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Filed under: Windows

How to disable the Windows system tray

Windowsby Brad Linder Feb 15th 2008

System Tray
The Windows System tray has been with us for years. And while it's great to have quick access to some of your running programs through a tiny icon, once you've got a dozen or so of those icons running, the system tray can seriously eat into your Windows Taskbar space. Fortunately, Windows XP and Vista can dynamically resize the system tray to hide icons you're not currently using. But if you'd rather get rid of system tray altogether, here are the steps to do it (courtesy of the How-To Geek):
  1. Open the run programs dialog box (either by hitting Win+R or finding the Run icon in the Windows Start Menu)
  2. Type "regedit" to open the Windows Registry Editor
  3. Find this section: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
  4. Create a new DWORD Value by right-clicking and selecting new DWORD or clicking Edit, then New, then DWORD
  5. Name your DWORD Value NoTrayItemsDisplay
  6. Set the value to 1
That's it. Next time you log out of Windows or reboot your system tray should be gone. All of your programs will continue to run, but you won't see any icons at the bottom right of your screen.

You can restore your system tray either by changing the value to 0 or by deleting the entry. On some systems, the entry may show up in more than one place so if at first you don't succeed, make sure to search your registry for "NoTrayItemsDisplay" to make sure you've deleted every instance.

Tags: regedit, registry-hack, system-tray, tweak

Filed under: OS Updates, Windows, Microsoft

Download Windows XP SP3 with a registry hack

Windowsby Brad Linder Nov 23rd 2007

Windows XP SP3Last month we told you that it was possible to download Windows Vista SP1 by altering your Windows registry settings. Now it looks like a new registry hack is making the rounds. This one will let Windows XP users download Service Pack 3 for Microsoft's older, but generally more stable operating system.

Both the Vista and XP service packs aren't scheduled for wide release until early next year. In other words, downloading a pre-release copy might really not be the best idea. Sure, it'd be nice to grab a software update intended to improve your system's reliability and security. But since these updates are still in beta testing, you could wind up causing more problems than you solve.

That said, it looks like the registry hack is pretty straightforward. Just download a patch, look for Windows Updates, download them and reboot your computer into glorious SP3 bliss. And by bliss, we mean a few new features like a new Windows Product Activation module, a Network Access Protection module (ported from Vista), and cryptographic algorithm support in the kernel. We know, it all sounds so glamorous.

Tags: registry-hack, service-pack-3, sp3, windows-registry, windows-xp, windows-xp-service-pack-3

Filed under: OS Updates, Windows, Microsoft

Download Windows Vista SP1 with a registry hack

Windowsby Brad Linder Oct 13th 2007

Vista SP1 installation
If you're itching to install Windows Vista Service Pack 1 but aren't planning to be anywhere near Redmond on October 27th, all may not be lost. Some friendly hackers have posted a registry setting that will reportedly allow you to download Vista SP1 through Windows Update.

We're going to point out a couple of things here, although they should really be obvious:
  1. There's no guarantee this registry hack will work for you.
  2. If it doesn't, you could potentially turn your computer into an overpriced paperweight.
  3. Windows Vista SP1 is still in beta, meaning you can expect some bugs even if you do manage to update your system.
If you're still willing to take the plunge after reading all that, just download the registry hack, check for Windows Updates, and you should be all set. A little "evaluation copy" watermark will show up on the bottom of your screen, but hackers being what they are, there's a fix for that as well.

Tags: registry, registry-hack, service-pack-1, sp1, vista, vista-sp1, windows-vista, windows-vista-service-pack-1, windows-vista-sp1

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