The everyday problem:

You need to paste different items in different fields of a form BUT Windows Clipboard only stores one item :(

The simple tech solve:

We’re going to use Clipboard alternative CLCL to create a template which you can instantly paste other items not found on your Windows clipboard.

Why we picked this solution:

There are plenty of clipboard alternatives out there, but CLCL is an excellent fit for this problem.

• No installation required.  Just run when you need it.
• Able to handle all types of clipboard data, not just text
• You can paste from the template using a hotkey combo rather than selecting it from a list of clipboard items (which takes much longer)

The Step-by-Step Tutorial

Step 1: Download and launch CLCL

Step 2: Select what you need to copy and press CTRL + C to copy it to your clipboard

Step 3: Open CLCL (Icon found in your Windows system tray) and you’ll see  that it’s recorded there as well.

Step 4: Click Edit and Add to Template

Step 5: Select a folder (Default Template folder will do) 

Step 6: Right click and Set Hotkey

Step 7: Pick a hotkey – in this case CTRL + B

..and that’s it.  Anytime you need to paste from your template just press CTRL + B (Or the hotkey you configured).  You can set up multiple templates and hotkeys if you want. Meanwhile, your normal Windows clipboard still runs as usual, as to the usual CTRL + V to paste anything from it. 

Have you ever needed to do this?  Do you know any other clipboard alternatives?  Tell us about your experience in the comments :)

Let’s assume that you, or someone you know, forgot their Windows password. The initial step someone usually takes when this occurs is to panic (understandably so). After all, none of us want to lose all of the information we have poured so much time into. The second step someone usually takes is to rummage through their drawers, trying to find any information written on a scrap of paper.

Assuming these two steps have been in vain, here is a useful third step to consider. Recover your password through the use of a free software application such as Ophcrack. We could go into detail about what Ophcrack is, and how it does it – but, truthfully, that is of minimal importance. Instead let’s look, step by step, how to use it.

Step by Step Guide on Using Ophcrack

1) Go to the Ophcrack site Download ophcrack LiveCD.

2) Select the XP LiveCD if you are using Windows XP. If you are using anything newer then select the Vista LiveCD. Within a few seconds you will be downloading the LiveCD ISO file.

3) In order to use the ISO file you need to burn it to a disk based media (CD or DVD). If you are using Windows 7, this feature is built in. If not, download and use a free ISO burning program – ISO Recorder is quite popular.

4) Restart your computer and enter the boot menu (likely by hitting F12 as your computer starts up). Making sure that your CD or DVD is in the computer’s drive, choose to boot from the CD or DVD.

5) When you see the ophcrack LiveCD screen select Ophcrack Graphic mode – automatic. In order to do this, you can simply hit the enter key (since this is the default option).

6) The Ophcrack Window will automatically load. Take a look at the leftmost column; this is where all the names of your user accounts are. For this demonstration, we have created a user account with the name œDan.

7) Wait as Ophcrack loads and attempts to discover your password. When it does, the password will appear in the right-hand column. For our demonstration, we had given œDan the password œDanTheMan – which Ophcrack was able to discover.

8) Exit the Ophcrack environment. You can simply reset or shut your computer down at this stage.

Using the program in order to save yourself a great deal of grief is a great idea. The only thing that should be mentioned is that you should never use this type of program to access other people’s accounts. Ophcrack is designed solely as a helpful tool to get yourself out of trouble if you forgot your own Windows password.

Author Bio

Keith writes for Computer Repair Vancouver on many computer related topics including how to recover a lost password.  This post was edited by James Yeang.  If you wish to become a paid writer or guest post for friedbeef, please contact me.

File extensions may be part and parcel of everyday life when dealing with Windows, but here are a few tricks you can try, in order to make them much more manageable.

1. How to identify what any particular file extension does

At any given point of time, your system would have many different files with a myriad of file extensions.  You’re probably familiar with the common ones like TXT for text files or EXE for executable program files.  There are times however when a virus scanner or even Windows itself may ask you about a certain file type.  Either that, or you’re looking through your registry and you come across all kinds of different files which are loaded up.  In both cases, you probably don’t know what these files do. 

So, here’s what you do.  Use FILExt, a file extension dictionary which allows you look up any file extension (It currently has more than 50,000 records on file), and it shows you what type of programs typically use the file extension, and also provides a link to the company who makes the said programs, so you can follow-up with further investigation should you choose to do so.

Another cool part about FILExt is it also comes with a Google Desktop Gadget which allows you to submit your registry information to them and you can get a full text report made available to you.

2. How to give Windows Explorer a file extension column

Wait, doesn’t Windows Explorer ALREADY come with a file extension column? No, not really.  What it really does is it allows you to sort files by type.  This small 50kb DLL tool from XRayz Software allows you to add the extra extension column just like what you see in the picture below.  Useful if you ever need this level of granular sorting.

3. How to build your own file extension icons

Icon Generator is a free Adobe Air tool which allows you to quickly and elegantly style and create cool shiny looking icons to be used as file extensions.

4. Where to find really cool file extension icons

Smashing Magazine, my favorite website for all things design has one of the best round-ups for file extension icons in town.  Check out their post on 35 really incredible free icon sets.  It’s a classic resource with tons of excellent places to get utterly gorgeous looking file icons.

Do you have any cool file extension tips to share?  Tell us in the comments :)

How many of us remember the experience of a silky smooth, fast-booting, hassle-free Windows following a fresh install? Unfortunately, this occasion is a rare one in the world of Windows, and the dream ride is soon reduced to a crawling nightmare in a matter of days. Here are some ways to capture that magic moment and keep your Windows running without hiccups!

1. How to clean up your registry

The registry is Window’s storage of vital program settings and instructions. As you install new programs, countless registry entries are created by Windows – but some do not get removed after the program is uninstalled. Because Windows have to sift through these unwanted registries, useful programs can be slowed down.  Little Registry Cleaner is a specialist in this area – it scans and removes redundant entries on your system.

2. How to manually disable startup items

Ever notice that Windows is taking forever to boot? There may be too many programs trying to run at startup, many of which you cannot see. To check out what’s cooking during startup, execute ˜msconfig’ from the Run dialog box and go into the Startup tab. Un-checking some programs you do not need is a good and easy way to speed up startup times.

3. How to turn off Windows Indexing

Sometimes, you might notice your hard disk LED lights are on even when the computer is idle – indicating that Windows is up to something. Indexing was designed to allow faster search times for files on computers, but massive system slowdowns tend to occur when Windows tries to index the millions of files on your hard disk in the background. To turn it off, go to My Computer, right click on your main hard drive, click Properties, and uncheck ˜Index this file for faster searching’ under the General tab. Do the same for other drives you might have.

4. How to clean up unwanted files on your computer

CleanUp! is a powerful tool to remove your computer’s temporary and redundant files. Removing cluttered files may improve system speed by a long shot, because hard disks do not have to seek through these mess to reach useful files. Doing so prior to defragmentation is also recommended.

5. How to perform a do-it-all cleaning

If you’re the type who just wants to get things done without the hassle of downloading individual utilities, CCleaner is the solution. This little gem performs a holistic sweep of your registry and temporary files with a straightforward interface, sparing you of any technical jargon in the process.

This post was written by Chan Huey Hoong, if you wish to write for this blog, just drop me a line.

Do you perform regular maintenance on your computer? Tell us in the comments!

Just last month we talked about ‘Giving Your Right Mouse Button Super Powers’ where you were able to add a ton of features to your right click.   Some of you loved it, but some of you thought the extra options were just too overwhelming! 

For those of you in the latter group – here’s something which does exactly the opposite and helps you clean up and streamline your right click.   Think about it – whenever you right-click inside Windows explorer, you would typically only use only a fraction of the items on the context menu.

MMMFree is a piece of freeware which allows you to store these menu-items in a ‘rarely-used’ folder or hide them completely so you get to see only what you want to see all the time…  Perfect for a cleaner desktop!

Would you prefer ‘more or ‘less’ options in your right click menu?  Tell us in the poll & comments!

When Windows downloads software updates, it initiates a countdown to restart itself after the download is complete.  Tell it to restart later and it will constantly pop up again and again (every 10 minutes) until you finally relent and restart your system. 

To me, this is one of the most potentially harmful of all Windows annoyances.  Consider the possibility that you’re out for lunch… and you have all your work open on your PC… Windows decides to restart itself… and you’re not there to stop it.  You get the picture.

What can you do about it?

Well you can’t really completely stop this nag screen from popping up – but you can however disable the auto-restart (it will still prompt you), and delay the re-prompt by 24 hours.  Not perfect – but good enough in my books.

To implement – simply do the following:

• Click Start –> Run –> type in gpedit.msc
• Go to Local Computer Policy –> Computer Configuration –> Administrative Templates –> Windows Components –> Windows Update –>

Then…

• To disable auto restart: double click ‘No auto-restart for scheduled Automatic Update installations’ and enable this function.
• To delay the re-prompt by 24 hours: double click ‘Re-prompt for restart with scheduled installations’ and enable this function.  Then set the timing to ’1440 minutes’ – this is the maximum allowable time

All done!

ps. I think it’s important to note that you do actually need to restart your system soon after you download any updates so that Windows can patch itself up.  You don’t have to be nagged by Windows, but you should do it on your own.

Update: 21st April 2008: This only works for Windows XP Professional Edition, not XP Home Edition – Thanks for spotting this Ellie!

Got any helpful Windows tips?  Tell us about them in the comments!

If you’ve seen this error message…

…or any of these:

• Cannot delete file: Access is denied
• There has been a sharing violation.
• The source or destination file may be in use.
• The file is in use by another program or user.
• Make sure the disk is not full or write-protected and that the file is not currently in use.

I’m sure you can identify how frustrating it can be not to be able to move, copy, rename or delete those files!

Unlocker is a free tool which helps locate any file locking handles running, and give you the option to turn it off.  Then you can go ahead and do anything you want with those files.

It’s that simple :)

Hidden files are good for organizing files, and helping to ensure critical files don’t get accidentally deleted. 

Hiding them as a security measure however, is pretty much useless.  A few simple clicks in Windows is all one needs to view everything which you’ve hidden on your system.

Free Hide Folder is a free tool which helps you REALLY hide everything, make it invisible, and secure it.  You’ll even need to run the program and enter a password before you’re be able to even view those files.

What I also liked about it was that you could back up the hidden key (Not the data just the key) so you can restore the data easily if something happens with your system.

I wish you could drag and drop files into the program though rather than having to browse from the program itself, but aside from that it’s a beautiful piece of freeware.