Live Messenger 8.1/8.5 Bypass Mandatory Upgrade
| Posted by watashii | Filed under Software, Web
Today when logging into my Windows Live Messenger 8.1, I received a message forcing me to upgrade to the latest Windows Live Messenger (2009). This was discussed on their blog less than 1 month ago (thanks for the short heads-up). However, like many others, upgrading to the 2009 version was not ideal. That is: it just doesn’t work at all.
For me, I ran into problems logging in (via my workplace), as I kept getting the error: “Signing in to Windows Live Messenger failed because the authentication service is not compatible with this version of the program.
Error code: 8100030f”. And NOTHING in the online help provided any clues with this message!
So the only resolution for me was to find a way to continue using the old version. Here I found a workaround to skip the mandatory upgrade (I’m on XP, however Vista should work also).
Tags: live messenger, msn, windows
Abort Windows Shutdown Using Shortcut
| Posted by watashii | Filed under Programming
This follows on from the previous post on how to force shutdown your Windows machine using a shortcut. This post shows how to cancel / stop Windows from shutting down after launching the shutdown command (eg by accident).
To create this shortcut, open Notepad, and add the following line of text, then save it with a .bat extension. You need to hit the shortcut quickly if you want to abort in time.
shutdown.exe -a
Where:
-a abort shutdown
[abort_shutdown.bat] 32 bytes
Tags: abort, shortcut, shutdown, windows
Force Shutdown Windows XP Using Shortcut
| Posted by watashii | Filed under Programming
Here is a handy way to force shutdown your Windows XP machine using a shortcut. To create this shortcut, open Notepad, and add the following line of text, then save it with a .bat extension.
shutdown.exe -f -s -t 5 -c "bye"
Where:
-s shutdown (use -r for restart)
-f force shutdown
-t time delay (5 secs)
-c prompted comment, "bye"
[shutdown.bat] 32 bytes
Tags: shortcut, shutdown, windows
Windows Vista – Change Sleep Button to Shutdown Button
| Posted by watashii | Filed under Software
Recently got my new computer system loaded with Windows Vista (Home Basic). The first annoyance I encountered was that the default power down on the Start Menu is the orange sleep mode button.
Having sleep mode allows quick resume of Windows without needing to reload Windows from scratch, as well as saving power – the benefits obvious.
But for the not-so occasional PC user, a shutdown button is more convenient. Here is how to swap it with red shutdown button.
- Goto [Start > Control Panel > Power Options]
- Click on the power plan in use, and select Advanced Power Settings
- Expand the + signs under Power Buttons and Lid, then Start Menu and Power Buttons
- Then in the dropdown box set it to the Shutdown setting
Tags: shutdown, sleep, vista, windows
XP Themes Designed & Signed by Microsoft
| Posted by watashii | Filed under SoftwareWant a change for your current XP theme? Here are some nice themes for your Windows XP/2003 which are designed and signed by Microsoft. This means you can use these themes directly (Control Panel > Display Properties) without modifying any of your Windows system files.
For other non-signed user designed themes, you might like to check out the patching utility UxTheme Multipatcher.
Royale / Royale Noir Theme
Zune Theme
Embedded Theme
