Tips to Get the Most out of Windows 7

Are you still using Windows 7? You’re not alone. Windows 7 is an excellent operating system, but you are probably not taking advantage of all it provides. Here are some tips to get more from Windows 7.

Access videos from the Start menu: You can access your pictures and music from the Windows 7 start menu, but did you know you can customize Windows 7 to enable you to access your videos too? If you’d like to do this, right-click the Start button and click “Properties.” Then, on the Start Menu tab, click “Customize.” A dialogue box will pop up, scroll to the bottom and look for the videos section. Click “Display as a link” and hit “OK” and “OK” again.

Modify your Shut Down button: Did you know you can personalize your Shut Down button to execute an action other then shutting your computer down. For instance, you could have your computer go to sleep, or restart. Just right-click the Start button and choose “Properties.” Then on the Start Menu tab, select the “Power button action” menu. This will give you a menu of actions you can select as the default action for your Shut Down button.

Add some privacy to your online searching: When you search Internet Explorer, your computer will immediately display the latest searches that you have performed. Maybe you would like to not have this information available to other users. Fortunately, you can customize Windows 7 to make this happen. You can switch off the “recent searches” feature through the Start menu. Once you pull up the Start menu’s search box, type GPEDIT.MSC and press “Enter.” This will set the Group Policy Editor in motion. Choose the “User configuration” option. Then choose “Administrative Templates,” “Windows Components,” and “Windows Explorer.” Once you are here, you can double-click “Turn off display of recent search entries in the Windows Explorer search box.” Then select “Enabled” from the screen that comes up next. Then click “OK.” You will now enjoy greater privacy when searching the Internet.