Messed up configuration

  • Thread starter Thread starter JimL
  • Start date Start date
J

JimL

Is it unavoidable that booting in safe mode must change a pile of settings
you had in your normal startup configuration? Or has someone just decided
to change your settings for you.

Thanks
 
JimL said:
Is it unavoidable that booting in safe mode must change a pile of
settings you had in your normal startup configuration? Or has
someone just decided to change your settings for you.

Thanks
Click to expand...

Well, to a degree, yes, but I'm not aware of permanent changes other
than the rearrangement of icons when it goes into VGA mode. While
you're in Safe Mode a lot of things are changed; which is the purpose of
Safe Mode, and lots of things don't run, either.

Except for messing up the screen icons, nothing should have stayed set
any differently than you had set up though. Is this what's happening or
do you mean just during Safe Mode?

HTH,

Twayne`
 
JimL said:
Is it unavoidable that booting in safe mode must change a pile of settings
you had in your normal startup configuration? Or has someone just decided
to change your settings for you.

Thanks
Click to expand...

It by design. Safe mode only loads the bare necessities. This allows you
to access your system should something in your start config stop
your PC from booting.

gls858
 
Twayne said:
Well, to a degree, yes, but I'm not aware of permanent changes other than
the rearrangement of icons when it goes into VGA mode. While you're in
Safe Mode a lot of things are changed; which is the purpose of Safe Mode,
and lots of things don't run, either.

Except for messing up the screen icons, nothing should have stayed set any
differently than you had set up though. Is this what's happening or do
you mean just during Safe Mode?
Click to expand...


I guess I didn't word that adequately. I'm referring to my actual permanent
configuration once I get back to normal mode - not all that permanent. The
first thing I noticed was the screen icons but I got a utility that takes
care of that.

Now the first thing I always notice after I use safe mode is that when I get
back to normal mode my windows are switched from "open each folder in its
own window," back to "same folder all the time." Also, even after I set it
back to "each ... its own" all the individual window sizes I've put in are
lost so they are all the same size. 3 files? 3/4 screen window. 300
files? 3/4 screen window. And views I had set to icons were changed to
Tiles, making a relatively small number of files require scrolling.

Some other things had to be re-configured as well. I just stumble across
them as I work.

Thanks
 
gls858 said:
It by design. Safe mode only loads the bare necessities. This allows you
to access your system should something in your start config stop
your PC from booting.

gls858
Click to expand...


I guess you're talking about being in Safe Mode. I'm talking about settings
I had in my Normal Startup Configuration - after I have been in Safe Mode.

Thanks
 
JimL said:
I guess I didn't word that adequately. I'm referring to my actual
permanent configuration once I get back to normal mode - not all that
permanent. The first thing I noticed was the screen icons but I got
a utility that takes care of that.

Now the first thing I always notice after I use safe mode is that
when I get back to normal mode my windows are switched from "open
each folder in its own window," back to "same folder all the time."
Also, even after I set it back to "each ... its own" all the
individual window sizes I've put in are lost so they are all the same
size. 3 files? 3/4 screen window. 300 files? 3/4 screen window.
And views I had set to icons were changed to Tiles, making a
relatively small number of files require scrolling.
Some other things had to be re-configured as well. I just stumble
across them as I work.

Thanks
Click to expand...

Hmm, if you MAKE those changes while in Safe Mode, I think they do stick
when you go back to Normal mode, but ... if you're not making those
changes while you're in Safe Mode, and finding them still set that way
when you return to normal mode, I've no idea what's going on. AFAIK
they shouldn't change on their own, at least on XP Pro which I have.

If I think of anything i'll post back, but for now "I ain't got nuttin'
"<g>.

Twayne`
 
JimL said:
Is it unavoidable that booting in safe mode must change a pile of settings
you had in your normal startup configuration? Or has someone just decided
to change your settings for you.

Thanks
Click to expand...

I see that now from your other post. XP or Vista? I seem to remember
that XP had a limit to the number of folder settings. Below is a link
provided to Ramesh's site ( a regular here) that explains how to change
that setting if you're running XP.

Remember, messing in the registry can really hose things up make sure
you have a backup.

gls858
 
gls858 said:
I see that now from your other post. XP or Vista? I seem to remember that
XP had a limit to the number of folder settings.> gls858
Click to expand...


XP.

I don't know about how many settings. I have a tweaker that will set it to
many hundreds. That may be normal or a trick.

Thanks
 
This might be what you're remembering:
http://www.tweakxp.com/article36833.aspx
"
How to fix this annoying problem:
By default, Windows XP will remember the view settings for the 400 most
recently used folders. After that, XP will begin overwriting the data of
the oldest folder, and its view setting will be lost. The information is
stored in the registry by two keys: ...
"

I heard SP3 removed that limit but I'm not sure; I have SP3 but don't
recall running into the limit, if I did.
I'd check the registry lines indicated and see if the 400 was still
there and change it to 4000 or 8000. No idea how high it can be set and
not screw up so I wouldn't go much over 8000, which is what developers
often use.I've seen other articles offer 2000 as a recommendation. I
used 8000 for years now when I made that mod to the registry.
As always, whenever you change a line in the registry, back up that
line of the registry first in case you need to get it back. Misakes
happen way too easily. After being backed up, clicking the *.reg file
it created will put the line back in the registry.
XP.

I don't know about how many settings. I have a tweaker that will set
it to many hundreds. That may be normal or a trick.
Click to expand...

Tweakers can often be handy but many of them make changes to things they
don't tell you about & thus you don't know what happened in your system.
And you might not know a tweak borked something else and might never
make the connection.
Most tweaks are simply little stubs that make changes that there are
methods for already in XP. The value of tweakers is for those who don't
want to learn how to do things directly and prefer to let a program do
it for them. IMO it's much better to make the tweaks manually, document
them, and have a record for later on when you wonder if one of those
tweaks is causing an issue you might be having. Often if you take the
time to read the tweaker files (they're just text in .vbs, .reg,
whatever), you can tell which XP setting they change. Not so possible
in the larger integrated programs though, like tweakui and Norton's
optimizer, etc..

HTH,

Twayne`
 
The value of tweakers is for those who don't want to learn how to do
things directly and prefer to let a program do it for them.
Click to expand...

Perhaps you meant the "don't want to learn" comment innocently, but I take
exception to it. There really ARE people who don't have the time, the
aptitude or, for that matter, the brain power to learn certain kinds of
things that other people find easy. Just one aspect of brain power is
simple memory. I WANT to learn everything in sight, but both my math skills
and my very sharp memory disappeared when I had a stroke. So take it easy
on the people who don't do things you do or AS you do.
 
Back
Top