purchased on Windows Marketplace, make backup CDs, and view your software licenses. Browse Windows Marketplace and choose from a wide variety of software from hundreds of retailers. Every title you purchase is available for instant downloading and many are available to try before you buy.

Visit Windows Live Marketplace by clicking here.

NOTE: This How To involves editing the system registry. Please, make sure you make a back up of your registry before any registry editing procedures.

Sometimes when you uninstall a program, the corresponding in the Control Panels Add/Remove Programs applet may not be removed.

This can be due to incomplete uninstallation or the poorly designed uninstaller itself. To remove the invalid/orphaned entries from the Add/Remove applet manually read on:
Start Registry Editor (click on start then Run and type Regedit then press enter).
Navigate to the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Curr entVersion\Uninstall
Look for the name of the program with the orphaned entry
Delete the entire listing for the software with the orphaned entry
Close the Registry Editor
If there are some {GUID} sub-keys under the Uninstall key.
Each {GUID} represents a software product that you’ve installed. Under the above key, click each {GUID} entry and verify the DisplayName shown in the right-pane. Once you locate the item that you want to remove from Add/Remove Programs, backup the entry to a REG file and then delete the key.

Example:
PC Inspector File Recovery has the GUID {0DD140D3-9563-481E-AA75-BA457CBDAEF2}
[HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uni nstall\{0DD140D3-9563-481E-AA75-BA457CBDAEF2}]
“DisplayName”=”PC Inspector File Recovery”

Orphaned entries are those whose uninstallers are not available but the registry entry might point to the actual uninstaller file. You may also see errors like “missing install.log or uninstall.log” while trying to uninstall from Add/Remove Programs. The install.log / uninstall.log contains the uninstallation information about a program. When you remove a program from Add/Remove Programs, the log files come into play and remove the corresponding software entries from the registry and the files in the hard disk.

If the LOG files are missing, you may need to reinstall the application again (in the same path) and then try a clean uninstall again. In some cases, the application might be removed, but the entries may still exist in the Add/Remove Programs list. Orphaned entries are usually a result of a system restore rollback operation. Use the above method to remove the Uninstall entries.

Are you having a problem with a technical or business question that seems to be getting your down? If you have searched the entire Internet, searched computer.blogsandstuff.com and even searched the PCSupportForums Archive you might be ready to Ask Dave Taylor.

Who is Dave Taylor? Dave is a Internet and Technology entrepreneur who has been involved in many technology companies and start ups. If you have a question and cannot find the answer, Ask Dave Taylor.