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  • Refreshing Your PC Won’t Help: Why Bloatware is Still a Problem on Windows 8

    - by Chris Hoffman
    Bloatware is still a big problem on new Windows 8 and 8.1 PCs. Some websites will tell you that you can easily get rid of manufacturer-installed bloatware with Windows 8′s Reset feature, but they’re generally wrong. This junk software often turns the process of powering on your new PC from what could be a delightful experience into a tedious slog, forcing you to spend hours cleaning up your new PC before you can enjoy it. Why Refreshing Your PC (Probably) Won’t Help Manufacturers install software along with Windows on their new PCs. In addition to hardware drivers that allow the PC’s hardware to work properly, they install more questionable things like trial antivirus software and other nagware. Much of this software runs at boot, cluttering the system tray and slowing down boot times, often dramatically. Software companies pay computer manufacturers to include this stuff. It’s installed to make the PC manufacturer money at the cost of making the Windows computer worse for actual users. Windows 8 includes “Refresh Your PC” and “Reset Your PC” features that allow Windows users to quickly get their computers back to a fresh state. It’s essentially a quick, streamlined way of reinstalling Windows.  If you install Windows 8 or 8.1 yourself, the Refresh operation will give your PC a clean Windows system without any additional third-party software. However, Microsoft allows computer manufacturers to customize their Refresh images. In other words, most computer manufacturers will build their drivers, bloatware, and other system customizations into the Refresh image. When you Refresh your computer, you’ll just get back to the factory-provided system complete with bloatware. It’s possible that some computer manufacturers aren’t building bloatware into their refresh images in this way. It’s also possible that, when Windows 8 came out, some computer manufacturer didn’t realize they could do this and that refreshing a new PC would strip the bloatware. However, on most Windows 8 and 8.1 PCs, you’ll probably see bloatware come back when you refresh your PC. It’s easy to understand how PC manufacturers do this. You can create your own Refresh images on Windows 8 and 8.1 with just a simple command, replacing Microsoft’s image with a customized one. Manufacturers can install their own refresh images in the same way. Microsoft doesn’t lock down the Refresh feature. Desktop Bloatware is Still Around, Even on Tablets! Not only is typical Windows desktop bloatware not gone, it has tagged along with Windows as it moves to new form factors. Every Windows tablet currently on the market — aside from Microsoft’s own Surface and Surface 2 tablets — runs on a standard Intel x86 chip. This means that every Windows 8 and 8.1 tablet you see in stores has a full desktop with the capability to run desktop software. Even if that tablet doesn’t come with a keyboard, it’s likely that the manufacturer has preinstalled bloatware on the tablet’s desktop. Yes, that means that your Windows tablet will be slower to boot and have less memory because junk and nagging software will be on its desktop and in its system tray. Microsoft considers tablets to be PCs, and PC manufacturers love installing their bloatware. If you pick up a Windows tablet, don’t be surprised if you have to deal with desktop bloatware on it. Microsoft Surfaces and Signature PCs Microsoft is now selling their own Surface PCs that they built themselves — they’re now a “devices and services” company after all, not a software company. One of the nice things about Microsoft’s Surface PCs is that they’re free of the typical bloatware. Microsoft won’t take money from Norton to include nagging software that worsens the experience. If you pick up a Surface device that provides Windows 8.1 and 8 as Microsoft intended it — or install a fresh Windows 8.1 or 8 system — you won’t see any bloatware. Microsoft is also continuing their Signature program. New PCs purchased from Microsoft’s official stores are considered “Signature PCs” and don’t have the typical bloatware. For example, the same laptop could be full of bloatware in a traditional computer store and clean, without the nasty bloatware when purchased from a Microsoft Store. Microsoft will also continue to charge you $99 if you want them to remove your computer’s bloatware for you — that’s the more questionable part of the Signature program. Windows 8 App Bloatware is an Improvement There’s a new type of bloatware on new Windows 8 systems, which is thankfully less harmful. This is bloatware in the form of included “Windows 8-style”, “Store-style”, or “Modern” apps in the new, tiled interface. For example, Amazon may pay a computer manufacturer to include the Amazon Kindle app from the Windows Store. (The manufacturer may also just receive a cut of book sales for including it. We’re not sure how the revenue sharing works — but it’s clear PC manufacturers are getting money from Amazon.) The manufacturer will then install the Amazon Kindle app from the Windows Store by default. This included software is technically some amount of clutter, but it doesn’t cause the problems older types of bloatware does. It won’t automatically load and delay your computer’s startup process, clutter your system tray, or take up memory while you’re using your computer. For this reason, a shift to including new-style apps as bloatware is a definite improvement over older styles of bloatware. Unfortunately, this type of bloatware has not replaced traditional desktop bloatware, and new Windows PCs will generally have both. Windows RT is Immune to Typical Bloatware, But… Microsoft’s Windows RT can’t run Microsoft desktop software, so it’s immune to traditional bloatware. Just as you can’t install your own desktop programs on it, the Windows RT device’s manufacturer can’t install their own desktop bloatware. While Windows RT could be an antidote to bloatware, this advantage comes at the cost of being able to install any type of desktop software at all. Windows RT has also seemingly failed — while a variety of manufacturers came out with their own Windows RT devices when Windows 8 was first released, they’ve all since been withdrawn from the market. Manufacturers who created Windows RT devices have criticized it in the media and stated they have no plans to produce any future Windows RT devices. The only Windows RT devices still on the market are Microsoft’s Surface (originally named Surface RT) and Surface 2. Nokia is also coming out with their own Windows RT tablet, but they’re in the process of being purchased by Microsoft. In other words, Windows RT just isn’t a factor when it comes to bloatware — you wouldn’t get a Windows RT device unless you purchased a Surface, but those wouldn’t come with bloatware anyway. Removing Bloatware or Reinstalling Windows 8.1 While bloatware is still a problem on new Windows systems and the Refresh option probably won’t help you, you can still eliminate bloatware in the traditional way. Bloatware can be uninstalled from the Windows Control Panel or with a dedicated removal tool like PC Decrapifier, which tries to automatically uninstall the junk for you. You can also do what Windows geeks have always tended to do with new computers — reinstall Windows 8 or 8.1 from scratch with installation media from Microsoft. You’ll get a clean Windows system and you can install only the hardware drivers and other software you need. Unfortunately, bloatware is still a big problem for Windows PCs. Windows 8 tries to do some things to address bloatware, but it ultimately comes up short. Most Windows PCs sold in most stores to most people will still have the typical bloatware slowing down the boot process, wasting memory, and adding clutter. Image Credit: LG on Flickr, Intel Free Press on Flickr, Wilson Hui on Flickr, Intel Free Press on Flickr, Vernon Chan on Flickr     

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  • Preview and Purchase Ebooks with Kindle for PC

    - by Matthew Guay
    Want to look over a new book, or buy it immediately in ebook format?  Here’s how you can preview and purchase most new books from your PC the easy way. Most new books, including almost all New York Times Bestsellers, are available in ebook format from Amazon’s Kindle store.  The Kindle store also includes numerous free ebooks, including out-of-print classics and a surprising amount of recent books.  With the free Kindle for PC reader, you can read any of these ebooks without having to purchase a Kindle device. Preview Ebooks Before you Purchase Sometimes, it can be hard to know if you want to purchase a new book without reading some of it first.  With Kindle for PC, however, you can download a sample of any ebook available for free.  The sample usually includes the table of contents, forward or introduction, and often part or all of the first chapter. To get an ebook sample, find the book you want in the Kindle store (link below). Now, under the Try it free box, select the correct computer or device to send the sample to, and click Send Sample now. Amazon will thank you for your order, even though this is only a free preview.  Click the Go to Kindle for PC button to open Kindle and read your ebook preview.   Or, if Kindle is already running, press the Refresh button in the top right corner to check for new ebooks and previews. Kindle will synchronize and download the previews you selected. The most recently downloaded items show up on the top left.  All sample books have a red “Sample” bar on the bottom of their cover, and they also include links to Buy or view more info about it on it’s cover.  Double-click your sample to start reading it. Your ebook sample will usually open at the introduction or beginning of the first chapter, but you can also view the index, cover, and more. When you reach the end of the sample book, you can click a link to buy the book or view more details about it.  Strangely, both of these links currently take you to the ebook’s page on Amazon.com, but perhaps in the future the Buy link will directly let you purchase the book. Or, you can also click Buy Now on a sample book directly from your Kindle library. If you clicked one of these links, you will be returned to the ebook’s page on Amazon.  Choose the PC or Kindle you want the book delivered to, and this time, select Buy Now with 1-Click. Add your payment info if you’re not already setup for 1-Click Shopping, and then you’ll be shown the same Thank you page as before.  Refresh Kindle for PC, and your new ebook will automatically download.  Strangely, the sample ebook is not automatically removed, so you can right-click on the sample and select Delete this Book.  Additionally, your last-read page in the sample is not synced to the purchased book, so you may have to find your place again. Now, enjoy your full ebook! Download Free Books for Kindle The Kindle Store has an amazing amount of free ebooks.  Some free books may only be free for a limited time as a promotion, while others, such as old classics, may always be free.  Either which way, once you download it, you can keep it forever. When you find a free ebook you want, select the Kindle or PC you want to download it to and click “Buy now with 1-Click”.  Notice that this book shows it’s price is $0.00, but the button still says Buy now.  Rest assured, if the book’s price show up as $0.00, you will not be charged anything for downloading it. Your ebook will download as usual after your next refresh.  Note that you can still download the sample first if you want, but since the book is free, just download the whole thing and delete it if you don’t want it. Redownload your Purchased or Free Books If you install Kindle on a new PC or delete a book from your library, you can always re-download it from your Amazon account.  Browse to the Manage your Kindle page on Amazon (link below) sign in with your Amazon account, and scroll down to the list of your purchased content. Select the book you wish to download, then choose the Kindle or PC you want to download it to and press Go. Note: There is a “Delete this title” button right below this.  If you press the Delete button, you will not ever be able to re-download it. Or, you can download the book directly from the Archived Items tab in Kindle on your other PC. And, if you have your Kindle content on multiple computers, your reading will be synced via Whispersync.  You can start reading on your desktop, and then resume where you left off from your laptop. Conclusion With these tips and tricks, it is much easier to preview and purchase new books, find and download free ebooks, and re-download any you’ve deleted from your PC.  Have fun filling up your digital library! Links Manage your Kindle account Similar Articles Productive Geek Tips Read Mobi eBooks on Kindle for PCRead Kindle Books On Your Computer with Kindle for PCHow to See Where a TinyUrl Is Really Linking ToEdit Microsoft Word 2007 Documents in Print PreviewWhy Can’t I Turn the Details/Preview Panes On or Off in Windows Vista Explorer? TouchFreeze Alternative in AutoHotkey The Icy Undertow Desktop Windows Home Server – Backup to LAN The Clear & Clean Desktop Use This Bookmarklet to Easily Get Albums Use AutoHotkey to Assign a Hotkey to a Specific Window Latest Software Reviews Tinyhacker Random Tips DVDFab 6 Revo Uninstaller Pro Registry Mechanic 9 for Windows PC Tools Internet Security Suite 2010 Whoa ! Use Printflush to Solve Printing Problems Icelandic Volcano Webcams Open Multiple Links At One Go NachoFoto Searches Images in Real-time Office 2010 Product Guides

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  • becoming a video editor, which pc is good!?

    - by basit.
    i want to know what pc is good for video editing, following is two of them which i was looking at and thought they are good for the video editing, but im not sure, cause im not professional and i dont want to buy something which will give me problem in feature and dont want to endup buying pc again. http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/alienware-aurora-2436swa-23-6-widescreen-lcd-monitor-04216436-pdt.html http://www.pcworld.co.uk/gbuk/hp-pavilion-p6360uk-04144097-pdt.html which one of them, if none, then do you have any links for me to see or any info..

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  • Visual Studio PC benchmark

    - by user319353
    Hi: Is there a good way to benchmark a Visual Studio developer PC, instead of looking at the technical specs? Objective is to set a level and see every developer passes, if not upgrade them to new PC. Any thoughts and suggestions?

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  • After Effects: Mac to PC

    - by Tom
    Is it possible to open an After Effects file that's been created on a Mac with PC? I don't know what version the AE was on the Mac side, but I want to oepn it with CS3 on a PC laptop.

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  • Integration features enabled but drives not available

    - by dsjbirch
    Frustratingly, after a recent update to Windows XP mode integration features, the availability of shared disks from the hosts has been impaired. Does anyone know any kind of workaround or fix (excluding dropbox et al)? I have tried completely uninstalling and reinstalling as per http://www.sevenforums.com/virtualization/63710-refreshing-xp-mode.html#post568715 At one point restarting the machine appeared to have worked, but today again I am without access to my host. Interestingly audio and copy and paste to and from the machine are working.

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  • Access virtualhosts over LAN (Also in xpmode (Virtual PC))

    - by Pheter
    Hi, I am running Wamp on my computer (the host). I have set up several virtualhosts in apache and they are working fine when I access them from the same computer (host). I have installed Windows XPMode on my computer (which is running windows 7). XPMode (which uses Virtual PC) is set up to use a NAT network. The network in XPMode is working fine, and I can access the host PC via the IP address 192.168.1.5, just as I would if I was using any physical computer on the same network. I can view all the web pages at 192.168.1.5 and it's subdirectories. However, I cannot access any of the subdomains that are configured in the virtualhosts of the host computer. How can I access the subdomains? I don't think that the fact that I am using XPMode and am using a virtualized OS has anything to do with it, but I thought that it was worth mentioning.

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  • Accessing ASP.NET Development Server from another pc on the network

    - by Paul Knopf
    I would like to test my web app in other browsers. I have installed Virtual PC to do just that. the ASP.NET development server does not allow remote connections so the virtual pc (another computer on the network) cannot access the website. I found this post that was started but there was no solution. I understand that using localhost will not work. I heard about using the machines ip, but how do I get that correct ip? Look at my lynksys router admin? If I were to get as far as getting my IP, im sure that the asp.net dev server does not allow remote connections. How do I enable it to do so?

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  • I have Ubuntu 12.04 installed on my pc and the pc hangs and does not restart more (translated)

    - by adail
    Translated from google My pc is an intel atom + Yes, it came with windows 7, formatted and installed Ubuntu 12.04, but the pc is unstable, it will not turn off properly and alone, appearing msg that there is no image signal, what to do? Meu pc é um Sim+ intel aton, veio com o windows 7, formatei e instalei o ubunto 12.04, mas o pc está instavel, ele não liga corretamente e desliga sozinho, aparecendo a msg que não ha sinal de imagem, o que fazer?

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  • Windows Media Sharing not 'always' being detected by PS3

    - by Ahmad
    I'm having a weird problem with Windows Media Sharing on Windows 7 .. I have the following hardware in my network: PC 1 --- My main PC --- runs Windows 7 Ultimate x64 PC 2 --- My backup PC --- runs Windows 7 Ultimate x32 PS3 PC 1 is my main PC which has all my data/media on it .. PC 2 is a backup PC I have, but I use it like once in 2 months .. It has nothing installed on it apart from some very very basic software ... Problem is, my PS3 always sees the media sharing service coming from PC 2, but it never sees the media sharing service coming from PC 1 initially .. Both PC 1 and PC 2 have the same media sharing configuration (All everything on all devices on all networks) ... But when I restart both PCs, the PS3 will only detect PC 2's media sharing service, not PC1 .... However here's the twist .. When PC 1 is restarted, and if I view my 'Network' on PC 2, I do see PC 1's Media Sharing Service, and I'm able to play from it too on PC 2 .. To get my PS3 to also see PC 1's media sharing service, I have to do either of the following 2 things: 1) Play something from PC 1's media sharing service on PC 2 ... The PS3 will then magically also detect PC 1's media sharing service .. 2) Go into the Services area on PC 1 and restart the 'Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service' ... After this, the PS3 also instantly starts to see PC 1's media sharing service .. Since my PS3 is like a month old and is properly detecting PC 1's media sharing service, I think the problem is somewhere in the configuration of PC 1's media sharing service ... Also, on PC 1 I have Norton Internet Security 2012 installed, but I've disabled it completely, and have also disabled Windows Firewall (from PC 1 only) .. Can someone shed some light onto this ?

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  • MS Web Browser on Pocket PC

    - by PoweRoy
    Hi all, I'm trying to create a custom web browser for on a pocket pc in C++ MFC. When I add the Microsoft Web Browser activeX control and run the app on the pocket pc (emulator) then this error pops up: "Debug assertion failed. occcont.cpp line: 916" When I look in the debug window of VS2005: "CoCreateInstance of OLE control {8856F961-340A-11D0-A96B-00C04FD705A2} failed. Result code: 0x80040154 Is the control is properly registered? Warning: Resource items and Win32 Z-order lists are out of sync. Tab order may be not defined well." How can I use this control on a pocket pc? Or is there a similar control that works?

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  • P2V converter for desktop MS Virtual PC

    - by Wavel
    Are there any tools available for converting a desktop vista machine into a virtual machine to run with MS Virtual PC? I am buying a new workstation and would like to virtualize my old machine onto the new one. I know of the tools for Hyper-V, but i'll be running Win7 on the new machine, not Hyper-V server.

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  • Move "XP Mode" from Windows Virtual PC to VirtualBox?

    - by JoelFan
    I installed "XP Mode" in Windows 7 (which uses Windows Virtual PC to host XP). I have now discovered that VirtualBox, which I have installed on the same Windows 7 machine, refuses to run at the same time as Windows Virtual PC (it gives me an error about not running multiple visualization programs). Is there any way I can convert the "XP Mode" image so that it will run inside VirtualBox instead of Windows Virtual PC? That way I will be able to run XP as well as other VM's at the same time.

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  • Move "XP Mode" from Windows Virtual PC to VirtualBox?

    - by JoelFan
    I installed "XP Mode" in Windows 7 (which uses Windows Virtual PC to host XP). I have now discovered that VirtualBox, which I have installed on the same Windows 7 machine, refuses to run at the same time as Windows Virtual PC (it gives me an error about not running multiple visualization programs). Is there any way I can convert the "XP Mode" image so that it will run inside VirtualBox instead of Windows Virtual PC? That way I will be able to run XP as well as other VM's at the same time.

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  • Serve up PC hard drive as USB mass storage

    - by sheepsimulator
    Is there a software package available that can serve up a hard-drive internal to a PC and make it available over USB to other USB Master nodes as mass storage? Ex: take your C: or /dev/hda drive on a PC (let's call the computer PC-A), and run a driver program which makes your C: or /dev/hda drive available to external devices as USB mass storage. When you'd hook up another PC (PC-B) to PC-A via USB, it would detect a USB mass storage device, which is C: or /dev/hda on PC-A. Is this even possible? EDIT: I know that there are other ways of making data on a drive available between two different computers (eg. putting PC-A's hdd in a USB-drive-enclosure, or having PC-A make the hdd available via a network share). But I'd like to know if the method that I describe above is even technically possible.

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  • Virtual PC 2007 as programming environment

    - by Gern Blandston
    I'd like to create a VM in Virtual PC 2007 for use as a development environment/sandbox for an existing ASP.NET application in Visual Studio 2005/SQL Server 2005 (and VSS for source control). I'm thinking that I need to create a 'base' copy of the environment (with the os, Visual Studio, and Sql Server), and then copy that to a 'work' version that I do actual development in. I would be sharing this VM with one or two other developers who would be working on different parts of the app. Is this a good idea? What is the best way to get my app/databases in and out of the VM and the changes I make into VSS? Is it just a copy from the host location to the VM share and back again? How do I keep everything synchronized? Thanks!

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  • Desktop PC Raid 5 or JBOD?

    - by Sean Lim
    I have a desktop PC and I want to get alot of space for movies, music, and pictures. I probably will not be deleting files. I am running Windows 7 on my system. It is kind of silly I just want the physical drives to be labeled as a single letter drive. And probably map my video, documents, pictures and music on that single drive. The main reason I considered RAID 5 because I would be lazy to get the data I lost and hopefully that if I get a new drive, it would rebuild it. So my question is which would be better? A second question is can I get RAID card that has only 2 internal connectors and still do RAID 5? or do I have to get a RAID card that has 4 internal connectors.

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  • Virtual PC (XPMode) - How to access Webserver on guest from host

    - by sannoble
    I have Windows XP running inside Windows 7 via Virtual PC (XPMode) and installed Zend Server CE on the virtual XP guest. The webserver is running and can be accessed on the guest, but I cannot access the webserver from the Win7 host. I configured a static IP address and subnet of 255.255.255.0 on the guest and can ping this IP from the guest but not from the host. The other way it works fine, i.e. I can ping the host from the guest. I can also access the internet from the virtual XP guest. I tried different Network Options in the VirtualPC settings, but nothing helps. Googling the topic I couldn't find anything helpful yet. Any idea, what I could try to access the webserver on the virtual XP guest from the Win7 host?

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