If PowerShell isn’t already installed on your computer, and you need its functions, take the following steps to obtain and run it:
1.Visit Download Site, search for “powershell,” and download the free package that contains the installer.
2.Run the installer.
3.Click Start ➪ All Programs ➪ Windows Powershell to open the command-line environment.
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Microsoft disables by default the operating system’s ability to run PowerShell scripts merely by clicking or opening them. But, if you use PowerShell scripts, you should take the following three steps to protect yourself against hacked web sites or e-mails that might find ways to run them without your knowledge.
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Screaming headlines in recent years have made the public aware of stolen laptops and desktop computers that contained the personal records of thousands of millions of individuals. These thefts might not have exposed anyone’s personal data if the hard drives in the stolen computers had been encrypted and protected by strong passwords. Various third-party solutions have long been available to encrypt sensitive data folders and entire hard drives. With Vista, Microsoft now enters this market with BitLocker Drive Encryption. (more…)
You can make URLs print in full almost every time by clicking Tools➪Internet Options. On the General tab, click the Fonts button and then select a Web page font that’s more compact than Times New Roman, such as Vista’s Cordia New. (This font, which is similar to Arial, also becomes the default font for Web pages that don’t specify a font.) (more…)
Pressing Ctrl+Q or clicking the Quick Tabs tab on the IE 7 toolbar tiles all of your open tabs into a convenient thumbnail view. When you have a lot of tabs open, Quick Tabs can save you a substantial amount of time that you might otherwise spend clicking at random to get back to a particular site. (more…)
Legions of Windows users have become accustomed to using the Add or Remove Programs dialog box in the Control Panel to uninstall applications that they no longer want taking up space on their hard disks. So, in its frustrating way, Microsoft has renamed this feature to make it even harder to find than it was before. To reconfigure or completely remove an application, you now use the Programs Explorer. This applet also enables you to turn on or off many of the built-in features that come with Windows Vista, such as the Indexing Service. Fortunately, the Programs Explorer is still available through the Control Panel. You just need to know to look for it in the Ps instead of the As.
Many Windows users know about Alt+Tab. You can hold down the Alt key and press Tab repeatedly to switch to any application that’s currently open. (more…)
One thing you won’t find on the default Start menu is the Run option, which generations of Windows users have employed to start programs that may not appear on any menu. The omission isn’t a problem—if you know the secret. Simply type the name of the program you want to run (such as notepad) into the Start Search bar just above the Start button and then press Enter.