Girl Geekette

To use a System Repair Disk in Windows:

• Insert the system repair disc into your CD or DVD drive.
• Restart your computer using the computer’s power button.
• If prompted, press any key to start the computer from the system repair disc.
• If your computer isn’t configured to start from a CD or DVD, check the information that came with your computer. You might need to change your computer’s BIOS settings.
• Choose your language settings, and then click Next.
• Select a recovery option, and then click Next.

Tip:
Print these instructions and keep them in a safe location with your system repair disc.

According to Microsoft:

System recovery options can help you repair Windows if a serious error occurs. To use system recovery options, you’ll need a Windows installation disc or access to the recovery options provided by your computer manufacturer. If you don’t have either of those choices, you can create a system repair disc to access system recovery options.

And, it is a very valid point. So many people lose data and things from their computer because they do not have a backup. Wheter your back up is on CD, DVD, Thumbdrive, a Network Drive, or a second or third drive in your computer, make sure you have a backup!

I you have to use a backup, you first might need to make a recovery disk.

Creating The Recovery Disk

Backup and Restore can be found in Control Panel, All control Panel Items, Backup and Restore

In the left pane, click Create a system repair disc, and then follow the steps. If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.

Note:
If you’re prompted to insert a Windows installation disc, it means that the files needed to create the system repair disc can’t be found on your computer. Insert a Windows 7 installation disc.

The taskbar shows thumbnail previews of opened windows when you hover the mouse over the program icon. By default, it takes a little time for the preview to appear. Make the previews appear faster with this registry tweak:

Use Windows Key  +R to get a run box
Enter regedit and hit your ENTER KEY
Navigate to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Mouse.

On the right, open the MouseHoverTime key and changes its value from the default 400 to around 150. Decreasing it further may cause problems.

ReadyBoost improves your system performance by using faster USB Flash Drives instead of slower hard disks for system operations. It works best using flash drives with at least 1 GB of storage.

Simply insert your flash drive, and if it meets certain performance benchmarks, Windows 7 will ask you if you want to use it for ReadyBoost and recommend the size to reserve.

As in Windows Vista, Windows 7 comes along with UAC which prompts you before every administrative action you do. Here is how you can disable User Access Control.

Goto Start Menu > Control Panel > System and Security
Click on Action Center and Expand the “Security Tab“
Click on “Choose your UAC” Level and simply move the Bar down to stop prompting.

Disclaimer: Modifying the registry can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. I cannot guarantee that problems resulting from modifications to the registry can be solved. Use the information provided at your own risk.

User Access Control is Microsoft’s way of dimming the monitor and sending a pop up message to notify you that something is being changed in your computers configuration. This can get annoying. So, turn it off.

Set the Control Panel to Small Icons. If you need a quick idea of how to do this, see Set Control Panel View.

Choose User Accounts (Icons will be in alphabetical order after setting the control panel view to Small Icons)

Control Panel User Account Settings

Click on Change User Account Control settings

This is the default: Notify me only when programs try to make changes to my computer

UAC Default

To Turn off the pop ups that occur each time you make a change to your computer slide the bar down to Never Notify

UAC Never Notify

That will keep the screen from dimming and the pop up displaying that wants you to make sure you know something is being changed.