Troubleshoot Windows 7 with the built-in Problem Steps Recorder

There is still a large number of Windows users who are still running Windows XP. That started me thinking about all the great new Windows 7 features that those folks still running Windows XP are missing out on. For instance, that means that more than half of all the Windows users in the world won’t be able to take advantage of the extremely handy Problem Steps Recorder for helping to solve technical support problems. When started, this new tool will essentially record each and every step a user takes and document the entire operation in both screen captures and step-by-step details. When stopped, the Problem Steps Recorder will save the recorded information as a compiled HTML file and package it up in a ZIP file that an end user can then e-mail to a technician. Read more.

Use a USB Flash Drive to create Windows Password Reset Disk in Windows 7

Do you have an old 128MB or 256MB USB Flash Drive in the back of your desk drawer gathering dust? If so, you can put that dusty old drive to use again as a Password Reset Disk for Microsoft Windows 7. Read more.

Flying Toasters - A look back at After Dark for Windows 1.0

In March of 1991, Berkeley Systems released the After Dark for Windows 1.0 screen saver program and the $49.95 package soon became as common on the PC as it was on the Mac. After Dark for Windows came with 35 screen savers, including the wildly popular Flying Toasters. I recently came across a copy and installed it in a virtual Windows 3.1 system and began reliving those fun times. Take a look at this gallery of screen shots.

Decipher Svchost processes in Windows with Svchost Viewer

Back in November of last year in my blog post titled “Identify and Get Detailed Information about Processes in Windows 7,” I showed you how to use Windows Task Manager to track down detailed information about any process running in Windows 7. However, I recently came across a tool that specializes in just Svchost.exe processes, called Svchost Viewer. Read more.

Vintage Computer Advertisements from the late 1970s

On a recent attic cleaning expedition, I encountered a box of Scientific American magazines from the late 70s. Each magazine is full of computer advertisements that provide an interesting peek back at the beginning of the computing industry. In this gallery, I will show you what I found.

Give every window in Windows 7 a tabbed user interface

I recently received an email from a reader who was looking for a way to add tabs to Windows 7’s Windows Explorer. However, I have discovered tool called WindowTabs that can add tabs to every running application’s Window and allows you to group these tabbed windows together as a single entity. As such, you can open multiple instances of Windows Explorer and group them together to create your own multi-tabbed version of Windows Explorer. Read more.