I don’t think rebooting your computer warrants a lot of fanfare. To turn off that startup sound, follow these steps:

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Audophiles, prepare to cringe.

Windows Vista includes Bass Boost which increases the volume of low sounds (you know, like that switch that was on every 80’s walkman and boom box) and Virtual Surround, which varies the timing of the left and right channels to sorta make it sounds like you have more speakers.

To enable Bass Boost and/or Virtual Surround, follow these steps:

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This happens to me all the time–I turn the volume on my computer way up to listen to something. Later, someone instant messages me, and the ringing instant message sound is so loud my neighbors can hear it.

Some apps, like Windows Media Player, include their own volume control–but most don’t. Fortunately, Windows Vista makes up for this shortcoming. To adjust volume for individual applications, follow these steps:

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I love that search box in the upper-right corner of Explorer windows (you know, Documents, Pictures, etc). Of course, you can type in it to find files by their name or contents, but you can also search by date or several other criteria using Advanced Query Search (AQS).

Let’s say I want to find pictures taken on New Year’s Eve, 2006. I’ll type date:december31, 2006 and press Enter. Windows Vista immediately shows all my files modified on that date.

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