Consumers may install Windows in 2 different types of Bit-Versions. One is 64 Bit Version of Windows & other is 32 Bit version of Windows. Usually, Windows comes preinstalled on new computers. While downloading any software if the website asks you if your Windows is 32 bit or 64 bit then to find the bit Version of your Windows, here is how you can do it and easily tell what Bit version you have of Windows XP, Windows Vista or Windows 7.

Windows XP  To find your Operating System information in Windows XP:

Method 1: View System Properties in Control Panel

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. Type sysdm.cpl, and then click OK. or  Select Control Panel > Performance and Maintenance > System
3. Click the General tab. The operating system is displayed as follows:
   • For a 64-bit version operating system: Windows XP Professional x64 Edition Version < Year> appears under System.
   • For a 32-bit version operating system: Windows XP Professional Version <Year> appears under System.

   Note <Year> is a placeholder for a year.

If you’re running the 64-bit version of Windows XP, the system information will be displayed as illustrated in the graphic below. If the 32-bit version is running on your computer, only "Microsoft Windows XP Professional" or "Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition" is displayed with no indication of 32-bit or 64-bit.

Method 2: View System Information window

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. Type winmsd.exe, and then click OK.
3. When System Summary is selected in the navigation pane, locate Processor under Item in the details pane. Note the value.
   • If the value that corresponds to Processor starts with x86, the computer is running a 32-bit version of Windows.
   • If the value that corresponds to Processor starts with ia64 or AMD64, the computer is running a 64-bit version of Windows.

Windows Vista   To find your Operating System information in Windows Vista:

Method 1: View System window in Control Panel

1. Click Start , type system in the Start Search box, and then click system in the Programs list.  or Click Start Menu > Control Panel, > System & Maintenance > System.
   
2. The operating system is displayed as follows:
   • For a 64-bit version operating system: 64-bit Operating System appears for the System type under System.
   • For a 32-bit version operating system: 32-bit Operating System appears for the System type under System.

Method 2: View System Information window

1. Click Start & type system in the Start Search box, and then click System Information in the Programs list.
2. When System Summary is selected in the navigation pane, the operating system is displayed as follows:
   • For a 64-bit version operating system: x64-based PC appears for the System type under Item.
   • For a 32-bit version operating system: x86-based PC appears for the System type under Item.

Windows Seven   To find your Operating System information in Windows Seven:

Method 1: View System window in Control Panel

1. Click Start , type system in the Start Search box, and then click system in the Programs list.  or Click Start Menu > Control Panel, > System & Maintenance > System.
   
2. The operating system is displayed as follows:
   • For a 64-bit version operating system: 64-bit Operating System appears for the System type under System.
   • For a 32-bit version operating system: 32-bit Operating System appears for the System type under System.

Method 2: View System Information window

1. Click Start & type system in the Start Search box, and then click System Information in the Programs list.
2. When System Summary is selected in the navigation pane, the operating system is displayed as follows:
   • For a 64-bit version operating system: x64-based PC appears for the System type under Item.
   • For a 32-bit version operating system: x86-based PC appears for the System type under Item.

If you find any other trick to know the system bit version, please post in comments for the same and I would update the post.

                          

Windows XP Mode and Windows Virtual PC, available on Windows 7 Professional and Windows 7 Ultimate, allow you to run multiple Windows environments, such as Windows XP Mode, from your Windows 7 desktop. Till now to run XP mode, users need to have requirements like 1 GB of RAM, 15 GB of available disk space, and processor capable of hardware virtualization with AMD-V or Intel VT turned on in the BIOS . Computers without VT technology could not use XP mode.

Recently, Microsoft has released a patch to remove the Hardware  Virtualization requirement to run the Windows XP mode in Windows 7.  Failure of availability of VT technology throws errors while install Windows XP mode on your Windows 7 system like :Windows Virtual PC cannot start because this computer does not support hardware-assisted virtualization

• Unable to start Windows Virtual PC because hardware-assisted virtualization is disabled

To resolve from this issue, Microsoft has released a update called KB 977206. By Installing this update you can use Windows XP mode feature in your Windows 7 without Virtualization support.

Download : x86 | x64

Note : Your PC must run genuine Windows 7 to install Windows XP Mode.

More Info : http://www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc/download.aspx

                          

There is an amazing feature with Windows .And that is XP mode.it is ot like the Virtual PC we used to do.It is much more different.Moving mouse between two OS is much more easy and it is much more easier for the user.Although OEMs have been shipping hardware virtualization in PCs for three years, hardware virtualization is not available in all PCs — so even if your PC is new, it may not have hardware virtualization. Additionally, those PCs with hardware virtualization have it turned off by default, so you will need to turn on the hardware virtualization capability before you can use it.

To determine whether your PC works with Windows XP Mode:

Step 1. Does my PC have a CPU with support for hardware virtualization?

For Intel processors:

• Download, install and run the Intel Processor Identification Utility.

• Navigate to the CPU Technologies tab and read the value in the “Intel Virtualization Technology” field.

  • If the value is No then your CPU does not support hardware virtualization.

  • If the value is Yes then the CPU supports hardware virtualization. Go on to step 2 below.

For AMD processors: AMD Virtualization Compatibility Check Utility.

Step 2. Does my PC BIOS support hardware virtualization, and is it turned on?

Instructions to turn on hardware virtualization in your PC BIOS are specific to OEM models. It is important that after changing your BIOS settings the PC is completely shut down at the power switch before restarting so that the new BIOS settings can take place.I did not Shutted it down and the settings dint took place.After a switch off completly for say 5 seconds or more your computer will enable VT.

                          

Many of us have experienced attack of viruses someday or other.I too
recently experienced one and it was the worst one in last 5 years i
have faced.Nod32 never disappointed me but dont know what happened
this time.My lapy as well as Deski both started showing the
symptoms.although there wasnt any potential harm but all folders had a
Folder ‘MSOCACHE’ and all folders were hidden too.
Using MSE Beta removed the virus completly but still i wasnt able to
change the hidden folders to Unhidden one.After a lot of Querries &
Binging,Googling i finally found solution from a Freind who is a MVP
as well,Ramesh Kumar.
There is a command that is used to force all folders attribute to unhidden.
Here are the steps:
Simply Go to Run
type ‘CMD’
press Enter
Type this command “attrib -h -s -a -r * /s /d”
And you are done.

                          

When you turn off your computer using hibernate, the operating system needs to store all your current running program states onto hard disk so that programs can resume where they left off when you power up your PC again. To achieve this, the OS need to save all the information into a file called hiberfil.sys. Windows OS (7, vista, XP) usually stores this as a hidden file under your C directory or your main OS partition.
The size of the hibernation file (hiberfil.sys) will be the same as the amount of installed RAM on your computer.So all the data from RAM is copied directly into this hiberfil.sys on harddisk and RAM loads it when you power up your computer again.
You can also use an Utility VJSTD made by VJ to automate hibernate & other shutdown options.

                          

A Graphical User Interface (GUI for short) allows users to interact with the computer hardware in a user friendly way.

Over the years a range of GUI’s have been developed for different operating systems such as OS/2, Macintosh, Windowsamiga, Linux, Symbian OS, and more.

We’ll be taking a look at the evolution of the interface designs of the major operating systems since the 80’s.

I should mention that this article showcases only the significant advances in GUI design (not operating system advances) and also not all of the graphical user interfaces and operating systems existing today.

The first GUI was developed by researchers at Xerox Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) in the ’70s. This research opened a whole new era of computer graphic innovations.

The first personal computer which used a modern graphical user interface was the Xerox Alto, developed in 1973. This was not a commercial product and was intended mainly for research at universities.

In this year Microsoft finally caught up with the whole graphical user interface craze and released Windows 1.0, its first GUI based operating system (although no one would dare to refer to it as one). The system featured 32×32 pixel icons and color graphics. The most interesting feature (which later was omitted) was the icon of the animated analog clock.

Windows 2.0x (released in 1987)

In this version, the actual management of the windows had significantly improved. The windows could be overlapped, resized, maximized and minimized.

Windows 3.0 (released in 1990)

By this version, Microsoft had realized the real potential in GUI’s and started to significantly improve them.

The operating system itself supported standard and 386 enhanced modes, which made use of higher memory capacity than 640 KB and hard disk space, resulting in the ability to use higher screen resolutions and better graphics, such as Super VGA 800×600 and 1024×768.

Also, Microsoft hired Susan Kare to design the Windows 3.0 icons and to add a unified style to the GUI.

Windows 3.1 (released in 1992)

This version of Windows included TrueType fonts which were pre-installed. This effectively made Windows a functional desktop publishing platform for the first time.

Previously, it was only possible to achieve such functionality in Windows 3.0 using the Adobe Type Manager (ATM) font system from Adobe. This version also contained a color scheme named Hotdog Stand, which contained bright hues of red, yellow and black.

This color scheme was designed to help people with some degree of color blindness see text/graphics on the screen easier.

Windows 95 (released in 1995)

The user interface was completely re-designed since version 3.x. This was the first Windows version where a small close button was added to each window.

The design team gave states (enabled, disabled, selected, checked, etc.) to icons and other graphics. The famous Start button appeared for the first time.

This was a huge step forward for Microsoft regarding the operating system itself and the unified GUI.

Windows 98 (released in 199

The icon styles were almost the same as in Windows 95, but the whole GUI could use more than 256 colors for rendering. Windows Explorer changed almost completely and the “Active Desktop” appeared for the first time.

Windows XP (released in 2001)

As Microsoft tends to change their GUI completely with every major operating system release, Windows XP was no exception. The GUI itself is skinnable, users could change the whole look and feel of the interface. The icons were 48 x 48 in size by default, rendered in millions of colors.

Windows Vista (released in 2007)

This was Microsoft’s response to their competition. They also included quite a lot of 3D and animation. Since Windows 98, Microsoft has always tried to improve the desktop. With Windows Vista they released widgets and a somewhat improved replacement of the Active Desktop.

Windows Seven (RC released in 2009)

The RC includes some new features such as Remote Media Streaming which “enables highly secure, remote Internet access to home-based digital media libraries from another Windows 7-based PC outside the home.It will also contain more refined navigation in the taskbar, JumpLists, and search

Windows 8 (In pipeline)

Although Win 7 RTM is not out but still the planning for the next version has already been started.lets see what we have this time

Article includes extracts from Wiki,webdesignerdepo,Microsoft Communities

                          

Microsoft finally discussed “Windows XP Mode” in depth in a full QnA press release entitled “Helping Small Businesses With Windows 7 Professional and
Windows XP Mode”, featuring Scott Woodgate, director of Desktop Virtualization and Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP). Below is the entire QnA session which outlines the fundamentals of this new feature:

PressPass: What are you announcing today?

Woodgate: We are announcing the beta release of
Windows XP Mode for Windows 7. Small businesses told us they wanted help upgrading to Windows 7.
Windows XP Mode, an optional feature of Windows 7 Professional, Enterprise and Ultimate editions, helps small businesses upgrade to Windows 7 by providing a virtual
Windows XP environment capable of running many Windows XP-compatible business and productivity applications. Customers can run many older
Windows XP business and productivity applications within
Windows XP Mode and launch them from the Windows 7 desktop with just a single click. A beta of
Windows XP Mode will be made available on April 30.

PressPass: How does
Windows XP Mode work?

Woodgate:
Windows XP Mode is the combination of two features. The first part is a pre-packaged virtual
Windows XP environment. The second is Windows Virtual PC, which is used to run the virtual
Windows XP environment. Customers can install their applications into
Windows XP Mode using typical installation processes such as downloading from the Web or using the product CD. Once installed, the applications are automatically available on the Windows 7 Start Menu and can be launched just like any Windows 7 program. Optionally, these
Windows XP applications can be pinned to the Windows 7 Task Bar and launched using just a single click from the Windows 7 desktop.
more @ http://www.neowin.net/news/main/09/04/29/microsoft-discusses-windows-7s-xp-mode-in-depth

                          

Rename The Recycle Bin

To change the name of the Recycle Bin desktop icon, open Regedit and go to:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT/CLSID/{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}and change the name “Recycle Bin” to whatever you want.

STEPS:-

1.go to Run
2.type regedit and press enter
3.in the registery window navigate to the path given above
4.on rght hand side change the string name from recycle bin to anything.
e.g I have put it Trash

Works for Windows XP