Is your wrist sore from constant double-clicking? Or are you double-click dysfunctional, like me? With Windows 98, you can make this traditional mode of opening files and folders a thing of the past. You can set up all your desktop folders and shortcuts to act like web links - click then once and they launch. Open Windows Explorer or My Computer and, from the VIEW menu, select FOLDER OPTIONS. Choose WEB STYLE to enable single-clicking.
'Drag and drop' has been a Windows mantra for years, but Windows 95's Start menu was just a drag, period. Fortunately, Windows 98's Start menu is better: To add an item to it's top level, simply drag it onto the start button from Windows Explorer, My Computer, the desktop, or even your Web browser. Once it's there, you can drag and drop it to any level of the Start menu. And on Windows 98's Start menu you can use the right mouse button: Right-click an item to get a pop-up menu that will let you delete it, create a desktop shortcut, or perform other useful actions.
If you send faxes from your computer, you should know that Windows 95's Microsoft Fax add-on is not part of Windows 98's setup. That's not a problem if you already have the Windows 95 fax program installed - it will still work. But if you're upgrading from Windows 3.x, installing the OS to a blank disk, or buying a new computer, you'' have to hunt for the fax software on the Windows 98 CD ROM and install it separately. Look in the 'Tools\OldWin95\Fax' folder and run SETUP.EXE. Guess Microsoft is getting too many complaint faxes?
Right out of the box, Windows 98 is a far more customizable operating system than Windows 95. Still not satisfied? Try Tweak UI, a utility that provides many additional ways to tinker with Windows 98. To install it, use Windows Explorer to go to the 'tools\reskit\powertoy' folder on the Windows 98 CD-ROM. When you get there, right-click on TWEAKUI.INF, and select INSTALL. Once it's installed, Tweak UI appears as an applet on the Control Panel. Among its dozens of tricks, it lets you turn off the Windows 98 splash screen (the one that reminds you which OS you're using during startup), automatically flush IE's cache, and precisely adjust your mouse's sensitivity. If you're already using the Windows 95 version of Tweak UI (you should be), you'll want to upgrade - Microsoft doesn't recommend using the older version with Windows 98, and the new edition has lots more features. Just uninstall the old version before installing the new one.
Internet Explorer 4.0 provides you with a bigger view of any Web page by allowing you to expand the browser to fill the entire screen (except for the space the tool bar occupies at the top). To do this in IE 4.0 or Windows 98, choose VIEW | FULL SCREEN or click the FULL SCREEN button on the toolbar. But what if you want to do the same thing in plain old Windows Explorer? You won't find the full screen command on the menu or toolbar, but you can still fill your screen with Explorer by using this undocumented keyboard shortcut: just press . Press a second time to restore the window to normal size.
Is your program list stuffed to the gills? You may have noticed that, instead of unfurling lengthy lists of programs and folders across the screen, Windows 98's Start menu displays a single column list that scrolls - rather slowly - when the mouse pointer hovers over the on-screen arrows. To zip instantly to the top or bottom of the list, hold the key and click the appropriate arrow. This tip also works in Internet Explorer 4.0's favorites menu.