Welcome to Geeks in Phoenix, your go-to place for all things Windows 7! Our team of experienced computer geeks is here to hook you up with the latest and most practical tips to supercharge your Windows 7 experience. Whether you're a pro or just getting started, our Geek Tip collection is about helping you get the most out of your Windows 7 system. We'll cover everything from fixing common problems to boosting performance. Stick around as we spill all our Windows 7 Geek Tips to ensure your computer runs like a dream.
The following is a complete list of our Windows 7 Geek Tips
Many people took advantage of the Get Windows 10 upgrade promotion, and some did not. If you are one of those people that did not get your version of Windows 7 / Windows 8.1 ...
Looking for an e-mail program that has a ton of features? One that has a calendar, task scheduler and can handle multiple e-mail addresses? Then look no further than Mozilla Thunderbird.
For most people, there is nothing better than a brand-new computer. But of course, you cannot get a new computer every few months. But you can get that same feeling. Here is ...
Have you ever downloaded an ISO file and did not know what to do with it? More and more software companies are now distributing their software using ISO files. Here is what you can ...
It happens to all of us. You get a pop-up on your computer screen or a phone call telling you that your computer is infected. More than likely it is bogus. So here is how to handle a ...
Did you know that there is a limit to how long a file name can be? Did you know that the folder name is also include in that limit? And what about the path? Let's take a look at long folder ...
Being a computer repair technician, I get asked allot of questions. Quite a few of them are about what software do I recommend. And since I am frugal, I will usually suggest ones that are ...
When it comes to repairing computers, every technician has what I call a digital toolbox. It is software that they use for specific tasks, like finding information on hardware or cloning drives. So here ...
There may be a time when you need to run a program in Windows that does not have a shortcut to it. Usually it is a program that is not used that often. So here is how start a ...
With the recent outbreak of data encrypting malware, keeping your computer secure is a major issue. There isn't just one thing that you can do to secure your computer, but multiple ...
Are you having problems finding Windows drivers for your older hardware? Or have you had an update to Windows recently fail to install and want to manually install it? Then the ...
Even though we primarily work on Windows based computers, there are times when we need to access Mac formatted disks. And being able to do that from inside of Windows is ...
Got a video or music library and want to see how large it is? Maybe you downloaded a really big file and cannot remember where it is? If so, Space Sniffer may just be what you need.
Are you getting a low disk space warning in Windows? Or maybe you have been prompted to delete a previous version of Windows to gain some disk space? If so, here's how to quickly ...
So over the years you've been purchasing software on CD's / DVD's and now have quite the collection. So what do you do with all of the media you are no longer using? How about creating ...
Sometimes it is fun to go back and play the DOS video games I grew up with. But it can be tough since Windows doesn't utilize DOS anymore. But you can still run your old DOS games ...
The Microsoft Management Console (MMC) is a program that is used to create, save, and open collections of administrative tools, called Consoles. Consoles contain items such as snap-ins ...
Have you ever wanted to insert a letter or symbol into a Windows document that was not shown on your keyboard? Maybe a copyright, trademark or tolerance symbol? You can do just that ...
Do you have a company logo or a simple graphic that you would like to use often in a Windows program, like Microsoft Word or Excel? Maybe your line of work has special characters that you ...
When it comes to communication, e-mail is by far the fastest and easiest way to exchange thoughts and ideas. But it can also be one of the fastest ways to spread viruses / malware too. But you can protect yourself and your ...
Let's face it, some of the software we use on a daily basis has become subject to security vulnerabilities and exploits. Software manufacturers do their best to develop and test fixes / patches ...
With Microsoft giving away free Windows 10 upgrades to Windows 7 and Windows 8.1 users, the one question that I keep getting asked is "Should I upgrade to Windows 10?" The real ...
When it comes to repairing Windows based computers, there seems to be a couple of problems that I get allot of requests for help with. One of them is when a computer cannot get updates ...
When it comes to computer repair, the most common problem I find is browser corruption. Malicious web sites with infected flash ads are the most common way a browser can get corrupted.
Internet browsers are prone to getting compromised. It can happen by opening an infected e-mail to viewing a malicious ad on a web page. But knowing how to get your browser back ...
In repairing computers for a living, the one thing I find myself doing constantly is cleaning up and resetting web browsers. Removing adware, malware and viruses can really screw up ...
With the release of Windows 10 comes the inevitable upgrade from Windows 7 or Windows 8.1, And with the upgrade being free for the first year, why not upgrade to Windows 10? But before ...
Keeping your computer secure has always been tough. It seems like every week there is another exploit making the rounds. Nobody can predict what kind of attack hackers will use next. But you can protect your computer from the ...
External storage devices like flash drives or hard drives are so convenient for carrying data between computers. Just plug and play, as they say. But did you know it's not the same for when you unplug your drives? Here's how to safely ...
Doing computer repair, I see allot of different issues. But there is one problem I am seeing over and over again, start up corruption. This most commonly occurs when the computer is not turned off properly. And it appears that laptops are ...
It seems like every day a new software exploit or vulnerability is found. Software vendors' work hard at keeping their software secure, but it can take time to test and deploy patches. So what can you do to protect your ...
When it comes to getting the best performance out of your computer, nothing can beat a Solid State Drive (SSD). Right out-of-the-box they are extremely faster reading / writing data than a Hard Disk Drive (HDD). But there are a ...
One of the things I like to do besides repairing computers is creating graphics. Over the years I have used many different image editing programs, including Photoshop and CorelDraw. Recently, one of my favorite freeware image ...
Most computers (laptop & desktop) nowadays come with a Hard Disk Drive (HDD) as standard equipment with a Solid State Drive (SSD) as an option. Each drive type has its pros and cons: HDD's are cheaper and have more storage, ...
It seems whenever I tell someone that I repair computers for a living, I almost always get asked the question "What do you recommend for anti-virus software?". I tell them that I use a layered approach to security, not relying on just one ...
There may come a time when your Windows based computer starts to run improperly. Installing and uninstalling software, viruses and malware are just a few things that can corrupt the integrity of system files. When it comes to ...
At some point in time, you may need to run a program or command from a Command Prompt with Administrative privileges. Some of the best features inside of Windows Vista and Windows 7 are only accessible through an ...
As many of you know, when I'm not working on computers, I like to work with
photos and videos. And some of the coolest software I've found for doing
panoramic photos has come from Microsoft Research. I have
written about ...
Are you looking for a program to manage your e-mail? Or maybe one to write a blog
with? Want to remotely connect computers and sync files between them? How about
creating a photo gallery or movie? You can do all of these and ...
If you use a program or visit a website on a
regular basis in Windows 7, you may want to
pin it to the Start menu or taskbar
for quicker access. When you pin a program or
website to the Start menu or taskbar,
you can always see ...
Have you ever needed to change a setting on your
Windows 7 laptop / netbook quickly? Maybe change
the screen brightness or turn on/off your
wi-fi? You can do just that and more with Windows
Mobility Center inside ...
During the normal use of your computer, you will accumulate a
number of unnecessary files (temporary setup / internet
files, recycle bin, etc.). You can remove these files with the
built-in Disk Cleanup (cleanmgr.exe) utility ...
A client recently asked me if I knew of any alternative to
Microsoft Office. As a firm believer in open source software,
I told him about OpenOffice.org 3 from Oracle.
It is a complete office software suite with a word
processor, ...
I am always looking at different ways to improve the performance of
Windows. One of the ways is to use ReadyBoost
that is built into Windows 7 and Windows Vista.
ReadyBoost can speed up your computer by caching files
...
In a previous article, I discussed Microsoft Security
Essentials (MSE). I like the easy of use, the
integration with Windows Update and the small footprint it has,
especially on my netbook. Recently, Microsoft has released ...
As more and more people are moving from Windows XP to
Windows 7, I thought I would spotlight a series of articles that I
wrote.
Network shell (Netsh) is a tool an administrator can
use to configure and monitor network devices on Windows based
computers at a command prompt. A common use of Netsh, is to
reset the TCP/IP stack back to default ...
Your computer has two types of memory, Random Access Memory
(RAM) and Virtual Memory. All programs use RAM,
but when there isn't enough RAM for the program you're trying to run,
Windows temporarily moves information ...
In this article, I share my five favorite tips for maintaining your Windows 7 computer.
In this article, I am going to spotlight Microsoft Security Essentials
(MSE). This is not Microsoft's first venture into the ant-virus market, but it
is probably the best. Having used the some of the more well know anti-virus
software ...
I recently got an e-mail asking if I knew why the installation of software that
was downloaded would fail on Windows 7. This issue is actually
part of Windows 7's User Account Control. Let's say I
was surfing the web with Internet ...
In this article, I thought I would share my top five favorite Windows 7
features I find most useful.
Windows logo key keyboard shortcuts (based on Windows 7)
I this article, I an going to show one of the uses for Virtual Machines
in Windows 7. More and more often I am asked 'How can I get
an old program to run on Windows 7?'. I ran into this issue a few years
back when one of my ...
One of applications you can integrate into Windows Explorer is Image Resizer.
With a right click on a picture, you can quickly resize a photo without ...
When I migrated from Windows XP to Windows 7, one of the things I have missed is the Microsoft Powertoys. A couple of the functions have been integrated into
Windows 7 (Open Command Window Here and Power ...
In this article, I show how to list everything contained in the Control
Panel in Windows 7 in one folder. I had read couple of
articles concerning the Windows 7 'GodMode' and I thought I
would take look into. The way it works is you ...
Windows 7 provides several ways to find files and folders. There isn't one best
way to search—you can use different methods for different situations ...
Searching in Windows 7 can be as simple as typing a few letters in the search
box, but there are also advanced searching techniques that you can use ...
Windows 7 uses the index to perform very fast searches on your computer. Here are
some advanced indexing settings you can change ...
I am currently planning my migration from Windows XP to
Windows 7. Since there is no way to do an 'in-place'
upgrade from Windows XP to Windows 7, I
normally would need to back-up my current system ...
Having my new system built, I am ready to start my migration from Windows XP to
Windows 7 ...
It's time to find out what type of hardware and software we have installed. We
also want to collect any software licenses, too. I have found two programs very
useful ...
Now that we have performed the basic procedures (drive imaging and software / hardware inventory and
downloading drivers) I normally do before a clean install, it's time to get
into the installation details ...
With our installation of Windows 7 complete, it's time to move
on to the applications and settings ...
In the course of writing this series of articles about migrating from
Windows XP to Windows 7, I have been slowly moving my
production time from my old system to the new one ...
In this article, I am going to show how to use another one of my favorite
applications, Command Prompt and Open Command Window
Here ...
Default locations for user files in Windows 7.
In this article, I am going to show how to change the default locations of
user files and modify the library properties in Windows 7 ...
Windows 7 has many features that allow you to use your
computer without a display ...
You can reduce the amount of information on your screen so that it's easier to
read, and you can set up your keyboard to make typing easier ...
You can change the mouse pointer and turn on other features that can help make it
easier to use your mouse on the Make the mouse easier to use
page ...
If you sometimes have trouble seeing items on your screen, you can adjust the
settings to make text and images on the screen appear larger, improve the
contrast between items on the screen, and hear on-screen text read aloud ...
You can use your keyboard to control the mouse and make it easier to type certain
key combinations ...
Windows provides settings for using visual cues to replace sounds in many
programs. You can adjust these settings on the Use text or visual
alternatives to sounds page ...
Windows 7 has two features to help you use the computer without using a mouse or
keyboard ...
You can use your voice to work with windows and programs. Usually, you can just
say the command that you want to perform ...
Instead of relying on the physical keyboard to type and enter data, you can use
On-Screen Keyboard. On-Screen Keyboard
displays a visual keyboard with ...
Magnifier enlarges different parts of the screen. This is
especially useful for viewing objects that are difficult to see, but also for
seeing the whole screen more easily ...
Windows comes with a basic screen reader called Narrator that
reads text on the screen aloud and describes some events (such as an error
message appearing) that happen while you're using the computer ...
If you use a specific program on a regular basis, you can use the Task
Scheduler Wizard to create a task that opens the program for you
automatically according to the schedule you choose ...
One of the components of the Internet connection on your computer is a built-in
set of instructions called TCP/IP. TCP/IP can sometimes become
corrupted ...
Fragmentation makes your hard disk do extra work that can slow down your
computer. Disk Defragmenter rearranges fragmented data so your hard disk can
work more efficiently ...
You can help solve some computer problems and improve the performance of your
computer by making sure that your hard disk has no errors ...
To make sure you don't lose the files that you create, modify, and store on your
computer, you should back them up regularly. You can manually back up your files
any time or set up automatic backups ...
I finally got around to installing the Beta release of
Windows 7. Did the first install into a VM (virtual
machine), just to get the feel for the new OS. I installed a copy of
Sun xVM VirtualBox, version 2.2.2, which has predefined
settings for ...
Since my last post, Windows 7 RC1 has been released. I am now
assembling a production system to use for the installation of RC1. I have
changed my mind on how I wanted to test this new OS from Microsoft. My original
idea was to use ...
Well, I went shopping and here is what I came up with. I like to utilize
local vendors when ever possible, but this system had a
processor requirement that I could not find cheaply from my favorite
vendor. I wanted a Quad-core ...
Antec cases have always been a great investments, as I have
owned several. They range from ...
I finished assembling the Windows 7 test system in about three
hours. The wring for the
Antec Skeleton case
proved to be a challenge. But I was ready for it, as the Antec P-180
I have also has a unique wring layout (the power supply ...
In this article, I give an overview of the key features that I built the
Windows 7 test system to evaluate, Quad-cores,
64-bit operating systems / applications and
Virtualization Technology (Virtual Machines).
With the Windows 7 test system running, it's time to see what it
can do. Keep in mind that the total cost for just the hardware (less the
Antec Skeleton case) was around
$525. I went over to Adobe
and downloaded the 64-bit trial version of ...