First Timer "must do" things/tips in Windows 7

Which are the things that a beginner in Windows 7 should do so that he will benefit from Windows 7's advantages?

One thing that comes to my mind is the backup upon each modification of a specified file.
In Windows XP, ApexDC++ used to crash a lot a while ago, and the Queue.xml file would have got corrupted easily.
Also, in emule, the .part.met files can get corrupted when the program is stopped due to a restart/crash/forced end task/etc.

I'm also thinking at security. A while ago I've installed by accident a fake Shareaza program. Luckily I had a System Restore point, but things could have gone wrong if the fake program had edited files on the computer.
How do I limit what a program can and can't do in Windows 7?

I'm also curious about your setups, how and what do you configure in order to make your life better in Win7. (multiple accounts with different privileges, 3rd party software, OS tweaks, etc)

Any other tips/things following the "improve your Win7 experience"principle are more than welcome.

Nick2 said:

I'm also thinking at security. A while ago I've installed by accident a fake Shareaza program. Luckily I had a System Restore point, but things could have gone wrong if the fake program had edited files on the computer.
How do I limit what a program can and can't do in Windows 7?

Click to expand...

Do not run as Administrator, do not change any file permissions, leave UAC on...etc. Learn how things are done in Windows 7 versus going against the grain will make things easier. Also leaving behind the thought processes you used with Windows XP, Windows 7 is not Windows XP.

Download the following programs:
If there are two choices, pick one except in the case of optimization and malware/spyware.

Anti Virus

Firewall

Malware/Spyware Removal

Anti-Keylogger

Browser

Media Player

Optimization

Uninstaller

Backup/System Imager

Partition Manager

Make sure your virus/malware definitions are always up-to-date. keep a check on windows updates - don't let the updates run away from you, so to speak. Ensure you have a backup Administrator account. Create your system restore/image disks asap. Dump IE (IMO) and switch to a 'safer' browser.

manhunter2826 said:

switch to a 'safer' browser.

Click to expand...

No such thing as a "safer" browser.

logicearth said:

manhunter2826 said:

switch to a 'safer' browser.

Click to expand...

No such thing as a "safer" browser.

Click to expand...

There are ways to make your browser safer with add-ons, but most of safe browsing comes from common sense and avoiding illegal software.

In the area of safe browsing:

Safe Browsing Tool | WOT Web of Trust

Oh yeah, some of the things I do to keep a safe system:

Enable password requirement for UAC even when in Administrator Mode
Keep Multiple Malware/Spyware/Anti-Virus programs up to date and scan once a week.
Never download files you think could be infected.
Every time you download a file, scan it w/ your AV program.
Use both a hardware firewall (Router) and a software firewall (i.e. Comodo)
Turn UAC settings to high
Install Web of Trust and don't use websites that have bad ratings
Create and keep multiple system images, one using Windows Backup and one using a secondary program such as Macrium Reflect.
Create a System Recovery Disk and Create a Boot Disk for your Backup Software.
When sharing images online, make sure to edit out personal information such as cd-keys, computer names, ip addresses, and more.

logicearth said:

manhunter2826 said:

switch to a 'safer' browser.

Click to expand...

No such thing as a "safer" browser.

Click to expand...

I didn't say there was

Apart from the various things suggested above, decide a few things. Here goes:

1) Decide what power plan you want to keep. Go into control panel, then click on power options. There are several different on offer. Choose the one that suits you best.

2) Configure System Restore. Which drives you want it turned on, how much space should it reserve on the disk, scheduling of system restore jobs etc.

3) Do you use hibernation? I dont and it can be easily turned off. Run CMD, then type "powercfg -h off" without the quotes.

4) Will you be using Windows Search? I dont because i think it wastes resources and since all my folders are neatly organized, i dont need it either. You can disable Search if you dont want to use it.

5) I also turn off hard drive indexing and scheduled defrag because they cause a lot of hard disk thrashing. Make your own decision.

6) I am somewhat of a minimalist so i have disabled unneeded services. But beware, this can cause problem if you dont know what you are doing. So tread carefully if you want to go that way. Theres a good guide on Blackviper's site for that.

Whew! Cant think of anything more for the moment.

manhunter2826 said:

Make sure your virus/malware definitions are always up-to-date. keep a check on windows updates - don't let the updates run away from you, so to speak. Ensure you have a backup Administrator account. Create your system restore/image disks asap. Dump IE (IMO) and switch to a 'safer' browser.

Click to expand...

You might -- given how it hogs resources/memory -- wish to disable the Glass Transparency effect; and you can still do this without disabling Aero

manhunter2826 said:

logicearth said:

manhunter2826 said:

switch to a 'safer' browser.

Click to expand...

No such thing as a "safer" browser.

Click to expand...

I didn't say there was

Click to expand...

manhunter2826 said:

Make sure your virus/malware definitions are always up-to-date. keep a check on windows updates - don't let the updates run away from you, so to speak. Ensure you have a backup Administrator account. Create your system restore/image disks asap. Dump IE (IMO) and switch to a 'safer' browser.

Click to expand...

manhunter2826 said:

logicearth said:

manhunter2826 said:

switch to a 'safer' browser.

Click to expand...

No such thing as a "safer" browser.

Click to expand...

I didn't say there was

Click to expand...

electrotune1200 said:

manhunter2826 said:

logicearth said:

No such thing as a "safer" browser.

Click to expand...

I didn't say there was

Click to expand...

[in bold for even greater clarification] .

Click to expand...

[in bold for even greater clarification] .

First thing you should do....

Image your HDD.

Then....feel free to tweak away (I don't really feel there's a need to, but it's your PC)

You can completely thrash your Windows install with tweaking mistakes... Re-Image and be back up and running in 10 minutes.

Bill2 said:

Apart from the various things suggested above, decide a few things. Here goes:

1) Decide what power plan you want to keep. Go into control panel, then click on power options. There are several different on offer. Choose the one that suits you best.

2) Configure System Restore. Which drives you want it turned on, how much space should it reserve on the disk, scheduling of system restore jobs etc.

3) Do you use hibernation? I dont and it can be easily turned off. Run CMD, then type "powercfg -h off" without the quotes.

4) Will you be using Windows Search? I dont because i think it wastes resources and since all my folders are neatly organized, i dont need it either. You can disable Search if you dont want to use it.

5) I also turn off hard drive indexing and scheduled defrag because they cause a lot of hard disk thrashing. Make your own decision.

6) I am somewhat of a minimalist so i have disabled unneeded services. But beware, this can cause problem if you dont know what you are doing. So tread carefully if you want to go that way. Theres a good guide on Blackviper's site for that.

Whew! Cant think of anything more for the moment.

Click to expand...

For a new beginner I would recommend him keeping indexing on. If he has a second hard drive, he could always move the database to that which is a better option imo.

Used hard drive space after suggestions.

After downloading and running Defraggler and CCleaner, my used hard drive space went form 30.1 GB to 39.7? These are the only things I have done. What is the world could be going on? surely these two utilites are not using that much space ? Any ideas?
thanks,
Bill

Your PC probably created a system restore point.

billberry12 said:

After downloading and running Defraggler and CCleaner, my used hard drive space went form 30.1 GB to 39.7? These are the only things I have done. What is the world could be going on? surely these two utilites are not using that much space ? Any ideas?
thanks,
Bill

Click to expand...

Because you used Defraggler, it obviously is causing the system to create additional versions of files as it defrags because it does it in such a way the cause such an event. But you are honestly wasting your time with defragmentation, it hardly does anything beyond a few files of certain size.

billberry12 said:

After downloading and running Defraggler and CCleaner, my used hard drive space went form 30.1 GB to 39.7? These are the only things I have done. What is the world could be going on? surely these two utilites are not using that much space ? Any ideas?
thanks,
Bill

Click to expand...

I too am beginning to think that defragging is pretty much passé in new clean machines, esp. with Windows 7 installed .

Give yourself a "grand tour" of Control Panel, Device Manager, Services etc. and learn where the various user settings are... If you are genuinely interested in a smooth running computer, the least you can do is learn how to adjust the simple things...

After 100+ installs, I suggest:

The state of the art tools to clean and order Win7 are CCleaner ("Run Cleaner" and Registry tab) and Auslogics Disk and Registry Defraggers - all free and flawless after ten years use here.

The best AV's are Avast or MSE. I don't use a anti-spyware any longer as they cover it.

Don't tweak your system at all except for normal system settings but be parsimonious about those. With any hanging or lag, up your memory instead or check cause in Advanced Tools by Generating a System Health Report or studying Performance log. Win7 should not hang or lag at all.

If you are a confident User then you can set up after install to Run As Administrator (google it) and delete your named account. Almost the same freedom is allowed by just turning down UAC all the way. This is for Users who know what they're doing - you know who you are.

Watch for optional Updates as there can be newer drivers. I am finding most installs now have all drivers provided by the installer with about 4-6 updated quickly via optional WUD. Any missing drivers can be found on your computer/hardware's Support Downloads webpage but drivers issued should not be changed unless performance dictates - this is not XP or even Vista, MS spent a fortune on drivers for Win7.

The best AV's are Avast or MSE. I don't use a anti-spyware any longer as they cover it.

Click to expand...

^Interesting, and I'm beginning to think - correctly or incorrectly - the same: I 'only' have Avast and MS Defender at the moment.