Computer Game Buying Tips

Computer games are generally for an entertainment value, and can also be educational. Below we have listed several considerations to look at when buying a computer game.

Considerations

Demo
Today, a large majority of computer games that are released are also released as a demo and are available through computer game magazines or off of the Internet. If you are purchasing the game for yourself and have not seen or played the game, you may consider playing the demo (if available) before purchasing the game. The demo is generally found from the developer's web site.

Mass multiplayer
Mass Multiplayer games are generally an excellent choice for any advanced or new game player. These games generally are games where the player joins thousands, sometimes millions, of other players from all over the planet and build up their character, fight creatures, develop skills, fight other players, talk, and much more. While these games are generally fun and can be played sometimes for years, they do generally require a small monthly fee. This fee can be anywhere from $10.00 to $20.00 a month and help to maintain the servers, help with updates and maintain your account.
These games are also only available when connecting to the Internet and do not offer a single player option.

Multiplayer
Multiplayer is similar to Mass Multiplayer; however, these games allow the players to play with a few players (2 - 20 players generally). These are still fun and excellent games, and are generally games where you must either shoot and frag other players, or develop an online character by fighting creatures.
Unlike the Mass Multiplayer games, these games are quick and do not require hundreds of hours of game play and can generally be played as Multiplayer or Single Player.

Piracy
Piracy, unfortunately, is very commonplace in the computer gaming industry and Computer Hope highly recommends that it not be considered. While it has been easy in the past, gaming piracy has become more difficult. Users who pirate games may be forfeiting the ability to play with their friends online, not be able to receive updates for the games, and more importantly are not supporting the company of the game.
Users who let their friends pirate their games may also be forfeiting the same above rights. If you share your serial or ID number with a friend you may be giving up your right to play on-line as your number will likely become invalid.

Rating
The ESRB rating of a game determines how violent the game is; below is a listing of several of the ratings found on the majority of all games today. See our ESRB dictionary definition for additional information on ESRB and a listing of each of the ratings.

Type
There are several types of games. These games can vary from first person shooter to sports. Visit our game page for a listing of computer games and game types as well as a description on each of the game types.

Upgrade
When purchasing a software game, ensure that it is not an upgrade to an early version of the game. Many of the available updates will require that the previous version of the software be already installed on the computer.

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Game Definitions - G

G2G
Shorthand for Got to Go or Good to Go, G2G also abbreviated as GTG and is a term often used in chat communications and computer gaming.

Game
Warcraft gameA type of computer software that has been designed to entertain and/or educate an individual. Today, computer gaming is a big business and there are millions of different types of computer games that are enjoyed by people of all ages.

Game control adapter - game port
More commonly known as a game port, the game control adapter is a port found on IBM and IBM compatible computers. The game port allows users to connect such devices as joysticks, game pads, steering wheels and various other devices that allows additional functionality to the computer.

Paddle
1. More commonly known as a game paddle or gamepad, a paddle is an input device commonly used with games that may contain various buttons used to steer and utilize different options in a game. The majority of console game systems utilize a paddle for control.
2. The term paddle may also be used to describe various handheld devices that are capable of controlling a function on a computer or electronic device.

Gamespy
Large gaming network that contains information, reviews, and files for games as well as a network that connects various games together online.

Gank
Another commonly used term to describe a player who is PKing other players. Often ganking is associated with a higher level player killing lower level player, for example, a level 60 player killing a 36 level player, which often requires little or no effort and simply grief's the player being killed.

GG
Shorthand used in game play that is short for Good Game. This tells other individuals who are playing the game or just finished a game that the game played was a good game.

Ghosting
1. Term used to describe a shadowing effect on any moving images on a screen. This type of issue can occur if you are using an older monitor, have a software setting enabled that causes this effect, or system resources are low.
2. A description of a person who has gone offline yet is still appearing as though they are still logged in.
3. A term used to describe a type of cheating in online games where players that have died tell other players that are still alive where other players in the game are.
4. Another method of describing a LCD or flat-panel display with a slow response time.
5. Using Norton's Ghost program, the act of ghosting is the method of copying the complete hard disk drive contents to another media such as a CD or network drive. Once ghosted, this image can quickly be distributed over several computers.
This is commonly done in a corporate environment where the same operating system and corporate software needs to be installed on several computers quickly.

Gib
1. Also known as gibbage, a gib is a game term coined by Adrian Carmack of Id software and is used to describe one or more fragments of another player's body when they are killed by a large weapon such as a rocket launcher.
2. A Gib is short for Gibibit.
3. A GiB is short for Gibibyte.

GM
1. Short for Game Masters, GM's are real people who help run, maintain, and assist other players in online games.
2. Shorthand for Good Morning, GM is often used in chat rooms to greet users in the morning.
3. GM can also be short for Good Manner(s) and is sometimes used in computer games and chat rooms.

Gold
1. A precious metal that is used in computing because it is a good electrical and thermal conductor.
2. A color commonly yellow that represents the color of the precious metal gold.
3. More commonly known as Gone Gold or Going Gold, this term is used to describe a software program that has finished its development stage and is now in the process of being manufactured to be released to the general public.
4. Gold is also a form of money used in a lot of computer games to purchase game goods. Often games that have gold will also have copper, silver, and/or other precious metals for different denominations of money.

Grats
Shorthand for congratulations, grats or gratz is used in chat conversations and online games as a way of congratulating someone about something they've accomplished.

Rocket jumping
In computer games such as Quake, rocket jumping is a technique where the player fires a rocket using their rocket launcher at the ground, wall, jump pad, or other surface and at the same time jumps causing the player to travel a greater distance. This is a great tactic to get to a higher position, to escape another player, and/or get to another spot faster. Because you take damage and this is part of the game this is not considered cheating.
In addition to rocket jumping there is a similar tactic called grenade jumping, where the player places a grenade at their feet or below a vehicle to propel themselves or an object into the air.

Griefer
Any person who intentionally causes other people on the Internet or in games grief or other problems.

Grind
A term used by game players to describe the process required to increase a game characters level or overall experience. It's often referred to as the grind because of the tedious task of doing something over and over again and/or because the process starts to become no fun and more like work instead of a game.

Group
In general refers to a collection of two or more people that are put together and labeled. For example, in the case of computers a collection of individuals who work for the customer service department may be assigned the workgroup group name: cs, and be given excusive rights or privileges to programs and/or files they need to have access to.

Guild
A group of people in an online game that work together in defeating creatures or other mobs that cannot be done alone. Unlike a party a guild is a permanent group and can contain several hundred members. Many online games now support guild chat, which allows any guild member to easily talk to all guild members currently logged in and is usually a much easier method to find help or find something to do.

Gunbound
A popular multiplayer game developed in Korea and played around the world that is similar to Scorched Earth or Worms.

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Games Definitions - E

E3
Short for the Electronic Entertainment Expo, E3 is an expo that was first held in 1995 and today is one of the most recognized events for gaming and other entertainment.

Epic
1. An epic item in a game is an item that is extremely rare. For example, one in a million.
2. Term used to describe something that's extraordinary or out of the norm. For example, in gaming and other online communication someone may describe a post made by another person as an "epic fail," which is another way of saying it's an amazing failure or extremely bad.

EQ
1. Short for equals, eq is an operator used in programming languages and in command line commands as an abbreviation for equals.
2. Short for equalizer, eq is a software program or hardware device that increases or decreases the volume of specific audio frequencies.
3. Short for EverQuest, EQ, also known as EverCrack for its addictiveness, is a highly popular MMORPG game.

ESA
Short for Entertainment Software Association, ESA is an association dedicated to serving the business and public affair's needs of companies that publish computer and console games.

ESRB
Short for Entertainment Software Rating Board, ESRB is a rating system that helps enable parents and others choose games that are most appropriate for their children. Below is a listing of some of the ESRB rating symbols that you are most likely going to see on a software product and a description for each of these ratings.

EC Short for Early Childhood, EC games are best fit for children under the age of 3.
E Short for Everyone, E games are games that are good for all ages of people.
T Short for Teen, T games are games that are best for persons over the age of 13.
M Short for Mature, M games are games that are best for persons over the age of 17.
AO Short for Adults Only, AO games are games that are best for persons over the age of 18.
RP Short for Rating pending, RP are games that have a rating that is still under investigation.

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Games Definitions - D

DD
Shorthand for Don't Die, DD is a term often used in chat communications and computer gaming.

DDR
1. Short for Double Data Rate, DDR is a type of memory that utilizes both the rising and falling edge of the system clock that has the potential of doubling the speed of the memory. Today, the DDR technology can be found in high end Video Cards as well as computer memory such as DDR-SDRAM.
2. Short for Dial-on-Demand Routing, DDR was developed by Cisco and is a new routing technique that uses existing telephone lines to help form a WAN.
3. DDR is also short for Dance Dance Revolution. A popular arcade and console game where users must dance on a pad in conjunction with what is being displayed on the screen.

Deathmatch
Type of first person shooter game where the players win by obtaining the most frags. Often deathmatch is abbreviated as DM or TDM for Team DeathMatch.

Demo
1. A software file that enables a user the ability to try a service, software program, software game, or software utility before purchasing it or signing up. Although demos are often available as demo disks, many demos today are downloaded from the Internet for free.
2. In addition, when referring to a game, demo mode refers to a mode that demonstrates the computer game without requiring any interaction from a human player.

DIN
1. When referring to a connector, DIN is a type of connector that conforms to a standard defined by the DIN group. Computer keyboards, computer mice, network routers, video appliances, and Apple serial devices are a few examples of hardware devices that may use a DIN style of connector.
2. Short for Deutsche Institut fuer Normung, DIN is a German standardization group.
3. Shorthand for Do It Now, DIN is commonly used in chat rooms and online gaming.

Ding
Gaming term used to signify the user has just increased one or more levels. This term is often seen in MMORPG games such as EverQuest.

Microsoft DirectX
DirectX ABCs
Current available version = 9.0c
Windows Vista users = 10
First released in 1995, DirectX is a set of APIs (Application Program Interface) developed by Microsoft to allow all programs to write instructions for hardware without knowing exactly what hardware is within the computer. Games which include DirectX, will have the capability of utilizing multimedia and graphics accelerator features more efficiently.
The original releases of Windows 95 did not ship with DirectX; Windows 95 OSR2 however did included DirectX 2.0. To see which version of windows you are using, see our page Information about determining Windows Versions.
Windows NT shipped with DirectX 2.0. Upgrading to Service Pack 3 or higher will install DirectX 3.0. However, there are no higher versions of DirectX available for Windows NT. Installing Service Pack 4 or higher will install later versions of DirectPlay, however.
The latest version of DirectX can be found at http://www.microsoft.com/directx.

DKP
Short for Dragon Kill Points, DKP is a point system that originated in the online game EverQuest and today used in many other MMORPGs that helps players distribute the loot obtained from creatures that require a large party of players (often 10 or more). For each player that participates in killing a large creature or other large mob the player earns points, often based on the difficulty and amount of players participating. These points are often kept track of by the guild leader and can then be used for loot the creature drops, the player that has participated the most will have the most points and be entitled to the rare or otherwise valuable loot first.
Each game and guild has their own method of obtaining and keeping track of DKP. When joining a guild in an online game it is best that you talk with the guild leader and/or visit their personal page for additional information about how they manage the guild DKP.

Dmg
Short for damage, dmg is a term often used in gaming as an indication of how much damage was inflicted on a person or thing in the game or how much potential damage an item in the game is capable of inflicting.

DND
1. Shorthand for Do Not Disturb, DND is a common tag or extension added to users name or alias to let other users or players know that person does not wish to be disturbed either because he or she is away or because they are busy.
2. More commonly known as D&D, DnD is short for Dungeons and Dragons and is a role playing game where players play with a number of different characters in an imaginary world. Each player has the ability to choose their own character, each with a selection of different attribute points. The player navigates the world and interacts with the environment by rolling a number of different dice to determine their moves and actions. D&D is played by millions of people around the world and today many of the computers RPG and MMORPG games are based on many of the same ideas of this popular game.

DOT
1. Single pixel on a matrix display.
2. Single small dot on a dot matrix printer print out.
3. Period separating related pieces of information on the Internet such as www.computerhope.com.
4. In a RPG or MMORPG a DOT is short for Damage Over Time and is a type of spell or other damage that causes a player or creature in a game harm for a short period of a time. For example, a player hit by a poison spell could be poisoned for several seconds unless they are cured.

Dupe
In computer games dupe or duping often refers to act of a player tricking the game and generating a duplicate of another item. For example, a player may use a duping technique to make a duplicate of a high level weapon or other item in the game. Any type of duplicated item in games is considered cheating and often duping an item and/or owning a duped item can cause your account to be suspended or banned in many online games.
Computer Hope does not give assistance or tell players how to duplicate any items in any online games.

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Games Dictionary - C

Camper
Term often used in computer gaming to describe an individual who remains in one position for a good majority of the game, picking off other players as they come to them. Generally, this position gives that individual an advantage over other players and in many cases, helps defend an item or objective. For example, in the computer game Quake, a player may position himself or herself on a platform with the rail gun, allowing him or her to shoot other players without allowing them the ability to fight back easily. Generally, a player who camps too much is looked down upon by the other players.

Carebear
A derogatory term given to other online game players who only want to take the easy way and/or make the game as non-challenging as possible. For example, when referring to a MMORPG game players may refer to servers that are non-PvP as carebear servers.

Chain mail
1. Also known as a chain letter, a chain mail is a forwarded e-mail sent unbeknown to e-mail contacts containing false information and/or a myth because of sympathy or a scare.
2. When referring to a game or armor, the term chainmail is used to describe a type of armor that is made by connecting a series of small rings together. Chainmail is commonly more protective than ringmail armor.

Class
1. Term used in object-oriented programming to refer to a set of related objects that share common characteristics. Classes and the ability to create new classes are what make object-oriented programming a powerful and flexible programming model.
2. When referring to a game, a class is a type of character based off abilities. For example, warrior and mage are both examples of game classes, a warrior is often strong can withstand a lot of damage but doesn't often deal much damage. A mage class is the complete opposite, a class that can often deal a lot of damage but can't take much.

Con
1. A MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows reserved word.
2. When referring to games con is short for consider and is an ability or command used to find out additional information about the targeted creature or player. For example in the MMORPG game EverQuest a player can type: /con to find out additional information about the target.
3. Another term used to describe a type of deception or trick. For example, phishing is a type of con that often deceives the user to give away their log in information.
4. Any type of negative feedback or lack of features of a product.
5. Short for conference, con is used as an abbreviation when describing a conference or other get together. For example, DEF CON is an example of where this term is used.

Credits
In general, refers to a listing of all the people who helped develop and brought a product to the public. For example, after a computer game has been completed, it may list the credits of all the people who helped develop, design, test and bring the game to the public.

CS
1. When referring to disk drives such as a hard disk drive or CD-ROM drive CS is short for Cable select.
2. Short for Customer Service.
3. Abbreviation used for Computer Science.
4. Frequent abbreviation used to describe the Half-Life mod Counter-Strike.
5. Short for Code Segment.

CTF
Short for Capture The Flag, CTF is a type of game played in first person shooter (FPS) games where a user must get to an enemy's base, grab their flag and bring it back to their base's flag without dying. The team with the most flag captures wins the game.

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Games Dictionary - A

Abandonware
Abandonware Also known as Abandon Warez is a type of software developed several years ago that is no longer being produced, sold, or supported and is considered to be abandoned. However, although many of these programs appear to be abandoned or the companies that developed them are out of business, downloading and installing abandonware is illegal.

AFK
Shorthand for Away From Keyboard, AFK is often used in chat rooms and in games to let others know that they are away from the keyboard and going to be unable to respond.

AYB or AYBABTU
"All your base are belong to us", A phrase introduced in the 1991 Sega Genesis game called "Zero Wing" that is sometimes abbreviated as AYB or AYBABTU. The game was poorly translated to English from a Japanese version of the game as seen in the below dialog of the game. Later, gamers and other computer geeks started using this saying as a joke and to demonstrate their true geekdom.

AoE
Short for Area of Effect, AoE is a type of spell found in RPG games that either affects a wide area on the ground where everything within that area takes damage or is a direct attack on multiple targets.

Aggro
1. In online computer gamming aggro or add is used to describe an aggressive creature that has targeted you or another player in your group and posses a threat.
2. In addition to in-game creatures aggro is also often used in chat and games to describe real-life aggro. For example, a player might say "parent aggro" or "gf aggro" as a way to let others communicating with that user that they need to log off or step away because their parents or girlfriend is giving them grief about being in the game or chatting.

Alias
Also known as a nick or handle, an alias is an alternative name for a computer, object, person, group, or user. Usually used to replace long names or to keep your own name private. For example, in chat Computer Hope will often use the nick "MrHope."


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How does virus infected your computer

There are so many ways a computer become infected by virus, spyware, or another malware. Below is the list of the most common ways a virus can infected your computer listed in the order we believe are most commonly done.

Pirating software

If you or someone on your computer is participating in underground community on the Internet where you're downloading copyrighted software, music, movies, etc for free, many of this files contain virus, spyware or malware. When downloading any type of software (programs, utilities, games, updates, demos, etc.), make sure you're downloading the software from a reliable source and that while installing it you're reading all prompts about what the program is putting on your computer.

Accepting without reading

By far one of the most common ways a computer becomes infected is the user simply accepts what he or she sees on the screen without reading the prompt or understand what it's asking. The examples:
1. When installing or updating software, you're prompted (often checkboxes already checked) then you just click the OK button without fully understand.
2. While browsing the Internet an Internet advertisement or window appears that says your computer is infected or a unique plug-in is required. Without fully understanding what it is you're getting you accept the prompt.

e-mail attachments

Another very common way the PC become infected with spyware or viruses is by opening e-mail attachments, even when from a co-worker, friend, or family member. E-mail address can be easily faked and even when not faked your acquaintance may unsuspectingly be forwarding you an infected file. When receiving an e-mail with an attachment, if the e-mail was send by someone you don't know simply delete it. If the e-mail is from someone you know be cautious when opening the attachment.

Didn't running the latest updates

Many of the updates, especially those associated with Microsoft Windows and another OS are security updates. Running a program or operating system that is not up-to-date with the latest updates can be a big security risk and can be a way your computer becomes infected. In addition to running operating system updates, the plugins associated with your browser can often contain security vulnerabilities. Make sure you have the latest versions of plugins.

No anti-virus scanner

If you're running a computer with Microsoft Windows it's highly recommended to have some anti-virus or anti-spyware software to help your PC clean from any infections and to help prevent any future infections.


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Computer Virus

Computer virus are human-made software that can affect another computer programs by modifying them in such a way as to include a copy of itself. The first virus named The Elk Cloner written in 1982 by Rich Skrenta who was a 15-year old high school student. This virus spread to another PC by infecting the floppy diskette that was inserted into the computer. Once a floppy diskette became infected it would infect all other computers that disk was inserted into, each computer that was infected would then infected another diskette inserted into it.

Some viruses are relatively harmless to individuals. They attach themselves to outgoing messages on your e-mail or e-mail themselves to all contacts listed in your address book. The sudden flood of e-mail overwhelms mail servers that causing the system to crash. Another viruses are more destructive and may lie dormant until a certain date. Then they spring to life to do their dirty deeds. Sometimes a strange message appears on your screen, or data and programs may be modified. In the worst case, all the files on your hard drive may be deleted.

Today a computer virus is a software, script, or macro that has been designed to infect, modify, destroy or cause any problems to the computer or software programs. Users can protect themselves and remove any viruses on the computer by installing an antivirus protection program, which is designed to detect, protect, and clean any computer viruses.

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DSL vs. Cable

Cable Internet Line basically a dedicated line used to access the internet with high speed and provides the faster internet access as compare to DSL and dial-up. Its data transmission speed is start from 64 Kbps to 30 Mbps. But DSL also provides high speed on already exiting telephone lines and same time you can use internet and as well as your line for phone. In DSL, both ends of connections require the network cards and DSL modems for data communication.

There are some advantages and disadvantages of both technologies. There are many factors that you should consider when going to decide to get DSL connection or Cable Internet like connection speed, security, installation fees and monthly rates. But this is very rare chance both services are available in your area.

Consider a little comparison between DSL and cable that will help you to choose more suitable internet connection in your area.

DSL Internet Connection
* Its data transmission speed start from 128 Kbps up to 10 Mbps.
* DSL is dedicated connection not shared with other internet user.
* DSL monthly rates are between 50$ to 100$.
* Your internet speed will depends upon the distance between your home to DSL provider.

Cable Internet Connection
* Its data transmission speed is start from 64 Kbps to 30Mbps.
* Cable internet is not a dedicated connection but shared with other internet user.
* Cable monthly rates are between 30$ to 60$.
* No distance matter with Cable connection between your home to Cable provider.

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Hard disk troubleshooting

Your hard disk drive, or also called hard disk, is a gigantic diskette in your computer. It is one disk big enough to store you Operating System, games and programs. Without it, your PC is just an empty shell. If you have a problem your hard disk here's troubleshooting steps to solve your problems.

Check Your BIOS
Better beware of older systems with large hard drives. If you have an older motherboard, your BIOS might not recognize hard drives larger than 2.1 GB. Hopefully, your BIOS is EPROM which means although read only (noticed the ROM?) it can be edited by authorized editors. Nearly all newer motherboards support that. All you need to do is to go online, go to your motherboard manufacturer's website and try to download a flash BIOS update. Install it and it should be done.

Are You FAT Enough?
If you have a large capacity hard drive with more than 2.1 GB, you might have a problem. Windows 95 itself will only recognize a partition with not more than 2.1 GB. You need FAT32. With FAT32, you can have one large capacity hard drive without partitioning. You will also save some space with FAT32. In short, larger hard drives require FAT32.

Consider Partitioning
Although you can have one big fat hard drive as one partition, you should consider partitioning as well, if you have a big hare drive. Partitioning is the method of dividing an area on a disk into smaller portions of lesser capacities that can be recognized by the operating system. Picture this: your hard drive is a cake. It is easier to eat a cake divided into pieces than to eat it whole.
Partitioning enables you to achieve greater efficiency and functionality from high-capacity disks (2.1GB or greater). You can create partitions by using FDISK on a system running in MS-DOS mode or by using a third-party disk utility. Remember that after partitioning, all data will be loss so be careful.
You can set aside a small partition for backup purposes. In case you should decided to format, just format the partition you use to store Windows. Your data in the backup partition is still there. But be careful! If you format a FAT32 partition with a FAT16 formatting utility, your partitions with data in it will all be loss! So never install DOS after formatting Windows. Because DOS utilizes FAT16, your FAT32 partition will all be gone.

Access Time or Seek Time?
If you want to buy a hard drive but are confused with the specifications of access time and seek time, remember that the key to the speed of a hard drive is the average access time. This is the time taken to access a single sector to the time when the drive's head reaches the sector. But beware, some ads quote seek time that is not the appropriate measurement. Access time is seek time plus latency (the time it takes for the chosen sector to come around to be positioned under the read/write head)

Speed Not Space
A lot of people are confused between speed and space. If you have a Quantum Fireball with 1.2 GB and a Quantum Bigfoot with 3.5 GB surely you should put the Bigfoot as the master and Fireball as the slave right? Wrong! You should always consider speed as well as space. The Quantum Fireball has a faster access time. A faster hard drive means better performance. Make sure your operating system is store in the faster hard drive. You can use the Bigfoot to store your programs or games which makes not much difference to the speed. With speed hungry programs or games, store them in the faster drive too. You must know what to put where.
The status of the drives is determined by setting small jumpers that are usually located next to the IDE connector on the drive itself.

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Windows programs with run command

The run commands from Start menu is used to run a windows program or to open a document directly. If you do not know the exact location of the program or document then click on Start button to open Run and type the programs shortcut name to open it directly.

Run Commands:

appwiz.cpl -- Used to run Add/Remove wizard

Calc --Calculator

Cfgwiz32 --ISDN Configuration Wizard

Charmap --Character Map

Chkdisk --Repair damaged files

Cleanmgr --Cleans up hard drives

Clipbrd --Windows Clipboard viewer

Control --Displays Control Panel

Cmd --Opens a new Command Window

Control mouse --Used to control mouse properties

Dcomcnfg --DCOM user security

Debug --Assembly language programming tool

Defrag --Defragmentation tool

Drwatson --Records programs crash & snapshots

Dxdiag --DirectX Diagnostic Utility

Explorer --Windows Explorer

Fontview --Graphical font viewer

Fsmgmt.msc -- Used to open shared folders

Firewall.cpl -- Used to configure windows firewall

Ftp -ftp.exe program

Hostname --Returns Computer's name

Hdwwiz.cpl -- Used to run Add Hardware wizard

Ipconfig --Displays IP configuration for all network adapters

Logoff -- Used to logoff the computer

MMC --Microsoft Management Console

Msconfig --Configuration to edit startup files

Mstsc -- Used to access remote desktop

Mrc -- Malicious Software Removal Tool

Msinfo32 --Microsoft System Information Utility

Nbtstat --Displays stats and current connections using NetBIOS over TCP/IP

Netstat --Displays all active network connections

Nslookup--Returns your local DNS server

Osk ---Used to access on screen keyboard

Perfmon.msc -- Used to configure the performance of Monitor.

Ping --Sends data to a specified host/IP

Powercfg.cpl -- Used to configure power option

Regedit --Registry Editor

Regwiz -- Registration wizard

Sfc /scannow -- System File Checker

Sndrec32 --Sound Recorder

Shutdown -- Used to shutdown the windows

Spider -- Used to open spider solitaire card game

Sfc / scannow -- Used to run system file checker utility.

Sndvol32 --Volume control for soundcard

Sysedit -- Edit system startup files

Taskmgr --Task manager

Telephon.cpl -- Used to configure modem options.

Telnet --Telnet program

Tracert --Traces and displays all paths required to reach an internet host

Winchat -- Used to chat with Microsoft

Wmplayer -- Used to run Windows Media player

Wab -- Used to open Windows address Book.

WinWord -- Used to open Microsoft word

Winipcfg --Displays IP configuration

Winver -- Used to check Windows Version

Wupdmgr --Takes you to Microsoft Windows Update

Write -- Used to open WordPad

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How to increase the Browsing speed in Windows Vista

With windows Vista you have noticed the slow internet speed. The web browsing and downloading speed is very slow as compare to previous versions of windows. You can open the same sites in windows XP and server 2003 with the normal speed.

Follow the given steps to increase the Vista browsing and Download speed:

First go to Advance tab in Internet Explorer and turn off the TLS (Transport Layer Security) encryption option. Here to fix problem with some secure pages turn on the SSL 2.0 (Secure Sockets Layer) feature and click Ok button to close it.

Follow the major fix for this problem:

In windows Vista, the TCP autotuning feature is enabled by default. Some web servers do not respond properly to this feature, so it appears that some sites open with very slow speed.

To use this feature, you will need to be logged into your computer with administrative rights.

First click on Start button and type CMD in Run option then press Enter.

At Command Prompt, type the following command and press enter.

netsh interface tcp set global autotuninglevel= disabled

This command will disable the TCP autotuning feature. Now close the command Prompt and restart your computer after any changes to go into effect.

You can easily restore these setting by typing the following command at Command Prompt.

netsh interface tcp set global autotuninglevel= normal

Now close the command Prompt and again restart your computer after any changes to go into effect.

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How to find a lost file on your computer

These trick will help you to enjoy the quick and easy way to find lost files on your computer. Here I recommends you, try to search a file with its file extensions (for example for word file, type *.doc, Excel *.xls, Acrobat *.pdf, *.ppt and *.exe for executable files.

If you don't know the file name but know that it contains a string of text then try to search for files containing specific text, type the text you want to find from any file or folder. This is time taking process but creates very precise result. In Look in, click the drive, folder, or network you want to search. To save time, always select the specified drive or location instead of whole computer.

Click Start Button, point to Search, and then click For File or Folders, a Search Results dialog box will appear. In Search for files or folders named, type the file name or folder name you want to find in containing text.

To specify additional search criteria, click Search Options, and then click one or more of the following options to narrow your search:

Select Date to look for files that were created or modified on or between specific dates.

Select Type to look for files of a specific type, such as a text or WordPad document.

Select Size to look for files of a specific size.

Select Advanced Options to specify additional search criteria.

Click Search now.

Good luck, I hope you can find your file.

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LCD cleaning - how to

Flat panel monitors are commonly used in mobile devices such as laptop and table PCs. Similarly, smart phones, PDAs calculators have LCD screens. LCD screens are much softer than old CRT screens, so they required extra care as compare to the CRT Monitors.

First read the LCD manufacturer manual about your LCD model on how to safe and clean it.

To clean LCD monitor first unplugs your LCD power from the electrical outlet.

Never use dirty cloth, spray any cleaning fluids on the LCD screen and paper towel to dry it.

Always use dry cotton cloth to clean the fingerprints and dust on the LCD screen. You can use lightly dampened soft cloth if you feel any difficulty to clean the screen.

Good luck

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Laser Printer Cleaning Tips

Laser printer is the fastest, high quality and more expensive than inkjet printers and their printer quality is also higher. The print quality and printing speed of laser printers make ideal for offices and business. The printer is the most commonly used output device in office environment. That is why printer required extra care as compare to the other parts of the computer. There is no any difficulty to clean a printer if you have proper cleaning tools and methods.

Never place your printer on the ground, always use table or shelf for this purpose.

If you have the printer manufacturer manual, first read about on how to safe and clean it.

Now disconnect your printer from the back side of the computer and unplug power from the electrical outlet.

First use the compressed air to clean dust, toner powder from the outside and inner side of the printer.

Use lightly dampened cloth or cleaning fluid to clean the body of the printer and avoid to spraying fluid near any holes on the printer.

Use paper towel to clean the toner and brush to clean the inside of the printer.

Always cover your printer with dust cover when you are not using it.

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How to cleaning CD-ROM drives

If your CD drive taking time to read and showing message there is no disc in the drive, creating problem to read CD disc - These are the symptoms of dirty or weak CD-drive lens, because dirty lens can create errors in reading or writing and soon will not work at all.

To clean up your cd-rom drive follow the given steps

First make sure your discs are clean, unscratched and you're loaded it properly.

Always use laser lens cleaner to clean drive lens.

Insert the laser lens cleaner disc and play it for 2 to 3 min.

Using CD drive cleaner properly clean the CD-ROM laser from dust. If your drive still creating problem then open it and clean the lens with a cotton swab.

Good luck

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Mozilla Firefox shortcuts keys

In Mozilla Firefox, you can use the combination of different keyboard keys to accomplish your routine task. With shortcut keys, you can speed up your surfing without lifting your hands from the keys; otherwise require a conventional mouse to select menus and buttons options. Basically keyboard shortkeys help you to save time and you can perform any tasks without leaving the keyboard keys.

Shortcut keys and the action

CTRL+A
Selects the all items on active page

CTRL+B
Display the "Organize Bookmarks" dialog box

CTRL+D
Include the active page to your Bookmarks list

CTRL+F
Display the "Find" dialog box to search text

CTRL+I
Display the Bookmarks pane

CTRL+H
Display the History sidebar of Mozilla Firefox

CTRL+N
Use to open new Mozilla Firefox page

CTRL+P
Use to print the active web page

CTRL+R
Use to reload the active web page

CTRL+T
Display a new Tab in active Firefox window

CTRL+U
View the source code of active web page

CTRL+W
Closes the active Mozilla Firefox window

CTRL++
Use to increase the font size of active page

CTRL+-
Use to decrease the font size of active page

CTRL+Tab
Move to next Tab in Mozilla Firefox

ALT+Home
Use to open the home page of internet explorer

ALT+Left Arrow
Go to previous page of active page

ALT+Right Arrow
Go to next page of active page

ALT+B
Go to Mozilla Firefox Favorites Menu

ALT+D
Go to address bar of current Firefox page

ALT+E
Go to Mozilla Firefox Edit Menu

ALT+F
Go to Mozilla Firefox File Menu

ALT+S
Go to Mozilla Firefox History Menu

ALT+T
Go to Mozilla Firefox Tools Menu

ALT+V
Go to Mozilla Firefox View Menu

Tab
Move forward between all items on active web page

F5
Refresh the active web page

F7
activate the cursor to move with keyboard

CTRL+SHIFT+DEL
Use to clear all Private Data history

CTRL+SHIFT+D
Use to Bookmarks all Firefox Tabs

F11
View any webpage in full-screen view and then again press for normal view.

Ctrl+Enter
Windows will automatically add both "www" and ".com". For example, if we type myxnote in an address bar and then press Ctrl-Enter, Windows will take us to the www.myxnote.com

Shift+Enter
Windows will automatically add both "www" and ".net"

Ctrl+Shift+Enter
Windows will automatically add both "www" and ".org"

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Internet Error Codes and the meaning

Sometime when you are browsing the internet and try to open any web page, your e-mail or any FTP sites , you see different error codes there.

Error Codes and meaning

400 - This is bad request error, First check you may be typing wrong URL name and server could not understand your request.

401 - You are trying to open any unauthorized access site or page. Check your username and password if you are trying to open any webpage.

402 - Payment Required Error

403 - You are trying to open any forbidden page and you are blocked by that domain.

404 - Here you are trying to open the webpage that was removed or re-named, also check the URL spelling.

408 - This is time out error. you should send the request with in time that the server set for you.


You should be familiar with these error codes. You can solve or analysis these problems if you are well-known with the meaning of error codes.

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How to insert YouTube movies into PowerPoint

You can insert the YouTube movies into your MS PowerPoint slides to express your idea or better way to communicate something. You can convey these ideas in more effective ways, if you are using movie files with your simple slides.

First of all download the YouTube.com movies and then save on your computer hard drive. Mostly movies are available in flash video file format on YouTube site. You can convert also the downloaded movies from YouTube into any common format, for example, windows media video file (wmv), windows video file (avi) and movie file (mpeg).

First of all open the presentation in which you want to insert movie file.

Now click on "Movies and Sounds" option from the Insert" menu and choose the option "Movie from File".

Now select your movie that you want to insert into slide and click on Ok button.

Here now you are asked "Do you want your movie to play automatically in the slide show? If not, it will play when you click it."

Recommend choosing Ok button to play automatically even if you want the movie to play when clicked.

Finally save your PowerPoint presentation and run it for test.

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How to convert word files into PDF?

You can convert your document, reports, spreadsheets and any word files (.doc or .docx) into Adobe Portable Document Format (.pdf). There are many free and paid software’s available to convert normal files into .pdf, for example you can download “Universal Converter Software” free trail - you can search via Google. Using this converter you can convert your web pages, emails, books any others important documents into .pdf.

Benefits of .PDF

PDF files are platforms independent, for example if you are creating your resume in Microsoft windows, and you obviously wants that your resume look the same on all platforms, whether computer has Mac, Linux and Microsoft windows. PDF is the great way to send your important documents to others in same and secure ways.

PDF can not be modified in text or formatting in new style without your permission. Internet users prefer the .pdf format because they can download it easily in Adobe Reader.

Follow the given steps to convert word file into PDF.

First download the “Universal Converter Software” and install onto your computer. Now open any word document and press the File and then click on Print option to open printer dialog box.

Here select the “Universal Document Converter” from the printer list and press Properties button to select the “Document to PDF, Color, and Multipage” profile.

Now press the Ok button to start the converting process into PDF. Wait for a minutes and get your PDF files.

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