Tips on Using Windows 95/98 Utilities General All Staff
... And Keep It That Way
Use the file-modification date to reduce future fragmentation. Select File/Options/Customize, then choose the By Date tab and check Sort File By Last Access Date. Speed Disk will put the files you modify frequently at the end of your disk, where they're less likely to fragment program files and other files you don't modify.
After All, It's Not a Cartoon
To speed up Disk Doctor, select Options, go to the Appearance tab and uncheck the Enable Animation check box.
Defragment Your Swap File ...
Here's a way to ensure your swap file is always defragmented. First, make your swap file a fixed size. Then open Speed Disk, select Cancel in the Optimization Method dialog box and select File/Options. Click on the Customize button and the Files Last tab. Type WIN386.SWP into the File Specification box and click on Add. The next time you do a Full optimization, Speed Disk will move the unfragmented swap file to the free space at the end of your drive. Whenever Windows restarts, it will search for contiguous free space for the swap file and put it at the end of your disk.
Don't Pull on Loose Threads
Find out whether your new applications are taking advantage of Windows 95's multithreading feature. With the application running, select the Memory tab. Double-click on the module name and expand the Threads branch to see how many threads the application has and their priority.
Hide the Image Sensor
System Doctor automatically updates your Image files. To remove the Image sensor but still let System Doctor perform the automatic updates, right-click on the Image sensor and select Properties. Activate the Hidden check box under Sensor Size.
Inside Info
Here's how to get detailed information on an application's memory usage. With the application running, select the Memory tab. Double-click on the module name to see how much memory the application requires. System Info tells you how much memory is fixed versus swappable, how much is unique to the application or shared with others, and how much of the memory is being used by operating-system overhead.
Long Filename Shortcut
Quickly scroll between the LFN (long filename) panes and the default pane with the F11 and F12 keys.
Push the Right Buttons
To customize the buttons available in Info Desk, open any topic in Info Desk and select the Tools button (the hammer and screwdriver icon).
Rescue Critical Files
Use System Doctor to make unattended updates of your Rescue Disk information on a network drive. In addition to saving critical drivers, Rescue stores a backup copy of your crucial Registry file, which contains the configuration information for your system. Create a minimal Rescue diskette containing your bootable files, then right-click on the Rescue sensor and select Properties. In the Alarm tab, select Take Corrective Action Immediately. When Rescue launches, select a network drive as the destination. System Doctor will update the information as often as you'd like.
Quick Info: Bring up System Information by right-clicking on My Computer and selecting it from the Context menu.
Save Lost Clusters
Use Disk Doctor to avoid lost clusters that occur when an application hangs or fails to clean its temporary files. Select Options/Repair Options/Custom. Click on the Custom button and check the Auto-Repair lost clusters box. Adjust the number of chains (groups of clusters) you'd like to use as a threshold for automatic repairs (a large number of lost chains may indicate a serious problem; set the value to 10 or less). You can save the lost clusters as files in your root directory, or have them deleted.
Space Saver
You can customize the Commonly Discardable Files list in Space Wizard. Open Space Wizard, choose a Comprehensive list and continue to the Commonly Discardable Files screen. Right-click on any filename and select Configure Files or Configure Folders to specify which types should be included in the search.
