WinDOwS Tricks - Part 17

Go to ALL WinDOwS ©Tricks + Secrets Contents

1. WIN.INI is a Windows 3.xx/9x/ME INItialization file, residing in your main Windows folder (%windir% = default C:\WINDOWS), and can be edited with Notepad/Sysedit in Windows or EDIT.COM in DOS.
   Note that all *.INI entries are case insensitive.
   Here they are:

   [Direct3D]
   debug=0
   
   [DirectDraw]
   debug=0
   nohwblt=0
   nohwtrans=0
   nohwfill=0
   
   [DirectPlay]
   BreakOnAssert=0
   Debug=0
   
   [DirectPlay8]
   BreakOnAssert=0
   MemoryLeakOutput=0
   Debug=0
   log=0
   
   [Debug]
   DMBAND=0
   DMCOMPOS=0
   DMIME=0
   DMLOADER=0
   DMUSIC=0
   DMSTYLE=0
   DMSYNTH=0
   dinput=0x00
   DMUSIC16=0
   DMUSIC32=0
   DMSCRIPT=0
   DSWAVE=0
   DSDMO=0
   DInput.06=0x00
   DInput.04=0x00
   DInput.08=0x00
   DInput.17=0x00

   Some of these settings can be enabled/disabled also by using the DirectX Diagnostic Tool (DxDiag.exe, located in C:\Windows\System), bundled with MS DX6 and all newer versions.
   Most of these lines are used (if set to 1) for debugging purposes if DirectX seems to cause GPFs (General Protection Faults), errors, lockups etc, by creating Debug.txt files, which can be sent to Microsoft support (e.g. via e-mail), together with the user's hardware/OS specs, for troubleshooting.
   In normal conditions it is recommended to set them all to 0, to allow MAXimum speed with all DirectX 3D apps and games, ONLY IF DirectX works properly on your Win95/98/ME machine.
   Most of them are NOT set to 0 by default [surprise! :)] if NOT present in WIN.INI as listed above, and these default settings attract DirectX apps/games slowdown, which is unacceptable in my book. :) Therefore it is STRONGLY recommended to turn them all OFF: make sure all lines under the [Debug] section are set to 0, which disables the DX error logging ("debugging") mode.
   Though to create Debug.txt files, one needs also to download the separate DXInfo.exe, DXBug.exe, DXTool.exe + Directx.cpl tools.
   Grab DX9 Control Panel applet (CPL) [free].
   Grab DXInfo.exe + DXTool.exe [free].
   One disadvantage is that for example DXBug also creates the Dxbug.ini (unencoded, plain text) file, which contains personal user info: name, company, address, email etc. Talk about privacy!
   To my knowledge "BreakOnAssert" can be set to 1 to improve gameplay (game controller response) over the internet/network/LAN in multiplayer environment with 3D intensive games like Quake, Unreal Tournament etc. I know Quake and UT use OpenGL APIs for graphics rendering, but all newer 3D games (including Quake II and Quake III Arena) use the DirectPlay component of DX anyway for joysticks, wheels, throttles etc for direct access at hardware level, and DirectSound for direct hardware access to the sound card.
   The only Win9x/ME tweaking tool I know of that handles most of these DX settings is DirectControl [111 KB, freeware].

2. Speaking about WIN.INI...
   3dfx Banshee 2D+3D video card owners (especially the ones manufactured by Creative Labs) might benefit from adding these lines to WIN.INI, to tweak the RGB (Red Green Blue) gamma settings to their heart content, to brighten up the display for all 2D+3D programs, including the Windows desktop GUI:

   [3dfx]
   SSTH3_RGAMMA=1.5
   SSTH3_BGAMMA=1.5
   SSTH3_GGAMMA=1.5

   These are the recommended values for most users, if the screen appears too dark in 3D (Glide 3dfx) games/apps. Minimum - maximum RGB gamma values = 1.0 - 4.0. Each color can be changed individually, but "normal" (color calibrated) screen output is obtained by synchronizing all sliders (R, G and B) at the same level.

3. Add (if not present) a new section to your SYSTEM.INI, named [Display] and these lines beneath it (example), to speed up all Windows screen (re)draws, and enhance video quality and resolution, especially in 32 (24) bit true (16 million) color modes:

   [Display]
   BlockWrite=1
   BusThrottle=1
   DDC=1
   Five6Five=1
   DevBmp=0
   VAD=1
   OutEngine=1
   SwCursor=0
   Mmio=1
   RefreshRate=xxx

   SYSTEM.INI is the other "vital" Windows 3.xx/9x/ME initialization file, found also in your Windows folder, and can be also edited using Notepad or Sysedit in Windows or EDIT.COM in DOS.
   Some of these settings are specific only to ATI and/or 3dfx video chipsets, but some can be also used on most other video accelerator brands to improve graphics performance. Try to see if they make any difference with your video board:
   MEANING:
   • BlockWrite=1 speeds up video to memory writes.

   • BusThrottle=1 fixes PCI bus to video memory writes if using more than 256 colors (8-bit) resolution. Known to work with older S3 PCI video chipsets.

   • DDC=1 turns on the Display Data Channel on older (2D only) graphics boards.

   • Five6Five=1 forces the 5-6-5 mode in 16-bit resolution (65k colors), even if it is disabled by default on some controllers (i.e. older ATI chipsets).

   • ATI cards are known to work better with DevBmp=0 (turns off DeviceBitmap).

   • VAD=1 turns on the external VGA feature connector on ATI cards, if hooked up to an MPEG, video capture or TV card.

   • RefreshRate=100 (100 Hz in this example) must match its Registry "twin", the "RefreshRate"="100" String Value, found under this key (as shown by Regedit):
     HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\Class\Display\0000\DEFAULT
     The 0000 subkey can be 0001, 0002 etc, depending of your video driver location.
     Together these two settings force Windows to use a predefined vertical refresh rate (also known as vertical frequency), measured in Hertz (abbreviated as Hz). This allows fluorescent multi-scan CRT monitors, able to change screen resolutions, color depths and refresh rates on the fly, to take advantage of higher frequencies built into their cathode tubes, thus avoiding eye strain caused by flicker.
     Brief explanation: most human eyes can perceive [and can get irritated by :(] lower refresh rates (60, 70, and even 75 Hz) produced by the time interval necessary for each video/TV/monitor/kinescope/oscilloscope/etc electron beam (spot) to complete an entire horizontal sweep of the screen, from top to bottom.
     Windows 95/OSR1 use mainly the SYSTEM.INI line, and Windows OSR2/98/ME use exclusively the Registry entry.
   If you experience video errors/lockups after adding these lines to your SYSTEM.INI, disable them by replacing 1 with 0, or just remark them by typing a semicolon (;) in front of them.
   Note that ANY SYSTEM.INI changes require a Windows restart to take effect.

4. Open Control Panel → System applet → Performance tab → Graphics button → drag the "Hardware acceleration" slider all the way to the right (to "Full") → click OK/Apply → finally reboot, to take advantage of all these video settings. But in the rare cases your video controller freezes up on the "Full" position, drag the slider back one notch to the left for more reliability, at the expense of using fewer accelerator functions (slower video performance).
   The default Windows 95/98/ME Graphics setting is "Full", which turns on all available graphics hardware acceleration features built into the display driver. That's why it is VERY IMPORTANT to ALWAYS install the available CURRENT (most recent) set of video drivers for your particular video controller, to take advantage of enhanced/added functions, and eventually of the patches for bugs plaguing previous driver releases.
   1. The first notch to the left corrects eventual mouse pointer issues (disables hardware cursor support) by adding the "SwCursor=1" line (switches to Software Cursor) under the [Display] section of SYSTEM.INI, and this String value (Windows 98/ME ONLY) under the Registry key below (you can access by running Regedit):
      HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Config\0000\Display\Settings
      "SwCursor"="1"
      Note that 0000 might show as 0001, 0002 etc... in your Registry, depending on the specific key name your video driver is installed under.

   2. The second notch can correct certain display errors (disables bit block transfers to and from the video card and disables memory mapped I/O for some display drivers) by adding the "SwCursor=1" and "Mmio=0" lines under the [Display] section of SYSTEM.INI, the "SafeMode=1" line under the [Windows] section of WIN.INI, and these String values (Windows 98/ME ONLY) under the Registry key below:
      HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Config\0000\Display\Settings
      "SwCursor"="1"
      "Mmio"="0"

   3. The third [and last :)] notch ("None") can correct severe hardware issues (i.e. the machine often stops responding to input) by adding the "SafeMode=2" line under the [Windows] section of WIN.INI. This removes ALL driver hardware acceleration support, forcing Windows to use only the Device Independent Bitmap (DIB) engine rather than bit block transfers for displaying images.
      The "None" setting usually corrects IPF (Invalid Page Fault) error messages like:
      "Program X caused an invalid page fault in module UNKNOWN"
      that pop up upon system startup, indicating a problem between the display driver and the Windows software based DIB engine.

• More info @ Microsoft.
• See "DIRECTX TWEAKS", also in REGISTRY.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE], for more DirectX settings.
• See "SYSTEM.INI TWEAKS", also in MYTIPS95.TXT [part of W95-11D.EXE], to learn how to boost your system, communications, disk, cache, DMA, keyboard etc performance to the MAX.

1. Dial-Up modems:
   1. Open Control Panel.
   2. Open the Network applet.
   3. Select Properties for Dial-Up Adapter.
   4. Click Advanced.
   5. Select Yes to "Enable Point to Point IP". Be sure to check with your ISP first to see if they support this!
   6. Select Automatic for "IP Packet Size".
   7. Select No for "Record a log file".
   8. Select No for "Use IPX header compression".
   9. Click "Enhanced mode [32 and 16 bit] NDIS driver".
   10. Restart Windows.
   11. Watch your modem fly!

2. Cable modems/LAN intranets, specifically using a D-Link 530TX PCI Fast Ethernet adapter and a standard 1.5 Mbps Cox@home cable modem. Your card may or may not support these settings, but the chances are low:
   1. Open Control Panel.
   2. Open the Network applet.
   3. Select Properties for your Ethernet adapter.
   4. Select "Enhanced mode" in the Driver Type tab.
   5. Click the Advanced tab.
   6. Set Connection Type to "AutoSense", unless you're absolutely sure what yours is.
   7. Set DMA Burst Length to "128 DWORDS". If it works, try 256 next, but do that only after you've tried 128 first.
   8. Set Map Registers to 16 for starters, but you can increase it further if you want more speed.
   9. Set No Cable Indication to "Enabled".
   10. Set Receive Threshold to 512 bytes.
   11. Set Transmit Buffers to 16.
   12. Set Transmit Threshold to 1024 bytes.
   13. Restart Windows.
   UPDATE: After a few months of playing around with the settings, I think I've found the "sweet spot" settings.
   In general, higher buffers save data and partially cache data transfers. However, if the buffers are set too high, too much time will be spent buffering, thus reducing your download speed:
   • DMA Burst Length = 256 DWORDS
   • Map Registers = 16 or 32
   • Receive Buffers = 16
   • Receive Threshold = 1024 Bytes
   • Transmit Buffers = 16
   • Transmit Treshold = 1024 Bytes
   All other settings should remain as they are.
   NOTE: While clients should have medium-low buffer values, servers which have error-correction should have all Ethernet buffers at their lowest values to increase speed as much as possible, and the send/receive thresholds should be set to the max."

1. Install and run the freeware DHCP Fix tool.

2. Or if you like to hack the Registry [like I do :)], run Regedit and go to:
   HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\Class\NetTrans
   Expand the "NetTrans" key → look in the left hand pane at the 000n subkeys (where n can be any integer number from 0 up to 50) → click on each one of them → create a new DWORD Value → right-click in the right hand pane → select New → DWORD → name it "PerformRouterDiscovery" (no quotes) → (double-)click on it → check the Decimal box → type 0 (zero) → hit OK. Now repeat this under ALL your 000n keys (most likely you'd have more than one). Close the Registry Editor and restart Windows. Done.

• AD-Aware Standard (freeware) Internet spyware removal tool for Windows 9x/NT4/2000/ME/XP/2003 detects and removes Web3000, Gator, Cydoor, Flyswat, Radiate/Aureate, Conducent/TimeSink, CometCursor, Alexa etc components.

• Try the SpyChecker extensive database of spyware software.

• See Ojatex's Ad MAD page [also in ADMAD.TXT, part of W95-11D.EXE] for more adware/spyware fixes!

• "Photocopier v2.01 (free, ad-sponsored) keeps reinstalling Timesink on my system and into my Registry. After removing it (too bad because it's a useful utility), Timesink has not come back."
  [Thank you M.E. Johnson!]

• "With Iplay Internet gaming site you get Tsadbot.exe, but after following the instructions above Iplay no longer works. I found out if finding the Timesink folder, deleting all the subfolders in the Ads folder, and then making the Ads folder read only, there are no more ads saved on my computer and I can still use Iplay.net."
  [Thank you Roger!]

• "In addition to "Timesink" applications there's another annoying type of AdWare using Cydoor's Ad Loader. The perpetrator is called Cd_load.exe and is located in C:\WINNT\SYSTEM32 (Windows NT4/2000/XP/2003) or C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM (Windows 95/98/ME). Just do a search on the filename and remove it.
  To get rid of its registry entries, find and remove the following:
  Run Regedit and go to:
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software
  and delete the "Cydoor" and "Cydoor Services" keys. Then go to:
  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
  and delete the "Cydoor"="CD_Load.exe" value.
  This is the Cydoor home page.
  You might want to check out what software uses the Cydoor Technology BEFORE installing anything 'free'."
  [Thank you Casper!]

• CPR v1.2 for Windows 98/2000 (free adware) installs these files in C:\Windows\System: Adimage.dll, Amcis2.dll, Ipccli~1.dll, Tfde.dll, Htmdeng.exe + Msipcsv.exe, and this entry under this Registry key:
  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run
  "IPServer"="c:\windows\system\msipcsv.exe"
  to run every time Windows starts. They can be removed by completely uninstalling the program from Control Panel → Add/Remove Programs (deleting only the Registry value and the files above makes CPR unoperable). Letting Msipcsv.exe run longer than 10 minutes, drastically reduces system resources!

• "Here are details on Aureate/Radiate spying/advertising software, and these are the Aureate/Radiate members/partners using its software."
  [Thank you Ojatex!]

• NetNak, a freeware [actually "adware" :(] internet performance monitoring tool, uses Aureate/Radiate advertising software, and installs these files in C:\Windows\System: Advert.dll and Amcis.dll. Uninstalling NetNak should safely remove the files.

• Privacy Power!

• Bust Banner Ads with Proxy Auto Configuration.

• Aureate 'Spying' case.

• The Spyware Infested Software List.

• Spambot Beware!

• Ad Blocking Resources.

• eZula and Surf+ Script Killer.

• Adware, Spyware and Other Unwanted "Malware" - and how to remove them.

• PC World: Invasion of the Browser Snatchers.

• Protecting The Web from ScumWare.

• Parasites.

• CNN: Invasion of the browser snatchers.

• Anti-Spam Tools.

• Spyware Info.

• Spyware information.

• Spyware List.

• List of programs infected with spyware.

• Windows PopUP SPAM.

• How to Eliminate Spyware, Adware + Random Popups.

• Rogue/Suspect Anti-Spyware Products + Web Sites.

1. AOL users located in the USA or Canada:
   If using a "Call Waiting" (or similar) service provided by your telephone company (telco), turn it off by adding the *70 (or 70# or 1170 = depending on your local phone line provider) prefix followed in most cases by a comma (,) in front of your (local) phone number used to connect to AOL.

2. Install one of the "FREE WINDOWS 9x/NT/2000/ME/XP/2003 AOL 32-bit TOOLS", which perform a similar job: monitor and dismiss the 45 min time limit inactivity popup messages. Just make sure to get one that works with your particular AOL version and MS Operating System. :)

1. Unload/delete ALL startup entries from your Registry and Startup folder, using Startup Control Panel applet [freeware].
2. Load them instead using BatchRun [freeware], create a script time delay between programs of 5 seconds, and check the "No load until previous program is finished" box.
3. Place the script file (.BRS) in C:\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup or in C:\Windows\Profiles\Username\Start Menu\Programs\Startup.
4. Restart Windows and watch the fur fly. :)

1. Right-click on the executable you want to access and select "Create Shortcut".
2. Move the shortcut to your Windows folder.
3. To access the file, all you have to do is go Start → Run and type in the program name.
   NOTE: If you want to rename the shortcut, make sure you update the name of the actual file as well.

var wantMedia=false; // Cool, but may hinder media file manipulation!

-----Begin cut & paste here-----
REGEDIT4

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\.exe]
"Content Type"="application/x-msdownload"
@="exefile"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile]
"EditFlags"=hex:d8,07,00,00
@="Application"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell]
@=""

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\open]
@=""
"EditFlags"=hex:00,00,00,00

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\shell\open\command]
@="\"%1\" %*"

[HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\exefile\DefaultIcon]
@="%1"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\.exe]
"Content Type"="application/x-msdownload"
@="exefile"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\exefile]
"EditFlags"=hex:d8,07,00,00
@="Application"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\exefile\shell]
@=""

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\exefile\shell\open]
@=""
"EditFlags"=hex:00,00,00,00

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\exefile\shell\open\command]
@="\"%1\" %*"

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Classes\exefile\DefaultIcon]
@="%1"

------End cut & paste here------

1. You can also use FIXEXE.COM [28 KB, free].

2. "REG files require REGEDIT.EXE to run in order to be merged. But if you rename REGEDIT.EXE to REGEDIT.BAT you can still use .REG files: Registry → Import Registry File.
   [Thank you David!]

3. "Here's a couple of items I found useful when I exposed my system to a virus which modified the Registry, and Windows could not run exe programs. This includes, of course, REGEDIT.EXE!
   Both .EXE and .COM files are loaded as EXEcutables if the "MZ" signature is present, and as COMmand files otherwise, regardless of whether the file extention is .COM or .EXE. By renaming REGEDIT.EXE to REGEDIT.COM it ran as normal, by bypassing the corrupt exe file Registry key.
   Also, my Desktop icon for MS IE (which appears to be neither a program nor a shortcut, but a Registry generated icon) worked even with the corrupt exe file key! This is very useful for browsing virus update sites to find the key(s) to modify and repair the Registry. :)"
   [Thank you Chogg!]

• Prince Of Persia 3D Patch v1.1 [6.2 MB].
• Klingon Honor Guard Patch v1.1 [2.3 MB].

-----Begin cut & paste here-----
REGEDIT4

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\hardware\DirectDrawDrivers\472BEA00-40DF-11D1-A9-DF-00-60-97-C2-ED-B2]
"Description"="Voodoo2 DirectX 7 Driver"
"DriverName"="3dfxV2"

------End cut & paste here------

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Hardware\DirectDrawDrivers\3A0CFD01-9320-11cf-AC-A1-00-A0-24-13-C2-E2
"Description"="3dfx DirectX 6 Driver"
"DriverName"="mm3dfx"

• DirectX Diagnostic [DXDiag.exe] located in C:\Windows\System.
• DirectX Control Panel [Directx.cpl].
  Grab DX9 Control Panel here [free].

-----Begin cut & paste here-----
REGEDIT4

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\hardware\DirectDrawDrivers\472BEA00-40DF-11D1-A9-DF-00-60-97-C2-ED-B2]
"Description"=""
"DriverName"=""

------End cut & paste here------

• Primary [2D+3D]: Chaintech A-GT60 AGP NVidia GeForce4 Ti 4600 with 128 MB DDR SDRAM, using the NVidia GeForce4 NV25 chipset.
  Driver:
  Tweaked Unofficial NVIDIA Display Driver 82.69 for Windows 98/98 SP1/98 SE/ME:
  NV8269.EXE [14.5 MB, multilingual].
  Official NVidia Driver 81.98.
  List of all NVidia supported GPUs.
  NVidia Video drivers for older GPUs.
  If you own an NVidia GeForce/2/3/4/FX card this FAQ is A MUST.
• Secondary [3D only]: Quantum3D Obsidian2 X-24 Voodoo2 SLI PCI TV with 24 MB EDO DRAM, using two 3dfx Voodoo2 3D chipsets in SLI (Scan Line Interleave).
  Driver:
  3dfx Voodoo2 Unified Direct3D/OpenGL ICD/Glide Tweaked Drivers for Windows 95/98/ME [1.33 MB] based on Original 3dfx Drivers 3.02.02.
  3dfx MiniGL.