Have you ever wanted to know your Windows CD Key because you forgot it, or because of some other strange situation? Well the solution is the WinKeyFinder. Check out the page and you can download a few different versions of the program. I personally enjoy the simplistic WinKeyLite version.
Enjoy! 
I’ve found two sites where you can download the Windows Vista Wallpapers. If you already have Windows Vista the link just below will give you some extra wallpapers from the same photographer. Check it:
Hamad Darwish – Windows Vista – Just click on the two links named Part One and Part Two at the bottom of the page.
The next link will give people who don’t have Vista a chance to get the shipping wallpapers. You can search Google to find more if you like:
Official Windows Vista Wallpapers
Enjoy!
1.) Del.icio.us Extension – this is an extension you can install to give you easy access to your online bookmarks via del.icio.us. Very cool and it makes it so simple to tag a page (control+shift+/) and view your bookmarks with the del.icio.us icon button. Check it out.
2.) Firefox Showcase – this extension lets your add the functionality of IE 7′s awesome “Quick Tabs” feature. Showcase allows you to view all of your open tabs in a single window and allows you to then choose the tab you’d like to focus on. Very cool feature from IE 7 now easily available for Firefox (which is why extensions rock!).
3.) FireFTP – this allows you to connect to various FTP sites with an awesome and simple interface within Firefox. Check it out!
4.) Greasemonkey – this allows you to customize the web in ways you might not be able to imagine, highly recommended.
5.) FavLoc – allows you to set favorite download folders so you can easily download files into different directories!
6.) DownThemAll! – installs a much needed download manager.
All of the Firefox Recommended Add-ons are awesome as well and I suggest you check them out to add much needed functionality to Firefox. I don’t go overboard, for example right now I only have Del.icio.us and Showcase installed because I like to keep a few, stable extensions installed for stability and simplicity. I also just keep the classic Firefox 2 theme because most other themes are not good enough for me
I’ve been using Windows Vista for a few months now and subsequently I’ve been exposed to the notorious User Account Control (UAC) of Vista.
The purpose of UAC is to add a layer of protection, a barrier between the user and the OS. The user is assigned a standard account and whenever the user tries to affect the system in some way that might alter a system setting, as in installing a piece of software or starting a program like anti-virus, UAC will prompt for a password to allow the action.
The problem with this is pretty big. First of all, Microsoft thought they could implement the system in some way that it would not need to be turned off, altered, or configured in any way. Second of all, Microsoft didn’t anticipate the reaction to UAC and therefore they have poor contingency planning. I’ve had several issues with UAC that put me out. The first is I can’t update Avast! Anti-Virus in standard user mode. Others thoughts are listed below:
I’d say that Microsoft needs to re-evaluate UAC and maybe patch it with new functionality with Service Pack 1. I would say it should be a huge priority because I know my family members, when they upgrade, will not be happy with the current implementation of UAC.
[To turn UAC off, go to the control panel, find user accounts, then find the option that says turn UAC on or off.]
Mozilla has surprisingly updated both Firefox 2 & 1.5 with their new security updates. Firefox is updated to 2.0.0.2 & 1.5.0.10 with various security, stability, and Windows Vista enhancements. All users are encouraged to update in order to benefit from these. You can get Firefox here.
Another cool fix I found today was enabling Windows Media plugins in Firefox 2. I have had issues with WMP plugins and Firefox and now I’ve found the fix!
You basically have to copy three DLL’s into your plugins folder for Firefox (instructions below). Which is typically: C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\plugins
AMD has released their fastest X2 processor to date. It’s the Athlon 64 X2 6000+ @ 3.0GHz with 2 x 1MB L2 Cache and Socket AM2 architecture. This thing will run fast and hot, but if you have the bucks and the need for speed, you’d better check it out:
The Mozilla Links site has received a facelift and now sports a new visual theme and some better features. Check it out!
Also, Firefox 2.0.0.2 should be out by Feb. 27th now. This according to the wiki here.
Microsoft Virtual PC is a program that allows you to run an operating system in a virtual environment concurrently with your native OS on the same computer. The virtual OS doesn’t affect your computer or native OS in any way. Here’s a couple links to check out:
The new Microsoft IntelliPoint mouse software is available for download. This enables access to many cuztomized features for different mice. You can choose the type of mouse you have and then it will install the related package. It’s free and works for Vista.
This is a really interesting FAQ put together by Paul Thurrott on the Windows SuperSite. Check it out here:
