Microsoft Windows 10, frivolous background Apps & Services, on by default

Microsoft Windows 10, frivolous Apps & Services that are constantly running in the background, unless you go into your Privacy Settings to specifically turn them off...

• Alarm & Clock
• Calendar
• Get Office
• Groove Music
• Maps
• Microsoft Edge
• Movies & TV
• People
• Phone
• Phone Companion
• Photos
• Skype Video
• Store
• Twitter
• Weather
• Xbox

Even more annoying is when they keep on running even after you've exited the App or application; you then have to manually go into Task Manager to 'End' or 'Kill'  the task to stop it guzzling up precious CPU %

Open Settings>Privacy>App permissions>Background apps
(Background apps is on the left-hand-side menu.)

Under 'Let apps run in the background',  Slide the toggle to the left to switch it setting off 

See also:  http://itvision.altervista.org/why-windows-10-sucks.html

more digestible version: www.game-debate.com/blog/19188/why-windows-10-sucks

How to Fix: Winamp for Windows lowers volume after playing midi files

Change Winamp settings as follows:

In Winamp type Ctrl+P (for Preferences) navigate to > Plug-ins > Input > double click 'Nullsoft MIDI Player' > Device Tab > select from the Device: drop-down menu, then select:  "DirectMusic / Microsoft Synthesizer (with output)"

DirectMusic / Microsoft Synthesizer (with output) uses software emulation of MIDI instruments instead of using your sound card's built-in MIDI support. This effectively allows Winamp's volume control for the playback of MIDI files instead of altering the system's MIDI volume, MIDI device volume or the Winamp volume in the Windows mixer (in Windows 7 anyway - have not tested this in other Windows versions)

Change the 'Device:' to "DirectMusic / Microsoft Synthesizer (with output)":

To configure Winamp to NOT lower the volume when (or after) you play midi files, try changing 'Volume Control:' to none:

Prefs (Ctrl+P) -> Plugins -> Input -> MIDI Player plugin -> config:

Device tab:
After changing the 'Device:' to either your sound card's hardware MIDI synth or to one of the DirectMusic software synthesizers (requires DirectX 8 or higher), then...

Volume Control:
Default = autodetect
You can change this to None
and then Winamp will never adjust the volume

Original Source: http://forums.winamp.com/showthread.php?t=320434

Secret Way To Delete Selected History From Your Chrome Browser

No "select all" option in Google chrome history for particular items ...

If you’ve looked around, you may have noticed in Google Chrome that it’s easy to delete just one item in history search-results, or to delete absolutely everything in history. But that’s not always practical!

So here's a secret way to delete a portion of your history without blasting all of it – something not documented anywhere:

Click your Chrome menu...the 3-dot or 3-line icon near the upper right of your browser. Then click 'History' in the menu that appears - you can also use quick-access hot-key (Ctrl+H) 

Click on Menu Configuration

Now you’ll see a list of recent history items in a new tab.

Choose a Group of Items to Delete

To narrow down the items displayed, do a search using the “Search History” box at the top. After you’ve settled on a group of items to delete…

• Click the checkbox on the first item
• Scroll to the bottom of the page
• Press the Shift button on your keyboard and hold it down. While holding it down, click the checkbox on the last item. This is the secret trick! This is in no menu, and is not mentioned anywhere on the screen.
• Scroll back to the top of the page, and click “Remove Selected Items”.

Source: Secret Way To Delete Selected History From Your Chrome Browser

Playing DVD-RAM Video Disk On PC

If you're on a Windows 8 or Windows 10 Computer, you most likely find that the system, using built-in or bundled software, can automatically recognize and play DVD-RAM discs containing recordings from a TV. On a Windows 7 Computer however, try the follow if you're having trouble getting the system to play your old TV-recorded DVD-RAM discs:

Open Real Player, and click File->Open:

Navigate unto the DVD-RAM disc where there is a DVD_RTAV folder. Select the VR_MOVIE.VRO file from within this folder and Real player will recognize and then play this file as a movie.

As an alternative, if you wish, you could copy this VR_MOVIE.VRO file to your hard drive (especially comes in handy for transferring to a computer or laptop that has no DVD-drive or has a faulty DVD-drive) then add an MPEG extension to the file, for example VR_MOVIE.VRO.mpeg, and Real Player will also then recognize and play this file as a movie. No DVD-drive required!

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