Windows • Archives • Page 6 of 12 Technically Easy

How to Create a Standard User Account in Windows 7

February 26, 2016July 18, 2011 by Paul Salmon

If you are using Windows 7, I highly recommend that you create a standard user account in Windows 7. Most people tend to always use an administrator account, which means that every application that they run has complete access to the system. You can probably see why using such an account all the time can be a problem.

10 Free Windows Applications You Should Install

July 12, 2011 by Paul Salmon

10 Free Windows Application You Should Install

While there is a lot of software on the market to perform specific tasks, there are 10 free Windows applications that you should install on your PC. Some of the applications can easily replace more expensive, commercial products, and perform the same tasks. Others are a better alternative to an already free product, meaning that the application has more options.

With the increase in amount of free applications (think open-source) that are available online, you should be able to find a free alternative to a product that you are thinking about purchasing.

Is Microsoft Becoming a Less Relevant Brand?

July 11, 2011 by Paul Salmon

In the late 90s the biggest talk in the world of technology was always about Microsoft, and the products that they were releasing. Windows was the dominate force in operating systems, and Microsoft Office had a stranglehold on the office suite of products. Internet Explorer began challenging, and eventually surpassing, Netscape’s offering in the Web browser arena.

That was 15 years ago, and today things are much different. So different in that Microsoft seems to be an after thought when it comes to technology news. Apple and Google are now the companies that generate the most buzz in the headlines. They are releasing new products, and software on an almost weekly basis. With all the buzz surround these two companies, has Microsoft become a less relevant brand in the technology world?

Windows Installer Fix: Error 1718. File was rejected by digital signature policy

June 29, 2011 by Paul Salmon

I recently was attempting to install a Windows Installer patch on a Windows 2003 server and received the following error:

Error 1718. File was rejected by digital signature policy

The patch was rather large (over 600 MB), so after doing some searching I noticed that Microsoft had a hotfix. The hotfix, unfortunately, installed an older version of a file on my system than was currently installed. Because of this, I avoided installing the hotfix.

There was another solution, which was to edit the registry and change a registry key value. Once I changed the registry key value, I restarted the Windows Installer service and the patch was applied successfully.

How to Delete Locked Files in Microsoft Windows

October 5, 2011May 6, 2011 by Paul Salmon

Finding a way to delete locked files on my Microsoft Windows system has always been a pain. I usually have many programs running on my computer at any given time. At some point I may need to delete a file that is in use by one of the programs, and Windows doesn’t easily provide a method to delete locked files.

A few years ago I stumbled across a small, free application that has helped me to unlock files in Windows so that I can delete those files. The best part about this free application is that it is also easy to use, and seems to have no problem with handling locked files.

Solution: Can’t Open Reports in a Microsoft Access Database

April 22, 2011 by Paul Salmon

I recently ran into a problem where I couldn’t open reports in a Microsoft Access database file. I have worked with Access databases for many years, but have never seen this issue before.

There are times where I use more than one computer at a time. To do this I simply use the remote desktop tool that is included with Microsoft Windows. What I didn’t know at the time, was using remote desktop tool caused the issue with my Access database

Tips to Tweaking Your Version of Windows 7

October 20, 2011March 24, 2011 by Paul Salmon

Windows 7 was a very well received Windows upgrade, but with any piece of computer software, there are things that can be changed around and tweaked to each individual user’s likes. That’s where Windows 7 tweaks come in. These are great and generally free ways to make your version the way that you want it.

There are many different ways to tweak your OS, but the ones below are all concerned with the appearance of Windows. You can change the way the system is running, but if you don’t know too much about computers then that’s best left to the experts. These tips are great ways to make your computer your own.

How to Find Autorun Programs in Windows

June 7, 2012December 17, 2010 by Paul Salmon

For a vast majority of us that use Windows on a regular basis, we have come across performance and stability issues from time to time, so it is important to find autorun programs in Windows. On a freshly formatted PC, everything seems to run pretty quick and the system doesn’t crash as often. After a few weeks, months, and years, the computer seems to get slower and less stable.

Many performance and stability problems can be traced back to programs that automatically run when Windows loads up. It seems that much of the software we install seems to want to run an application at startup. The problem is many people don’t know that there are free applications available that can help find autorun programs in Windows and stop those programs from automatically starting when Windows loads.