Windows 7 Hack: Bypassing Libraries

I have to say, Microsoft has a bunch of smart people doing some great things. But one of the features in Windows 7 I'm not too fond of is Libraries. A Library is pretty much a way to organize multiple folders without physically moving, or changing any of them. Let's say you keep your Documents on your computer in two or more folders. Opening and vieweing documents in all your folders is a bit of a hassle. So instead, what you can do, is add all those folders to a single "Library" and view them all as if it were one folder. It's kind of like making a shortcut to the original folders, but with the added benefit of being able to browse them all simultaneously.

When you open Windows Explorer (a link is provided on your taskbar), you are taken to a folder of your Libraries. However, I'm a control freak. Thus, by default, that's not good enough for me. I want to be able to view my personal folder, not some virtual collection of files that Microsoft has deemed pertinent to the average user. To accomplish that, you have to finagle the Windows Explorer shortcut to take you to the right place. There are descriptions of how to change the Windows Explorer shortcut to take you to "My Computer," but few detail how to get things a little less generic than that.
The actual procedure is fairly simple, just slightly time-consuming. The basic steps are similar to those found here: http://www.leonmeijer.nl/archive/2009/02/10/140.aspx, though I'm pretty sure he's missing a comma after "/e."

The extra step requires going into the Registry (type regedit into the start menu search), and locating the right folder address (that odd ':::124fe700DisgustinglyWeirdAddress'-looking thing). You're looking for an entry named UserFilesFolder. Copy and paste the Parsing Name into the target for your Windows Explorer Shortcut after the "/e" tag, replacing the latter half the previously mentioned link's instructions.

Assuming no sneaky syntax errors are made, your shortcut should now open up your personal folder. Drag, drop on your taskbar, and enjoy.

Paper Hack.

There often comes a time where an obsession so insignificant collides with a compulsion so random and absurd that it just has to be done. Given how bored I've been lately, I have encountered just such an issue and conquered it with basic common sense (of the thermodynamic kind). Today's issue of geeky OCD is brought to you by a noisy computer.

Ever since I got a new heatsink for my computer (flashy metal thing with a fan that keeps your CPU from burning up) I've noticed that the noise my computer generated was nearly double that of its unmodified self. It turns out that sometihng or other in my computer was defective and the heatsink's fan just ran at full speed no matter what. A) That's ineffecient, noisy, and wasteful of a few volts of electricity. B) My fancy new (now old) heatsink (ZeroTherm BFT-90) not only wicked away heat super-effeciently, but resonated super-loudly when the fan revved up. It's kind of like a guitar. If you pluck a wire, you don't hear much. But if you pluck a wire strung across a hollow wooden frame, you get a loud, rich sound because the guitar body amplifies the acoustics. My big copper heatsink was amplifying the vibrations of the fan attached to it.



What I decided to do was to remove the heatsink fan, and use the exhaust fan of my computer case to cool the entire contraption. I would use a duct to channel the airflow through the fins of my heatsink and out the back of the case. The ambitious case-hacker/modder might break out sheet metal, and welding gear to do this. I pulled out paper and scotch tape.

The entire setup does work, albeit at a reduced effeciency, since the airflow isn't as strong, but it is *MUCH* quieter, which is what I'd been aiming for. I didn't do any of this blindly either, I ran a set of 'before and after' benchmarks to make sure I hadn't compromised the cooling capacity of my computer. The before and after temperatures showed a 5 degree difference in cooling ability, but still within safe limits.

I also took the time to tape up empty 3.5" drive bays, since my computer case has a small fan in the front to cool my hard drives. This forces most of the air to flow over my hard drives instead of dissipating uselessly.