Hide The 'Go' Button In Local Explorer Views In Windows XP!

The "Go" button may be useful when navigating web pages, but when you navigate your local machine's hard drive and files, the button may just be taking up valuable screen real-estate. It's easy to remove Windows XP's "Go" button - just right-click on the button and uncheck "Go Button".

Gary Chambers

Remove The Left Pane Common Tasks In Windows XP!

Normally, Windows XP Explorer folder views contain two panes - the right pane contains the list of files on your system, and the left pane contains common tasks. These may be tasks such as copying photos to a CD if you are in a pictures folder, playing all music songs if you are in a songs folder, or making a new folder if you are in a default folder. While some users may find these tasks convenient, others may want to hide these items to use the entire window to display filenames. To hide these tasks:

1. Open a folder in Windows XP's Explorer.

2. Click "Tools", then "Folder Options".

3. When the multi-tabbed "Folder Options" dialog box appears, click the "General" tab.

4. Click the radio button "Use Windows Classic Folders".

5. Click "OK" to close the dialog box.

Gary Chambers

Move Toolbars In Explorer Views In Windows XP!

If you are navigating your computer in Windows XP and want to customize the location of folder toolbars, you may not be able to do so. This is because Windows XP will, by default, lock the toolbars to prevent accidentally resizing them or moving them around. If you want to tweak your folder views by unlocking the toolbar, just right-click on a folder toolbar and uncheck "Lock the Toolbars". You will now be able to move the toolbars around or resize them as desired.

Gary Chambers

Having A Problem Deleting A File or Folder In XP!

More than likely another software program happens to be using the file or folder at a particular time, or for some reason another program has a 'lock' on the file or folder, preventing its access.

If you are SURE the file or folder is not important, you may be able to delete it by rebooting your system, then trying again. If that still doesn't work, consider booting Windows XP into 'Safe Mode'. This is a special diagnostic mode of Windows XP that, among other things, does not run most of Windows XP's startup jobs. This way, another software program should not get the lock on your particular file or folder.

To enter Safe Mode:

1. Restart your machine.

2. Once the computer has performed the memory and/or BIOS test (depending on the manufacturer), hold down the F8 key.

3. The "Windows XP Advanced Options" menu should appear. Select "Safe Mode".

If this doesn't work, or your machine shows a "Keyboard error", reboot your system and try again. Tap the F8 key a little later in the boot process.

Once you have entered Safe Mode, now try deleting your file or folder.

Gary Chambers