To do this occasionally, press escape at bootup. To prevent it occuring generally, edit the MSDOS.SYS file and add the line LOGO=0 to the 'options' section.

To restart Windows 95 without a full warm boot, select shut down from the start menu, click the restart computer option, and hold the shift key down while affirming "yes".

Normally, when you open an Explorer window and double-click an icon, Windows opens the file you selected using the program associated with that file type. But what if you want to open the file with a different program? If you experiment with different graphics viewing utilities or media players, you run into this problem regularly. To change the file association, you need to prevent Windows from automatically opening the file with the current default program. Follow these steps:

Click to select the file in an Explorer window.

Hold down the Shift key and right-click on the file icon.

Pick the program you want to open the file with from the scrolling list. If you can't find the program listed there, click the Browse button to search for the program's executable file (.EXE extension).

To make the change permanent, check the Always use this program to open these files box.

By default, the Windows Recycle Bin sets aside 10 percent of the space on each disk partition in your system, for storage of deleted files. If you have a large hard drive, the Recycle Bin could be using up more than 2 GB of storage. To adjust its appetite to a more manageable level, right-click on the Recycle Bin icon and choose Properties from the shortcut menu. Use the slider controls on the Global tab to decrease the percentage of space allotted to the Recycle Bin for all drives on your system. For most large drives, a size of 3% is sufficient to prevent waste.

Searching the Net can be tedious work, especially when you're browsing in unfamiliar territory. One way to cut down on needless mouse clicks is to use extra Internet Explorer windows. If you've reached a page you know you'll want to return to, press Ctrl+N instead of clicking a link. This opens a second window on the current page. Use the new window to continue exploring. When you want to return to the page where you started, use the Taskbar to switch to the other Internet Explorer window. To launch a link in its own window, point to the link, right-click, and choose Open in New Window from the shortcut menu.

One common source of Windows problems occurs whenever a newly installed application program replaces a crucial system file with an outdated or incompatible version. Windows 98 offers a built-in tool that can find and fix these problems fast. To use the System File Checker, click the Start button, choose Run, and enter the command SFC. Follow the prompts to scan for altered files, replacing them if necessary. Click the Settings button to adjust options that let the utility do its work more effectively.

WinZip is the best archiving tool for Windows, period. If you've downloaded and installed this essential utility, use it in combination with Explorer to make short work of archiving tasks. After selecting one or more files, right-click and choose the Add to Zip option to create a new Zip file containing the items you selected. To quickly unzip a compressed file, hold down the right mouse button and drag the Zip file icon to a new location. The shortcut menu lets you extract the files to the current location or to a new folder.

Are you tired of hunting around on the desktop or drilling through cascading menus to find the programs you use every day? Why not attach keyboard shortcuts to them? If you follow the rules, it's easy.

This technique works with only Windows shortcuts, not with program icons. And the shortcut must be stored on the desktop or in the Programs menu--Windows ignores your instructions completely if the shortcut is stored anywhere else. Finally, the key combination must consist of a letter or number plus at least two of the following three keys: Ctrl, Alt, Shift.

To assign a keyboard shortcut, right-click on the shortcut icon and choose Properties. On the general tab, click in the Shortcut key box and press the key combination you want to use (if you press only a letter or number, Windows adds Ctrl+Alt to the key assignment). Click OK to save your change. I've assigned the key combination Ctrl+Alt+Shift+C to the Windows Calculator; now, from within any program, all I have to do is press those keys to pop up the calculator instantly.

Do you want to send a courtesy copy of an email message without letting the main recipient know you're doing so? That's the purpose of the Bcc (blind courtesy copy) field. By default, Outlook Express hides this useful field, but you can make it visible with just two clicks. From a new message window, pull down the View menu and choose All Headers.

The Bcc field is especially useful when you want to send a message to a large number of recipients, but you don't want to broadcast all those addresses. In the To field, enter your own email address. Use the Bcc field for the addresses of all other persons you want to receive your message.

Windows 95 and 98 can automatically start up programs for you every time you boot your computer. In fact, some Setup programs automatically add program shortcuts to the Startup group on the Programs menu, which causes them to launch automatically along with Windows.

That can be a real time-saver when you know you'll always use the same programs. But it can also be a hassle if the auto-started program is causing you problems. How do you skip a program whose shortcut is in the Startup group? Simple. Restart your computer and hold down the Shift key as Windows loads. Windows will start as normal, but it will ignore any programs in the Startup group.

Windows Explorer, launched in Windows Millennium, by default will open the "My Documents" folder. Many people prefer the behavior from previous versions of Windows, where Windows Explorer would open and display "My Computer" instead of the new way. To revert to the old way [My Computer by default rather than My Documents as the default], simply edit the shortcut to Windows Explorer, by right clicking on it, and left clicking "Properties" and changing the "Target" box to: "C:WINDOWSEXPLORER.EXE /n,/e," [adjust the path/drive letter if needed]. The key is to add the "/n,/e," to the end of the shortcut. (The quotes are not needed).

If you want to turn off the System Restore feature:

1. Right-click on the My Computer' icon on the desktop
2. Select Properties
3. Click on the Performances tab
4. Click on the File System button
5. Now click on the Troubleshooting tab 
6. Check the Disable System Restore box

If you want to lock the taskbar so it can't be accidentally moved or resized:

1. Right click on the Taskbar
2. Select Properties
3. Click on the Advanced tab
4. In the bottom window, scroll to the bottom
5. In the Taskbar section, uncheck Enable moving and resizing

If you don't want to have Personalized Menus (this is where only your most frequent menu items are shown)

1. Right-click on the Task Bar
2. Select Properties
3. Uncheck Use Personalized Menus

You can easily display more information than the File Name, Size, Type and Modified Date in Explorer. 

1. Right click on any one of these headings in the Explorer in the right hand panel.
2. This will bring up some of the additional fields you can display.
3. Items such as Attribute, Comment, Created Date, Accessed date are available.
4. You can also click on More for other items as well
5. Selections such as Comment can be useful for Word and Excel documents. 
6. You can right click on the file, select Properties / Summary. 
7. Select the Comment field and enter in a short description for the file. 

The System Monitor now includes a Dial-Up Adapter section
You can monitor items such as Connection Speed, Bytes Received or Transmitted / Second, as well as several types of errors.

1. To run the System Monitor, go to Start / Programs / Accessories / System Tools
2. From here you can Add items from Edit / Add
3. If you need to install the System Monitor, go to the Control Panel / Add/Remove Program / Windows Setup / System Tools