The command prompt is useful for a variety of down-and-dirty tasks, such as mass-deleting or renaming files. But if you find yourself frequently switching back and forth between Windows Explorer and the command prompt, there’s helpyou can easily open a command prompt using the right-click menu.

For example, let’s say you want to open the command prompt in Windows Vista at the folder that’s your current location. Normally, that takes two steps: first open a command prompt, and then navigate to your current folder. However, there’s a quicker way: add an option to the right-click context menu that will open a command prompt at your current folder. For example, if you were to right-click on the C:\My Stuff folder, you could then choose to open a command prompt at C:\My Stuff.

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Although a Restore computer option appears in Backup and Restore Center, you can’t actually trigger an entire PC restoration from within Windows. Instead, you will need to reboot your system and utilize the Windows Recovery Environment, which should be installed on your system, or the Windows Vista installation DVD. The reason for this is that the recovery process literally overwrites all of the data on your hard drives. Obviously, you will want to be sure you’ve backed up any crucial data before attempting this process.

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Many of the gadgets you add to the Sidebar are generic and need to be customized. For example, you can customize the Clock gadget by selecting a new clock face, giving it a name, and selecting a time zone other than your own (this analog clock automatically displays the same time as the digital time display in the Notification area of the Vista taskbar). You also need to customize the Feed
Headlines gadget so that it displays headlines for a particular RSS feed to which you’ve subscribed.

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To display the Sidebar on the left side of your computer’s desktop or to make sure that it always appears on the top of other windows you have open on the desktop, you need to open the Windows Sidebar Properties dialog box. The easiest way to do this is by right-clicking somewhere in the Sidebar area on the right side of the screen (but outside any of the gadgets) and then clicking Properties on the Sidebar’s shortcut menu.

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You can easily add gadgets to the few that are initially displayed on the Sidebar  when you first install Windows Vista. Not only can you select new gadgets from among those that are automatically shipped with the Vista operating system (but just not displayed on the Sidebar), but you can always download gadgets from an ever-expanding online library.

To add gadgets to the Sidebar from among those that are included with Windows Vista, follow these steps:

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If you want to temporarily hide the Vista Sidebar and all its gadgets, right-click anywhere on the Sidebar outside of its gadgets and then click Close Sidebar on the shortcut menu.

To redisplay the hidden Sidebar, click the Windows Sidebar icon (the blue icon that at first glance looks like an old TV set) in the Notification area of the Windows taskbar.

If you want to get rid of the Sidebar on a more-or-less permanent basis, open the Windows Sidebar Properties dialog box by right-clicking somewhere on the Sidebar (outside of the gadgets) and then click Properties on its shortcut menu. Then click the Start Sidebar When Windows Starts check box to remove its check mark before you click OK. Doing this prevents Vista from starting up the
hidden Sidebar the next time you boot up your computer.

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Sidebar and gadgets are the names given to a new Vista’s desktop feature that gives you instant access to volatile information such as the current time, weather, stock quotes, and the like. The Sidebar is the name of the pane — appearing either on the right or left side of your computer’s desktop — that contains the gadgets, the name given to the specialized mini applications that give you the up-to-date information.

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I had installed Windows Vista Home Edition the other day and came across these tips which i feel would be very useful to Vista Starters.

Here are the five customizations that most Vista users would want to make as soon as they get the new OS rolling:-

Customize the desktop: Right-click the desktop and choose Personalize to change the background, screen saver, sounds and mouse pointer. You can also choose a theme, alter your monitors resolution, or change your icons and fonts. If you use Vista’s Aero interface, you can assign custom colors to your windows by choosing Windows Color and Appearance  and picking a color, or click Show color mixer to mix a custom color.

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