Archive for the ‘Windows XP’ Category

How to Remove “Always Use the Selected Program” Option From Open With Dialog

The Open With dialog in Windows allows you to open a file using different programs. Also, you can create or change the file type association by selecting the "Always use the selected program to open this kind of file" checkbox in the Open With dialog. Sometimes, users wrongly associate file types and end up having to fix the associations manually. To prevent this, you can remove the "Always use the selected program to open this kind of file" checkbox so that file type association using Open With dialog is not possible.

1. Launch Regedit.exe and navigate to the following branch:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies \ Explorer

Note: If the above branch does not exist, you need to create it manually.

2. Create a new DWORD value named NoFileAssociate

3. Double-click NoFileAssociate and set its data to 1

4. Exit the Registry Editor.

The above registry change effects the current user account only. To implement the change for all users (machine-wide), create the NoFileAssociate value in the following branch:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ Software \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Policies \ Explorer

Additional Information

The above edit when used in Windows 2000/XP, results in a grayed out "Always use the selected program…" checkbox. Whereas in Windows Vista & Windows 7, the checkbox is removed completely.

Windows Easy Transfer Wizard Runs When Double-Clicking a Drive in Windows XP

After using the Windows Easy Transfer wizard to collect files and settings in the source computer running Windows XP, you may notice that the Windows Easy Transfer wizard runs every time when the drive is double-clicked in My Computer. Also, the drive icon is changed, representing the Windows Easy Transfer program icon.

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Fix: Places Bar in Open/Save as (Common Dialog) Box Is Empty in Windows XP

The places bar which appears in the left side of the Open and Save As dialog boxes in Windows XP, contains shortcuts to the following folders by default:

  • Recent
  • Desktop
  • My Documents
  • My Computer
  • My Network Places

The default places can be customized by editing the registry. After adding/removing custom places using a third-party tool, you may experience a problem where the places bar is completely empty.

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Checkbox Labels Appended With the Word “on” Or “OFF” In Various Dialog Boxes in Windows XP

When you open a dialog box (e.g. "View" tab under Folder Options, "Advanced" tab under Internet Options etc.) containing checkbox or radio button controls in Windows XP, the text labels may be appended with the word "ON" or "OFF" depending upon whether the option is enabled or not. (more…)

Fix for System File Checker Error 0x000006ba RPC Server Is Unavailable

When you attempt to run the System File Checker (sfc.exe /scannow command) to restore missing or corrupted system files, the following error message may be seen:

Windows File Protection could not be initiate a scan of protected system files.
The specific code is 0x000006ba [The RPC Server is unavailable.]

This happens if the Windows File Protection (WFP) is disabled in the registry. (more…)

Restore Missing Folders to the Group Policy Editor in Windows XP

When you open the Group Policy Editor in Windows XP Professional, some of the categories under Administrative Templates may be missing. For example when you expand Administrative Templates, the System category may be missing. This article provides information on how to restore the missing folders to the Group Policy Editor. (more…)

How to Make Folders Appear as Cascading Menu in the Quick Launch Toolbar

When you create sub-folders in the Quick Launch folder to better organize the shortcuts, the folders will appear in the Quick Launch toolbar correctly, but clicking them would launch Windows Explorer. Some people would like to view the contents of the folder (cascaded as a list) rather than opening the folder when clicked. Here is how to make folders in the Quick Launch toolbar cascade as menu when clicked. (more…)

Windows XP/Server 2003 Admin Tools Pack Shortcuts Displaying Generic Icon

After installing the Windows XP/Server 2003 Administration Tools Pack (adminpak.msi), some of the snap-ins in the Administrative Tools folder may show a generic icon. Also, the shortcut icons cannot be changed using the Properties page since they are Windows Installer Shortcuts. (more…)

Prish Image Resizer: PowerToy for Windows XP/Vista

To resize images using the right-click menu, you used the Image Resizer PowerToy to resize images from the right-click menu in Windows XP. The Image Resizer PowerToy which was originally written for Windows XP, does not work in Windows Vista. However, there is a similar tool available for Windows Vista, written by Shahar Prish of Microsoft. (more…)

Microsoft Time Zone: Keep Track of the Time in Other Parts of the World

The excellent time-and-date website lets you know the current local times around the world. For those who need a taskbar/tray icon to keep track of the time in other parts of the world, here is a simple utility from Microsoft. The Microsoft Time Zone Utility adds as a small tray icon that allows you to specify as many as five cities to watch the time on while you are working on your computer. Microsoft Time Zone application also lets you compare times at different places in the world without changing your system time/zone. (more…)