Windows XP tricks

Creating Shutdown Icon or One Click Shutdown:

Navigate to your desktop. On the desktop, right-click and go to New, then to Shortcut (in other words, create a new shortcut). You should now see a pop-up window instructing you to enter a command line path.
Use this path in "Type Location of the Item"
SHUTDOWN -s -t 01
If the C: drive is not your local hard drive, then replace "C" with the correct letter of the hard drive. Click the "Next" button. Name the shortcut and click the "Finish" button. Now whenever you want to shut down, just click on this shortcut and you're done.

Making Google the Default Search Engine in Internet Explorer

Open registry editor by going to Start then Run and entering regedit and navigate to following three keys separately and change it as shown below:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main]
"Search Page"=" http://www.google.com"
"Search Bar"=" http://www.google.com/ie"
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\SearchURL]
""=" http://www.google.com/keyword/%s"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Search]
"SearchAssistant"=" http://www.google.com/ie" .

Modify autoplay for different types of CD

Windows XP includes the ability to perform different actions depending on the type of CD you insert into the drive. For example, you could set your system to always respond to CDs containing MP3 files by opening Windows Media Player.

To edit the Autoplay properties: Open 'my computer'. Right click on the drive you wish to set and select 'properties.' Choose the autoplay tab. Use the dropdown box to see the various recognized types of CD and choose appropriate actions for them.

Renaming The Recycle Bin icon:

To change the name of the Recycle Bin desktop icon, click Start then goto Run, write Regedit and press Enter. It opens Registry Editor. Now in Registry Editor go to:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT/CLSID/{645FF040-5081-101B-9F08-00AA002F954E}
and change the name "Recycle Bin" to whatever you want (don't type any quotes)

Locking the desktop

If you are leaving your computer for a while and do not wish to turn it off, but want to assure that no-one else can use the computer while you are away, locking the desktop is the best option.

By pressing WINDOWSKEY+L, you password protect your system just as if you had logged out or restarted the computer. The advantage is that any programs or processes that were running when you locked the desktop will stay open and running in the background, ready for you to resume work or play.

Removing Shared Documents folder From My Computer

Open registry editor by going to Start then Run and entering regedit. Once in registry, navigate to key

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion \ Explorer \ My Computer \ NameSpace \ DelegateFolders

You must see a sub-key named {59031a47-3f72-44a7-89c5-5595fe6b30ee}. If you delete this key, you have effectively removed the my shared documents folder.

Force windows XP to reboot upon crashing

This registry edit will cause your system to reboot itself automatically upon crashing. This can be useful if you have a reason for keeping your system on 24/7:

Open REGEDIT

Navigate to 'HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM
\CurrentControlSet\Control\CrashControl'

Edit the 'AutoReboot' value to '1'