Windows 9X Special Interest Group

by John S. Krill jskrill@jps.net

Welcome to the Windows 9X SIG

The primary purpose of the Windows SIG is to answer questions you have about Windows 9X (Windows 95 and Windows 98.) They can be: problems (software and hardware,) software suggestions (utilities, applications, etc.,) and how-to requests. Or you can just visit and learn about Windows 9X by being there. The meeting is held in Science 130 from 9am to 11am. You can show up and leave at anytime.

Note: Bring a 3.5", 1.4MB floppy. I generally have Zipped files full of information.

Change In Room Assignment To Science 130

We are now meeting in Science 130. With all the equipment I setup it is much more convenient to be in Science 130. We can also get a modem line into this room when we need it or whenever no one else is using the phone line.

Questions Between Meetings

If you have problems and can’t wait for the meeting you can e-mail me at the above address with ALL pertinent information. I will do my best to answer your e-mail. This is for NOCCC members only. Thanks.

Quick Launch

Question: What is Quick Launch and how do I use it? Quick Launch is an optional toolbar that was added to Windows with the release of Internet Explorer 4.0. To enable Quick Launch right-click on the Taskbar and select Toolbars. Then click on Quick Launch.

The easiest way to add Icons to Quick Launch is to drag them into Quick Launch. To see what exactly is in Quick Launch right-click on the vertical bar, grab handle, that separates Quick Launch from the rest of the Task Bar. Click on Open (Figure One). This will open Explorer in the Quick Launch directory. The Address window in Explorer will tell you exactly where this directory is located. Now you can view, edit, and remove any of the icons in Quick Launch.

USB

One member was trying to decide on a flat-bed scanner. He didn’t want a parallel-interface scanner because he didn’t have a second parallel port. The printer is on his only parallel port. He was looking at getting a scanner with a SCSI interface. There is another option available, USB. USB is the new Universal Serial Bus. If you purchased a new PC within the last year-and-a-half then you probably have not just one but two USB ports at the back of your PC.

The problem is that there are very few devices that have the USB interface. One magazine article on USB devices listed only one scanner, the UMAX Astra 1220U Scanner. The list price was $149. UMAX’s address is: http://www.umax.com.

If you are trying to find USB devices then travel to the USB site, http://www.usb.org, and check their Products page.

System Tray

Question: Can I hide items that are in the System Tray? PC Magazine has a utility that can hide items in the tray and more. Go to http://www.pcmag.com/pctech/index-ut.html and click on TrayManager. This utility works with Win95 and Win98.

Windows 9X SIG on the Web

First I want to let you know I have a new e-mail address. It’s shown above. My current Internet Service provider, JPS.Net, gives each customer 20Mbytes of Web space with a .5Gbyte of throughput. Because of this I have set up a Windows 9X SIG web page, http://www.jps.net/jskrill/noccc. I have put up all the SIG reports that I have written as well as a couple of additional articles. You can also find Microsoft Security Bulletins that pertain to the Win9X OSs. If you have any suggestions or ideas for this site then e-mail with your ideas.