Start++ extends Vista’s already impressive start menu functionality with configurable key commands. Hit Win key and start typing like…
w apple - opens Apple’s Wikipedia page.
g apple - opens Google’s search page for Apple.
imdb cars - opens IMDb’s search page for movie Cars.
Microsoft has a long tradition of releasing power toys for Windows. These are invariably unsupported (although the batch written for Windows XP were pretty polished) and generally pretty darn useful.
Power toys tend to come out when you least expect them, often starting out as a hobby project for a Microsoft programmer (Raymond Chen, author of the original Tweak UI, would be the first member of my Windows Hall of Fame). I suspect it takes some pushing to get Microsoft’s semi-official blessing and be released as unsupported code, so we might not see them until after SP1.
In some of my efforts playing with Vista, I’ve followed instructions that had me typing in commands that started with slmgr.vbs, followed by various switches and information. This seemed strange, why would I be addressing some vbs script when doing very ‘official’ things in Vista? Was I being tricked into running something dangerous that would turn over control of my computer or some such evil?
Not thrilled about spending a bundle on Vista–and dealing with potential bugs and hardware upgrades? Stick with XP, and use these tools to emulate the Vista experience.
The Hassle: I’m trying to resist moving to Vista. How can I make XP perform like the new Windows OS?
Vista Interface
Flip3d
WinKey+Tab opens the Flip3d task switcher, then use your mousewheel to scroll through the open programs while continuing to hold down WinKey+Tab.WinKey+CTRL+Tab leaves the the Flip3d task switcher open after you release the keys, handy for showing off Vista or just keeping an eye on things.
RUN command
