Getting  Along With Your Computer Column Archive

Your Suggestions

By Cate Eales
Appeared March 29, 2007 on castanet.net

I have the best readers ever! You keep sending me great questions and suggestions for topics. The first two items are topics often suggested by readers. The last item is a fun plugin suggested by a fun-loving reader. Enjoy!


Registry Cleaners
Remember when advertising inside of matchbooks (Kids: Ask your grandparents what "matchbooks" were...) offered training in refrigerator maintenance and shoe repair? I think Registry Cleaners are the new shoe repair courses. There are offers for Registry cleaners on just about every ad-supported website.

So what is a Registry cleaner, and why do you need one? Essentially, the Registry is a database that stores settings and options for the hardware, software, and preferences on your computer. This Wikipedia article explains more fully.

Every time you change something in the Control Panel, or even change the colour of your desktop, the Registry keeps track. It keeps track when software is installed and uninstalled...at least it tries. Sometimes even when we uninstall programs in the proper way, the information isn't removed from the Registry. Over time, that can create problems ranging from minor slowdowns to catastrophic failures. So, a Registry cleaner examines the Registry for problems, identifies them for you, and allows you to deal with them as you see fit.

Sometimes, that function is built into a suite of programs, notably Norton. Unless you have a suite of programs that includes a Registry cleaner, I would recommend using a standalone program. Fred Langa wrote an excellent article comparing ten Registry cleaners. That article is here. Fred noted that many of the cleaners identified hundreds of "problems" and then apparently "fixed" them, only to identify more problems the next time as an inducement to purchase the product. What you want is a Registry cleaner that identifies the problems and cleans them out. His article goes into more detail on this, and although written in 2005, it's well worth a read today.

If you want to pay for a Registry cleaner, Fred recommends JV16 PowerTools, available here. He recommends EasyCleaner, available here if you want a free alternative. I like EasyCleaner as well, especially for people who are not advanced computer users. If you are more advanced, I recommend CCleaner, here.


Windows Genuine Advantage
Windows Genuine Advantage is the anti-piracy software bolted on to Windows XP. (Vista is said by some to have a more elegantly integrated anti-piracy approach, but the debate rages.) Microsoft began deploying anti-piracy nags in Windows Updates last year, resulting in that little blue star next to the clock, and leading to snarky warnings in pop-up bubbles about "non-genuine" copies of XP.

Since the first WGA notifications, people have found ways to disable the warnings, turn things off, and what-have-you. If you are receiving that notification, and you believe you have a legitimate copy of XP, you can take it up with Microsoft. Check here.

The latest version of the WGA validation tool was offered as an update earlier this month. The update is called KB905474. There is a description from Microsoft here. As stated there:

. . . You can use Add or Remove Programs to view Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications, but you cannot use Add or Remove Programs to remove the notifications.

You can temporarily disable Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications. To do this, right-click the Notifier icon in the notification area and select Change Notifications Settings. Then, follow the prompts. This will disable the Notification Prompts until a new release of the Notification Update is released. . .

Lyrics Plugin
Finally, a fun item! A new reader sent along a link to Lyrics Plugin. If you are using Windows Media Player or WinAmp, there is a plugin that will display the lyrics of the song you're listening to. From the website:

. . . To put it simply - it is an add-on to view lyrics in WinAmp or Windows Media Player. No more searching for lyrics. Just start listening to your favourite songs and lyrics will be displayed automatically. Oh, and if lyrics is not found, you can add it yourself :)
 

Both plugins are available here. Normal use of common sense should apply here. According to the developer the software is still in the development stage, and it might not work properly for you. We've installed the plugin here on an XP Pro machine running Windows Media Player 11 and a different XP machine running the paid version of WinAmp. Works fine for us, but your mileage may vary.



If you have a question, comment, or want to share a program that you like (or warn us about one you really don't!) please send your email to cate@rlis.com. It is always helpful to hear from you! Don't forget, you can look at all the past columns in the column archive, here We never close!  If you'd like to subscribe to this column by email, please visit this link.  It's free and easy. If you'd prefer the RSS Feed, click here.



Links
Matchbook advertising http://tinyurl.com/2p8xyw
Wikipedia article "Windows Registry" http://tinyurl.com/fc5lb
Langa Letter Registry Cleaners http://tinyurl.com/yobgjy
JV16 PowerTools http://tinyurl.com/36b8fp
Easy Cleaner: http://tinyurl.com/2dg5d
CCleaner http://www.ccleaner.com/
Windows Genuine Advantage http://www.microsoft.com/genuine/
Latest WGA tool http://tinyurl.com/ydgmyb
Lyrics Plugin http://tinyurl.com/2d8yft
Getting Along With Your Computer Column Archives http://rlis.com/column.htm
Get Cate's column by email http://www.feedblitz.com/f/?Sub=20618
RSS Feed: http://rlis.com/rlis.xml
Cate's list of good, free software http://rlis.com/columns/column75list.htm


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Cate Eales has been helping people make online computing safe, accessible and fun for over 20 years. She lives in Kelowna with her husband, Eric, and her dog, Sandy. Cate is a partner in Real Life Internet Solutions, helping individuals and small businesses with virus, spyware and malware eradication; personal computer training and management; digital image management; music transfer; and website design, hosting and management. Email Cate at cate@rlis.com with your comments, suggestions, or questions. To browse the column archives, visit the Real Life Internet Solutions website at www.rlis.com.