How to Conserve Battery Power in Windows XP

This post provide some tips to Conserve Battery Power of your laptop if you are using Windows XP. This Windows XP support tips help you to conserving Battery Power.

Is your battery powering your Windows XP laptop requiring a recharge almost constantly? Here are some things you can do to cause Windows XP to use less power:

1. First, check your battery to make sure it is completely holding its charge. This normally can be done by first completely charging your battery, turning your computer completely off, unhooking the battery, then performing a test on the battery by pressing a button or looking at a small display as per your computer manufacturer's instructions.

2. Stay offline when necessary. Network communications may put a drain on battery power.

3. Unhook USB devices whenever not in use - they can zap power.

4. Disable all background processes that you don't need, such as the clock or a background disk defragmenter. DO NOT disable firewalls or antivirus software as removing these programs can cause a security risk!

5. Change the screensaver to the "Blank Screen" screensaver. There's no need wasting power displaying fireworks or marquee text when your computer isn't doing anything important.

6. Though you shouldn't disable your antivirus software, don't schedule complete system scans until your computer is plugged in. Same for spyware scans.

7. Most importantly, when your computer is not in use, either shut it down, put it in standby, or hibernate it.

Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool

This post provide furthur information about Microsoft Windows Support. It contain the information about Microsoft malicious Software removal tools.

This tool checks your computer for infection by specific, prevalent malicious software (including Blaster, Sasser, and Mydoom) and helps to remove the infection if it is found. Microsoft will release an updated version of this tool on the second Tuesday of each month.

The Microsoft Windows Malicious Software Removal Tool checks Windows Vista, Windows XP, Windows 2000, and Windows Server 2003 computers for and helps remove infections by specific, prevalent malicious software—including Blaster, Sasser, and Mydoom. When the detection and removal process is complete, the tool displays a report describing the outcome, including which, if any, malicious software was detected and removed. The tool creates a log file named mrt.log in the %WINDIR%\debug folder.

Note that x64 version of this tool will only run on Vista x64, Windows XP x64 and Windows 2003 x64 computers.


This tool is not a replacement for an anti-virus support product. To help protect your computer, you should use an anti-virus product.


Microsoft will release an updated version of this tool on the second Tuesday of each month. New versions will be made available through this web page, Windows Update, and the Malicious Software Removal Tool Web site on Microsoft.com.

To have the newest versions automatically delivered and installed as soon as they are released, set the Automatic Updates feature to Automatic. The version of this tool delivered by Windows Update runs on your computer once a month, in the background. If an infection is found, the tool will display a status report the next time you start your computer. If you would like to run this tool more than once a month, run the version that is available from this Web page or use the version on the Malicious Software Removal Tool Support Web site.

Windows XP support for the Opteron processor

This post outlines the computer support policy for using 32-bit Microsoft Windows XP with the Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) Opteron processor.

Microsoft Product Support Services will support x86-based Windows XP Home and Professional versions when they run on AMD Opteron-based systems. The level of support for Windows XP on specific hardware is determined by one of the following criteria:

• Whether the hardware and drivers have completed the Microsoft Hardware Logo Program
• Whether the hardware is listed on the Hardware Compatibility List (HCL)

To download the latest Windows HCL, visit the following Microsoft Web site:
http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/hcl/default.mspx

For more information about the support of non-HCL hardware, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
Microsoft support policy on hardware not on Windows NT HCL

Note the following about AMD64-based systems:

• AMD64-based systems can run both 32-bit versions of Windows and any 32-bit application that is supported by x86-based systems.

• 32-bit versions of Windows on AMD64 cannot execute 64-bit code. Running 64-bit code requires a 64-bit operating system.

• AMD64 processors cannot run Microsoft Windows XP 64-Bit Edition for Intel Itanium processors. The differences in architecture between the two processors prevent each from running Windows XP compiled for the other one.

How to configure Windows XP to start in a clean boot state

This post provide support for configure Windows XP to start by using a clean boot. You can also Create Multiple Boot system with Windows XP

To configure Windows XP using clean boot You must be logged on as an administrator or a member of the Administrators group to configure Windows XP to start by using a clean boot.

Manual steps to perform a clean boot in Windows XP

Step 1: Start the System Configuration Utility

Click Start, click Run, type msconfig , and then click OK.
The System Configuration Utility dialog box appears.

Step 2: Configure selective startup options

1. In the System Configuration Utility dialog box, click the General tab, and then click Selective Startup.
2. Click to clear the Process SYSTEM.INI File check box.
3. Click to clear the Process WIN.INI File check box.
4. Click to clear the Load Startup Items check box.
5. Click the Services tab.
6. Click to select the Hide All Microsoft Services check box.
7. Click Disable All, and then click OK..
8. When you are prompted, click Restart to restart the computer.

Step 3: Log on to Windows

1. Log on to Windows.
2. When you receive the following message, click to select the Don't show this message or launch the System Configuration Utility when Windows start check box, and then click OK:

You have used the System Configuration Utility to make changes to the way Windows starts.

The System Configuration Utility is currently in Diagnostic or Selective Startup mode, causing this message to be displayed and the utility to run every time Windows starts.

Choose the Normal Startup mode on the General tab to start Windows normally and undo the changes you made using the System Configuration Utility.

Microsoft Rolls Out Web Platform Installer 1.0

Microsoft announced the release of Web Platform Installer (Web PI) 1.0, a free downloadable tool designed to help install the Microsoft Web Platform or its components.
The whole platform can be installed to support Web application development. Alternatively, users can opt for specific Microsoft products, such as IIS, Visual Web Developer 2008 Express Edition, SQL Server 2008 Express Edition, .NET Framework and others, according to Microsoft's announcement.

This latest version of Web PI has been in beta since late November and has been inching its way from Release Candidate stage to its current 1.0 Release-to-Web status. Earlier issues, such as lack of support for Windows XP and Windows 2003, have been overcome. It also allows the installation of ASP.NET MVC and Visual Studio Tools.

Some users of the earlier beta requested an "uninstaller" for Web PI, according to a Microsoft forum, although it's unclear if Version 1.0 addresses that complaint.

Web PI runs on Windows Vista Service Pack 1 and Windows XP operating systems, as well as Windows Server 2003 and Windows Server 2008. It requires the .NET 2.0 Framework to install and supports both x86 and 64-bit architectures.

Web PI can be downloaded here, and Microsoft provides video instructions to ease matters.
Installation Steps

Install Web PI in 3 easy steps:
1. Click on the "install now" button on this page to install and launch the Web Platform Installer.
2. Choose the profile that meets your needs or choose "Your Choice" for full control on you what you install.
3. Confirm and watch while Web PI downloads and installs what you need.

In other Web dev news, Microsoft has noted a problem with some Web development apps closing slowly in Visual Studio and Visual Web Developer Express, especially when those projects are located on remote servers.

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Troubleshooting Device Conflicts with Device Manager

This post lists steps you can use to troubleshoot hardware configuration troubles by using Device Manager. You can use Device Manager to examine and change software-configurable devices. Note that if your hardware device uses jumper pins or dip switches, you must configure the device manually.

How to start Device Manager:
1. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
2. Double-click System, and then click the Device Manager tab.

Troubleshooting Information
• If there is a problem with a device, it is listed in the hardware tree under Computer. Also, the problem device has a symbol that indicates the type of problem:
o A black exclamation point (!) on a yellow field indicates the device is in a problem state. Note that a device that is in a problem state can be functioning.
o A problem code explaining the problem is displayed for the device.
o A red "X" indicates a disabled device. A disabled device is a device that is physically present in the computer and is consuming resources, but does not have a protected-mode driver loaded.
o A blue "i" on a white field on a device resource in Computer properties indicates that the Use Automatic Settings feature is not selected for the device and that the resource was manually selected. Note that this does not indicate a problem or disabled state.
o A green question mark "?" in Device Manager means that a compatible driver for this device is installed, indicating the possibility that all of the functionality may not be available. Note that this applies only to Windows Millennium Edition (Me).

NOTE: Some sound cards and video adapters do not report all of the resources they are using to Windows. This can cause Device Manager to show only one device in conflict, or no conflicts at all. This can be verified by disabling the sound card, or by using the standard VGA video driver to see if the conflict is resolved. Note that this is a known problem with S3 video adapters and 16-bit Sound Blaster sound cards, or those sound cards that are using Sound Blaster emulation for Sound Blaster compatibility.

• When you select a specific device in Device Manager and then click the Properties button, you see a property sheet. The property sheet has a General tab.

NOTE: Some devices may have other tabs besides the General tab. Not all property sheets have the same tabs; some devices may have a Resource tab, Driver tab, and Settings tab, or some combination of these.

At the top of the property sheet, there is a description of the device. When you click the Resource tab, the window in the middle of the tab indicates which resource types are available for the selected device.

The list box at the bottom contains a Conflicting Device list. This list indicates a conflict with an error code.

• Note the Use Automatic Settings check box. If Windows successfully detects a device, this check box is selected, and the device should function correctly. However, if the resource settings are based on Basic Configuration (where is any number from 0 to 9), it may be necessary to change the configuration by selecting a different basic configuration from the list. If the particular configuration you want for the device is not listed as a basic configuration, it may be possible to click the Change Settings button to manually adjust the resource values.
For example, to edit the Input/output Range setting:

1. Click the Use Automatic Settings check box to clear it.
2. Click Change Setting.
3. Click the appropriate I/O range for the device.

Notes

• If you click My Computer and then click Properties, you see a property sheet with a View Resources and a Reserve Resources tab.

The Reserve Resources tab excludes a resource from use by Windows.

The View Resources tab displays the resources that are allocated by Windows or inherited from a Plug and Play BIOS or PCI bus computer.
• To disable a device in Device Manager, in Properties, on the General tab, clear to select the Disable in this hardware profile check box.

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