Tweak It and Freak It: A Killer Guide to Making Windows Run Your Way, Adobe Reader

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Hundreds of millions of people use Windows every day, and it's a safe bet that none of those them would describe themselves as happy Windows campers. Everybody - from the most casual dilettante to the hardcore power user has something they hate about Windows, and often have a whole laundry list of Windows gripes. "Why can't Windows do this rather than that?" "Why does Windows do X instead of Y?" "Wouldn't it be great if Windows could do Z?" Scratch the surface of any Windows user and you'll come upon a seething cauldron of unmet needs, unrequited desires, and unending frustration at being stuck with Windows the way it is.

Everyone thinks Windows is set in stone, but that apparently solid surface is really just a thin veneer that Microsoft slaps onto Windows to ensure that new and fumble-fingered users don't get into trouble. Strip off that veneer and a whole world comes into view, one that's eminently hackable, moddable, tweakable, customizable, and personalizable. Within this world lie tools and technologies that anyone can use to hack almost every aspect of Windows, from startup to shutdown, from the interface to the Internet, from security to scripting.

 With this book you can: 

• Speed up your tired and downtrodden PC with a fistful of easy-to-do, but oh so powerful tweaks!
• Tired of looking at the same old Windows day in and day out? Us, too! That’s why we show you how to give Windows a makeover!
• Want to be more productive at work or home? This book is chock full of productivity tweaks that not only make Windows more fun to use, but also save you tons of time.
• Create custom backup routines that safeguard your precious data
• Tighten the security of your PC and your network to stop would-be thieves in their tracks
• Dual boot Windows XP and Vista on the same machine, or dare we say it, run MacOS on your PC! We won’t tell.

Table of Contents

Part 1-Two Dozen Easy and Essential Windows Tweaks
Chapter 1-Indispensable Performance Tweaks
Chapter 2-Crucial Security Tweaks
Chapter 3-Must-See Interface Tweaks
Chapter 4-Don't-Miss Web Tweaks
Chapter 5-Easy Email Tweaks
Chapter 6-Fundamental File Tweaks
Part 2-Even More Ways to Make Windows Safe and Secure
Chapter 7-Keeping the Bad Guys at Bay
Chapter 8-Configuring Internet Security
Chapter 9-Maintaining Your Privacy On the Web
Part 3-Getting the Most Out of User Accounts
Chapter 10-Tweaking Windows for Safe and Fun Family Use
Chapter 11-More User Account Tweaks
Chapter 12-Taking Advantage of the Administrator Account
Chapter 13-Crucial Password Hacks
Part 4-Tuning Windows Performance
Chapter 14-General Performance Tweaks
Chapter 15-Streamlining the Start Menu
Chapter 16-Speeding Up Your Web Surfing
Part 5-Customizing the Interface
Chapter 17-Giving Windows a Makeover
Chapter 18-Getting More Out of Gadgets
Chapter 19-Useful and Fun Interface Mods
Part 6-Playing with Media
Chapter 20-Modding Music
Chapter 21-Tweaking Photos
Chapter 22-Customizing Video
Part 7-Hacking the File System
Chapter 23-Handy File and Folder Tweaks
Chapter 24-Dealing with Disk Drives
Chapter 25-Super Searching
Chapter 26-Building Better Backups
Chapter 27-Customizing the File System
Part 8-Taking Networks to a New Level
Chapter 28-Working with Network Computers
Chapter 29-Tightening Network Security
Chapter 30-Making Remote Connections
Chapter 31-Tweaking Wireless Connections
Part 9-Modding Programs
Chapter 32-Running Programs
Chapter 33-More Program Tweaks
Part 10-Hacking Hardware
Chapter 34-Device Driver Tweaks
Chapter 35-Dealing with Devices
Part 11-Customizing Windows Startup and Shutdown
Chapter 36-Creating Your Own Custom Startup
Chapter 37-Customizing Windows Restarts and Shutdowns
Chapter 38-Dual-Booting Windows With Other Operating Systems
Chapter 39-Running Mac OS X Under Windows
Part 12-Tools for Tweaking Windows
Chapter 40-Tweaking Windows with the Registry Editor
Chapter 41-Controlling Windows with the Group Policy Editor
Chapter 42-Running the Command Prompt