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Lessons in Waste, Abuse, and Mismanagement from the agency that doesn't listen
This area will show the registry changes that enable or undo fixes. I've done my best, but the final choice to run these changes or not is yours and you assume all risk. You can verify all my code online, but for best safety, make a backup of your registry file before using this.
On major updates to Windows, it shows you the Welcome Experience again in an attempt to give you a second chance to do things their way. If you don't need the nag, click this fix to disable this obnoxious behavior.
Another volley in Microsoft's cloying desperation to trick you into picking Edge as your browser; the Welcome to Windows screen that shows up after updates is clearly intended into confusing you into selecting their browser (and other options that benefit Microsoft) instead of leaving your crap alone... the way you already set it.
If you find it distracting having web results when searching from your start menu, click this fix to keep the search function focused on your files and programs only.
It's curious isn't it? Who would have ever thought that while we're looking for commands, programs, files on our computer, we want to see result FROM THE WEB!? Click to disable this asinine behavior and end the timewasting distraction of web results where they don't belong.
ONLY APPLIES TO LAPTOPS. Many laptops put the computer to sleep simply because you closed the lid. This prevents that.
ONLY APPLIES TO LAPTOPS. There are lots of reasons to close a laptop lid - getting up to get coffee without leaving an open invitation to cat-typed nonsense. Carrying it to another room, shutting off the screen to save power while you take a quick call.
Bottom line, click this fix to keep the narcoleptic little bugger awake if you're just changing locations in the house and don't need it to sleep and wake constantly just because you closed the lid.
The 'Cortana' search feature has various processes and functions that take up resources that are better used for other things if you don't use it. Bonus: disabling it actually speeds up your computer in some ways. Enable the fix to disable Cortana.
If Windows search actually worked worth a damn, maybe I'd keep Cortana, but it doesn't so why waste the resources? Does Cortana dream of electric sheep? Who cares? To the bin with you!
I just like to know that Windows is doing something and maybe what it is. It's useful for debugging or just generally knowing that it's not doing nothing at all. This fix enables more detailed status messages when logging in or out. (photo from thewindowsclub.com)
I just like to know that Windows is doing something and maybe what it is. It's useful for debugging or just generally knowing that it's not doing nothing at all. This fix enables more detailed status messages when logging in or out. (photo from thewindowsclub.com)
An Advertising ID is a unique identify that Windows can provide to websites and apps (probably) so they can uniquely identify you and track your activity for advertising purposes. If you trust this information will be used responsibly, leave this alone. If you don't, click this fix to disable the 'feature'.
There's a scale of people and companies I trust to know enough about me to make suggestions of products and services ranging from my close friends and family all the way to data brokers who are trying to constantly scrape your information without consent. Microsoft has not earned that right. The advertising id is a way for Windows to tattle on you to everyone so they can tag and track you like cattle. Click this fix to stop that.
Sometimes you'll see suggested apps and services in the Start Menu. To disable that, click this fix.
Are suggestions useful? That depends on who's making them and why. Do you trust Microsoft to make suggestions that are in your best interests? Ones that are legitimately designed to improve your workflow and are a good value? Lol. Click this fix to tell Microsoft to mind their own business.
Windows will sometimes notice what you're doing and provide 'tips' for how to do it better. Sometimes those tips are to use Microsoft options instead which is not as helpful. To disable this feature (all tips, not just the MS advertising ones), click this fix.
Sometimes you're minding your business and up pops and notification that 'helpfully' tells you, 'you could do this with Edge instead!' or something similar. Technically, this feature provides other tips besides USE MOAR EDGE!?!?!?!, but maybe it's worth throwing the bathwater out with the turd. To prevent MS from nagging you constantly to use their products when you dare to open Chrome or some other superior browser, click this fix.
Pressing the F1 key in certain Microsoft programs opens a web page with 'Help' for that tool (Windows Explorer for example). If you dislike or don't use the function, it's quite distracting and is best disabled. Click this fix to do so.
Have you ever hit the F1 key by accident and had a distracting and unhelpful window or webpage open as a result? Windows set the F1 key to a generic help function that basically never helps and always gets in the way.
Enable this control to disable that obnoxious design choice. Note that some programs still respond to F1 on their own accord, but this will stop the default Windows behavior in things like Windows Explorer at least.
The Windows Timeline feature was intended to be a way to keep track of what you were working on and where so that you can pick up where you left off later, or on another machine. If that doesn't appeal to you, click here to turn it off. (photo by PCworld)
Do you want Windows to keep track of all the things you did, when, where, and for how long? Not me. If you don't have trouble keeping track of your stuff and would rather keep your activity a bit more private, click this fix. (photo by PCworld)
Windows allows you to force numlock OFF during boot, but also has the option to force it ON. This forces it on for boot so numlock will be automatically turn on while loading Windows/booting.
Windows allows you to force numlock OFF during boot (madness), but also has the (correct) option to force it ON. This fix forces NumLock to start off correctly - enabled.
There are some cases where signing into a Microsoft account on your computer can be advantageous, but if you prefer to keep full control over your files and data, it's best not to. And if you made that decision, the nag is nothing but a nag. Click this fix to turn off the Start Menu "account nag".
No, Microsoft. You aren't trustworthy enough to tie my computer activity to your online accounts. You're not as bad as Google, but you're not great. So no, I won't make an online account. Stop nagging. Click to disable the start menu "You haven't signed in yet!" nag.
Modern versions of Windows only show the folders you've touched this session in the left navigation pane which makes it easier for some people to keep sense of their work session. For people who have trouble keeping track of how files and folders are arranged when some are left hidden, this fix makes them all visible all the time. You'll have to scroll a bit more, but at least you can see everything.
For some reason, in newer Windows versions, they hide the folder structure. Maybe they think we're too stupid to follow along? Either way, it's hella-confusing when you can't see the folders surrounding where you are in the directory tree. How the hell are you supposed to navigate when most stuff is hidden?
effect for people who don't care and never need to change a file extension, but it's quite a bother for people who do. Click this fix to show all file extensions.
Isn't it insane that the default behavior of Windows is to hide the extension/filetype from the users? So instead, all we see is the icon which varies by which program currently has "ownership of it". So what happens when we install an alternate PDF reader (or one gets installed without us noticing) and the icon changes? Now there's no way to know what the hell it is. Extensions on ALWAYS. Let us see what the file actually IS!
Files that manage folder settings, system controls, and so on are not always relevant and you might prefer to let Windows handle them. However, there are times it's useful to edit or modify those files which is hard if you can't see them. Click this fix to make them visible.
Some "System" files should be hidden, but that's not what this is. Very common and important files that you will need access to like AppData, programming, settings files, and other stuff is hidden making it really hard to work with. This undoes that. You can still see they're hidden, but you can at least SEE them now.
When using the left-pane navigation in Windows Explorer, there's a "User Folder" with the various common locations for that user listed. This is not helpful if you pin your key folders to Quick Access and commonly want to see the disk drives instead of user folders. This fix removes that pane for a cleaner view.
Something that has annoyed me for YEARS is how the User folder and all it's various subfolders is in the navigation pane between Quick Access shortcuts that I like and My Computer (where I do any actual navigation). I never need things in my user folder and if you don't either, click this fix to keep it out of the way!
Windows 11 centered the icons and Windows button on the taskbar - presumably to make it more compatible with mobile devices. If you hate it, activate this fix to have them pushed back to the left like in Windows 10 and below.
Did I come to like/accept the centered design? Sure. But is that any excuse for them to launch Win 11 without having an easily-activated option for people who didn`t? No. Do better Microsoft. Give us the ability to configure what we want on our systems. Especially on transition to newer systems.
To make Windows more accessible for users, they hid the more unusual/advanced options you used to see in the "ribbon" context menu in Windows Explorer. To get the old ribbon back, activate this fix.
Putting the "ribbon" in Windows Explorer was smart! Common options I'd have to dig for in menus right at my fingertips. But in their infinite wisdom, Microsoft decided to "minimize" the ribbon down to just a handful of things that are easily accomplished by keyboard shortcuts. Fine. It's training wheels for people who want it, but I don't. Hasta la-bye-bye!
To make Windows more accessible for users, they hid the more unusual/advanced options you used to see in file context menus (when you right-click a file). To get the old menu back, activate this fix.
When you right-click, you're supposed to get a menu listing all the things you can do with your files, but why not hide all of that and only show the most common options instead? Yeah, ok. That's helpful for new people, but for me it's annoying and in the way. Buh-bye!
Hibernate is a special mode of sleep that allows you to pick back up exactly where you left off (like sleep), but without any power and no matter how long you're without power. Sleep can lose data if you forget your computer too long, but not hibernate. Ergo, click this fix to bring back the option to hibernate.
Without a doubt, hibernate is the most useful way to put a computer to "sleep" since it can stay unplugged forever without losing your data. Obvious right? Wrong apparently. Microsoft doesn't want you to hibernate for some reason, but it's not up to them. Click this fix to have your proper options back.
If you ever found all your windows minimizing while dragging another window around, it was probably because Windows thought you were using "shake to minmimize". If you didn't know what was happening or know but don't want that feature, enable this fix.
I wanted the window on the left, but changed my mind and put it on the right. That counts as a "shake" apparently and all my other windows minimized! Maybe someone wants this feature, but I've literally never had it happen because I wanted it to. So out it goes! Enable this fix to turn the "feature" off.
In the handful of cases you need to open a CMD window, you need it in a specific folder AND at admin level. This adds a context menu option to do just that. Just right click a folder and say "open command window here". To enable this, enable this fix.
Maybe you never need to point to any given folder and drop into a command window with ULTIMATE POWA! but I do. Not only have recent versions of Windows removed the option to ""open CMD here"" through right-click context menus, you only get normal level anyway making it REALLY painful to open an elevated CMD and then have to manually navigate like it was still the 90's. No thanks.
For some reason, Windows 10+ likes to load with a pretty picture and no login controls. To reach login, you have to click or swipe (or click then swipe) which is an extra step that really doesn't seem necessary. If you agree, click this fix.
Here's a great idea: have an extra barrier to logging in that requires a click... no wait, it was a swipe... wait a click? Dang! Now I only half-swiped. Crap! This is hard to do with a mouse! Or... let's just turn that nonsense off. Enable this fix to make the login box show immediately on load without the silly barrier first.