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tweakvista posts

Filed under: Utilities, Windows, Freeware

Tweak Windows XP or Vista with XdN Tweaker

Windowsby Brad Linder Aug 27th 2007

XdN Tweaker
We're big fans of little applications that let you tweak your Windows system settings without mucking around in the registry. Stardock's TweakVista has a pretty comprehensive set of registry hacks, but only some are available in the free version. And it's kind of nice to have a tiny file that works with no installation required.

While XdN Tweaker doesn't offer as many options as the free Vispa, XdN Tweaker weighs in at just 516KB. It supports Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, and Windows Vista and has a handful of tweaks including:
  • Enable or disable the User Account Control for different users
  • Enable or disable right-click Windows Media Player context menus
  • Restore the file menu in Internet Explorer 7
  • Change the default number of folder views (personalized settings for how to view folders) that Windows remembers
  • Add a "take ownership" option to Vista right-click menus that lets you change files that read "you need permission to perform this action."
As with any of these tweaking programs, it's possible to achieve most of the same results with a few registry hacks. But XdN Tweaker is a lot more user-friendly than the Windows registry. And more importantly, most of the hacks can be undone from within the program's interface.

[via gHacks]

Tags: tweakvista, vispa, windows vista, windows xp, WindowsVista, WindowsXp, xdn, xdn tweaker, XdnTweaker

Filed under: OS Updates, Utilities, Windows, Commercial, Freeware

Stardock releases TweakVista 1.0

Windowsby Brad Linder Aug 24th 2007

Stardock TweakVistaWe took a pre-release version of Stardock's TweakVista for a spin back in June, and we were suitably impressed with this OS tweaking tool. Now the company has released version 1.0 in two varieties. One will set you back $20 while there's also a free version with a few features shaved off the top.

Both versions let you identify and disable Windows processes, update display drivers, configure User Account Control options, and analyze your computer's carbon footprint.

The premium version includes an auto-update option, configuration options for a larger number of services, and identifies programs that may be slowing your computer's boot process.

TweakVista isn't the only Windows Vista optimization application around, but it's definitely one of the more comprehensive applications we've seen.

Tags: stardock, tweakvista, vista, windows vista, WindowsVista

Filed under: Windows, Commercial

Tweak Windows Vista with Stardock TweakVista

Windowsby Brad Linder Jun 22nd 2007

TweakVista
You've got to love a company that knows how to give its product an obvious name. Stardock TweakVista does exactly what you would expect. It allows you to change a whole slew of Windows Vista settings. Some things you could probably accomplish through your Windows control panel, but others would require some serious mucking around in the registry.

TweakVista is available for free as a public beta, but it expires in October. The final version will cost $20, but one nice thing about running pre-release software like this is that any settings you make before October will hold up after your software expires.

Another nice thing about TweakVista is that not only does it prompt you to create a system restore point before running it for the first time, you can create that restore point by clicking a button within the program itself.


Read more →

Tags: stardock, tweakvista, vista, windows vista, WindowsVista

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