NEIGHBORHOOD

Don't want your XP computer to show up in the network browse list (Network Neighborhood/My Network Places) to other users on your network? One way to accomplish that is to disable file sharing. To do this, click Start, right click My Network Places and select Properties. Right click your local area connection and click Properties. Uncheck the box that says File and Printer Sharing for Microsoft Networks.


But what if you want to be able to share folders with some users; you just don't want everyone on the network to see your computer's shares? There's a way: Click Start and select Run.
In the Run box, type net comfit server /hidden: yes Click OK. Now others who know the UNC path (\\computer name\share name) can connect to your computer's shares from the Run box, but it won't show up in the network browse list.


This will make it much harder for anyone to gain access to your accounts. If you're using Outlook or Outlook Express, use the current version or one with the Outlook Security Update installed. The update and current versions patch numerous vulnerabilities. Click on the advanced button, then in the Advanced Attributes dialog box click on Encrypt contents to secure data. This will encrypt the file (using either DES, which employs a 56-bit key on each 64-bit block of data, or 3DES, which uses a 56-bit key three times on each 64-bit block of data), and it will provide a certificate just for you.


MSN Messenger, select Options... from the Tools menu Select the Privacy tab Check the box before This is a shared computer so don't display my tabs Pressing OK and doing a sign-out and sign-in will remove the tabs forever! You'll now have a much cleaner version of Messenger, which (to my personal taste) is a lot, more user friendly. This method (in contrast to other suggested schemes) does not only remove the ad, but also removes its designated space, so the Messenger window will be smaller.