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Recover Deleted Photos, Pictures and Other Files

Mon, 23 Jan 2012 09:35:35 -0600

Have you ever accidentally deleted a photo or other file from your computer or digital camera? Even if you clear the recycle bin, there is still a chance your pictures can be recovered. Even though a file was deleted there is a good chance the contents of the file are still around. When a file is deleted the contents of the file are not removed. Only a pointer to the file in the file...

Make the Legacy Desktop More Touch Friendly

Mon, 26 Sep 2011 09:00:40 -0500

The Metro side of Windows 8 looks beautiful and is well designed for touch but unfortunately the vast majority of windows apps still require the legacy desktop. Using touch to control legacy apps can be a painful experience as few were ever designed for touch. The most common complaint is the interface is just too small for touching. Basic tasks such as selecting or clicking often results in the...

Logon with a Picture Password

Fri, 23 Sep 2011 08:20:06 -0500

Picture Passwords are one of the more innovative new features in Windows 8 that enables you to logon by touching or clicking specific parts of a picture to authenticate. Any picture in your library can be used as a reference to help you remember where the three parts of your picture password are located. Basic gestures such as dragging your finger or mouse along a specific part of the...

Logon with a PIN instead of a Password

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 10:52:12 -0500

Typing in my Windows Live account password every time I turn on Windows 8 lows me down when I just want to quickly access an app. Microsoft includes a logon PIN feature but it is not exposed to users when an account created. Although this reduces the physical security of your computer I like to use a logon PIN so I can quickly log in, and best of all, with just one hand. After you log in...

How to Create a Windows To Go USB Drive

Mon, 19 Sep 2011 21:15:01 -0500

Windows To Go is a new feature of Windows 8 that allows enterprises to provision a full corporate environment that will boot from a USB drive. Once the instance of Windows 8 is booted it functions and is controlled by standard enterprise management tools such as SCCM and Active Directory group policies. Work at home and disaster recovery are the primary use cases as Windows To Go...

How to Touch the Windows 8 Metro Interface

Sat, 17 Sep 2011 21:21:24 -0500

Windows 8 introduces a new touch paradigm that is different from other touch devices on the market. To help you get started I have outlined the basics of touch on Windows 8 that are used throughout the new Metro interface. Not all touch gestures are compatible with every Metro application; some are up to the developer to implement when appropriate. Single tap Initiates the primary action...

Download the Windows 8 Developer Preview

Sat, 17 Sep 2011 17:30:14 -0500

The Windows Developer Preview is a pre-beta version of Windows 8 for developers. These downloads include prerelease software that may change without notice. The software is provided as is, and you bear the risk of using it. It may not be stable, operate correctly or work the way the final version of the software will. It should not be used in a production environment. The features and...

Change Remote Desktop RDP Port

Thu, 04 Aug 2011 08:45:09 -0500

Port 3389 is the home of the remote desktop protocol that powers Remote Desktop Services on all modern versions of Windows. If your system has Remote Desktop enabled, it is listening for connections on port 3389. Since this port is both well known and can be used to attack accounts, it is low hanging fruit for script kiddies and bots looking for an easy...

Enable RAW Image Support in Windows Explorer and Photo Viewer

Wed, 27 Jul 2011 07:09:58 -0500

The Microsoft Camera Codec Pack enables viewing RAW image files taken by more than 150 cameras from Canon, Nikon, Sony, Olympus, Pentax, Leica, Minolta, Epson and Panasonic. The codec pack enables viewing of the files in any image viewer that is based in Windows Imaging Codecs (WIC) such as Windows Explorer, Photo Viewer and Windows Live Photo Gallery. The Microsoft...

Customize Default User Account Picture in Windows 7

Mon, 18 Jul 2011 09:23:11 -0500

The default flower user picture is displayed for new accounts and on various logon screens throughout the OS. Customizing this picture requires a simple file copy and doing so will allow you to personalize your PC or even display a corporate logo.The default picture file is located in C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\User Account Pictures\ and is called user.bmp. I recommend...

Batch File Rename with Windows PowerShell

Mon, 27 Jun 2011 09:33:14 -0500

Microsoft included a batch rename feature in the latest version of Windows allowing you to select multiple files, right click on one and select rename. All of the selected files will be renamed with the name you provided and a number. This functionality works well for basic files but does not provide any flexibility in exactly how the files are numbered and also does not allow the file extension...

Download Adobe Reader and Flash without Adobe Download Manager

Mon, 23 May 2011 08:28:17 -0500

The Adobe download manager is part of the normal install of Adobe Reader and Flash that allows Adobe to bundle additional software with their products. After the download manager is installed, Reader/Flash along with other software (Adobe Air) can be downloaded and installed. When dial-up Internet connections where common download managers provided a valuable...

Search the Office 2010 Ribbon with Search Commands

Mon, 16 May 2011 06:00:17 -0500

While the ribbon interface in Office 2010 is a refined version included in Office 2007 it is completely new for many users that upgraded from Office 2003 directly to 2010. For new users the most popular problem is finding where settings and features are located in the redesigned ribbon menu. Microsoft Office Labs has released the perfect add-on utility for any new Office 2010...

How to burn CD and DVD images (ISO files) from the Command Line

Mon, 02 May 2011 10:26:04 -0500

Windows 7 and 8 includes a free image burning utility called the Windows Disc Image Burner that allows you to quickly write CD and DVD images. The utility has a graphical interface but can be run from the command prompt by passing the proper parameters. To start burning a CD or DVD ISO file immediately from command prompt, simply type in: isoburn /q drive:\file.iso For example: isoburn /q...

How to install Telnet with only one command

Tue, 26 Apr 2011 07:09:23 -0500

Starting with Windows Vista, Microsoft no longer includes the telnet command installed by default. It is still available but must be installed or enabled by the user. The normal way to enabled additional features is through the “Turn Windows features on or off” window found in Control Panel. This accomplishes the task but can be annoying when you are...