Set up for sigle user?

T

terrypin

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As per my earlier detailed post, I wish MS had implemented some sort of 'Single User Switch' with XP. For users like me who are sole user and administrator, having to think about multiple profiles, permissions, accounts, startup menus, and all that stuff is an unnecessary headache. In the absence of such a handy feature, what accounts and profiles should be set up manually to achieve this simplified environmenent please?

Terry, West Sussex, UK
 
if you are the only user of your computer. And you have your user set up as an administrator you will never need to switch. I have NEVER had to use the administrator account itself. The only time I remotely use it is when I need the password to access the recovery console. Other then that as long as your user is set up as an administrator it has all the powers of the real admin account
 
Thanks. But for example one problem is that newly installed programs seem to be placed by XP sometimes in my Terry/Start menu and sometimes in my All Users/Start menu. Which makes management confusing. And I seem to get duplicate Startup entries.

Terry, West Sussex, UK
 
Thats Microsoft future proofing for you, if you at a later date add a new user, and you had deleted the copies in all users, then the new users startmenu would be empty. Tryin to copy your program list to the new users, would cause alot of security , permission errors.

I shouldnt worry about it it doesnt slow the PC, leaving the all user ifo there, but it DOES make life easier for any future accounts.

Stuy_b
 
I'm not sure what you mean by making it confusing...if you are the only user then any items you install will show up in your start menu. Yes some items may also go into the all users group in documents and settings, but you'll never use that since you are the only user
 
If you are the only user the simplest thing to do is...

use tweakui in the power tools to 1. show the administrator at the login screen (then the "administrator" will always show up and you do not have to mess with it--you can change the name from administrator to something else but this is really not necessary.

and then 2. also in tweakui set the autologin parameters to automatically log you in when windows starts up.

then you never have to bother with choosing which "account" you want.

You can always log into either the admin account or any other account of your choosing automatically.

If you always use the admin account you do not have to worry about where things are installed.
:D
 
Its programs that are not multi user compatible (or friendly) that are the problem, becuase they do not ask if you want the shortcuts to be placed in only yours or in all users. Least i think thats so, the only program i have seen (well noticed, which for me is a big difference!) that asked that was Norton
 
Thanks - appreciate the prompt reply. I did both of those things on first getting this PC, and I agree that does go a long way to achieving what I'm after. But I'd also like to clear up some strange behaviour with my Start menu and duplicate entries in my Startup. I coiuld be wrong, but these seem to be connected with my user profiles/accounts. So I was hoping to get down to the absolute mimimum. Maybe XP won't let me do this?

Terry, West Sussex, UK
 

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Also Hi EP and people. I found this place again while looking through a oooollllllldddd backup. I have filled over 10TB and was looking at my collection of antiques. Any bids on the 500Mhz Win 95 fix?
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