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How to Uninstall Winter Fun Pack 2004 After Upgrading to Windows 7 or Vista

Did you install the Microsoft® Winter Fun Pack 2004 in your Windows XP system earlier, and then upgraded the system to Windows 7 or Windows Vista? In that case, the uninstaller for Winter Fun Pack 2004 may not work correctly under Windows 7/Vista, throwing out error code 1713. If the uninstaller does not work, you can remove the related files and registry entries manually.

The list of registry entries and files added by Microsoft® Winter Fun Pack 2004 for Windows® XP is available at the following link:

Browser Defender™ – Download Analysis for winterfunpack2004forwindowsxp.msi

Important: Before proceeding, take a complete registry backup either using System Restore or using a program like ERUNT. This article is targeted towards intermediate and advanced users.

Registry Fix

To make things easier, I’ve made available a .REG file which removes the Winter Fun Pack 2004 related registry keys. Download winterfunpack-remove.zip (partly based on BrowserDefender.com’s installation track data), unzip and double-click the .REG file to run it.

Things to Remove Manually

1. Registry Values

After running the REG file, you may have to remove some registry values manually:

1. Start Regedit.exe and navigate to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Installer \ Folders

2. In the right-pane, delete the values relating to Winter Fun Pack 2004 (Refer the URL above)

3. Exit the Registry Editor.

2. Files & Folders

Use the information at BrowserDefender.com and delete the files and folders added by Winter Fun Pack 2004.

3. Outlook Express Signature

1. Start Outlook Express

2. In the Tools menu, click Options

3. Click Signatures

4. Select MP Song Signature and click Remove

Note: In Microsoft Outlook, you can remove the MP Song Signature via the Tools menu, Options, Mail Format, Signatures.

5. Click OK.

Published on 6th November 2009
Tags: registry, Utilities
Posted in General | No Comments »

Edison Helps Reduce Your PC’s Power Consumption

Edison is an excellent power management tool made for Microsoft Windows XP and Windows Vista systems. Edison optimizes Windows Power Management settings for maximum power savings and provides a friendly user interface to configure the power settings.

Download Edison from Verdiem’s Website. (See also Verdiem :: Edison FAQ.)

Alter the Work Time Power Settings by moving the slider. To input custom values (hours: minutes) click the Custom button. And, click the Schedule tab and set your Work Time.

Edison creates a custom power plan, which can be viewed using Power Options (Windows Vista).

Edison changes the power plan options automatically, based on Work Time and Non-Work Time settings.

Published on 23rd October 2009
Tags: Utilities
Posted in General | 2 Comments »

Microsoft Newsgroup Setup Instructions for Windows Live Mail

Earlier we saw how to access Microsoft Newsgroup using Windows Mail. If you’re using Windows Live Mail, it’s even more easier, as Microsoft Communities Newsgroup account is already built-in to Windows Live Mail. You just need to customize it and pick the necessary groups from the listing.

1. Start Windows Live Mail

2. From the Tools menu (press ALT + T to show the Tools menu), click Accounts.

3. Select the Microsoft Communities news server and click Properties

4. Type in your name (this name will be displayed in your newsgroup posts), and the email address. Never use your primary email address in the newsgroups as it invites spam. Use an obfuscated ID instead. Click OK to close the dialog.

5. Click the Newsgroups tab on the left.

6. You’ll be prompted to set Windows Live Mail as the default news client. Click Yes if you want to set Windows Live Mail as the default news handler.

7. Click the View Newsgroups button on the right pane. Alternately, click the Newsgroups button at the top.

8. Select the Newsgroups from the list and click OK.

Selecting a newsgroup downloads last 300 message headers from the group. You can increase the number of headers to download, via the Windows Live Mail Options dialog, which can be accessed from the Tools menu.

Published on 15th October 2009
Tags: Tips, windows live mail
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RegASSASSIN Resets ACL Permissions and Deletes Stubborn Registry Keys Easily

When dealing with a Malware infested PC, you may have to prune several registry entries manually in case the cleanup tool you use does not remove all of them. In most cases, you would get an error ("Error Deleting Key") stating that you don’t have permissions to delete the specified branch. So, additional steps are required to reset the registry ACL Permissions first, before deleting the key. RegASSASSIN from MalwareBytes makes it very easy to reset the ACLs and delete the keys. Whew! You don’t have to perform half a dozen steps to reset the permissions for each key.

RegASSASSIN is a portable application which makes difficult to remove registry keys placed on your system by Malware a thing of the past. The program allows you to remove registry keys by resetting the keys permissions and then deleting it. Please use with caution as deleting critical registry keys may cause system errors.

Let’s assume that a Malware has added a Service to the registry and protected the key using ACL Permissions. Deleting the key using the Registry Editor causes the following error.

Caution: It’s prudent to backup the registry completely before modifying it. For more information, read articles Take a complete registry backup using ERUNT & How to backup the Windows Registry?

Deleting a Stubborn Registry Key

1. Copy the Registry key in question. This can be done by right-clicking on the key and choosing Copy Key Name.

2. Download RegASSASSIN from MalwareBytes Website.

3. Run RegASSASIN and paste the registry key that was copied in Step 1.

4. Select the following checkboxes:

Reset registry key permissions
Delete registry key and all subkeys

5. Click the Delete button. Click Yes when you see the following dialog:

6. Click Yes when you’re prompted for confirmation:

The registry key is deleted!

RegASSASSIN to Just Reset the Registry Key Permissions?

In case a software installation in your PC fails due to lack of permissions to write to a specified registry key, you can simply reset the corresponding registry key (without deleting the key) using RegASSASSIN. To just reset the ACLs and preserve the registry key, uncheck the Delete registry key and all subkeys checkbox in RegASSASIN.

Editor’s Note

This tool does not substitute for anti-malware / anti-virus software. All this tool does is to reset the permissions for the specified registry key and delete it.
This tool needs to be run as administrator (elevated) in Windows Vista & Windows 7. To do so, right-click on the RegASSASSIN executable, and choose Run as Administrator option in the context menu.
Complex Malware removal is to be performed by trained personnel, as they’re capable of doing a surgical cleanup without affecting other components of the Operating System. The above article is for informational purposes only.

Published on 12th October 2009
Tags: Utilities, Vista, Windows 7, XP
Posted in General | No Comments »

Disk2vhd Utility Creates VHD Images of Physical Disks

Here is another useful software from Windows Sysinternals. Mark Russinovich and Bryce Cogswell have written a tool named Disk2vhd which is capable of creating Virtual Hard Disk (VHD) image of a PC which is currently running. The VHD image can be used with Microsoft Virtual PC or Microsoft Hyper-V virtual machines (VMs).

Disk2vhd uses Windows’ Volume Snapshot capability, introduced in Windows XP, to create consistent point-in-time snapshots of the volumes you want to include in a conversion.

For more information about this tool, visit the Disk2vhd page at the Windows Sysinternals Website.

(via SoftPedia News)

Published on 8th October 2009
Tags: Utilities
Posted in General | 1 Comment »

Updating Microsoft Security Essentials Using Command-Line

Microsoft Security Essentials includes a Command Line Utility which can be used to update the virus/malware definitions, initiate a scan, undo a recent definition update and perform other tasks. To know how to use the Command Line Utility, open a Command Prompt window (CMD.EXE) and execute the following command:

"%ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Security Essentials\MpCmdRun.exe" /?

Command Description
-? / -h	Displays all available options for this tool.
-Trace [-Grouping #] [-Level #]	Starts diagnostic tracing
-RemoveDefinitions [-All]	Restores the installed signature definitions to a previous backup copy or to the original default set of signatures
-RestoreDefaults	Resets the registry values for Microsoft Antimalware Service settings to known good defaults
-SignatureUpdate [-UNC]	Checks for new definition updates
-Scan [-ScanType]	Scans for malicious software
-Restore -Name <name> [-All]	Restore the most recently or all quarantined item(s) based on name
-GetFiles	Collects support information

In addition to the above information, detailed information for each command-line parameter is shown when you run the above command.

To update the MSE virus/malware definitions, use this command:

"%ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Security Essentials\MpCmdRun.exe" -SignatureUpdate

The Command-Line tool can be useful if you want to update MSE using Batch file, Script or using Task Scheduler.

Published on 3rd October 2009
Tags: mse, Tips
Posted in General | No Comments »

Microsoft Security Essentials Is Now Available for Download

The much awaited security suite from Microsoft, Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) is now available for public download. MSE provides real-time protection for your home PC that guards against viruses, spyware, and other malicious software.

Microsoft Security Essentials is a free download (requires WGA validation) from Microsoft that is simple to install, easy to use, and always kept up to date so you can be assured your PC is protected by the latest technology.

Download Microsoft Security Essentials. To view the How To Guides and Videos, check out the Security Essentials Software Support page. Be sure to update the definitions after installing the product.

Published on 29th September 2009
Tags: Utilities
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Default Programs Editor – A Useful File Association Editor for Windows 7 and Vista

Default Programs Editor is a very useful tool which helps you to edit file type associations, add or remove AutoPlay handlers and static context menu entries. In Windows Vista and Windows 7, there is no option provided to add or edit context menu entries and static verbs (as in Windows XP’s "File Types" dialog.) Here is where the Default Programs Editor comes in handy.

Features of Default Programs Editor

File Type Settings

Add, Edit, and Delete context menu items
Change file type icon & description
Change an extension’s associated file type

Autoplay Settings

Add, Edit, and Delete autoplay handlers
Change which autoplay options are available for any media type
Change the default autoplay handler

Default Programs Settings

Add or Remove default associations

Screenshots

Fig 1: Default Programs Editor main window.

Fig 2: Context Menu Editor. (Remember the File Types dialog in Windows XP?)

Fig 3: Add or Remove AutoPlay Entries and manage settings

Fig 4: File Associations Editor

Fig 5: Additional Program Options

Default Programs Editor is designed for Vista and Windows 7. [Visit the Author's site to download the software.]

Published on 23rd September 2009
Tags: Utilities
Posted in General | No Comments »

How to Enable Quick Edit Mode in the Command Prompt by Default

We saw how to use the mouse to copy Command Prompt text to the Windows Clipboard, by enabling the Quick Edit option in Command Prompt shortcut properties. What if you don’t use a desktop shortcut to open Command Prompt, and rather run cmd.exe directly? Here is a registry edit which enables Quick Edit option by default for Command Prompt. This works regardless of the methods you use to open the Command Prompt window.

This article was edited on Sep 24 2009 to include the method suggested by reader Mike (Thanks, Mike. I’ve clearly overlooked the GUI option.)

Enable Quick Edit by default in Command Prompt

Using the GUI

1. Open a Command Prompt window (cmd.exe)

2. Bring up the menu by clicking the top left corner (or press ALT + Spacebar)

3. Click Defaults

4. In the Options tab, place a checkmark near Quick Edit Mode

5. Click OK.

Using the Registry Editor

1. Launch Regedit.exe and navigate to:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Console

2. Double-click QuickEdit and set its value data to 1

3. Exit the Registry Editor.

This has been tested in Windows XP, Windows Vista & Windows 7, and may work in other Windows Operating Systems as well.

Registry Fix

To automate the above steps, download quickedit.zip and run the enclosed REG file.

Published on 22nd September 2009
Tags: Vista, Windows 7, XP
Posted in General | 2 Comments »

Printee for Internet Explorer Makes Printing Web Pages Easy

Do you find it difficult to filter out images, Ads and other unwanted content from web pages (for printing)? You no longer have to manually edit Web pages to remove unwanted content before printing. Have a look at Printee for Internet Explorer. Printee is a Web Printing tool for Internet Explorer which lets you pick, edit and print web page only what you want. Using Printee you can remove images and backgrounds, selectively delete page elements such as advertising, navigation menus and other items, and also change the font, width and page layout style.

For example, the following page:

is stripped down to:

Here are the Features of Printee

Condense any web page down to just the content you want, no anything useless
Reducing your paper and ink usage
What You See Is What You Get
Support Ecofont, Save 20% Ink
Send by Mail, Share with friends
Improve Readability of the Web Page only one key (Ctrl-G)

Download Printee for IE (472 KB) from irido.com. Printee runs in Windows 2000/2003/XP/Vista and supports IE6/IE7/IE8.

Installing Printee for IE adds a green buton to the IE toolbar which looks like this:

If the green button does not appear, you’ll have to customize the toolbar settings in order to add the Printee b button.

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