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Spriglet #8: Hack the buttons on a Dell SK-8135 Keyboard

Dell SK-8135

Just bought a new Dell SK-8135 keyboard off of eBay.  I have one at work and like it a lot.

It has some buttons on it that are sorta configurable — if you don’t mind poking around in the Windows Registry.

Start -> Run -> regedit

Browse to:  HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\AppKey

  • 7 =  Browser home button – this will launch the default browser (which should be Google Chrome, BTW)
  • 15 = Mail button  – this will launch the default mail app.
  • 16 = Music note button – this will launch the application associated with the .cda extension.  I changed this one to .mp3, which is associated with iTunes.
  • 17 = My Computer button
  • 8 =  Calculator button

Make your changes, reboot and you’re good to go.

NOTE: I did this in Windows XP.  Not sure if this works in Windows Vista and Windows 7.   Anyone tried it?


Spriglet #6: Zipper check

zipper1.jpg

Here’s another installment in my Spriglet series.

Nothing’s more embarrassing than emerging from the bathroom with your zipper down.  To combat this possibility, I always, just after opening the bathroom door, poke my finger inside the zipper flap directly under the button of my pants. If my finger goes in, I turn right around and take care of it. If it stops, I let out a sigh of relief and continue on to what I was doing before nature called my name.


Spriglet #5: Clear the Print Spool in Windows XP By Force

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Spriglet #5: Have a print job in Windows that just won’t go away? Here’s how to fix it:

®= right-click, © = click, © © = double-click

  1. ® on My Computer and choose “Manage”
  2. © on “Services” in the left pane
  3. © © on “Print Spooler” in the right pane
  4. © the “Stop” button
  5. Leave this window open and hit Windows-E to bring up an Explorer window
  6. Drill down to c:\windows\system32\printers\spool
  7. Highlight and delete all of the files in here
  8. Back on the Print Spooler Properties window, © Start
  9. © Start, © Settings, © Printers and Faxes, © © the printer with the stuck job
  10. Hit F5 to refresh. All of the print jobs should now be gone.

UPDATE: Check out the shorter batch file method in the comments below. Thanks, White Panther.


Spriglet #4: Windshield Wiper Rotation

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If you’ve ever seen my car, you’d know that it’s not something that I obsess over at all.   In fact quite the contrary — I don’t care about it that much.   It gets me from here to there.   It’s not pretty but it’s functional.

I try to invest in it as little as possible.   There’s more important things to spend money on, IMO.

So, anyway…I found a way to make my windshield wipers last longer than recommended (every 6 months).   When they start skidding across the windshield, I stop (usually at the gas station) and take them off and 1) switch the right and the left and 2) flip them over so that the end that’s on the top is now on the bottom.

Turning off your car when the wiper blades are upright makes them a little easier to change.

Worked like a champ in the torrential downpour on the way to work this morning.   Voila!   No skidding.

Spriglet #3: Pocket Key Pat

keys.jpg

Spriglet #3: OK, this is borderline O.C.D., but it’s something I’ve gotten into the habit of doing. Whenever I get out of my car, I always immediately put my keys in my pocket and then pat my pocket just to here the keys jingle. Guess I started doing it after I locked my keys in my car. Haven’t locked them inside it since.

Spriglet #2: Cubes for Carpet Craters

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Spriglet #2: After a long and strenuous evening of impromptu furniture move-age, you’re shocked to notice the scattered carpet divots all over the room. Simply place an ice cube on each carpet divot and let it melt.   As the carpet dries, the divots pop back up.

Some wise person once said:

Moving your furniture around all the time is a sign of mental instability.

That being said, the carpet divots are really a sign of deeper mental issues. You might want to seek out professional help.

No charge for that one. ;)

h/t: scott

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