By Miguel Leiva-Gomez for MakeTechEasier.com
Things You Probably Didn’t Know But Really Needed in Windows 7
There comes a time in one person’s life, when he or she makes a paramount discovery of certain settings, features, or tweaks of Windows 7 that open doors to a brand new lifestyle. That moment could be now for you, depending on whether you know absolutely everything about your operating system or not. This is the moment of truth, the moment in which you’ll have to face reality and realize that Windows 7 can pack a bigger punch if you give it a nudge in the right direction.
1. Tired of Typing In Your Password? Have Windows Do It Automatically!
For those of you living alone, or those of you who share a computer with people who you wouldn’t mind poking around, you don’t necessarily have to keep typing your password at Windows’ logon screen. Versions of Windows as early as XP have been supporting automatic logins for quite some time although not many actually know about this.
Access the Start menu, type “netplwiz” and press “Enter.” If this isn’t functioning, type “control userpasswords2“. This will take you to the same place. Once in the user accounts window, clear the checkbox labeled “Users must enter a user name and password to use this computer.” You should find it here:
Click “OK” when finished and you’ll never have to type in a password again.
2. Lock/Shutdown/Hibernate/Sleep/Standby on a Simple Shortcut
If you prefer using a shortcut to turn off the computer, there are some neat tricks you can use to create a shortcut for any of the “shutdown menu” options that you normally find on your Start menu. This is especially useful if you’re the kind of person that switches to the desktop before turning off the computer, making it easier to shut it down without having to waste time fumbling after the options in your Start menu.
Right-click any area on your desktop and go to “New -> Shortcut.” Type “shutdown.exe -s -t 00” in the field provided and click “Next.” Name your shortcut and continue the wizard until you feel happy with what you’ve done.
Use these shortcut locations to perform other actions:
*Restart = shutdown.exe -r -t 00
*Lock computer = Rundll32.exe User32.dll,LockWorkStation
*Hibernate = rundll32.exe PowrProf.dll,SetSuspendState
*Sleep = rundll32.exe powrprof.dll,SetSuspendState 0,1,0
Once you’ve set your shortcuts, you can double-click them from the desktop or move them to a more appropriate location. One neat trick is to pin these to the taskbar for easier access, even when you’re not at your desktop.
Tips Continued Here
This excerpt is shared with permission from maketecheasier.com.
