Q. While clicking a program on the Start menu, I accidentally dragged it to the Desktop, so now it’s no longer on the Start menu. I’m afraid if I just delete it from the Desktop that I’ll delete the program, too. How can I get it back to the Start menu and off my Desktop?

A. As you discovered, it’s very easy to drag an icon from your Start menu to your Desktop, but it’s a bit more challenging to get it back from whence it came. As you follow these instructions, don't give up if it doesn't work the first time. If that happens, just try it again and you’ll get it eventually. Remember, praktise makes purfekt.

First, click and hold down your left mouse button on the icon in question, then drag the icon to your Start button. Hover the icon above the Start button until the Start menu pops up.

While still holding down the left mouse button, drag the icon to "Programs" or "All Programs." When you have it properly positioned, release the mouse button and your meandering program will be back in its original location.

Q. I’ve heard that a lot of files in my Temp folder can significantly slow down the startup process of my PC. Is that true? Where do these files come from, anyway?

A. Yes, that is true, but there would have to be hundreds, if not thousands, of these files to cause any noticeable sluggishness in your system’s startup. C:\WINDOWS\TEMP is a folder set aside for files that a program creates and uses while it's running. If you open a document in Microsoft Word, for example, the program creates a number of temporary files to keep track of editing changes so you can undo them later, if necessary.

When you close a program or complete the installation of new software, files created and residing in the Temp folder should be deleted automatically. That’s the theory. Realistically, it doesn’t always work that way.

Using Windows Explorer (Windows Key + E), open the Temp folder and look at the dates associated with any files in that folder. If a file’s date is older than the current date, you can safely delete that file. Do NOT delete any file in the Temp folder that displays the current date. In other words, if today’s date is August 15th, you can safely delete any Temporary files dated August 14th or older. Bonus Hint: Click the Date column heading to sort files by date, in ascending or descending order.

Mr. Modem's Sites of the Week:

Kiddie Records Weekly
Classics from "The Golden Age" of children's records. Most of these amusing records were made from the mid-1940's to the early 1950's. The site’s objective is to give parents and grandparents the opportunity to share these children's albums of the past with their own little ones. Every week the site is updated with a new record, including such classics as "Puss in Boots," "The Happy Prince," and "Tubby the Tuba,” which I’m sure will soon be renamed “Bubba, the Big-Boned Tuba,” to be more politically correct.
www.kiddierecords.com

Relief Web
Information (documents and maps) about humanitarian emergencies and disasters, designed to assist the international humanitarian community in the delivery of emergency assistance. This site provides timely, reliable and relevant information as events unfold, while also emphasizing continuing coverage of disasters that are no longer in the news.
http://tinyurl.com/h2gwa

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