Windows 7 is a great operating system that many people are using these days. However, there are some things you can do to make it even better. Here are 175 Windows 7 Tweaks, Tips, and How-To Articles to help you get the most out of your new OS.
First: Get Your Copy Yet?
Note: If you are currently running the Release Candidate version, we’ve got a guide on how to Upgrade the Windows 7 RC to RTM (Final Release). You should also keep in mind that you can’t upgrade from an Ultimate to a Home edition– there’s an upgrade chart if it’s too confusing.
The How-To Geek Windows 7 Category
We’ve written just loads of articles, and so we’ve decided to do a roundup of most of them here in a single post. If that’s too much for you, you can check out our roundup of the the 20 Best Windows Tweaks that Still Work in Windows 7.
And don’t forget to look through our Windows 7 category, bookmark it, and share it with anybody who hates gigantic lists of links:
Awesome Articles About New Windows 7 Stuff
Windows 7 is still very similar to Vista in many ways, so there’s not quite as many articles about completely new Windows 7 features. Here’s the quick list of articles that touch on the new features:
Disable User Account Control (UAC) the Easy Way on Win 7 or Vista How to Upgrade the Windows 7 RC to RTM (Final Release) Add the Quick Launch Bar to the Taskbar in Windows 7 Change the Windows 7 Taskbar to Work Like Vista The 20 Best Windows Tweaks that Still Work in Windows 7 Migrate XP to Windows 7 with Easy Transfer and a USB Drive Migrate XP to Windows 7 with Easy Transfer Over the Network Access Frequently Used Items in Windows 7 with Jump Lists Access Hidden Regional Themes in Windows 7 Awesome Desktop Wallpapers: The Windows 7 Edition BitLocker To Go Encrypts Portable Flash Drives in Windows 7 Disable Aero Shake in Windows 7 Disable Aero Snap (the Mouse Drag Window Arranging Feature in Windows 7) Disable Sidebar / Desktop Gadgets on Windows 7 Disable System Restore in Windows 7 What is conhost. exe and Why Is It Running? Make Sure your Computer Can Run Windows 7 with Upgrade Advisor Make the Windows 7 Taskbar Work More Like Windows XP or Vista How To Manage UAC Notifications in Windows 7 Make Windows Live Messenger Minimize to the System Tray in Windows 7 Manage Devices the Easy Way with Device Stage in Windows 7 What You Should Expect from the Windows 7 Beta Manage Files and Documents Easier with Libraries in Windows 7 Stream Media To Other Computers on a Home Network with Windows 7 Easily Backup & Import Your Wireless Network Settings in Windows 7 Extend the Windows 7 Trial from 30 to 120 Days GeekNewb: Get to Know These Windows 7 Hotkeys Share Files and Printers between Windows 7 and XP Share Files and Printers in Windows 7 with HomeGroup How to Drag Files to the Taskbar to Open Them in Windows 7 Search Websites from Your Desktop in Windows 7 with Search Connectors Install Windows Live Essentials In Windows 7 New Features in WordPad and Paint in Windows 7 Simple Tips: Windows 7 Volume Mixer Enables Quick Access to Sound Settings Use Problem Steps Recorder to Help Troubleshoot Windows 7 Using Backup and Restore in Windows 7
Articles About Shortcuts & Hotkeys
We love our keyboard shortcuts and special shortcut icons that do all sorts of great things. Here’s a list of all the ones that we’ve tested with Windows 7.
Add Home Directory Icon to the Desktop in Windows 7 or Vista Add Internet Explorer Icon to Windows 7 / Vista Desktop “Up” Keyboard Shortcut for Windows 7 or Vista Explorer Hotkey for Creating New Folder in Windows Explorer Bring Misplaced Off-Screen Windows Back to Your Desktop (Keyboard Trick) Create a Shortcut for Locking Your Computer Screen in Windows 7 or Vista Create a Shortcut Icon or Hotkey to Turn Windows 7 / Vista Firewall On or Off Create a Shortcut or Hotkey for the Safely Remove Hardware Dialog Create a Shortcut or Hotkey to Clear the Clipboard in Windows Create a Shortcut or Hotkey to Eject the CD/DVD Drive Create a Shortcut or Hotkey to Immediately Eject a Specific USB Drive Create a Shortcut or Hotkey to Mute the System Volume in Windows Create a Shortcut or Hotkey to Open Task Manager’s “All Users” View in Windows 7 or Vista Create a Shortcut or Hotkey to Run CCleaner Silently Create a Shortcut or Hotkey to Switch Power Plans Create a Shortcut or Hotkey to Turn Off the Monitor Create a Shortcut or Hotkey to Turn the Desktop Icons On or Off Create a Shortcut to Enable/Disable Aero Transparency in 7 / Vista Create a Shortcut to Search Your IE Favorites With Windows 7 or Vista Search Create a Shortcut to the Stored User Names and Passwords Dialog in Windows Create Administrator Mode Shortcuts Without UAC Prompts in Windows 7 or Vista Create Icons to Start the Screensaver on Windows 7 or Vista Create Shutdown / Restart / Lock Icons in Windows 7 or Vista Map Any Key to Any Key on Windows 7 / XP / Vista Quickly Open Network Connections List in Windows 7 or Vista
Context Menu Modding
Need to add a little more power to your right-click menu options? We’ve got you covered with a bunch of tweaks.
Add “Open with Notepad” to the Context Menu for All Files Add “Run as Administrator” for AutoHotkey Scripts in Windows 7 or Vista Add “Run as Administrator” to Any File Type in Windows 7 or Vista Add “Take Ownership” to Explorer Right-Click Menu in Win 7 or Vista Add Copy To / Move To on Windows 7 or Vista Right-Click Menu Add Defragment to the Right-Click Menu for a Drive Add Disk Cleanup to the Right-Click Menu for a Drive Create a Context Menu Item to Copy a List of Files to the Clipboard in Windows 7 / Vista / XP Create a Context Menu Item to Copy a Text File To the Clipboard in Windows 7 / Vista / XP
Disabling Stuff You Don’t Want
It never fails, no matter what version of Windows you are using, there are still things you are going to want to disable. Here’s the quick list of the ones that we’ve covered:
Disable User Account Control (UAC) the Easy Way on Win 7 or Vista Disable Aero on Windows 7 or Vista Disable Caps Lock Key in Windows 7 or Vista Disable Delete Confirmation Dialog in Windows 7 or Vista Disable Power Management on Windows 7 or Vista Disable Program Compatibility Assistant in Windows 7 and Vista Disable Shortcut Icon Arrow Overlay in Windows 7 or Vista Disable System Restore in Windows 7 or Vista Disable the “Send To” Folder on the Windows Explorer Context Menu Disable the Annoying “This page has an unspecified potential security risk” When Using Files on a Network Share Disable the Irritating Sticky / Filter Keys Popup Dialogs Disable Thumbnail Previews in Windows 7 or Vista Explorer Disable User Account Control (UAC) the Easy Way on Win 7 or Vista Disable User Account Control(UAC) For Administrators Only Disable Win+X Shortcut Keys on Windows 7 or Vista 4 Ways to Make UAC Less Annoying on Windows 7 / Vista Disable Windows Mobility Center in Windows 7 or Vista Disable/Enable Lock Workstation Functionality (Windows + L) Easily Disable Win 7 or Vista’s Aero Before Running an Application (Such as a Video Game) Hide Desktop Icon Text on Windows 7 or Vista Hide Drives from Your Computer in Windows 7 or Vista Hide, Delete, or Destroy the Recycle Bin Icon in Windows 7 or Vista Make User Account Control (UAC) Stop Blacking Out the Screen in Windows 7 or Vista How to Delete a System File in Windows 7 or Vista Enable or Disable UAC From the Windows 7 / Vista Command Line How to Delete a Windows Service in Windows 7, Vista or XP Remove “Shortcut” Text From New Shortcuts in Windows 7 or Vista Remove Gadgets and Screen Resolution on Windows 7 Desktop Context Menu Remove the Ugly “Send Feedback” Link in Windows 7 Beta Stop Windows Update from Hijacking the Sleep/Shutdown Button Temporarily Disable Windows Update’s Automatic Reboot in Win7 or Vista Turn Off Windows Explorer Click Sounds in Windows 7 or Vista Turn on Remote Desktop in Windows 7 or Vista Uninstall, Disable, or Delete Internet Explorer 8 from Windows 7 Stopping Obnoxious MSN / Windows Live Messenger Spammers Completely Disable the System Tray on Windows 7 / Vista / XP
Stupid Geek Tricks
Yeah, most of these are just silly, geeky tricks. Which perhaps makes them more fun than anything else.
Stupid Geek Tricks: Navigate in the File Open/Save Dialog With the Keyboard Stupid Geek Tricks: Open an Explorer Window from the Command Prompt’s Current Directory Stupid Geek Tricks: Secret Items on the Windows 7 Send To Menu Stupid Geek Tricks: Undo an Accidental Move or Delete With a Keyboard Shortcut Stupid Geek Tricks: Using 7-Zip as a Blazing Fast File Browser Stupid Geek Tricks: Windows 7 Easter Egg Shows the XP Alt-Tab Prompt Hidden Trick to Close Windows Explorer in Windows 7 or Vista Keyboard Ninja: Toggle File Extension Display With a Shortcut Key in Windows Scroll the Window Under the Mouse in Windows 7 / XP / Vista Switch Windows by Hovering the Mouse Over a Window in Windows 7 or Vista Boost Your Mouse Pointing Accuracy in Windows Quick Tip: Change Monitor Timeout From Command Line
Misc Windows Configuration Tweaks and Such
There’s always lots of other tweaks you’ll need to do—from changing your computer name to logging on automatically. We’ve covered quite a few of those as well.
Always Start an Application in Administrator Mode on Windows 7 or Vista Make Windows 7 or Vista Log On Automatically Mount an ISO image in Windows 7 or Vista Backup/Copy Files that are “In Use” or “Locked” in Windows (Command Line) Change Start Menu to Use Small Icons in Windows 7 or Vista Change the Number of Recent Items Shown on the Windows 7 / Vista Start Menu Change the Windows 7 or Vista Power Buttons to Shut Down/Sleep/Hibernate Change Your Computer Name in Windows 7 or Vista Add “My Computer” to Your Windows 7 / Vista Taskbar Display My Computer Icon on the Desktop in Windows 7 or Vista Enable Additional Clocks in Windows 7 or Vista Get the Classic Start Menu in Windows 7 Enable Military Time in Windows 7 or Vista Show Hidden Files and Folders in Windows 7 or Vista Using Windows 7 or Vista Compatibility Mode Using Windows 7 or Vista System Restore Configure Disk Defragmenter Schedule in Windows 7 or Vista Create a Restore Point for Windows 7 or Vista’s System Restore Create a System Restore Point in Windows 7 Customize the Manufacturer Support Info in Windows 7 or Vista Customize the Notification Area in Windows 7 Using Local Group Policy Easily Set Default OS in a Windows 7 / Vista and XP Dual-boot Setup Enable Run Command on Windows 7 or Vista Start Menu How to Create a System Image in Windows 7 How to Install IIS on Windows 7 or Vista Quick Tip: Change the Registered Owner in Windows Resize a Partition for Free in Windows 7 or Vista Set Icons in Win7 / Vista to Open With a Single Click Instead of Double-Click Restore Missing Desktop Icons in Windows 7 or Vista Run a Command as Administrator from the Windows 7 / Vista Run box Enable Mapping to \Hostname\C$ Share on Windows 7 or Vista Enable the (Hidden) Administrator Account on Windows 7 or Vista
Conclusion
Yes, this was one long list of articles. Be sure to share it with your friends, relatives, enemies, or random people on the street. We recommend printing it off, creating paper airplanes, and seeing how far they fly.
