he Internet Explorer toolbar looks pretty simple. Want to make it fancy and kewl? Why not add a background image to it. To do this kewl hack launch the Windows Registry Editor and go to the following key:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\ Internet Explorer\Toolbar\.

Now in the right pane create a new String Value and name it BackBitmap and modify it’s value to the path of the Bitmap you want to dress it up with by rightclicking on it and choosing Modify. When you reboot the Internet Explorer and the Windows Explorer toolbars will have a new look.

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fancy toolbars

XP lets you rename files in bulk by simply selecting multiple files within Windows Explorer and pressing the F2 key. When you use this feature, the OS applies the name you enter to the first file and applies the same name with a number in parentheses to the other files you selected (the file extensions remain unchanged).

For example, if you select the following files,
* my.doc
* what.xls
* holiday.jpg
* myhope.gif

and rename the first file (my.doc) to cat1.doc, XP renames the remaining files as follows:
* cat (1).xls
* cat (2).jpg
* cat(3).gif

If you like to view your files in Windows Explorer using the “Details” view
here is a tweak to speed up the listing of file attributes:

Viewing files in Windows Explorer using the “Details” mode shows various attributes
associated with each file shown. Some of these must be retrieved from the
individual files when you click on the directory for viewing.
For a directory with numerous and relatively large files
(such as a folder in which one stores media, eg: *.mp3′s, *.avi’s etc.)
Windows Explorer lags as it reads through each one. Here’s how to disable viewing of
unwanted attributes and speed up file browsing:

1. Open Windows Explorer
2. Navigate to the folder which you wish to optimize.
3. In “Details” mode right click the bar at the top which displays the names of the attribute columns.
4. Uncheck any that are unwanted/unneeded.

Explorer will apply your preferences immediately, and longs lists of unnecessary attributes will not be displayed.
Likewise, one may choose to display any information which is regarded as needed, getting more out of Explorer.