Open Notepad and type DIR >LPT1 (assuming your printer is connected to LPT1). Save the text file into your WINDOWS\COMMAND folder and name it PRINTDIR.BAT. Find the file in Explorer, right-click on it and select Properties. Click on the Program tab, turn on the Close on Exit option, choose Minimized from the Run list and click on OK. Next, run the Registry Editor (REGEDIT.EXE). Open the My Computer\ HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\ Directory\shell. Select New from the Edit menu, and then select Key. Type Print for the name of this new key and press Enter. Highlight the new Print key, select New from the Edit menu and then select Key again. Type Command for the name of this new key and press Enter. Double-click on the (default) value in the right pane and type C: \WINDOWS\COMMAND\PRINTDIR.BAT. From now on, when you right-click on a folder icon, you can click on Print to print its contents.

Gus Hallgren
via the Microsoft Network

If you forget your Win95 password, just press Escape at the password box, bring up the MS-DOS Prompt and enter dir *.PWL at the WINDOWS folder to find your .PWL files. Delete the one with your name in front of it. Restart your system and enter a new password when prompted.

Joe Hutley
via the Internet

A WinTips sidebar in the December 1995 issue told how to delete the Network Neighborhood icon from the Win95 Desktop. I followed your instructions. But when I tried to set up a Direct Cable Connection between my Desktop and laptop, the connection would fail. So here's my tip: Delete your Network Neighborhood icon only if you don't use the Direct Cable Connection feature.

Roger G. Poulin
via the Internet

You can add "actions" to the Context menu of any file type. Here's how to do it. Open Explorer, select View/Options and click on the File Types tab. Find the file type you want and click on Edit. If the file type isn't listed, click on New Type, then enter a description and extension. Click on New to add an action. Type in a description and the command line to execute. If you want to change the action that executes when you double-click on the icon, click on the action and then click on Set Default.

Jason Blevins
via the Internet

After you install a new modem, sometimes you'll see one or more incorrect modems listed in the Control Panel's Modems item. Just remove the modem(s) from the list and restart Windows. If Windows doesn't tell you that it detected new hardware, go back into the Control Panel and double-click on Add New Hardware. Follow the instructions and have Windows search for the hardware. When the search is done, click on Details and see if it detected the right modem. If not, you then have the option to change the setting to your correct modem.

If incoming phone calls disconnect you from your online sessions, you probably have call waiting. To disable it, open the Control Panel, double-click on Modems and select Dialing Properties. Choose the code that disables call waiting.

Mike Bennettvia
via CompuServe

Take any .BMP file, rename it to give it an .ICO extension, and voila! Instant icon. You access the file in the normal way: Right-click on the current icon for a shortcut, select Properties from the Context menu, select the Shortcut tab and click on the Change Icon button. Now use the Browse button to find your new one.