Windows 7 A couple Windows 7 niggles - looking for solutions

[dkperez]

Well, I'm slowly getting through the really big problems, and now looking for ways to solve smaller stuff...

1. WHERE is my free space on Windows Explorer status bar? I've seen a bunch of complaints that it's gone, but none telling me how to get it back....... It's REALLY annoying to have to open properties to see how much free space is left.

Equally annoying, when I select files, I can't see how much I've selected. How do I get this very useful, but very basic functionality back on the Windows Explorer?


2. IE8 - I'm using aero glass and a gray color for windows. How do I get my IE window to be a NORMAL, SINGLE color? Wha't with the curvy stripes and junk? I've looked all over IE and I can't find anything that'll make my window a single color I can set......

3. I"ll go look at the topic again, but can somebody provide an idiot-proof set of instructions for how I get Agent Ransack or some equally useful search engine into the context menu for Windows Explorer? 'Cause I've been trying to use the W7 search for 2 days now and I find it less than useful. It wasn't great in XP but this thing is awful.

I'm sure I'll continue running into little junk, but if I can get answers to these it'd be useful.

 

[EveningStarNM]

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[dkperez]

First thing I read in here was your list of problems. I agree with all the ones I've experienced so far. I read all the replies, and chuckled at the predictable "if you don't like W7, go back to DOS" along with the "Linux is the future of the planet" ones...

It's disappointing that someone (I'll not refer to them as a pencil-necked bureaucrat) at MS decided those of us who have been working and living with computers for decades are too inept to configure things when given a reasonable opportunity (reasonable does NOT include having to hack the registry, for example).

As far as the color....... On my IE8, the BACKGROUND, behind the text and such, has curving lines of white/light gray that move in arcs through the slightly darker gray background. It's very distracting. It's not the edges or title bar or any of that. I can ignore all that silliness. I figure there's gotta be a way to set the background in ID (so far it's the only application I've seen it on, but there may be others)....


But, back to niggles:

4. Event log - is there a reasonable way to turn off the ASTRONOMICAL number of Information messages I'm getting in all the Windows Logs? 'Cause it's VERY hard to find important problems when there are so many meaningless ones...

 

[sat450]

I found this post on another forum.
==
It isn't missing, it is just not displayed by default.

To show drive free space in the Computer folder, press Alt+V to open the view menu. Click on the "Chose Details..." item. You will see that "Free Space" is one of the available items.

"Percent Full" shows a nice graphical representation as a bar.

These details will be shown both in the details view and tiles, but they won't be shown for removable media drives.
==
and...
..select either tiles or content. Now your drive space indicator is restored.

===

Also on my computer I could select multiple items and get total file size in a bar that appeared just above the status bar. I hope this helps. If not post back, I'm pretty sure the functionality is still there.

 

[EveningStarNM]

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[EveningStarNM]

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[sat450]

In the Event Viewer's navigation tree, go to Custom Views/Administrative Events. You'll find all of the errors and warnings filtered there. You can even create your own custom views and filters. Although the window still seems a little clunky to me, the new Event Viewer in Vista and Se7en is something that I really like.

This is very cool. I had stopped using the event viewer because it was so full of useless stuff.

 

[sat450]

See number of selected files

Equally annoying, when I select files, I can't see how much I've selected. How do I get this very useful, but very basic functionality back on the Windows Explorer?

On my install this is on by default. I found you can toggle this details bar above status bar. When you are in the explorer click Organize, Layout, Details

 

[dkperez]

>Are you saying that you find some of the effects of transparency distracting??? SACRILEGE! (Be careful how loud you say >that. "Eyecandy" is supposed to be the new "in" thing, and you might be pilloried for saying such things.)

<heavy sigh>

Sorry....... Put it down to me being a crusty old fart that's been doing this so long, designed so many mission-critical systems, and built so many user interfaces I've LONG AGO lost any love of ANYTHING that doesn't contribute to making the user's job more efficient, effective, and ergonomic.......

I'll go crawl under the desk for 1 hour in penance.......

OK, let me try this a different way:
Much as I ADORE the swooping colors and lines moving through my IE background, that obscure areas I need to see clearly and distract me from doing actual work, would there possibly (and no, I won't pay any attention to that man behind the curtain) be any way for me to get a dull, boring, candy-free background color of my choice?

Better? I'm off to sit behind the shredder under the desk.

 

[reghakr]

Fora normal single color in IE8 and Windows Explorer, you would have to choose Windows Basic Theme.

 

[EveningStarNM]

Fora normal single color in IE8 and Windows Explorer, you would have to choose Windows Basic Theme.

That's sounding like a more attractive idea every day. I fact, I think I'll do it now...

Hey! Cool! Everything makes so much sense now!

 

[reghakr]

You should notice a speed increase also.

 

[EveningStarNM]

You should notice a speed increase also.

Well,...

This machine is already so fast that I don't really notice minor improvements in graphics display speed.