Comment Articles

Windows 2000 tool kit

Jesse Berst AnchorDesk

Published: 07 Jun 2000 00:00 BST

Even so, nobody is rushing to adopt this kid. It's no wonder. Microsoft's rollout was done in a February whisper. A security patch for the system came out before the formal launch, followed by the reports of security flaws and 63,000 potential bugs.

Now Microsoft is coming out with Win2k applications to lure corporate converts. For the already converted, read on for tips on tuning 2000 to your work habits.

WIN 2K APPS IN THE PIPELINE

The Proxy Server family will evolve into the Internet Security and Acceleration Server, software that will combine an Internet firewall with Web caching;
A retooled Host Integration Server (HIS) will replace SNA Server, offering TCP/IP support and possibly host adapters for non-Microsoft databases;
BizTalk Server, SQL Server, Systems Management Server and BackOffice Server and Small Business Server are all reportedly being enhanced for Windows 2000.

CUSTOMIZE IT
If you've already taken the plunge into Windows 2000 (or plan to soon ), here are four tricks you'll want to know about.

Personalize your taskbar. Win 2000 gives you much more control over your task bar, a real boost to efficiency. To customize it, right click on the task bar to get the Properties dialog. From there you can set Windows 2000 to use menus that only show the most frequently used commands. This, of course, is also the way you turn off this feature if you find it annoying.

The advanced tab is the cool part. It allows you to add or remove icons that were previously untouchable, like the "Favorites" and "Log Off" buttons. You can also change their behaviour. You can, for instance, create a cascading menu that saves you opening a dialog box.

Since Internet Explorer is closely integrated with Windows 2000, the OS allows you to add the IE address bar to the task bar and use it as a command line to get at almost anything. Let's call this one the "Judge Jackson shuffle."

Quick access to the Task Manager. Windows 2000 also includes a shorter path to the Task Manager, a boon for NT 4.0 users who had to get there with Ctrl-Alt-Del and then a selection. Plus, Windows 2000 lets you monitor CPU performance so you can figure out which tasks are gumming things up.

Administrative tools. NT users already know about the scads of information from Administrative Tools. Try out the Performance applet, which lets you monitor your system's performance, or the Services function, which lets you adjust tasks running in the background.

Disk defragmenter. Windows 2000 now includes a disk defragmenter utility. But don't use it unless you're sure you need to.

Microsoft also has its own W2k tips and tricks site.

Got any of your own tips or tricks for using Windows 2000? Hit the Talkback button and tell me about them.

To have your say online click on the TalkBack button and go to the ZDNet forums.