`with Confidence!
`
`A Reference for
`the Rest of Usf
`by Glenn E. Weadock
`& Mark B. Wilkins
`Coauthors of Window .. 95 Refllstry For Du"'",/ ...
`
`The Fun and Easy War
`to Edit the Reglstry_
`Safely
`Your First Aid Kit.
`for Fixing Registry
`Problems
`REGEDIT, SCANREG,
`and BATCH - Explained
`in Plain English
`
`1
`
`HP 1024
`
`
`
`Windows® 98 Registry For Dummies®
`Published by
`IDG Books Worldwide, Inc.
`An International Data Group Company
`919 E. Hillsdale Blvd.
`Suite 400
`Foster City, CA 94404
`~I\"\·I. i dgbooks. com (lDG Books Worldwide Web site)
`W\·I~I. dummi es. com (Dummies Press Web site)
`Copyright © 1998 lOG Books Worldwide, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this book, including interior design,
`cover design, and icons, may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, by any means (electronic, photocopying,
`recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of the publisher.
`Library of Congress Catalog Card No.: 98-87130
`ISBN: 0-7645-0437-1
`Printed in the United States of America
`10987654321
`1 B/QR/QZ/ZY /IN
`Distributed in the United States by lOG Books Worldwide, Inc.
`Distributed by Macmillan Canada for Canada; by Transworld Publishers Limited in the United Kingdom; by lOG
`Norge Books for Norway; by lOG Sweden Books for Sweden; by Woodslane Pty. Ltd. for Australia; by Woodslane
`(NZ) Ltd. for New Zealand; by Addison Wesley Longman Singapore Pte Ltd. for Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand,
`Indonesia and Korea; by Norma Comunlcaciones S.A. for Colombia; by Inters oft for South Africa; by International
`Thomson Publishing for Germany, Austria and Switzerland; by Toppan Company Ltd. for Japan; by Distribuidora
`Cuspide for Argentina; by Livraria Cultura for Brazil; by Ediciencia S.A. for Ecuador; by Ediciones ZETA S.C.R. Ltda.
`for Peru; by WS Computer Publishing Corporation, Inc., for the Philippines; by Unalis Corporation for Taiwan; by
`Contemporanea de Ediclones for Venezuela; by Computer Book & Magazine Store for Puerto Rico; by Express
`Computer Distributors for the Caribbean and West Indies. Authorized Sales Agent: Anthony Rudkin Associates for
`the Middle East and North Africa.
`For general information on lOG Books Worldwide's books in the U.S., please call our Consumer Customer Service
`department at 800-762-2974. For reseller information, including discounts and premium sales, please call our
`Reseller Customer Service department at 800-434-3422.
`For information on where to purchase lOG Books Worldwide's books outside the U.S., please contact our
`International Sales department at 650-655-3200 or fax 650-655-3297.
`For information on foreign language translations, please contact our Foreign & Subsidiary Rights department at
`650-655-3021 or fax 650-655-3281.
`For sales inquiries and special prices for bulk quantities, please contact our Sales department at 650-655-3200 or
`write to the address above.
`For information on using lOG Books Worldwide's books in the classroom or for ordering examination copies,
`please contact our Educational Sales department at 800-434-2086 or fax 317-596-5499.
`For press review copies, author interviews, or other pUblicity information, please contact our Public Relations
`department at 650-655-3000 or fax 650-655-3299.
`For authorization to photocopy items for corporate, personal, or educational use, please contact Copyright
`Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Danvers, MA 01923, or fax 978-750-4470.
`LIMIT OF LIABILITY {DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTY: AUTHOR AND PUBLISHER HAVE USED THEIR BEST EFFORTS
`IN PREPARING THIS BOOK. IDG BOOKS WORLDWIDE, INC., AND AUTHOR MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR
`WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE CONTENTS OF THIS BOOK AND
`SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM ANY IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
`PURPOSE. THERE ARE NO WARRANTIES WHICH EXTEND BEYOND THE DESCRIPTIONS CONTAINED IN THIS
`PARAGRAPH. NO WARRANTY MAY BE CREATED OR EXTENDED BY SALES REPRESENTATIVES OR WRITTEN
`SALES MATERIALS. THE ACCURACY AND COMPLETENESS OFTHE INFORMATION PROVIDED HEREIN AND THE
`OPINIONS STATED HEREIN ARE NOT GUARANTEED OR WARRANTED TO PRODUCE ANY PARTICULAR RESULTS,
`AND THE ADVICE AND STRATEGIES CONTAINED HEREIN MAY NOT BE SUITABLE FOR EVERY INDIVIDUAL.
`NEITHER IDG BOOKS WORLDWIDE, INC., NOR AUTHOR SHALL BE LIABLE FOR ANY LOSS OF PROFIT OR ANY
`OTHER COMMERCIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL,
`OR OTHER DAMAGES. FULFILLMENT OF EACH COUPON OFFER IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE OFFEROR.
`Trademarks: All brand names and product names used in this book are trade names, service marks, trademarks,
`or registered trademarks of their respective owners. lOG Books Worldwide is not associated with any product or
`vendor mentioned in this book.
`
`is a trademark under exclusive
`license to lOG Books Worldwide, Inc.,
`from International Data Group, Inc.
`
`IDG
`BOOKS
`
`WORLDWIDE
`
`2
`
`
`
`Introduction
`
`he Windows 98 Registry is a vitally important part of Windows 98. Every
`document we've seen that discusses the Registry invariably refers to it
`as "the heart of Windows 98." That's true; the Registry contains just about
`every bit of information that matters about the hardware and software in a
`Windows 98 PC. You probably aren't aware of it, but Windows 98 and the
`programs you run with it use the Registry tens of thousands of times in a
`typical work session. Windows 98 can't blow its virtual nose without access(cid:173)
`ing the Registry a few hundred times.
`
`For something so important, getting information about the Registry sure
`hasn't been easy. The documentation that you receive with Windows 98
`doesn't tell you anything about it. (Okay, that documentation doesn't tell
`you much of anything about anything.) The Windows 98 software package
`contains practically no online help about the Registry. Even the seemingly
`encyclopedic, 1,600-page Windows 98 Resource Kit covers the Registry very
`lightly. This, despite the fact that the Registry gets 62 pages of coverage
`versus 18 pages in the Windows 95 Resource Kit and includes some TCP/IP
`and modem settings.
`
`So, we thought that Windows 98 users could use a book like Windows 98
`Registry For Dummies, which provides the information you need to use the
`Registry safely and to protect the Registry from problems that can range
`from inconvenient to disastrous. We give you many down-and-dirty details
`on how to change the Registry so that it bends to your will, rather than
`bending you to its. We explain cool Registry features that many Windows 98
`users don't know exist, such as user profiles, hardware profiles, and system
`policies. We even tell you about a few Windows 98 bugs that you can fix by
`editing the Registry.
`
`Windows 98 Registry For Dummies is very likely the only book you need to
`read or own on the subject, unless you're a professional programmer, in
`which case you may need to buy five or six books (but read ours firstl).
`Certainly, our goal as authors is to include everything that the vast majority
`of our readers would need to know about the Registry.
`
`3
`
`