Some of the programs that we use in Windows, have a system menu containing an option – Always on top.  If selected, this feature sets a window to be always on top of other windows. This is very useful if you want to work across multiple windows but want to focus more of your attention on a particular window. You can set that window to be always on top and keep an eye on it. I personally use this feature to set my TV Tuner window to be always on top so that I can enjoy TV programs while doing work at the same time.

Unfortunately this Always on Top option is not available in many programs. Possibly because the software designer never thought that users will ever need such a feature. However, if you want to keep a program always on top, you can use the Always On Top application. After downloading and installing this program, you can start it from the shortcut it creates. Now you can drag the hand like icon over a window the you want to make always on top. Later, you can toggle the always on top status of that window on and off using the hotkey Ctrl + F8.

This software works very well for the situations when you have to read data from one application and type it into another, for example, password managers. You can set the first password manager window to be always on top and easily read the information and type it into your login window.

Download Window On Top

Download Window On Top

About Sudesh

Previously, we asked you if you use the Windows command prompt and many of you answered by saying you do not; for those that do use the command line interface (CLI), many use it infrequently. In this guide, we’ll go through the basics of the command prompt, show you examples of how you can use it, and show you how to customize it.

Familiarize Yourself with the Command Prompt

Before you start using the command prompt, I recommend you learn the basic shortcuts and commands. The first guide, listed below, shows you how to access the command prompt. If you’re familiar with how to get to the command prompt already, you can skip this guide.

• How to open the command prompt

Basic Commands

Now you have the command prompt in front of you, let’s go through a series of commands to help you navigate:

Unless you changed your home or working directory, you’ll see you start in your home folder (usually something like C:\Users\Rich)

1. Type cls to clear the command prompt
2. Type ver to view the Windows version you are currently using
3. Type dir to view the contents of the directory (folder) you are currently in
4. Type cd .. to change directory to the parent (folder above) i.e. from C:\Users\Rich to C:\Users
5. Press the up arrow twice to list your second from last command (dir) and press Enter. You’ll now be viewing the contents of the C:\Users folder
6. Type cd Public to change to the Public folder
7. Type md test to create a “Test” directory in C:\Users\Public (optionally type dir again to view it in the listing)
8. Type ren test test2 to rename the test folder to test2
9. Type rd test2 to remove the directory you just created and renamed
10. Type copy “C:\Windows\System32\Bubbles.scr” BubblesCopy.scr to copy the bubbles screensaver from the Windows directory to your Public directory (note: If you don’t specify a path for the file, the directory you are currently working in is used)
11. Type dir to view the contents of the public folder again. Do you see the Bubbles.scr file?
12. Type del BubblesCopy.scr to delete the bubbles screensaver from your Public folder
13. Type echo All Done! to print “All Done!” on the command line interface

To recap, you used the following commands:

• cls - Clears the screen so you are left with an empty prompt
• ver – Show the Windows version
• dir – List the contents of the directory you’re currently working in
• cd – Change directory i.e. cd C:\Users\Rich; cd .. etc.
• md – Create a directory (mkdir also performs the same)
• ren – Renames a file or directory
• rd – Remove a directory (rmdir also performs the same)
• copy - Copies a file from the source to the destination i.e. copy C:\sample.text copied-C:\sample.txt
• del – Deletes a specified file
• echo – Echoes the string (text) specified i.e. echo Hello

Add Command Switches

Switches give you a greater degree of control over your commands and give you more options. You can add them after the command to change the behavior of that command.

We used the dir command a number of times in the previous example, let’s look at the available switches. The easiest way to see what’s available is to open a command prompt and type:

dir /?

The /? is a switch that returns the help text and available switches for each command. In this case, you got a response that’s something similar to:

C:\Users\Public>dir /?
Displays a list of files and subdirectories in a directory.

DIR [drive:][path][filename] [/A[[:]attributes]] [/B] [/C] [/D] [/L] [/N] [/O[[:]sortorder]] [/P] [/Q] [/R] [/S] [/T[[:]timefield]] [/W] [/X] [/4]

[drive:][path][filename] Specifies drive, directory, and/or files to list.

/A          Displays files with specified attributes.
attributes
D  Directories                R  Read-only files
H  Hidden files               A  Files ready for archiving
S  System files               I  Not content indexed files
L  Reparse Points             -  Prefix meaning not
/B          Uses bare format (no heading information or summary).
/C          Display the thousand separator in file sizes.  This is the default.  Use /-C to disable display of separator.
/D          Same as wide but files are list sorted by column.
/L          Uses lowercase.
/N          New long list format where filenames are on the far right.
/O          List by files in sorted order.
sortorder
N  By name (alphabetic)       S  By size (smallest first)
E  By extension (alphabetic)  D  By date/time (oldest first)
G  Group directories first    -  Prefix to reverse order
/P          Pauses after each screenful of information.
/Q          Display the owner of the file.
/R          Display alternate data streams of the file.
/S          Displays files in specified directory and all subdirectories.
/T          Controls which time field displayed or used for sorting
timefield
C  Creation
A  Last Access
W  Last Written
/W          Uses wide list format.
/X          This displays the short names generated for non-8dot3 file
names.  The format is that of /N with the short name inserted
before the long name. If no short name is present, blanks are
displayed in its place.
/4          Displays four-digit years

Here you see the list of switches you can add to your dir command. Now, in C:\Users (cd C:\Users), type:

dir /W

This displays the contents in “Wide” format, which is particularly helpful if you’re listing out a large directory as you need to scroll less to see all the output.

Let’s try another one:

dir /Q

Now you see the owners of each folder listed. Understanding these switches and knowing how to use them will come with practice and time. Feel free to explore the switches of other commands i.e. del /?

Additional Commands

As you become more familiar with the basic commands, you can add more to your artillery by learning some shortcuts that will save you of time if you come to rely on the command prompt more frequently:

• Top 10 command prompt commands
• Become a command prompt super user

Command Prompt Usage Examples

Once you’re familiar and comfortable with the command prompt, I recommend you try some of the other commands and tools available:

• Use Windows commands to manage your PC and improve productivity
• Correct program associations using the command prompt
• Basic networking commands
• Delete persistent files using the command prompt
• Fix corrupted Windows files using the command prompt
• Use xcopy on the command line to transfer large amounts of data

Customize the Command Prompt

For those that want a custom look with the dated looking command prompt, you are in luck. You can customize the native command prompt’s color scheme or you can use a third party command prompt that provides further customization like transparency:

• Customize the appearance of the command prompt

You can also customize the default working directory when you launch the command prompt. For example, I use my scripts directory:

• Set the command prompt to open in your scripts directory

What else can you do with the command prompt? Are you a beginner and are you struggling to find use for or understanding of the command prompt? Let us know in the comments and we’ll be happy to help.

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.

Although you can set Windows Explorer to show you the thumbnails of all your pictures, it usually makes it slower to browse through different folders. Additionally it also creates multiple thumbs.db files in each folder and all such files may take up considerable amount of disk space. An alternative to thumbnail preview feature of Windows is adding an image preview in the right-click menu. This can be done easily using the free FastPreview shell extension. It adds an Image Preview in the right-click context menu so that when you right-click on an image file, you see its preview right inside the context menu.

You can download the FastPreview shell extension installer from its website and install it in Windows. After the installation, if you right-click on an image file, it would show an image preview right inside the context-menu. The dimensions of the image in pixels and its color depth is also shown at the bottom of the image preview. It supports all the major image file types like jpeg, bmp, gif, psd, tiff and more.

Additionally, it also adds an extra tab in the File Properties dialog which you can open by right-clicking on an image file and then choosing Properties from the context-menu. You would see an extra tab titled FP which shows a list of various types of EXIF data like software used to edit the image, model and make of the camera used, time and date of taking the picture among many others.

FastPreview shell extension does not offer much in the name of options. You can only set the thumbnail size of the image preview shown in the context menu. By default, this is 300 x 300 pixels which can be customized to suit your requirements. In my personal opinion, the default size is optimal and you should keep it as it is. A larger thumbnail would cover up all your open windows and menus, while a smaller thumbnail might not show any of the details in the selected image.

So if you want a quick image preview feature for your collection of pictures without making Windows Explorer slower, then you can try the free FastPreview shell extension for Windows. The download is available for both the 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Windows.

Download FastPreview

Download FastPreview

About Sudesh

A file’s hash value is a signature for that file that uniquely identifies it. If a file’s contents change, its hash value will also change. You can use the hash value of a file to know whether it has been modified or altered. You can also cross-check the hashes of a suspicious file online to see if it’s a malicious file. Windows 7 does not have any native way to show or calculate a file’s hashes. But you can use the freeware HashTab tool to add a File Hashes tab in the file properties dialog.

After installing  HashTab in Windows, all you have to do is right-click on any file and choose Properties from the context-menu. In the File Properties dialog, you would see an extra tab File Hashes which shows the that file’s hash values using multiple hashing algorithms. By default, it shows the hashes using CRC32, MD5 and SHA-1 functions.

If you want to customize which hash functions should be used to calculate the file hashes, then you can click on the little Settings link shown in the tab. In the HashTab Settings window, you can choose  from over 14 different  hash functions like MD2, MD3,  MD5, SHA256, SHA512, Adler32, RIPEMD-256 and more. You can also choose to show the hashes in uppercase letters or lowercase letters.

Are wondering how you can use a file’s hash value to find out if it’s a malicious file? Its easy. First of all open the file properties dialog for a file you want to check. Select the File Hashes tab, right-click on the SHA-1 hash and choose to Copy it. Now visit the VirusTotal site in your browser, paste the hash value you copied in the search field and click on the Search It button. The VirusTotal site would immediately show you a list of scan results indicating if that file is malicious or not.

Download HashTab

Download HashTab

About Sudesh

If you’re currently evaluating Windows, you can keep an eye on the expiration date of the license to ensure functionality is not reduced when the trial period ends. Windows Forums member and Windows Guides writer, Stu, shares the following commands to check the license status of your copy of Windows:

• slmgr /dli Current license information
• slmgr /dlv Detailed information on the current license
• slmgr /xpr Expiration date

Check Windows 7 License Information (Windows 7 Tutorials)

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.

Windows Forums member and owner of Real Security, geohac, has updated his comprehensive guide to help users remove malware from their PC. In the guide, geohac covers steps you should take to prepare for removal such as disabling proxy servers (to give you a better chance at getting online and getting to the sites you need for virus removal software.) The guide then goes on to show you how to boot into safe mode to fight a virus (something we recommend ourselves) and then shows you which tools you should use to remove a virus (downloading these tools on a non-infected PC is the safest bet and making sure, if you have to use a USB drive to transfer the files, that you don’t put the same, now potentially infected, thumb drive back in the clean PC.)

Many of the recommended tools made it into our top anti-malware programs list and we agree with the recommendations given. Once you’ve removed the malware, you should fix any issues present on your PC and then take steps to protect your PC from future attacks. A good start can be made by reading the PC Security Handbook.

What steps do you recommend when removing malware? How else can you protect your PC from infections?

Malware Removal Guide for Windows | Real Security via Windows Forums

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.

We’ve previously told you about Taskbar Thumbnails and how to use the Taskbar more efficiently. Personally I love the stack functionality in the Windows 7 Taskbar. Stacking all the thumbnails is a great way to keep the taskbar tidy and compact. The only thing that irritates me is that it doesn’t (by default) keep track of which of the windows I was working on last. If I’m working on several Excel Documents and I need to switch to another program for a few minutes, going back to the same Excel document will often lead me flipping through the entire stack.

There is a way to change this behavior, letting the Stack-feature save which window you worked in last. It requires a small Registry hack – and as always, create a backup before you do in case something should go horribly wrong. That being said, here’s how to fix it:

Change Taskbar Thumbnails behavior

1.  Open Registry Editor (Start Button, Type Regedit, Press Enter)
2. Navigate to the following key: HKEY_CURRENT_USER | SOFTWARE | Microsoft | Windows | CurrentVersion | Explorer | Advanced
3. In the Right Pane, Right-click on an empty space and select New | Dword (32-bit) value
4. Save the Value as LastActiveClick
5. Set the Value Data to 1
6. Click OK
7. Close the Registry

And that’s all there’s to it!

About Thomas

Computer geek from the age of 7, which amounts to 30 years of computer experience. From the early days (when every computer company had their own OS) of DOS, Windows 1.0 through Seven...

If you’ve used PCs for years or haven’t used some of the older versions of Windows, you might appreciate The Restart Page—a site that displays the restart sequence for many of the older operating systems including Windows 1.1, 2000, XP, NeXT, and Apple operating systems.

Check out The Restart Page

Which restart sequence is your favorite?

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.

If you’re using Internet Explorer (IE) and you want to open more than one homepage when you start a web browsing session, this guide will help you get set up.

Note: As you increase the number of tabs to open, the time it takes to launch Internet Explorer will increase.

Add a Page to Your Home Page Tabs

1. Browse to a website you want to add to your home pages

2. Click the drop-down arrow on the Home Button and click Add or Change Home Page…

3. Select Add this webpage to your home page tabs and click Yes

Manage Home Page Tabs

To add and remove tabs:

1. In IE, click Tools > Internet Options

2. On the General tab, under Home page, delete any pages you don’t want to include

3. Add sites (one per line) that you’d like to open at each launch

4. Click OK

Now restart Internet Explorer and verify the tabs you want to launch load successfully.

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.

If you’ve ever taken a look at Windows Task Manager, you’ve undoubtedly wondered what all the numbers mean. This guide briefly explains each value and helps you familiarize yourself with what these values represent.

The performance information is broken down into four categories:

1. CPU
2. Physical Memory
3. Kernel Memory
4. System

CPU

CPU (Central Processing Unit) usage represents the percentage of CPU capacity currently being used by Windows and all running applications. This number should be low (< 5%) when you are not actively using your computer.

You may see more than one CPU graph even if you only have one processor (99.9% of all home computers.) Each graph shows the activity of each processor core. If your CPU uses hyper-threading technology, you’ll have two graphs for each core (i.e. twelve CPU graphs on a six-core i7.) (More about Processors and cores.)

Physical Memory

Physical memory is commonly referred to as RAM (random access memory)

• Total—The total physical RAM in your system (in MB.) Divide this number by 1,024 to get the number in gigabytes
• Cached—Physical RAM set aside by Windows for cached documents and programs. Cached memory is used to speed up Windows and is the first to be used when available memory hits 0MB
• Available—Memory available for immediate use (standby and free memory)
• Free—Unused memory available for immediate use

Kernel Memory

Kernel memory is memory dedicated to the operating system (Windows) and not applications.

• Paged—Kernel memory which is mapped to pages of virtual memory (stored on your hard disk drive)
• Nonpaged—Kernel memory which resides in physical memory

System

• Handles—A handle is a pointer to a system resource used by an application. If you want to find out what handles a process has open, you can either use Handle or Process Explorer
• Threads—A thread is a processor task, executed by a process. Most processes use two or more threads to execute tasks
• Processes—This is the total number of processes running, on your PC, by all users
• Uptime—The number of days : hours : minutes : seconds you’ve been running your current session
• Commit (GB)—The minimum and maximum size (in gigabytes) of your pagefile

About Rich

Rich is the owner and creator of Windows Guides; he spends his time breaking things on his PC so he can write how-to guides to fix the problems he creates.