This blog covers a range of Registry edits, ranging from those for Internet software, to those related to personal computer security, and so forth. Included in this chapter, therefore, are those hacks that are applicable to XP but which don't fall into any other category.
hacks For Windows XP
So you're ready now—a little basic knowledge goes a long way. You want to speed things up, you want to make XP more intuitive to your personal way of doing things, you want to make it look pretty and impress your khandhan and friends…
But needless to say (at least now, after a dozen warnings!), delving into the Registry is not for the careless or faint of heart. The first and last rule when hacking XP's innards is to back up before doing anything. Ideally, keep a little noteblog with you. Note down the changes you're making and the backup file prior to the change. This will help you quickly roll back to an earlier backup if things should go wrong.
A few general rules: if you make a change, it is best to reboot. If you are going to make a bunch of changes, do them all at one go and reboot. In most cases, you shouldn't face any problems. If you do, roll back to the last backup and go through the list again one by one between each reboot, until you reach the offensive hack. Sometimes you will need to re-create the String / DWORD / Binary values under a key, or even the key itself.
If a setting does not work as discussed, or, even worse, does the opposite of what was intended, reset it to the previous setting.
