Using Windows XP to search for some text within files and it’s not working? It may be that the text is within a “non-common” file type - it would appear that XP only searches a specific set of file extensions. Which is typically shoddy of Microsoft.
Thankfully there is a workaround.
XP SP3 is due to pop-up on Automatic Updates very soon.
In the meantime you can download it directly from Microsoft. This is the final, release version of the SP.
As well as rolling up past fixes, this adds new features ported from Vista and early reviewers suggest that it increases performance by up to 10%.
Me? I’m installing this as soon as possible. Who needs Vista?
Have you seen the price of PC memory these days?
I was looking to possibly update my desktop from 1GB to 2GB after performing some recent benchmarks. What I found was that the memory in my current desktop runs slower than in my previous one (DDR2 is slower than DDR, and this is the issue).
Anyway, I found that my current memory was rated at 533, whereas I could actually go a lot higher with my system board. I found that 2GB of 800 memory was just £32. Wow. So I ordered it.
Now, I’d like to say it’s made a huge increase but it hasn’t. Humbug. Benchmarks have shown it to be better but not hugely so.
What I did find, though, is that a simple tweak to XP’s swapfile makes just as big an improvement. If you’ve not done this, right-click on My Computer, select Properties, click on the Advanced tab, then the Settings button in the Performance frame. Once the Performance Options window opens, click on the Advanced tab and then the Change button under the Virtual Memory area. Click on the entry for your system disk, check the Custom size radio button and enter the same number in both the Initial Size and Maximum Size fields. The general rule of thumb is to make the swapfile 1.5 times your physical memory size - 3000Mb in my case.
A number of friends have recently had problems with their PC’s - more specifically related to Windows. And I know why. They’re all running dodgy copies of XP, and suffering as a consequence. One even tried to resolve the problems with their dodgy SP1 copy of XP by wiping their hard drive and installing an even dodgier SP2 version of XP. It also came with a number of other applications that they didn’t want. Or were able to uninstall.
My advice is always simple. Buy it. eBuyer currently sell oem copies for less than £55. It’s above board, it won’t come with any unexpected surprises and you shouldn’t get any messages from Microsoft telling you that your copy is hooky.
An oem copy of Vista can be bought for the same money but buying a Windows OS before the first service pack is not recommended. In fact I’d recommend waiting until the second service pack - OS’s generally have a 10 year shelf-life, so waiting a year or so isn’t a great problem.
Other than XP, I have little commercial software installed on my PC - most of it is open source and freeware. Exceptions I can think of are Paint Shop Pro and PowerDVD (both cheap oem copies) and DBPowerAmp (it’s the fastest CD ripper I’ve come across). Oh, and Office 2007. It’s expensive, and most people will find the free OpenOffice just as good. In my case, though, the less than 100% compatibility was causing me issues so I had to open my wallet.
Here’s something that get Matt Fry salivating… my definitive guide to making Windows XP look cool. Or like Vista (depending how you see it). And it’s all free.
Here are my recommendations for what you need to download…
Zune theme
I mentioned in a previous post - it’s a black and orange colour theme for Windows.
Vista cursor
Read the supplied read me file for installation instructions.
Vista Wallpapers
Lots of official and un-official Vista wallpapers. I use WallMaster to cycle through mine.
Vista Sounds
Hmm, I have them installed on my PC but can’t find where I got them from… will upload them and put a link on my Blog when they’re ready.
Sidebar
After looking at various sidebars, the Google version ended up as my favourite, mainly due to the large number of gadgets available for it.
Alt/Tab Replacement
Microsoft provide a great Alt/Tab replacement as a PowerToy, although it’s not as good as Vistas Flip 3D. Oh well, you can’t have everything.
But, if you want to flip your windows about in 3D, try Madotate - personally I didn’t get on with it. Anyway, there’s no installer with it, so after unzipping it, run install.reg (this will add a registry entry) and then run madotate.exe to kick it off. A system tray icon will appear - from here you can change settings, etc. You will also notice that your current focused window has a new button at the top - click on this to make the window go all-3D.
And that’s it for now - if you can suggest anything further, please let me know.
