How-Tos and Guides

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Allowing any screen resolution on Vista

By default, Windows Display Properties displays only the resolutions allowed by its driver, or (in the case of a Plug-and-Play monitor) exposed by its EDID. If you are using Windows Vista (or Windows 7), you have probably noticed that you can only select modes exposed by your monitor even if you uncheck "Hide modes that this monitor cannot display". This is not limited to Display Settings: the NVIDIA Control Panel (if you have an NVIDIA card) and List All Modes dialog also display only those modes that are allowed by the EDID. But what if you wanted to run your CRT monitor at a higher resolution than it tells Windows it supports? What if you have defined a custom mode that is outside the range specified in the EDID? What if you are stuck at 60 Hz because you are running at the rated maximum resolution of your monitor?
Article | Posted on Tuesday, January 20, 2009 at 6:22 PM | Permalink | 66 Comments »

Choosing a Good Password

Passwords. They're the bane of our online existence, yet they are critical for protecting our privacy. How complex should a password be? How can you create a password that is secure and easy to remember at the same time – does such a thing even exist? Why do I regularly use 30-character passwords, while most people balk at meeting the minimum length of 8 characters?
Article | Posted on Sunday, February 28, 2010 at 3:25 PM | Permalink | 2 Comments »

Dual-booting XP and Vista (my way)

If you want both Windows XP and Windows Vista on your computer, you can set up a dual-boot configuration easily enough. But the default configuration may not be suitable for your needs. For example, I wanted to have XP and Vista installed on one hard drive, with XP being on a smallerpartition which I planned on eventually using for a different operating system. However, setting up this dual-boot proved to be somewhat more complicated than I had imagined.
Article | Posted on Saturday, March 14, 2009 at 4:09 PM | Permalink | 5 Comments »

How to Properly Use a Large Widescreen Monitor

The days of small, square CRT monitors are over. Bigger, wider, and higher-resolution monitors now dominate the market. But how does one properly make use of all of this extra space? I run into a good deal of people who simply don't understand how to take advantage of this extra room, and hopefully this article will teach you how.
Article | Posted on Thursday, May 20, 2010 at 8:40 PM | Permalink | 33 Comments »

Resetting a Forgotten Windows Password

Did you forget your Windows user account password? Are you stuck with no access to an administrative account? Do you need to get into someone else's computer for whatever reason? If so, there is an easy way to do it... and all it requires is a Windows Vista/7 DVD.
Article | Posted on Monday, May 10, 2010 at 3:38 PM | Permalink | 4 Comments »

How To Run Virtual PC 2007 and Windows Virtual PC on the Same Machine

Windows 7 introduces a feature known as Windows XP Mode, which is reliant on the latest version of their virtualization software: Windows Virtual PC. The older Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 is unable to run when Windows Virtual PC is installed, and vice versa. But what if you need to run both? Microsoft says it's impossible, but I will prove otherwise.
Article | Posted on Saturday, January 22, 2011 at 8:35 PM | Permalink | 19 Comments »

Setting Up a Home Server

Do you need a home server? Yes, if you want the convenience of an always-on media server, instant access to your printer from any computer in the house, a dedicated machine for downloading and uploading large files, and a development web server that can be used to host an intranet within your home (or for testing a website outside the home).
Article | Posted on Tuesday, April 13, 2010 at 12:32 PM | Permalink | 3 Comments »
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