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I’ve been using a very simple application to remove the shortcut arrow from Windows going back to Windows 7. I’ve used it on the eight computers I’ve upgraded to Windows 10 so far, without any difficulties.

It’s called Koala Shortcut Arrow and is available free at http://www.koalabear.nl/software
You do not install the program. First unzip the program (45 kb in size). Then simply right click “Koala Shortcut Arrow.exe” in your file manager and select “Run as administrator.”

You’ll get two choices: “Remove/Hide Arrow” and “Show.” Click on the “Remove/Hide Arrow” button. I can’t remember whether you have to log out or restart — or do nothing — before the shortcut arrows disappear. But this little application has worked flawlessly me for years on dozens of Windows computers I’ve built.

I tried several other free programs that allegedly do the same thing, but Koala Shortcut Arrow has been the most reliable and it does not actually get installed on your computer. Sweet.

Can anyone tell me how to safely remove the shortcut arrows in Windows 10? There is a program called Winaero, but I’m not sure about it.

Thanks for any help.

Today (5-21-2105) one of the authors of the article very loudly proclaimed that it was being misinterpreted and that SSDs will not lose data if without power even for years. The report rapidly spreading across the Internet is based on a misreading of a study conducted five years ago. Let’s have a round of applause for all the irresponsible bozos who never bothered to fact check their stories as they spread the false information.

Here’s the link to the story explaining the misunderstanding. The story is written by the editor of PC World.
http://www.pcworld.com/article/2925173/debunked-your-ssd-wont-lose-data-if-left-unplugged-after-all.html

If you’re in a panic because the Internet told you that your shiny new SSD may lose data in “just a few days” when stored in a hot room, take a chill pill—it’s apparently all a huge misunderstanding, according to the man who wrote the original presentation all the fear is based on.

In a conversation with Kent Smith of Seagate and Alvin Cox, the Seagate engineer who wrote the _0.pdf”]presentationthat set the Internet abuzz, PCWorld was told we’re all just reading it wrong.

“People have misunderstood the data that they’re looking at,” Smith said.

Cox agreed saying there’s no reason to fret.
“I wouldn’t worry about (losing data),” Cox told PCWorld. “This all pertains to end of life. As a consumer, an SSD product or even a flash product is never going to get to the point where it’s temperature-dependent on retaining the data.”

Mr. Leonhard — If you don’t like the weather app appearing full screen, why not fork over $4.99 to StarDock.com for its Modern Mix utility that enables Modern UI apps to open in a resizeable window on your desktop like the productivity programs we’re all used to? Problem solved.

Methinks you did not understand the question from Jim Kent about password managers.
He asked:
“I just read your article about secure passwords [‘Protect yourself from the next big data breach,’ Oct. 17 Top Story], and I’m interested in going [the password-manager] route — probably using RoboForm.
“But what happens to all those long, bullet-proof passwords if I cancel my subscription? How do I get back into the app to change all my passwords back to normal?”

I think he was asking — as I also would like to know — what if you want to discontinue using the password manager? How do you get access to your passwords on your computer? Can you export them from RoboForm and import them into your browser’s built-in password managerr, say, FireFox, Chrome, or IE? He also seems to be asking how he can change his passwords from the ones that Roboform created to ones he could actually remember, i.e., “normal”? For the last question, I imagine the answer is to go to each password-protected site, open your account, profile, or settings for the site and change your password. But the first question still remains — can you export the passwords created in Roboform to your browser’s own password manager? This is the question to which I cannot get any answer from the websites of the various password managers you and others have recommended. I hope you or somebody here can offer some insight on this question.

Thank you.

There’s a very helpful free utility that makes it easy for you to control your start up programs – and even delay when they start. It’s WinPatrol Free Edition (aka “Scotty”) available from http://www.winpatrol.com. Use the “Startup Programs” tab to disable or remove startup programs. Right click on a startup program and select “Move to Delayed Startup Program List” to set a time delay before the program starts. Under the “Delayed Start” tab, select a program and then click on the “delay Options” button to set a period of time before the program loads. This is very handy and simple — and enables you to take programs that don’t have to load right away out of the initial loading period, leading to quicker booting. WinPatrol also alerts you to when there’s a change in start up programs and let’s you decide whether to allow the change.

Thanks. So I installed EasyBCD and made sure that Win8 is the default (which it was). Due to a lack of time, I haven’t done anything else yet.
Strangely, though, when booting I’ve lost the graphical interface when the choice of OS screen comes up. Now it’s just a text screen, reminiscent of Windows 7. Any idea why this happened and how to restore the graphical boot interface?

I will definitely create a backup (and a disc clone) before attempting this feat, probably this weekend. I’ll let you know how it goes. Thanks again.

Ignoring the cost factors for a moment, I’ve got to say that Office 2013 or Office 365 offers some really nice productivity improvements in Excel, Word, and PowerPoint, especially Excel. I’ve been using Office 2013 trials and previews for 2-3 months and it does make a difference. The only downside is that Microsoft did something with Office 2013 that causes incompatibility problems if you’re also running the productivity-enhancing add-on Office Tab and the Windows utility GiMeSpace Desktop Extender. Outside of that — which is particularly irritating in Excel 2013 — the new Office is easier to use than Office 2010, faster, a bit more forgiving, and just plain better. Whether or not it’s worth the cost is up to each user. I do think that Microsoft is getting a little greedy with these price points.

I’ve got to agree with another writer here – the no-reformat reinstall available on Windows 8 is a step backward for those of us who rely on actual applications on the desktop. We need to be able to do a nondestructive reinstall of Windows 8 just like we could in Windows 7, etc. — one that does not require us to reinstall our desktop applications.

So the question here is not, “To be or not to be,” but whether we can still do a nondestructive reinstall of Windows 8 that doesn’t wipe out our desktop applications and require us to reinstall them.

Please let us know.

All this anguish over getting free Internet security is badly misplaced. There’s no need to ever pay more than sales tax for Internet security, including such resource sippers as Norton Internet Security. Norton, Kaspersky, and other “for sale” Internet security programs are free, or nearly free, when purchased with rebates. I haven’t paid more than sales tax for any Internet security program in over 15 years. Nearly every week frys.com has Norton, Kaspersky, or another quality Internet security program available for free after rebates, leaving you only with the cost of sales tax. And I have had no problems with receiving rebates in over a decade.

These rebates make buying Internet security program a bargain. And for those Norton haters (and I had been one), Norton Internet Security was rewritten from the ground up and, as every review has noted, it is no longer a resource hog. So if you want a really top notch Internet Security program, check visit Frys.com and sign up for its weekly sales (or check you local newspaper every Friday if there’s a Frys Electronics store in your metro area). If you plan ahead, you’ll never have to pay more than a few dollars for Internet security again.:rolleyes:

Tim,

Thanks for the suggestion. I have tried Gimespace and found it to be horrible. It was not smooth at all — very jerky motion (my video card is an ATI Radeon 5700 with plenty of RAM; CPU AMD Phenom II X6 1055; 4 GB RAM). And it did not allow you to do one key thing the pan-and-scan virtual desktop does, namely, set your monitor at the lower resolution so that icons and labels are larger, while setting your desktop at the higher resolution giving you the much larger desktop.

Now I tried Gimespace months ago and it is possible that newer versions run more smoothly. It has added a few features. So I guess I can install Windows 7 on a another drive and give it a whirl. But I honestly do not have high hopes.

I have written to ATI tech support and they say they’re researching the issue. I’ll believe it when I see a solution or they admit nothing can be done.

I strongly suspect there must be some setting in the Windows Registry that you can adjust to get the pan and scan virtual desktop. The last time I uninstalled my ATI Catalyst Control Center and drivers to install a new version, the pan and scan virtual desktop remained in place when I uninstalled the old CCC and rebooted. So the pan and scan was there even without an ATI video driver present. I would think that is the result of some setting in the registry, but I readily admit I do not have a clue what it could be.

Should I ever learn of a solution, I will pass it on here. I very much appreciate everybody’s efforts and suggestions.

Jock,

One big questions regarding your promising approach. I’m afraid I’m still using a 20+ year old Northgate keyboard (those things were built like a tank) and it predates the creation of the “windows” key. By any wild chance do you know what key combination might substitute for the “windows” key since none of our Northgate keyboards has a “windows” key?

Thanks very much.

Peter and Jock,

Thank you both Peter and Jock. I’ll try both ideas and report back on the results.

Peter,

The Windows360 freeware does work in Windows 7 according to the website. And thanks for all the ideas. I guess I was kind of abrupt about the virtual desktop (multiple desktops) because it’s been confused so many times with the pan and scan virtual desktop over the years. The Windows360 sounds like it does half the job, but that could be better than nothing. Who knows?

Peter,

Thanks so much for your suggestion. Unfortunately the “virtual desktop” of which you write is not the same as the “pan-and-scan virtual desktop” for which I’m seeking assistance.

The “virtual desktop” (producing multiple desktops) and the pan-and-scan virtual desktop (which extends the desktop real estate beyond the borders of your monitor) are two very different animals. The pan-and-scan came first in the early 1990s as an add-on to Ventura Publisher, a desktop publishing program and then was available under Windows 98 via a utility called “More Windows.”

Thanks again for your kind suggestion.

I’ve had a similar problem with my Gateway MX7515 ever since Gateway replaced the CPU fan (the CPU fan does work, now).

I’ve been using a laptop cooler under the computer and it seems to keep the laptop cool enough to run without over heating. My daughter-in-law ran into the same problem and a cooler is keeping her laptop running well. It’s worth a try. These “notebook coolers” and “laptop coolers” and aren’t terribly expensive — $19.95 to $49.95 — and are often on sale for less.