GeekByte: Turn off Highlighting of Newly Installed Programs in Windows XP and Vista

I’m usually all for it when the computer tries to help you out and do something for you. Usually. Sometimes it can be downright maddening. If you have Windows XP you may have noticed at some point that when you install a new program it will highlight it in the Start menu. You’ll usually notice it when you have a clean install of XP and you haven’t gone in and dinked around with the settings yet. Some people like it…some don’t. If you would like to turn off the highlighting (which is one of the first things I do when I reinstall my OS), follow the steps below for your operating system.

Windows XP
1. Right click the Start menu and choose Properties. A new window will open.
2. Click the Start Menu tab at the top of the window.
3. Make sure that “Start Menu” is selected. If “Classic Start Menu” is selected, just click cancel on the window. The rest of the procedure isn’t valid for that option.
4. Click on the Customize button. A new window will open.
5. Click the Advanced tab on the new window.
6. Uncheck the Highlight Newly Installed Programs check box.
7. Click OK on both windows to save your changes.

Windows Vista
1. Right click the Start menu and choose Properties. A new window will open.
2. Make sure the Start Menu tab at the top of the window is selected.
3. The “Start Menu” option must be selected. If “Classic Start Menu” is selected, just click cancel on the window. The rest of the procedure isn’t valid for that option.
4. Scroll down until you see the option “Highlight Newly Installed Programs.”
5. Uncheck the checkbox next to that option.
6. Click OK on both windows to save your changes.

Delightful Download: SnagIT

I recently downloaded a nifty little program to use at work called SnagIT. It does screen captures kind of like using the Print Screen button on your keyboard, but with steroids. You can choose to do several different kinds of captures that only grab a certain area of the screen or even just one object (like an icon or button). I personally like that it will grab everything in a window that scrolls, such as a webpage or a folder that has a lot of files in it. I also like that you can capture just a menu in a program. It even comes with a timed 10 second delay so you can get your mouse on the exact submenu you need without having to rush to get to it. Very handy for those of us who like to make documentation on how to do things. SnagIT will capture video of your screen as well. I’m planning on using it to show users how to do certain tasks in their programs that can be a little harder to explain or follow. Home users might like it as well if you do a lot of screen shots. Even if you don’t, you’ll find yourself finding ways of using this program just to make life easier. If you’ve ever tried to copy and paste text out of a window and couldn't get it to work, SnagIT could help you with that. Just highlight the area of the window you want and after a click of the mouse you’ll have the text. What used to take me probably 5 – 10 minutes to get a screen shot and cut out what I want from it now only takes about 1 or 2 minutes at the longest to get the same thing, depending on what I am doing.

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