5-Minute Fixes - Part 3

Bypass Windows Login

3 MINUTES
If you're the only one who uses your computer, and you're not worried about it (or your data) falling into someone else's hands, you may not need the protection that the login screen provides. Here's how to turn it off.
Open the User Accounts control panel. Delete any unused accounts that are not your primary, personal account. (Click Manage another account, choose the other accounts, and select Delete the account.) You can ignore the Guest ac­count, which probably is turned off.
At the main User Accounts page, ensure that your primary account is active. Click Change your password. Enter your old password where required and leave your new password blank. Reboot your machine, and it will load Windows directly without presenting the login screen. Just remember that you are compromising your sys­tem's security by operating it without a password.


Remap a Keyboard

3 MINUTES
Download and install KeyTweak, which works with all Windows versions.
Run the application. Click Full Teach Mode to remap one key to another, pressing the original key and the one you want to assign to it in sequence.
Remember that a laptop's <Fn> key normally cannot be re­mapped, so if you want to swap <Fn> and </Ctrl>-a common tweak-you'll have to check for the option in the PC's BIOS.


RoLL Back a Bad Driver

4 MINUTES
Updating your machine's drivers keeps the system current on bug fixes and support for new features. It can also break things that weren't broken, however, so if you notice that your PC is crashing or behaving strangely after applying a new patch, you should revert to an older ver­sion and see if that fixes the problem. Fortunately, whether you install new drivers manually (via download from a manufacturer's Website) or through Windows Update, you can revert to an older version fairly easily.
First, open the Device Manager con­trol panel. Browse to the device whose driver you want to roll back. Double­click the device in question. On the properties screen, click the Driver tab. Click Roll Back Driver and follow the wizard to revert to the previously load­ed driver. A restart will be required.
If the option is grayed out, an older driver is not available. If you know that the driver has been updated, you may be able to recover it by using Windows' System Restore function, which will also undo driver installations.


Decipher a Bizarre Error Message

5 MINUTES
Assuming that the error has not crashed your system, write down the exact text of the error mes­sage. If the error has rendered your machine unusable, move to another PC so that you can keep the error on screen.
The key to tracking down a fix is to remember that you are unlikely to be the first person to have ever encoun­tered this problem, but it is probably rare enough that standard help files and Microsoft support won't be of use. So turn to the masses and search the Web for the exact text of the error message, in quotes. For example, type in "Error loading cmicnfg.cpl. The specified mod­ule could not be found."
From that point your research will be a little more esoteric, but click through the results for advice. In our example, just a couple minutes of research will provide the likely culprit-a bad audio driver-as well as a credible solution that involves deleting some files and making a few Registry edits.