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Can you tell me how I can set as a default setting the following program: Windows Picture & Fax Viewer on Windows XP?

What is Windows Picture and Fax Viewer?

Windows Picture and Fax Viewer is a built-in utility that comes with Microsoft Windows including Windows XP. It is used to work with photo files without having to open an image editing program such as Adobe Photoshop. It is primarily a viewer that allows you to quickly view, save, print, or delete photos. You can, however, perform some minor changes to files including changing a file's size or rotation. You can also use Windows Picture and Fax Viewer to view slideshows of your photos as well as view incoming faxes which typically arrive as TIFF files. When viewing fax files, the Windows Picture and Fax Viewer's annotation toolbar allows you to add textual notations, draw lines, and highlight portions of the fax.

Is Windows Picture and Fax Viewer the Default Photo Viewer?

Windows Picture and Fax Viewer is normally the default photo viewer for Windows XP. However, it's not unusual for newly installed software to change Windows XP's settings so that the new software becomes the new default. This is great if you like the new software better than the built-in utility but no-so-great if you'd prefer to use Windows Picture and Fax Viewer.

Making Windows Picture and Fax Viewer the Default

To change it back to the default, you'll need to go into the Control Panel (Start > Control Panel) and click the Folder Options icon (you may need to switch to Classic View). Once opened, click on the File Types tab and scroll down until you see JPEG. Highlight JPEG and look under "Details." What does it say the file opens with? If anything other than Windows Picture and Fax Viewer is listed, click the Change button and choose Windows Picture and Fax Viewer from the list. Look for additional settings (such as "always use this") that prompt you to make this the new default and confirm your choice. Repeat this process for other image files such as JPG, GIF, BMP, and TIFF.

How do I record an audio program on my computer to a memory stick so I can play it later on my laptop?

Using Windows Explorer to Transfer Files

If the audio program is in an electronic format on your computer, you should be able to copy and paste the file to your memory stick using Windows Explorer. If it is an actual piece of software, that you want to copy to the memory stick, you'll need to copy the entire installation folder on to the memory stick and then install the software on your laptop from the memory stick.

How to Use Windows Explorer

Windows Explorer is a useful utility that you can use to copy and paste files from one location to another. To launch it, go to the Start button and right-click it. Choose Windows Explorer, Explore, or Open Windows Explorer (the labels vary depending on which version of Windows you have) from the menu. Within Windows Explorer you will see various drives such as your hard drive (usually C:), your CD-ROM drive, and a lettered drive for your memory stick.

To transfer a file from your C: drive to your memory stick, simply locate the file you want to copy and right-click it. Choose Copy. Next, click on the memory stick in Windows Explorer and then right-click inside the main pane. Choose Paste. This will place a copy of the original file on your memory stick.

Transferring Multiple Files to a Memory Stick

If the audio program consists of multiple files, you can transfer them all at once by either copying the entire folder (instead of individual files) to the memory stick. If they're not currently inside a folder, you can select a series of individual files by holding down the Control button as you click. Once you have a series of individual files or folders selected, right-click and choose Copy. Next, go to your memory stick and right-click inside the main pane. Choose Paste. Copies of all of the selected files and folders will be placed on your memory stick.

Note that if the program is a piece of software, you will need to copy and paste the original installation files and install them on the laptop.  

Can you tell me how to record spoken words from my Windows XP computer onto a memory stick?

Using Sound Recorder to Record Audio

Windows XP (and other versions of Windows) comes with a built-in utility for recording audio called "Sound Recorder." In order to use Sound Recorder, your computer must have a microphone, sound card, and speakers. If it doesn't have a built-in microphone, you can purchase computer microphones that plug into its USB port or a microphone jack for less than $10. Since you want to record the audio onto a memory stick, your computer should also have a compatible slot for the memory stick.

Assuming the computer is properly equipped, recording audio to the memory stick is a simple task. Go to Start > Programs > Accessories > Entertainment > Sound Recorder. (Windows Vista and Windows 7 users can go to Start and type "Sound Recorder" into the Search bar and then click the icon to launch the utility.)

Recording with Sound Recorder

Once launched, click the red Start Recording button and begin speaking. You'll see a set of numbers which represent how many minutes and seconds you've been speaking, and the button you clicked earlier will now show a blue box and the words Stop Recording. When you're done, click the Stop Recording button.

A Save As window will appear, prompting you to save your recording as a Windows Media Audio (.wma) file. At this point, you can either save the recording to the memory stick or click on Cancel. When you click on Cancel, you'll see that the button has changed to say "Resume Recording." This is useful if you need to stop and gather your thoughts in the middle of the recording.

Saving Sound Recorder Files

Once you're done speaking once and for all, click the Stop Recording button and save the file to your memory stick which will show up as a lettered drive. For example, your hard disk is likely labeled as the C: drive and your CD-ROM drive is likely D:. Depending on the number of drives, your memory stick may be labeled E:, F:, G:, H:, or above.

To listen to your completed recording, open Windows Explorer by right-clicking Start and choosing Windows Explorer. Navigate to your memory stick and double-click the file you just created. This will open the audio file and play it back.

During a recent download, I realized I was downloading something I already have. I aborted the download on the first page of the download, but I saw a green bar slide across the bottom of the screen. Is the first green sliding bar during a download actually writing programming onto your hard drive or a sign that it's preparing the download? How can I check to see if anything was actually downloaded? I checked my uninstall list and it does not list anything being installed on the date this occurred.

Deleting Partial Downloads
I'm not sure how accurate those graphical display bars are as far as the actual files downloaded. I believe they're intended to give us an indication of progress so that we know something's going on and progress is being made.

Since the download was aborted early on, it's doubtful that there are a bunch of files you need to worry about uninstalling. However, for the sake of keeping a clean, relatively clutter-free hard disk, there are ways you can remove partial downloads. Here are a couple of options.

Look in the Downloads File
If you have Windows 7, programs that you download go into the Downloads folder. You can quickly find this file by going to Start and typing "Downloads" into the Search bar. Once you see the Downloads folder appear, double click it to open it. Most likely, you'll see full downloads such as ZIP files containing installation files. While you probably won't see any partial downloads here, it doesn't hurt to check.

Remove Temporary Internet Files
When you download a program from the Internet, your browser creates temporary Internet files. These files can be manually deleted by launching Internet Explorer and then going into Tools > Internet Options. Click the General tab and find Browsing History. Click Delete which opens additional options. Select the Temporary Internet Files and Download History and click Delete.

Use the Disk Cleanup Wizard
Windows also comes with a Disk Cleanup wizard which will delete a variety of temporary file types. In Windows 7, go to Start and type "Cleanup" into the Search bar. Double click the Disk Cleanup wizard icon when it appears. In earlier versions of Windows, go to Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Cleanup. The utility will do a quick scan where it gathers information about your disk. From there it will present you with a list of file types to delete. Choose Downloaded Program Files, Temporary Internet Files, and Temporary Files and click OK.

My operating system is Windows XP is it safe to attempt to install a program whose system requirements are: Windows 95, 98 or Me?

Installing Programs Designed for Earlier Operating Systems
The problem with installing programs designed for earlier operating systems is that these programs were not designed for the newer operating systems due to the fact that the newer operating systems didn't exist yet. However, that's not to say that these older programs won't necessarily work with your newer operating system. That's because developers often create newer operating systems to be backwards compatible, at least for a generation or two. If you where attempting to install a Windows 95 program on Windows 7, it's doubtful that Windows 7 will support it.

Problems You May Encounter When Installing Pre-Windows XP Programs
Because pre-Windows XP programs are not designed for that operating system, it's possible that the programs won't run, won't display properly, or will generate error messages. The program may expect a different data format or it may be set to look for specific Windows files or folders that are no longer present in Windows XP.

Windows XP Compatibility Features
Windows XP, along with newer operating systems such as Windows Vista and Windows 7, has some built-in compatibility fixes and modes that address some compatibility issues between applications and the newer operating system. According to Microsoft TechNet, when Windows XP was originally released, it came with a database containing about 200 compatibility fixes as well as several compatibility modes. For end-users, there's the Compatibility tab and the Compatibility Wizard.

For example, after installing a program, you can right-click the program's executable file (the file that's used to launch the program, typically ending in .exe) and choose Properties. From there, you'll find the Compatibility tab where there's an option to choose which operating system the program should emulate when using the program. Find the Compatibility Mode section and place a checkmark in the box next to "Run this program in compatibility mode for." Then use the dropdown box to select the appropriate operating system. Similarly, you can go to the Windows Help and Support Center and find the Compatibility Wizard which will walk you through assigning compatibility modes for your programs.

So, if you have a legitimate program that worked well for you on earlier operating systems, there's a chance that Windows XP will be able to run it and it's not inherently dangerous to try. Good luck!

My Windows security alert bubble popped up saying I have no firewall, so I went in and attempted to turn it on and it just poofed.  I tried to do a system restore but it is now gone as well as my AVG anti virus what can I do to get my Windows components back.

Check for available Microsoft Updates

First of all, Microsoft's first piece of advise when troubleshooting System Restore is to check for available updates. Apparently, if you are missing a service pack or other important update, some of your computer's functions might fail or go missing. Just to ensure that your computer isn't missing a critical update, let's start there -- in a browser search, enter Windows Update and then follow the prompts to search for any releases for your software.

Once you have done that, restart your computer. Now, click Start, then All programs, then Accessories, then System Tools, and finally, System Restore to check if you are now able to access the tool.

Run Windows Built-in System Tools

If this doesn't work to recover your System Restore tool, or even if it does, I recommend you run some Windows built-in system tools to scan your computer for any errors or corruptions that might be responsible for your issues. In Windows Vista and 7, you can use the System File Checker utility to look for missing or corrupt files and then repair or replace them.

• 1. Click Start, All Programs, Accessories and then right click Command Prompt
• 2. Choose Run as Administrator
• 3. If asked for a password, enter it or click Allow
• 4. Type in sfc /scannow and Enter to run the utility and follow the prompts offered
• 5. For more advanced troubleshooting with this tool, you can visit the related Microsoft Support page

Update your Anti-Virus Software

Since your problems started with a security pop-up, you should also ensure that your protection software is up to date. In addition to Microsoft Updates, you should also frequently update your antivirus software, especially if you are using freeware, since it usually doesn't include update alerts.

Scan your System with an Anti-Malware Program

There are some malware programs that can appear as system tools -- such as Control Center -- which can fool users into allowing them access and then wreak havoc on your system. Some of the symptoms you describe sound like this kind of infection, so I recommend you download and run a free malware security program like Malwarebytes. You will most likely have to run the program several times to remove the threats. At the same time, you can keep trying to successfully update or re-install and run your AVG program until your system comes up clean. I hope this information helps!