Windows Visual Effects Kill Your Computer's Performance

Windows XP struck a good balance between performance and visuals. Vista remains unpopular both in sales and in public opinion two an a half years after release because the overdone visual effects pose little practical purpose yet weigh down a computer's resources. The same holds true for XP. You might be surprised how much better your PC runs with limited visual effects. I didn't notice anything visually different yet my computer now feels lightning fast. 'Fade' effects only delay window movements for aesthetic value.

Head over to:
Start-> Control Panel-> System-> Advanced-> Performance
and click Settings. You can also hit Windows Key+Pause/Break


You will be selecting your own set of customized visual effects.

You can, box by box, deselect the visual flairs that XP comes packaged with. Keep in mind that the less effects you select the more power will be left for actual computing. My computer only has those five boxes checked in the screenshot above and it looks and runs much better because of it. I recommend deselecting one at a time and making sure you are alright without each individual effect. 'Animate windows when minimizing/maximizing' is an effect you will not miss.

Facebook Lists: Streamline Your Page

If you've been wasting a lot of time searching through your News Feed on Facebook, you are going to love this feature. My "Homepage" on Facebook is usually strewn with people I don't know well enough to have an interest in their updates. Often times, I scroll to the bottom of the page and don't see a single update of a close friend. Cue lists:

In the upper corner, notice the "+Create" button:


It'll bring you to this page (I've removed names):


The criteria you choose for this list can be anything--the only list I currently have is the 35 people I know the best. Now, my homepage displays the status updates of everyone I care most about.

Once your list is created, it'll show up with your "feeds".

You can hit that little pencil any time you'd like to add or remove someone from your list. Make sure to click and drag it to the top of the list if you want this to always load as your homepage:


To edit your lists differently, head to the Friends page. You can also delete lists from the Friends page.


This is a very quick way to effectively decrease wasted time on the site. You can also use lists in Facebook Chat to limit who you speak with.


Part 2: Lists Make Privacy Easier to Control

Head over to Settings in the upper-right corner of your page and click Privacy Settings.


Click Profile.


In this example, you can create a list of people who you'd like to restrict from seeing your tagged photos. You can also restrict people from seeing your videos, status updates, and even your basic information.


It's safe to put your mobile number on Facebook because you can navigate to the Contact tab and select your list of Friends/Family to be the only people who can see it. The same holds true for your address.

Ten Essential Windows and Firefox Shortcuts

Once you've taken steps to physically speed up your computer, there are still small steps you can take to speed up your computing experience. Practicing touch-typing, memorizing shortcut keys, and organizing your files for easier access are all great ways to enjoy your computer more. You will accomplish more yet spend less time at the computer.

I'd like to share my favorite Windows and Firefox shortcuts. The idea is to keep your hands on the keyboard and spend less time fiddling with your mouse.

Useful Windows Shortcuts:

1. Windows Key + D will minimize all windows and bring up the desktop. Very useful.
2. Alt+F4 will close whatever program/window currently has focus. When you've minimized to the desktop, hit Alt+F4+S to put your computer into Standby. Alt+F4+U will shut down your computer.
3. Windows Key by itself will bring up the Start Menu. This one is simple and will make you feel much more efficient.
4. Alt + TAB is great if you tend to have many programs running at once. It displays the open programs and allows you to switch between them instantly.
5. Ctrl + A will select all the text in an open window, or all the files in an open folder. This is great for moving all the files from a folder efficiently, or deleting all the files within a folder or text within a document fast and easily. If you want to select a group of files except for a few, hit Ctrl + A and continue to hold Ctrl as you click the few files you don't want highlighted.

Here is the complete list from Microsoft.

Favorite Firefox Shortcuts:

1. Ctrl + F is one of the best shortcut keys to have memorized. After hitting this you can immediately search within a body of text. This is essential to being an efficient web-surfer. Once you've entered a search, tapping Enter will cycle through your results. Alt + A will highlight all the results. Hitting Esc will end the search.
2. Ctrl + T will open a new Tab--memorize this one for sure. Ctrl + Shift + T will open the last tab you closed, great for backtracking if you accidentally closed the window. This shortcut key alone really validates Tab-based browsing. Ctrl + W closes a tab.
3. Ctrl + K will bring the focus to the search in the upper-right corner. I have mine set to search Wikipedia. Ctrl + E does the same thing.
   
4. Alt + D or F6 brings the focus to the address bar of your current tab. Another great time-saver. You can immediately enter a new address that you'd like to surf to.
   
5. Middle Mouse Button (or Wheel) + Hyperlink should open a link in a new tab. This can be an incredibly useful tool.
   

For fun... F11 will make Firefox full screen. Good for large websites, if you'd like to look at something without the distraction of the address bar/toolbars at the top of the screen.

Here is Mozilla's complete list of Firefox shortcuts.

These ten shortcuts alone will make your computer feel much faster--without tweaking your computer at all. When your hands can quickly and automatically communicate through the keyboard what you'd like to do, you seriously enjoy navigating around the web.