performance options

[ChrisGreaves]

I stumbled upon this this lunchtime:-
r/c "Computer", Properties, Performance Information and Tools, Adjust Visual Effects.
I don't know whether it makes the system run faster, but it makes things more comprehensible to me, and yes, I'm an old stick-in-the-mud:

11.png

[HansV]

One item in the list is at least worth experimenting with: "Smooth edges of screen fonts". Many users find text on an LCD monitor more easily readable if edges are smoothed, others hate the effect. See which works best for you.

[ChrisGreaves]

... text on an LCD monitor more easily readable

I currently have the screen displayed both on the new Compaq laptop and the DELL CRT monitor.
I can't see a difference, but then, that might just be my eyes.
A recall a couple of weeks ago having problems noticing something else in visual effects.
If only my memory were better than my eyesight ...

[DaveA]

This also put the display in what appears to be a "Classic" display mode, which can been seen in the first image in Chris's first post.

[Andrew Malek]

Good info. Yes, switching from best appearance to best performance can make the system run faster, or seem to run faster, especially by turning off animations. You also might get a little more time from your laptop battery between charges (just as you would by switching away from an Aero to a Basic theme).

- Andrew

[Hey Jude]

I just tried best performance and do not like the classic display at all. So I played with the other choices and am going to use best appearance. My default was set to "Let Windows choose..." I never played with these so thanks for the tip :-) Will experiment further with the other settings. Does anyone have "Custom" checked and if so, which boxes did you check along with it?

[ChrisGreaves]

This also put the display in what appears to be a "Classic" display mode,...

... which is what appealed to me!

[HansV]

Does anyone have "Custom" checked and if so, which boxes did you check along with it?

I left it at "Let Windows choose..." which means every check box ticked apart from "Save taskbar thumbnails" (translated back from Dutch into English, so the actual caption might be different).

[Hey Jude]

Thanks Hans, I put it back to that and don't see any visible difference between that and "best appearance" so will leave it be. It's intriguing reading about these options which I haven't delved into yet. This is the best forum~!~!

[wasbit]

Does anyone have "Custom" checked and if so, which boxes did you check along with it?

I left it at "Let Windows choose..." which means every check box ticked apart from "Save taskbar thumbnails" (translated back from Dutch into English, so the actual caption might be different).

FYI - Save taskbar thumbnail previews.

No reply required

[PaulB]

FYI - Save taskbar thumbnail previews.

What does this mean?

[HansV]

I mentioned that I wasn't sure about "Save taskbar thumbnails" and wasbit kindly supplied the correct caption "Save taskbar thumbnail previews" (thanks!)

[wasbit]

FYI - Save taskbar thumbnail previews.

What does this mean?

If you put the phrase into a search engine you get lots of hits eg

http://social.technet.microsoft.com/For ... 3ef8c7014d" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Action 25 wrote:
" I've recently been wondering about this same problem. What exactly save taskbar thumbnail preview does? So, for everyone's benefit I've tested it out and concluded:

Having the box checked(filled) saves your last used thumbnail preview. Which is to say, even after several minutes of the main window having been minimized the preview will still be visible whilst hovered over. So, if one left the IE window minimized and checked on the thumbnail image in 5 minutes, the image would still be visible. The thumbnail preview will display until closing the program."

or

Windows Seven forums

- http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/12 ... -save.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;