- •Acknowledgments
- •About the Author
- •Credits
- •Contents at a Glance
- •Contents
- •Introduction
- •About This Book
- •Assumptions
- •How This Book Is Organized
- •Conventions Used in This Book
- •Hacking Precautions
- •Customizing the Logon Screen
- •Summary
- •Customizing the Start Panel
- •Customizing the Classic Start Menu
- •Customizing the Taskbar
- •Summary
- •Customizing Desktop Icons
- •Customizing the Behavior of the Desktop
- •Summary
- •Working with Themes
- •Modifying the Visual Styles
- •Visual Style Alternatives
- •Summary
- •Hacking File Associations
- •Hacking the Context Menu
- •Customizing Your Folders
- •Working with Hidden Files
- •Disabling the Common Tasks Pane
- •Summary
- •Modding Internet Explorer
- •Other Visual Enhancements
- •Summary
- •Monitoring Your System Hardware
- •Benchmarking Your System
- •Summary
- •Working with BIOS
- •Modifying the Operating System Boot
- •Summary
- •Speeding Up the Logon
- •Summary
- •Speeding up file browsing and access
- •Speeding Up the User Interface
- •Summary
- •Working with the Windows Prefetcher
- •Using the Intel Application Accelerator
- •Defragmenting Your Drive
- •Adjusting Your Application Priorities
- •Speeding Up Your Network
- •Summary
- •Summary
- •Defending against Viruses
- •Defending Spyware and Adware
- •Eliminating Spam
- •Summary
- •Controlling access to your computer
- •Wireless Networks
- •Disabling Unneeded Services
- •Firewalls
- •How Vulnerable Is Your System?
- •Internet Explorer
- •Windows Interface
- •Summary
- •System Requirements
- •Using the CD with Windows XP
- •Troubleshooting
- •Index
Steve Sinchak
LOCK YOUR WINDOWS SUPER HOT
Protect Windows XP with
maximum-strength security Give your system a total makeover
That's one fancy boot!
Boost your machine’s boot speed Customize your boot screen
Hacking Windows® XP
Hacking Windows® XP
Steve Sinchak
Hacking Windows® XP
Published by
Wiley Publishing, Inc.
10475 Crosspoint Boulevard Indianapolis, IN 46256 www.wiley.com
Copyright © 2004 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published simultaneously in Canada
ISBN: 0-7645-6929-5
Manufactured in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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About the Author
Steve Sinchak is an entrepreneur that has started several technology-related businesses and is currently running a Web development firm known as SSMGi that owns and operates several Web sites. As president of the small company, he is responsible for financial, as well as technical, aspects of the business, such as application programming and infrastructure design and maintenance.
Steve has been working with computers for more than 10 years. Starting with a desktop which had a 286-based processor, 1MB of RAM, and was running DOS & Windows 3.1, he taught himself how to make his computer run faster on the outdated hardware. Driven by curiosity to customize Windows and make it run faster, he spent countless hours researching and experimenting with the inner workings and features of Windows. His primary claim-to-fame in this subject matter is as the creator of TweakXP.com, the number-one site for tweaking Windows XP. What started out as an idea for a new Web site that combined his interest in tweaking Windows and Web programming has grown into a massive database of tweaks and tips for Windows XP that attracts more than 3 million visitors a year.
Currently, Steve is a senior at Marquette University in Milwaukee, WI, studying management IT and computer science. He splits his spare time between classes, running his businesses, and spending time with his family and friends.
Credits
Executive Editor
Chris Webb
Development Editor
Scott Amerman
Production Editor
Gabrielle Nabi
Technical Editors
Greg Guntle
Wiley-Dreamtech India Pvt. Ltd.
Copy Editor
TechBooks
Editorial Manager
Kathryn A. Malm
Vice President & Executive Group
Publisher
Richard Swadley
Vice President and Executive Publisher
Bob Ipsen
Vice President and Publisher
Joseph B. Wikert
Executive Editorial Director
Mary Bednarek
Project Coordinator
Erin Smith
Permissions Editor
Laura Moss
Media Development Specialist
Kit Malone
Proofreading and Indexing
TechBooks Production Services
Cover Image
Anthony Bunyan
This book is dedicated to my parents Larry and Mary Jo, my brothers Jason and David, my sisters Jackie and Kimberly, and my girlfriend Emily.
viii
Acknowledgments
Writing this book while juggling classes and my business was often pretty difficult. Almost all of my free time for the last four months has been consumed by writing, leaving very little time for my girlfriend and friends. First, I would like to thank my girlfriend, Emily, for her love, support, understanding, and help when things got really tight. Thank you so much. You mean the world to me.
I’d also like to thank everyone in my family for the love, support, and motivation that they have always shown me. Dad, thanks for bringing home that old IBM AT from work many years ago. Who would have thought it could start something that would lead me to eventually write a book? Mom, thank you for your constant motivation and love throughout all of the challenges in my life.
I’d like to thank my close friends, Paul and Tom. Although they made writing this book very difficult at times, with their constant distractions, I wouldn’t want it any other way. Going to Miller Time pub with you two to take breaks from writing was priceless.
Next, I’d like to thank everyone at Wiley for their work on this book. Chris Webb, thanks for giving me this opportunity and for your suggestions in the early stages. Scott Amerman, thank you very much for your help and suggestions with writing the chapters. Thank you for turning me into an author.
Everyone at TweakXP.com also deserves a big thank you—especially Allan Grossman, the forum administrator of the TweakXP.com support forums. Thank you very much for helping me with the site and for turning the forum into one of the best support forums for Windows XP. I would also like to thank all of the forum moderators, news posters, active members, and daily visitors. You have all played an essential role in the success of TweakXP.com. Thank you very much!
Contents at a Glance
Acknowledgments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . . . . ix |
Part I: Customizing Your System . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . . 1 |
Chapter 1: Customizing the Look of the Startup . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 |
Chapter 2: Customizing User Navigation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . . . 39 |
Chapter 3: Hacking the Desktop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . . 73 |
Chapter 4: Customizing the Appearance of the Windows Interface . |
. . . . . . . . . . . 91 |
Chapter 5: Hacking Windows Explorer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 117 |
Chapter 6: Exploring Other Windows Enhancements . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 137 |
Part II: Increasing Your System’s Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 |
|
Chapter 7: Analyzing Your System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 159 |
Chapter 8: Speeding Up the System Boot . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 183 |
Chapter 9: Making Your Computer Load Faster . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 209 |
Chapter 10: Making Your Computer More Responsive . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 231 |
Chapter 11: Speeding Up Your Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 247 |
Part III: Securing Your System. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277 |
|
Chapter 12: Protecting Your Computer from Intruders . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . . 279 |
Chapter 13: Fighting Spam, Spyware, and Viruses . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 303 |
Chapter 14: Protecting Your Privacy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 315 |
Appendix A: What’s on the CD-ROM. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 335 |
Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 343 |
End-User License Agreement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . . . . 355 |