Tweaking Windows XP

1.) Here is a registry file that contains some registry modifications, which is perfectly safe and can improve the performance of Windows. Attached just download a ZIP file, extract and then run the file:
Tweak Windows XP
Restore Default Settings (Use this file if you want to restore the default settings for Windows)
2.) Right-click on Desktop and select Properties, Now in a new window goto Appearance tab and click the Effects button. Now in the new opened window uncheck the following options:
a.) Use the following transition effect for menus & tooltips.
b.) Show shadows under menus.
3.) Right-click on My Computer icon on the desktop and select Properties (or press the key + ), now goto Advanced tab in a new window and click on the Settings button in Performance section.
Now disable all unnecessary options in Visual Effects tab, you can still enable the following options to suit your needs:
a.) Show window contents while dragging.
b.) Smooth edge of screen fonts.
c.) Use common tasks in folders (If you use the panel on the left side of my computer)
d.) Use drop shadows on icon labels on the desktop. (to make the desktop icons label transparent.)
e.) Use visual styles on windows and buttons. (If you're using XP themes.)
4.) Go to Tools -> Folder Options and click on the View tab:
Now uncheck the following options:
a.) automatically search for network folders & printers.
b.) Display file size information in folder tips.
c.) Display simple folder view in Explorer Folders list.
d.) Show encrypted or compressed NTFS files in color.
e.) Show pop-up description for folder and desktop icons.
f.) Use simple file sharing.
Other options do not affect system performance. You can enable / disable them according to your needs.
5.) Right-click on My Computer icon on the Desktop and select Manage (You can also open it by typing services.msc in RUN and press Enter). Now goto Services & Applications -> Services. Here you can set up some services that are not needed for the manual, which will not start with windows and will reduce the boot time and will improve system performance. Follow the tutorial below to find out about services that can be safely set to MANUAL:
Windows XP services that can be set to Manual Safe
6.) Type msconfig in RUN and press Enter. Now goto Startup tab and deselect the unnecessary entries, which you do not want to start automatically with Windows, for example, you can disable VGA driver utility, Sound Card utility, etc to speed up the startup time and to improve system performance.
7.) Open Sound & Audio Devices in Control Panel (or type in mmsys.cpl RUN), goto Sounds tab and select No Sounds in Sound Scheme section. Or you can keep some of your favorite sounds but set Exit Windows, Start Windows, Windows Logoff, Windows Logon to (None).
8.) For more options / tips-n-tricks, you can use Tweak UI, TuneUp Utilities 2006 and gpedit.msc (Windows XP Professional built-in tools).