Q: My friend sent me a folder with zipped files.

When I opened it on my computer, Windows showed the files’ names in green letters, rather than the normal black.

And when I tried to copy the zipped folder, Windows sent me this error message:

“Confirm Encryption Loss. Do you want to copy this folder without encryption? A problem is preventing this folder from being encrypted.”

What am I doing wrong?

A: Displaying file names in green letters, as shown above, is Windows’ way of telling you that those files are encrypted: They’re encoded to keep out snoops.

When Windows thinks a file is encrypted, it sometimes sends out odd error messages like the one below:

But the confusion can be cured quite easily. Turn the names back to black and avoid that error message by following these steps:

1. Right-click the green-lettered file or folder and choose Properties.
2. When the Properties window appears, click the Advanced button.
3. Click to remove the checkmark from the box called, “Encrypt Contents To Secure Data,” shown below, and click the OK button.

The letters return to their normal black, and you can share them with others without problem.

This annoying problem usually happens when dealing with a file that’s been zipped on an Apple computer, then opened with a Windows Vista or Windows 7 computer.

You can tell the zipped file came from an Apple computer if you spot a folder named __MACOSX inside the zipped folder. (That folder can be safely deleted on a Windows PC.)

The same green letters also appear if you try to copy files from a Windows drive that’s been encrypted with BitLocker, the encryption method built into some versions of Windows Vista and Windows 7.

But no matter why the letters are green, the fix is the same: Uncheck the box called “Encrypt Contents to Secure Data” box. It’s an easy fix to a vexing problem.

Q: I can’t find the arrow next to the Home page button mentioned on page 150 of Windows 7 For Dummies.

I want to use several Home pages, each opened with its tab along the page’s top.

What do I do?

A: Microsoft released a new version of Internet Explorer through Windows Update, which replaced Internet Explorer 8 described in Windows 7 For Dummies.

Some people love the new browser; if you don’t care for it, it’s easy enough to return to Internet Explorer 8.

But love it or hate it, Internet Explorer 9 offers a slightly different way to change your Home page — the page that first appears when you load Internet Explorer.

In fact, Internet Explorer offers tabbed browsing, shown in the figure above, which lets you keep several websites open simultaneously. You can jump between the sites by clicking the tabs along their top.

By adding your favorite websites as your Home pages, they’ll all be waiting for you whenever you open your browser.

To add your favorite websites as Home pages, follow these steps:

1. Click the “Gear” icon in Internet Explorer’s top right corner. (Shown below, it’s just beneath the red “X” icon for closing the page.)



2. From the drop-down menu, choose Internet Options.
3. In the Home Page section, type the addresses of your desired Home pages, each one on its own line.

For example, you could fill that section with these three sites:

http://www.google.com
http://www.andyrathbone.com
http://www.facebook.com

Finished? Click OK to save your Home page choices, and you’re done. Add as many as you want, although your computer may slow down if you add more than a dozen.

When you close Internet Explorer and reopen it, your new Home page selections will each open in their own tabs.

Tip: Add your fastest-loading site on the first line. That gives you something to read while you wait for the other sites to load in the background.

Q:

Unfortunately, my headset’s microphone doesn’t seem to be working.

Before I invest in another headset, I want to be sure that my microphone is not being “muted” by a setting inside my computer.

How do I access the status of the microphone settings inside the computer?

A: Microsoft recently bought a company called Skype, which lets people talk to each other through an Internet connection rather than phone lines, saving considerable cash.

Microsoft will probably incorporate Skype into its products, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see it show up inside Windows 8 later this year.

Until then, though, Windows Vista and Windows 7 offer the same ways to make sure your headset’s microphone works correctly.

To test and adjust your microphone, follow these steps:

1. Right-click the Sound icon (the little white speaker) in your taskbar by the clock.
2. When the pop-up menu appears, choose Recording Devices.
3. When the list of recording devices appears, speak into the headset’s microphone and watch the bars next to that device.

The green bars should raise and lower to reflect your voice’s volume, as shown in the figure to the left.

When those bars move constantly as you speak, you know that the microphone is picking up the sound of your voice.

Don’t see any wavering green bars? Then something’s wrong, and you need to probe further.

Set the microphone as the Default Device

Notice the green check mark next to the first microphone shown to the left?

That means it’s the “Default device,” which is the microphone Windows currently listens through. (Many computers offer two or more microphone options.)

If your headset’s microphone isn’t listed as the default device, follow this step to change it:

• Right-click the microphone’s entry, choose Properties, and choose “Set as Default Device.”

Check the microphone’s levels

After setting the microphone as Default Device, follow these steps to check its sound recording levels.

1. Right-click the microphone’s entry, and choose Properties.
2. When the Properties box appears, click the Custom tab.
3. Select the Microphone Boost or AGC check box to amplify any weak signals.
4. Click the Levels tab.
5. Adjust the volume slider to the level that you want, and then click OK.
6. Click OK to close the Sound dialog box.

Although these are the basic settings included in Windows 7, different computers may offer slightly different settings. Many manufacturers install their own settings panels that override Windows 7′s built-in settings.

For more information, drop by Skype’s own microphone setup page. It offers detailed instructions and screenshots.

Microsoft also offers an automated FixIt program on its website that claims to fix some microphone issues in Windows 7. I haven’t tried it, but it’s worth a try if these instructions haven’t helped.

Q: Windows XP won’t remember my choice of media players.

When I right-click a music file and choose Play from the pop-up menu, I choose Windows Media Player. I also click the box that says, “Make this player default.”

But the next time I open a music file, a different media player opens the file. Right now, a media player called Creative MediaSource that came with my sound card takes control again and names itself “King.”

How can I stop it from always taking over control of my music?

A: Every music player on your computer wants the right to play your music.

Because of their possessiveness, you may find yourself handling arguments between iTunes, Windows Media Player, and even that odd music player bundled with your new sound card.

Sure, you can go through the steps of choosing your default music player by choosing Start -> Default Programs (Windows 7, Windows Vista) or Start -> Set Program Access and Defaults (Windows XP).

But even after you’ve gone through that trouble, one player keeps taking over.

The culprit? Some older media players include a special setting that makes them verify that they’re the default player each time they’re loaded. If that player discovers that a different program is the default player, the newly loading player snatches back that right for itself.

To stop that program from hogging the default player setting, you need to turn off a hidden setting in your rogue media player. But how do you find the setting?

It’s not easy. Different players use different language and different menus. But start by finding the Options or Preferences menus, and then looking for the words “default” or “file associations.” When you find those options, turn them off, and you’ve solved the problem.

The figure at the top of this page, for example, shows how Winamp’s “Enable Winamp agent” setting tells it to grab the default player setting whenever it’s loaded. Turning off the “Enable Winamp agent” setting from the Preferences menu stops Winamp from hogging the default player setting

Q:

Now the icon has disappeared from the Start menu’s All Programs area, and it’s only on the Desktop.

How do I put the icon back on the Start menu’s All Program’s area?

A: Like many things in Windows, the Start menu’s icons can be dragged around on your screen.

Unfortunately, that means a slip of the wrist can drag a program off its rightful place from the Start menu, and onto the adjacent Desktop.

Follow these steps to put a misplaced Desktop icon back onto the Start menu:

1. Hover your mouse pointer over your misplaced Desktop icon.
2. Hold down your right-mouse button. (This selects the misplaced icon for action.)
3. While holding down your right-mouse button, point at the Start button, as shown in the figure above. (After a moment, the Start menu opens.)
4. While still holding down your right-mouse button, point at the Start menu’s All Program’s area. (After a moment, the All Program’s menu opens.)
5. While still holding down your right-mouse button, point at the menu area where you want to place your icon. (If your icon lived within its own folder in the Start menu, keep your right-mouse button held down while navigating to the icon’s original folder.)
6. When your icon hovers over its original Start menu folder, let go of the right mouse button.
7. When the menu appears, choose either Copy or Move to copy or move the icon back to its rightful place on the Start menu’s All Programs area.

These steps actually reverse your first action, but the safety of holding down the right-mouse button lets you choose to copy the icon back to original position on the Start menu.

Or, if you don’t want the copy on your Desktop, choose Move instead of Copy.

Tip: To prevent these mishaps, always drag while holding down your right mouse button. Then, when you drop the dragged icon, a menu asks if you’d like to Copy or Move the icon. Choose Copy for the best of both worlds: The icon stays on the Start menu, and a shortcut to that icon lives where you choose to drop it.

Q: I purchased McAfee Internet Security 2011, I am not sure if I have a 32-bit computer or the 64-bit version that this program requires.

Also, I do not know if I have Windows Vista or not. PC technicians usually repair my PC, and I don’t know what version came with my computer.

How can I find out if my PC meets the requirements for this program?

A: Many of today’s programs want to know not only what version of Windows lives on your PC, but whether it’s 32-bit or 64-bit. Luckily, these arcane details can be found fairly easily.

To discover what version of Windows lives on your PC, follow these three simple steps. (These steps work with every version of Windows released in the past ten years.)

1. Click the Start menu button.
2. Right-click the menu item named “Computer” or “My Computer” (shown above) and choose Properties from the pop-up menu.
3. When the System Properties window appears, read the information to discover your version of Windows, and whether it’s 32-or 64-bit.

Here’s how to decipher that window’s information whether your computer runs Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7:

Windows XP

Following those steps in Windows XP brings up a window like the one above.

First, find the window’s System section (circled in red). There, you see that this computer runs Windows XP Professional.

It’s actually Windows XP Professional Version 2002, a special version which lets you run temperamental Windows XP programs within Windows 7.

It’s also running Service Pack 3. (Every version of Windows XP should be running Service Pack 3, which brings it up-to-date with security fixes.)

Finally, nearly every version of Windows XP is a 32-bit version. But if this version was one of the few that ran 64-bit, the window above would mention that.

Windows Vista

Following those steps in Windows Vista brings up a window like the one above.

First, find the window’s Windows Edition section (top, circled in red). There, you see that this computer runs Windows Vista Ultimate.

It’s also running Service Pack 2. (Every version of Windows Vista should be running Service Pack 2, which brings it up-to-date with security fixes.)

Unlike Windows XP, Windows Vista came widely distributed in both 32- and 64-bit versions. To see your version, look in the System’s section’s System Type area (bottom, circled in red). The example above is a 32-bit version of Windows Vista.

Windows 7

Following those steps in Windows 7 fetches a window like the one above.

First, find the window’s Windows Edition section (top, circled in red). There, you see that this computer runs Windows 7 Ultimate.

It’s also running Service Pack 1. (Every version of Windows 7 should be running Service Pack 1, which brings it up-to-date with security fixes.)

Like Windows Vista, Windows 7 came distributed in both 32- and 64-bit versions. To see your version, look in the System’s section’s System Type area (bottom, circled in red). The example above is a 64-bit version of Windows 7.

The moral? When a program presents a complicated list of System Requirements, you can always see if your computer’s up to snuff by clicking the Start button, right-clicking “Computer” or “My Computer,” and choosing Properties from the pop-up menu.

I have a USB flash drive where I keep personal pictures and emails from friends. My old Windows XP computer let me save pictures or emails on the drive. But when I try to save files on the drive with a newer version of Windows, I see this error message:

You don’t have permission to save in this location. Contact the administrator to obtain permission.

How can I fix this?

A: Microsoft stepped up Windows’ security a few notches after Windows XP, annoying both nosy hackers and innocent users in the process.

One of the ways Microsoft increased security came from the way Windows stores files. Windows XP formatted hard drives larger than 10GB using an older version of NTFS, not the newer version preferred by Windows Vista and Windows 7.

So, to solve the problem, you need to reformat your USB drive (or your hard drive, if that’s giving you the same error message) using Windows Vista or Windows 7 computer.

Follow these steps to reformat your hard drive safely, removing the error message and the problem:

1. Back up all the drive’s files by copying them to an empty folder on your C: drive.
2. Click Start, click Computer, right-click the drive or the device, and then click Format. (Type your password, if asked, and click Continue.)
3. Select the NTFS (default) file system from the list.
4. Click to select the Quick Format check box.
5. Click Start.
6. When the format is through, close the Format Local Disk dialog box.
7. Copy that drive’s files from the folder on your C: drive back onto your portable drive.

Once you’ve formatted your flash drive using the newer, more secure format, the error message should disappear.

Q: I have had my computer for 14 months. All of a sudden when it boots up there is a prompt for me to sign into Windows Live Messenger.

I can’t get it to stop. I do not nor have I ever used Windows Live Messenger. How do I get rid of it?

A: Like a whining mosquito, Windows Messenger constantly looks for a way to slip in. Microsoft used to force Messenger onto everybody by embedding it right inside Windows.

Now, Microsoft tricks people into installing Windows Messenger when they try to download any Windows Live program.

Whenever you try to download Windows Live Mail or Windows Live Photo Gallery — programs that restore features dropped from Windows 7 — Microsoft tries to slip all of the Windows Live programs into the mix, including Windows Live Messenger.

Luckily, Windows Live Messenger is much easier to install than it was in the past. To uninstall Windows Live Messenger from your computer, follow these steps:

1. Click the Start button, and click Control Panel.
2. When the Control Panel opens, choose Uninstall a Program from the Programs section.
3. When the list of installed programs appear, double-click “Windows Live Essentials” or “Windows Live Essentials 2011.”
4. Select “Remove One or More Windows Live Programs,” and click Continue.
5. Place a check mark by “Messenger,” and click Uninstall.

Once you’ve uninstalled Windows Live Messenger, close the Control Panel and go about your work without Windows Messenger nagging you to chat with your friends.

Q: How can I tell how much space I’ll free up by emptying my Recycle Bin?

A: When your computer runs low on storage space, most people tell you to empty your Recycle Bin. Like taking out the trash, it permanently deletes your recently deleted files, freeing up storage space.

To empty your Recycle Bin, right-click its icon on your Desktop, shown above, and choose Empty Recycle Bin.

But how much space will you actually gain by emptying your Recycle Bin? For some reason, your Recycle Bin doesn’t give up that information easily.

That’s because Microsoft designed the Recycle Bin to delete older files automatically when it reaches a certain limit. In theory, you never need to empty your Recycle Bin.

You can see your Recycle Bin’s storage limit by right-clicking your Desktop’s Recycle Bin icon and choosing Properties.

A window like the one below appears:

There, you can see that my F: drive has 233 GB of free space available.

Also, when my Recycle Bin swells to its maximum size of 14,016 MB (that’s about 13.68 GB), it automatically deletes its oldest files to make room for incoming deleted files.

My second drive has 1.34 TB of space available. To see its maximum size, I just need to click its name. (Each of your drives has its own Recycle Bin.)

Adjusting your Recycle Bin’s settings

If you prefer that your Recycle Bin stash fewer files, and not consume as much space, you can change the number in the “Custom Size” box. For example, to tell it to save 2,048 MB, or 2 GB, you’d replace the Custom Size box’s “14016″ with “2048.”

That still gives you a safety cushion, but one that’s not so large.

Here’s a handy online converter for MB to GB, if you’re not comfortable entering megabytes. (And the Recycle Bin confuses matters, as it leaves out a comma.)

Adding a larger hard drive

If you’re constantly running out of hard drive space, it’s probably time to upgrade to a larger hard drive. Windows 7 makes upgrading to a new hard drive easier than ever. I walk you through the whole process in my book, Upgrading and Fixing PCs Do-It-Yourself For Dummies.

Plus, you can recycle your old hard drive by turning it into a portable backup drive.

Q: When I press and hold down a key in Windows 7, it takes a long time for the cursor to move to the place where I want to start typing.

I remember that in previous Windows versions, the cursor moved across the page at lightning speed. That was just as annoying as moving too slowly.

How can I have a happy medium?

A: When you hold down a key, how fast should your computer respond? Your computer can repeat the key (or the cursor) as quickly or as slowly as you want.

The problem is finding how to tell it your preferred speed.

Windows 7′s Control Panel doesn’t even list the keyboard, for example, much less how to change its settings. (Windows Vista, covered at the end of this post, coughs up the Keyboard Settings window much more quickly.)

So, to find your keyboard settings area and change how quickly Windows 7 should repeat your held-down key, you need to follow these steps:

1. Click the Start button and choose Control Panel.
2. Type keyboard in the Control Panel’s Search box, found in its upper, right corner.
3. When the Control Panel lists the results of its “keyboard search,” click Keyboard from the top of the list. The Keyboard Properties window appears, shown below.



4. Adjust the bars for “Repeat Delay” and “Repeat Rate” to meet your needs.
   • Repeat Delay: This is how long Windows waits before beginning to repeat your held-down keystroke. If it’s set too short, a touch of the keyboard creates a long string of the same character. When set too long, you’ll have a long wait before your letter begins repeating. Experiment, then choose the rate you prefer.
   • Repeat Rate: Once your held down key begins repeating, how quickly should it repeat? Choosing “Fast” repeats your character like a machine-gun; set at “Slow” is a steady drip. Choose a repeat rate that matches your comfort level.
5. Test your settings by clicking in the box and holding down a key. Take note of how both long you wait before the key begins to repeat, as well as its repeat speed. If it’s not perfect, head back to Step 4 for fine tuning.
6. When adjusted to your perfection, click OK.

The repeat rate you choose for keyboard characters also affects the cursor’s movement speed. (If your cursor blinks too quickly or slowly, can adjust that here, as well.)

Changing the repeat rate in Windows Vista

The keyboard properties window is the same in Windows Vista, and it’s easier to find:

1. Click the Start button and click Control Panel.
2. Click the Hardware and Sound category, and click Keyboard.

The same figure above appears, letting you change the settings just as you do in Step 4.