Windows Vista Team Blog : Tips and Tricks, Windows Vista

10 Things – Windows Media Center Movie Browser

Nick White — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 19:24:00 GMT

Although many of us have used Windows Media Center Edition, there are a couple of things that may not be that well known -- one of my favorites being the Movie Browser in Windows Vista. Let's see how it works...

Have you ever been in the mood to watch a movie but you don't have a particular one in mind -- and you really don't want to have to go through all the information in the guides to find one that appeals to you? Movie Browser allows you to see a list of movies that are either playing currently or those that will be starting in the near future. While using Movie Browser, you can specify the type of movie you're looking for and search using any of several criteria.

Assuming that you have the correct hardware installed to run Media Center, using the Movie Browser is simple. Open Media Center, select "TV & Movies" and navigate to "Search." You can search by any of the following:

Title
Keyword
Categories
Movie Actor
Movie Director

If you're connected to the internet, once you select the search criteria you'll also see the cover art from the DVD (in the US). You can even view metadata that may include things like reviews, ratings and cast.

As an example, I did a search for movie actor Brad Pitt. The resulting list showed 44 movies:

Clicking on any one of them gives the option to:

Record it when it airs
Read the Plot
See the Cast Info
Read Reviews
Look for Similar Movies

My favorite feature on Media Center in Windows Vista is the ability to find a movie and set it to be recorded when it's next scheduled to be shown on TV, even if it isn't currently listed in the guide. Once you select the movie, Media Center will automatically record it for you the next time it’s playing on TV. Although this capability isn't new to Windows Vista, it's still something that isn't known by a lot of Windows Vista users.

In the example above, you'll see that Ocean's Thirteen is not scheduled to air within the timeframe indicated in the guide. But, that doesn't mean that you'll need to continue checking continuously to see when it's going to air. Once I chose Ocean's Thirteen from the menu, the option changed from "Record" to "Record in the Future."

Once I selected "Record in Future," the movie was set to record when it plays on television.

And helpfully, whenever Media Center is opened, you'll see the red "Record" dot to remind you that you have a pending recording session scheduled.

10 Things - Volume Mixer

Nick White — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 16:05:00 GMT

Our "10 Things You May Not Know About Windows Vista" series continues as we explore one of the least-known features in Windows Vista: the Volume Mixer. Although it might not be as well-touted as the Aero interface, you may find it's one of the more useful features available.

I'm sure we've all had the experience of working on one application when another application's sound suddenly blasted out your speakers. It can be disconcerting anytime, embarrassing when it happens during a meeting and downright painful when using headphones.

Windows XP had a single control for all sounds, and this controlled only the hardware. If an application's sound was louder or softer than that specified by Windows XP's volume control, you had to constantly adjust the volume.

Windows Vista allows you to choose the right volume for any running application. It's also very easy to use. Right-click the speaker icon in the notification area (systray) of your desktop, then click Volume Mixer to open the control. You'll see a list of programs running. Then, just use the slider bar to adjust the volume up or down. (Note: If some of the sliders have a black background, just move the slider and Windows Vista will re-draw it. KB article 938308 explains this more.)

You can adjust volume for use with either speakers or headphones simply by selecting the desired output in the device column. You can also choose to mute individual programs so as to not be interrupted by sounds from other running programs. If you change the output device, you will need to readjust the volume.

New Application Compatibility training available

Peg McNicol — Wed, 22 Aug 2007 19:19:00 GMT

When we talk about application compatibility for our large customers, it goes beyond making sure the latest game or end user application works. Our enterprise customers sometimes have hundreds of thousands of PCs to manage. That means a lot of different applications, from many different companies, some custom and some customized. To help these customers we created a suite of enterprise tools called the Application Compatibility Toolkit (see my earlier post), and also worked with partners to create a service called the Application Compatibility Factory (see here).

One thing you may not know is that we also have a team of specially trained consultants who work with customers on some of these very large deployments. We try to make sure all our customers can take advantage of the team's knowledge, so we send them to events like TechEd or IT Forum and they contribute significantly to the content you find on TechNet and MSDN. Unfortunately it's not always possible for customers to have one-on-one interaction with this team. That's why we are pretty excited that one of the consultants, Caio Chaves Garcez, recently recorded the full 2 day training the team usually presents to these large customers. The training covers most common application compatibility issues found with Windows Vista, as well as how to use the various tools we make available. Whether you are an IT Pro starting your deployment or a developer trying to make your older applications work with Vista, the content of this webcast is well worth the just over 8 hours it will take you to get through it. If you want to learn more about what the team is working on, you can also check out Chris Jackson's blog.

Download the training

10 Things - Using BitLocker, even without a TPM

Nick White — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 19:15:00 GMT

While you may have heard of BitLocker, what you may not know is that you don't need Trusted Platform Module to use it on your system.

BitLocker Drive Encryption is a new security feature integrated into the Windows Vista operating system that provides considerable protection to the OS and data stored on the operating system volume. BitLocker ensures that data stored on a computer running Windows Vista remains encrypted even if the computer is tampered with when the operating system is not running. This helps protect against "offline attacks" -- those made by disabling or circumventing the installed operating system, or by physically removing the hard drive to attack the data separately. In other words, attacks made when the system is not running.

Windows BitLocker Drive Encryption provides increased security by encrypting everything on your hard drive: data, programs and even Windows itself. When you use BitLocker, your system is more difficult to tamper with, and thus you are better protected if your computer is ever lost or stolen. BitLocker does not replace the need to use a strong password and other vital security features, but it does make it much harder for anyone else to read the information stored on your hard drive.

BitLocker is designed for systems that have a compatible TPM microchip and BIOS. (A compatible TPM is defined as a version 1.2 TPM.) A compatible BIOS must support the TPM and the Static Root of Trust Measurement as defined by the Trusted Computing Group. When available, BitLocker uses a system's Trusted Platform Module (TPM) to provide enhanced protection for your data and to assure early boot component integrity. The chip performs a system integrity check -- a process that verifies your computer system has not been tampered with -- before unlocking your drive and allowing access to the data stored on it. This helps protect data from theft or unauthorized viewing by encrypting the entire Windows volume. Although the TPM interacts with BitLocker at system startup, its protection is transparent and the user logon experience is unchanged. However, if the TPM is missing or altered, or if the start-up information has changed, BitLocker will enter recovery mode and the user will be required to enter a recovery password to regain access to the data. For more information about TPM specifications, visit the TPM Specifications section of the Trusted Computing Group's Web site.

A great thing about BitLocker is that even if you do not have a TPM 1.2 chip, you can still use the encryption it provides, but the system integrity checking enabled by the TPM will be unavailable.

For information about how to enable BitLocker on your computer without using a TPM 1.2 chip, see the BitLocker Drive Encryption Step-by-Step Guide. You can also find more information about the requirements for BitLocker Drive Encryption, including partitioning, start-up options and recovery options.

10 Things - Maximizing Sidebar Gadgets

Nick White — Mon, 23 Jul 2007 23:25:00 GMT

Many PC OEMs ship Windows Vista computers with Windows Sidebar enabled, usually only displaying the simple clock, photos and RSS feed gadgets. You may've found that they install their own home-grown gadgets to show off additional features or apps installed on the PC, or as sales tools for other products. You may even have turned off the Sidebar because you already have a clock in the systray and you use other ways to check RSS feeds.

If so, you're missing out, as there's a Windows Sidebar gadget for almost anything you might want: PC utilities, music, messaging, traffic reporting, searching or just a quick game can be yours with a click of the mouse. If you haven't taken the time to explore gadgets beyond those loaded by default, take a minute to right-click the Sidebar and select 'Add Gadgets.' From there, click 'Get More Gadgets Online' -- you’ll find over 1000 different gadgets available for download.

There are still other ways to find gadgets: visit the Microsoft Gadgets Gallery, Windows Live Gallery and Code Project for hundreds more. In addition, you'll find links to resources for developers and a way to submit your own gadgets for others to use.

This isn't the first time we've mentioned Windows Sidebar and accompanying gadgets: MS held a contest challenging developers to create new gadgets to do any number of things. And in January during the consumer market launch of Windows Vista we kept readers updated as to our whereabouts as we toured the East coast of the US in a branded bus. Brandon even found a gadget that alerts users to changes in targeted airfares on Expedia's site!

We have a gadget we use internally to train employees in fielding and responding to customer feedback; it's called the "Dear Steve" gadget, and it displays anonymized contents of emails our customers have sent directly to Steve Ballmer with their personal product feedback. This is what it looks like on the Sidebar:

...and here it is maximized on the desktop:

Windows Sidebar is definitely worth another look.

10 Things - Using checkboxes on the Tablet PC & UMPC

Nick White — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 21:56:00 GMT

If you've used Windows XP on a Tablet PC, then you're probably aware that it wasn't very easy to select multiple files when in Tablet mode. Luckily, Windows Vista changed this to make it a lot easier to navigate via Windows Explorer and use the Tablet functionality of your Tablet PC. It may not seem like a big difference at first glance, but it matters.

When you hover over any group of files with your Tablet PC pen, a checkbox appears to the left of the file. Tapping this box will check it and allow you to continue selecting more files. Once all the files you need are selected, you can then move, copy or delete them as a single group.

If Tablet checkboxes aren't already enabled on your Tablet PC (or UMPC), it's simple to add them:

Open a folder (such as Documents)
Tap or click 'Organize'
Choose Folder and Search Options
Select View tab
Click or tap 'Use check boxes to select items'
Click OK

You can now select multiple files by using the checkboxes whenever hovering your pen over the window. Alternatively, you still have the option to use the Shift or Control keys on the Tablet Input Panel or the keyboard to select multiple files as well.

Tablet functionality is available in the Home Premium, Business, Enterprise and Ultimate versions of Windows Vista.

(Thanks to Terri over at TheTabletPC.net for the tip!)

10 Things - Windows Explorer Has a New Preview Pane

Nick White — Fri, 13 Jul 2007 09:39:00 GMT

Happy Friday the 13th!

Continuing in the vein of maximizing your Windows Vista experience via little-known pointers: Although you've probably already noticed Internet Explorer's Quick Tabs and Preview Pane, you may not be aware that Windows Explorer also has its own Preview Pane that extends beyond the live icons you may have noticed when navigating folders in Windows Explorer. Different than Windows XP's individual menus, toolbars, Navigation Pane and Task Panes, Windows Vista has merged them all into a single interface -- take a look:

The Windows Explorer Preview Pane lets you preview the contents of all media or documents in a file without opening the individual file itself. The Document Explorer, Music Explorer and Picture Explorer all provide an optional Preview Pane.

If a program supports this feature (such as Office 2007), you'll be able to browse views of various docs or a couple of seconds of media content without even opening the file. And you can edit those docs without opening the file! Imagine being able to quickly run through all those PowerPoint presentations you have stored in your Documents folder and determining the exact one you want without opening each file to find out which is which. Talk about boosting your productivity!

10 Things - Finding photos in Photo Gallery

Nick White — Sat, 07 Jul 2007 19:44:00 GMT

On this most auspicious of days -- assuming you're into that sort of thing -- I figured I'd continue the 10 Things You Didn't Know series by highlighting what I think is one of the most universally applicable and beneficial developments in Windows Vista: the addition of Photo Gallery. Millions of digital cameras (~100M, to be precise) are sold annually and if you have a cell phone, you likely have a camera in it as well. All the images we take each year require a place to store them and then find them when needed.

Enter Windows Vista Photo Gallery. Not only does Photo Gallery make it a lot simpler to manage your photos, but the great thing is that all users can take advantage of Photo Gallery, as it's included in all versions of Windows Vista. In addition to automatically displaying pictures and videos stored in the Pictures folder on your computer, you can also easily add and remove folders to the contents of Photo Gallery by simply dragging them to (or deleting them from) Photo Gallery's navigation pane on its left-hand side. If you only want to add a couple of photos rather than the entire folder, you can do that, too, by dragging only those. This is a big plus if you have digital media stored in multiple locations on your computer.

Once you have the photos added, there are multiple ways to find them by searching the integrated search function for:

Single or multiple tags
File name or tag
Day, month or year taken
Multiple dates
Ranking (something you assign yourself)
Multiple rankings
Combinations of the above

If you decide to remove a photo from the Photo Gallery, one thing to be sure you understand is the following, taken from Windowshelp: Photo Gallery is another way to view and organize your pictures and videos. It displays pictures and videos that you've stored in Pictures and in other folders on your computer -- it is not a replacement for folders on your computer. As a result, you should not delete the pictures in Photo Gallery or the Pictures folder unless you actually intend to delete those pictures from your computer. If you do, they will deleted from your computer and no longer appear in either the Pictures folder or in Photo Gallery (of course).

10 Things - Snipping Tool

Nick White — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 17:35:00 GMT

10 Things you Didn't Know About Windows Vista: Snipping Tool – It's Not Just for Tablet PCs

As I've had several Tablet PCs, the Snipping Tool is something that I've used for some time. Because it's a tool familiar to me, I admit that I was caught a bit by surprise when a desktop user said that he loves the Snipping Tool in Windows Vista and that he uses it all the time.

This is just one example of the functionality of Tablet PCs that can be used on computers that don't support ink or touch. It's a quick and easy way to capture a screen shot that can then be pasted into another document or email. Much more versatile than the old Alt-Print Screen option, it might be something that you may have overlooked.

If you're using Windows Vista Home Premium, Business, Enterprise or Windows Vista Ultimate, you can use Snipping Tool with either a mouse or tablet pen to capture a screen shot, or snip, of any object on your computer. There are several capture options:

Free-form Snip: draw an irregular line, such as a circle or a triangle, around an object.
Rectangular Snip: draw a precise line by dragging the cursor around an object to form a rectangle.
Window Snip: select a window, such as a browser window or dialog box, that you want to capture.
Full-screen Snip: capture the entire screen when you select this type of snip.

After you capture a snip, it's automatically copied to the mark-up window, where you can highlight, annotate, save or share the snip.

To find Windows Vista Snipping Tool, just type "Snipping Tool" in the Search box on the Start menu. You can also find it by using the Start Menu / All Programs / Accessories / Snipping Tool. And if you find yourself using it often, you might create a shortcut on your Quick Launch bar to give you instant access to the Snipping Tool.

Check out the Frequently Asked Questions for more information on the Snipping Tool.

10 Things You Might Not Know About Windows Vista

Nick White — Fri, 29 Jun 2007 17:34:00 GMT

10 Things You Might Not Know About Windows Vista

There are so many features of Windows Vista that probably very few of us who know them all, nor how to make the most of them.

We've been asking our Microsoft colleagues to tell us something that we may not know about Windows Vista. Based on what we've learned, we'll be describing some of these relatively undiscovered features over the next several posts.

Some of the topics we'll discuss are:

Snipping Tool – It's not just for Tablet PCs
"Expose" Feature with MS Intellipoint software in Windows Vista
BitLocker – You don't need Trusted Platform Module 1.2 to use it
Tablet PC Check Boxes – Multi-Select items without a control key
Finding pictures in Photo Gallery
Sidebar – Maybe not as unfamiliar, but have you seen all the Gadgets?
Preview Pane in Windows Explorer – It's not just For IE
Ultimate Extras – What they are and how to access them

Searching, part III: Do you know what a SearchMelt is?

Nick White — Mon, 14 May 2007 16:33:00 GMT

Last week we showed you how to make some interesting Search Folders on Windows Vista. If you're like me, you probably can't get enough of them. Today, I want to introduce you to new feature that's a little geeky, but very useful for anyone that has to do a lot of team-based work.

The thing about Search Folders is that while they're pretty handy for an individual, they're not readily shareable. If you actually open a Search Folder in notepad and look at the XML innards, you'll see that Windows Vista automatically scopes the Search Folder to the user profile on the local PC. This prevents me from, say, creating one and sending it to my team.

Introducing Windows Vista SearchMelts

A SearchMelt is a Windows Vista Search Folder that has been changed slightly to be generic and able to be shared. It's like Search + XML + Sharing -- it's a whole bunch of melty goodness!

SearchMelts are easy to share because they are so small, usually on the order of a couple of kilobytes, but they are super-useful to people like me, and to people who need to collaborate on common documents on an on-going basis.

Follow the easy instructions below to create your own SearchMelts, and feel free to share your creations with co-workers or customers.

Creating a Windows Vista Search Folder

Go to the Search Explorer in Windows Vista. TIP: To make this easier to access, if it isn't showing on your Start Menu, you can add Search by right-clicking the Start Orb / Properties / Tick the Start Menu radio button / Customize. On the Customize Start Menu page, scroll down to Search and click the check box to enable it. Click OK to back out. Search will now appear as a menu item on the right side of your Start Menu.
Design a search

Ex.: All PowerPoint documents:

i. * = wildcard
ii. Document = only documents
iii. Filter control = All Office 2007, Office 97-2003 PowerPoints

Save as Search Folder

Turning Your Search Folder into a SearchMelt

Windows Vista does not save Search Folders in a way that is instantly shareable. Normally, when you create a Search Folder, that search is "hard-coded," or scoped, to your PC. So, you need to take an additional step to make them generic so they can be shared with friends, family, customers, anyone.

Copy the SearchMelt Creator to your Saved Searches folder. Your Saved Searches folder can be found in the following way:

Open the Start Menu
Choose the user name, which is the right-hand, top-most entry. This will open the user profile

Find and open the Searches folder. To turn a Search Folder into a SearchMelt, just pick a Search Folder and drag and drop it on top of the SearchMelt Creator.

The SearchMelt Creator is an .exe that will automatically change the scope from your PC to a generic set-up.

That's it!

Note: not every SearchMelt will "just work." If you have a search looking at specific places like an external hard drive on your PC or a private share, even the SearchMelt Creator won’t be able to fix those for you. The best kind of SearchMelt is one that is made from a Search Folder that points to one PC, or to a networked PC or network share to which everyone has access. The SearchMelt creator will only remove user-specific information contained in a Search Folder.

Searching, part II: Using Search Folders

Nick White — Thu, 10 May 2007 15:52:00 GMT

OK, more on searching today. One of Windows Vista's coolest features that I use every day is the Windows Vista Search Folder. The concept is simple: a Search Folder is just a saved search. There's a whole bunch that come with the system at installation; you can find them if you open the Start Menu, select your user name (top right-hand corner of the Start menu), and open the "Searches" folder -- it's the folder with the magnifying glass icon. The other way you can get to your Search Folders is from the navigation pane in any Explorer window. When you have the "Favorite Links" view turned on in the navigation pane in Explorer (versus the "Folders" view), you'll also see a "Searches Folder."

The system natively comes with a number of Search Folders to help get you started. Things like "Files Shared by Me," "Recent Pictures and Videos," and "Recent Documents" are all pretty helpful as defaults. However, I've found that the most useful Search Folders available are the ones that I've created myself.

One set of Search Folders that I cannot live without is my All Word docs, All PPTX, and All XLSX queries. Here's how I went about creating them:

Open the Search Explorer by hitting the Start button and selecting "Search"
Type a "*" in the Search field
Use the Type column to filter the resulting list, choosing all Word docs in both Office 2007 and all pre-Office 2007 formats
Select the option near the top of the window that says "Save Search"

When you combine Search Folders with the Advanced Query Operators that we showed you yesterday, the sky's the limit on getting the most out of Windows Vista's built-in search technology.

Putting advanced searches to work for you

Nick White — Wed, 09 May 2007 18:35:00 GMT

A couple of weeks ago we showed you some of the more popular keyboard shortcuts in Windows Vista. Now that you've had a chance to see how shortcuts can speed up your navigation, I thought it would be a good follow-up to show you how to not only speed up your searches, but also make them more relevant to what you're looking for.

Over the next few days we'll introduce you to some of the advanced search operators, show you how to create a Search Folder, and finally introduce you to a new Windows Vista-only search feature: the "SearchMelt."

Here's what you'll see coming as part of our Windows Vista Search tips and tricks:

Basic and Advanced Desktop Search Operators -- these actually work for both Windows Vista and Windows Desktop Search 3.01 on Windows XP. (This list can also be found here, but we've replicated so you can search it using our blog's search engine.)
How to create a Windows Vista Search Folder
How to create a Windows Vista SearchMelt

To start with, check out the latest article on putting search to work for you.

Exploring keyboard shortcuts in Windows Vista

Nick White — Thu, 12 Apr 2007 18:58:00 GMT

If you're like me, you like to use the keyboard for most, if not all, of your OS navigation tasks. It's merely a personal preference, but I'd much rather use a keystroke sequence than have to remove a hand from the keyboard (I use my right hand for mousing), move the mouse, and return it. It just seems faster to me -- and maybe it allows me to rely less on hand-eye coordination, which, admittedly, is less sharp now that I have much less time to spend gaming :(

Here are just a couple keyboard shortcuts that I've learned of from colleagues or come across on my own:

Ctrl+Esc Opens the Start menu

Windows Logo Opens the Start menu

Ctrl+Alt+Delete Then - Displays the Windows Security window

Now – Displays LogOn screen including Lock Computer, Switch User, LogOff, Change a Password and Task Manager

Print Screen Copies the full screen image to the Windows Clipboard

Alt+Print Screen Copies the selected window's image to the Windows Clipboard

Alt+Double-Click Displays property sheet for the selected item

Alt+Enter Displays property sheet for the selected object

Shift Hold when loading disk to prevent AutoPlay application

Shift+F10 Same as right-click

Shift+Right-Click Shows alternative commands for the selected object

I now find myself using many of these more and more often, especially given my inclination toward using the keyboard instead of the mouse whenever possible.

One of the great things about Windows Vista is the context-sensitivity applied to many actions. For example, think of how the Slide Show command appears in a window's toolbar when viewing a window containing photos; or, how right-clicking a photo displays rotation options in the resulting menu. In the case of the shortcuts above, notice that when you Shift+Right-Click an .XLSX spreadsheet or .DOCX document, the Open as Read-Only option appears, which is not the case when doing the same to a .PPTX slide deck. And for all of these file types, the Copy as Path option is displayed upon Shift+Right-Click, which can be very handy if you're looking for the fully-qualified path to the document -- say, in the case of creating a hyperlink to it.

There are surely more shortcuts that I've yet to discover. What are some of the keyboard or other shortcuts you rely on regularly in Windows Vista? Share your tips in the Comments section and give us a chance to learn from one another!

Tips and tweaks from the Windows Vista experts

Nick White — Thu, 02 Nov 2006 17:04:00 GMT

Ed Bott has posted an excellent list of 10 tips and tweaks for Windows Vista that could help the more advanced users do what they want with Windows Vista.

One of my favorites, as with many others here internally at Microsoft, is #5: the ability to create a System Health Report. This report will help you diagnose your system’s health and provides possible solutions issues that may be affecting your PC’s health.

Another expert, Andre De Costa, has also posted a few Windows Vista tips of his own. His latest talks about where the Run command went (i.e., it's easily displayed on-screen by using the Windows key + R key sequence)...very handy.

I look forward to seeing more of these tips and tricks for Windows Vista as we move past RTM :)

Ctrl+Esc	Opens the Start menu
Windows Logo	Opens the Start menu
Ctrl+Alt+Delete	Then - Displays the Windows Security window
Ctrl+Alt+Delete	Now – Displays LogOn screen including Lock Computer, Switch User, LogOff, Change a Password and Task Manager
Print Screen	Copies the full screen image to the Windows Clipboard
Alt+Print Screen	Copies the selected window's image to the Windows Clipboard
Alt+Double-Click	Displays property sheet for the selected item
Alt+Enter	Displays property sheet for the selected object
Shift	Hold when loading disk to prevent AutoPlay application
Shift+F10	Same as right-click
Shift+Right-Click	Shows alternative commands for the selected object