Visual Effects Settings - Change

1. Do either step 2, 3, or 4 below depending on how you would like to open Visual Effects.
NOTE: Standard users will only be able to use step 4.

2. Open the Start Menu.
A) Right click on the Computer button and click on Properties.

B) Go to step 3A.
OR

3. Open the Control Panel (icons vew), and click on the System icon.
A) Click on the Advanced System settings link in the left blue pane, then close this window afterwards. (see screenshot below)

B) Under the Advanced tab and Performance section, click on the Settings button. (see screenshot below)

C) Go to step 5.
OR

4. Open the Control Panel (icons vew), and click on the Performance Information and Tools icon.
A) Click on the Advanced tools link in the left blue pane. (see screenshot below)

B) Click on the Adjust the appearance and performance of Windows link, then close this window afterwards. (see screenshot below)

5. You will now see the Visual Effects settings to select. Do step 6, 7, 8, or 9 below for what you would like to do. (see screenshot below)


6. For Custom to Manually Select or Unselect Visual Effects
A) Select (dot) the Custom option. (see screenshots above)

B) Check the settings you want, uncheck the settings you do not want, and go to step 10 below.

7. For Best Appearance
A) Select (dot) the Adjust for best appearance option, and go to step 10 below. (see screenshots below step 5)
NOTE: This will select all of the visual effect settings.

8. For Best Performance
A) Select (dot) the Adjust for best performance option, and go to step 10 below. (see screenshots below step 5)
NOTE: This will unselect all of the visual effect settings.

9. To Let Windows 7 Choose the Visual Effects
A) Select (dot) the Let Windows choose what's best for my computer option, and go to step 10 below. (see screenshots below)
NOTE: These screenshots are the usual items selected by Windows 7, but this will be based on what Windows 7 thinks will run best on your computer.

10. Click on Apply and OK. (See screenshots above or below step 4)
NOTE: If you did step 2 or 3, then you will also need to click on OK in the screenshot below step 3B.






1. Open the Start Menu, then type regedit in the search box, and press Enter.

2. If prompted by UAC, then click on Yes.

3. In regedit, navigate to the location below. (see screenshot below)
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\VisualEffects



4. In the right pane of VisualEffects, double click on the VisualFXSetting DWORD to modify it. (see screenshot above)

5. Type in the value number below for the setting you want below, and click/tap on OK. (see screenshot below)



A) Type 0 (zero) for Let Windows choose what's best for my computer option, and go to step 8 below.

B) Type 1 for Adjust for best appearance option, and go to step 8 below.

C) Type 2 for Adjust for best Performance option, and go to step 8 below.

D) Type 3 for Custom option, and go to step 6 below.
6. Using the binary sets below, change the letters in them to turn on (1) or off (0) for each corresponding visual effect.

Visual Effects and their assigned letters
(A) Smooth-scroll list boxes
(B) Slide open combo boxes
(C) Fade or slide menus into view
(D) Show shadows under mouse pointer
(E) Fade or slide ToolTips into view
(F) Fade out menu items after clicking
(G) Show shadows under windows
(H) Use Visual styles on windows and buttons


For example, to turn them all off, I would change all letters in the binary sets to 0 (number zero) like below.
10010000 00010010 00000001
For example, to turn only the H visual effect on, I would change the letters in the binary sets like below.
10010000 00010010 00000011
7. Use a binary to hex converter to convert each separate binary set one by one to hex.
NOTE: Make note of these hex values when converted from the adjusted binary sets. They are what you will be using in regedit at step 9 below.

NOTE: Press enter after entering the binary value to convert it.

For example, from the example above to turn them all off, I would convert the 3 separate binary sets one by one to hex like below.
Binary
10010000 00010010 00000001

converted to

Hex
90 12 1
For example, from the example above to turn only the H visual effect on, I would convert the 3 separate binary sets one by one to hex like below.
Binary
10010000 00010010 00000011

converted to

Hex
90 12 3
8. In regedit, navigate to the location below. (see screenshot below)
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop


9. In the right pane of Desktop, double click on UserPreferencesMask to modify it, and do step 10, 11, 12, or 13 below depending on what you set in step 5 above. (see screenshot above)

10. If you typed 0 at step 5 for the Let Windows choose what's best for my computer option, then change the values to be the same as the ones in red below, click on OK, and go to step 14 below. (see screenshot below)
9E 3E 07 80 12 00 00 00


11. If you typed 1 at step 5 for the Adjust for best appearance option, then change the values to be the same as the ones in red below, click on OK, and go to step 14 below. (see screenshot below step 10)
9E 3E 07 80 12 00 00 00
12. If you typed 2 at step 5 for the Adjust for best performance option, then change the values to be the same as the ones in red below, click on OK, and go to step 14 below. (see screenshot below)
90 12 01 80 10 00 00 00


13. If you typed 3 at step 5 for the Custom option, then change the first 3 values (ex: 90 12 03) underlined in red below with the hex values you got from step 7, click on OK, and go to step 14 below. (see screenshot below)

14. Close regedit.

15. Log off and log on, or restart the computer to apply the changes.
That's it,
Shawn