Command Prompt Tricks & Codes
1-Watch ASCII version of the Star Wars Episode IV movie
Command Prompt is one of the most powerful tools in Windows; but
sadly, it is also the most ignored one. Things were not always like this; but with
the advent of GUI based operating systems, people started feeling that
computing through command based tools was boring. This ultimately lead the
command prompt into obscurity.
However, the command prompt is not useless. In fact, it can be pretty useful. This article provides some excellent tricks, secrets and hacks that will make you realize that the Windows Command Prompt is not only useful but also a tool that you should definitely give more respect to.
However, the command prompt is not useless. In fact, it can be pretty useful. This article provides some excellent tricks, secrets and hacks that will make you realize that the Windows Command Prompt is not only useful but also a tool that you should definitely give more respect to.
Every one of us has watched
Star Wars on television, computer or in a theater. It is the same movie with
aliens fighting each other for galaxies and such stuff. There is nothing new in
it. But wait, have you watched an ASCII (American Standard Code for Information
Interchange) version of Star Wars and that too in Windows using telnet? A
network protocol known only to computer wizards. Well if you have not, then you
must do it now!
There is a complete copy of Star Wars done entirely in ASCII characters that you can watch in the Windows operating system (or any OS that supports telnet). The only thing required to watch it is an internet connection; speed does not matter.
There is a complete copy of Star Wars done entirely in ASCII characters that you can watch in the Windows operating system (or any OS that supports telnet). The only thing required to watch it is an internet connection; speed does not matter.
To
watch it on Windows XP, Mac OS X and Linux
- Go to Start, Run. (Only for Windows users)
- Now type "telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl" without the quotes and press Enter. Users of Mac OS X and Linux can directly execute this code in the terminal window.
On
Windows 8, Windows 7 and Windows Vista
Telnet
is turned off by default in the latest versions of Windows. So, in order to
watch star wars, you must first enable telnet by going to Control Panel ›
Programs › Turn Windows Feature On or Off and ticking both the telnet check
boxes. After doing that, follow the steps given below:-
- Go to Start, Search in Windows Vista and Windows 7. On Windows 8, open the main Start page.
- Type telnet and press Enter.
- In the following command prompt window, type "o" without quotes and press Enter.
- Now type "towel.blinkenlights.nl" without the quotes and press Enter.
If
you do not need telnet anymore, you can turn it off.
A
command prompt window like the one in the image will open with the movie being
played in it. See the movie yourself. Did you enjoy watching this new version
of Star Wars? Well, I did and know it for sure that you would have too.
2-Matrix
Falling Code Effect - Notepad CMD (.BAT) Tricks
Inspired by the movie
Matrix, this falling code trick is extremely popular on social networking
websites. Copy and paste the code given below in Notepad and save the file as
"Matrix.bat" or *.bat.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
@echo off
color 02
:tricks
echo %random%%random%%random%%random%%random%%random%%random%%random%
goto tricks
color 02
:tricks
echo %random%%random%%random%%random%%random%%random%%random%%random%
goto tricks
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3-Make Undeletable, Unrenamable Folders
Have you ever
wondered how you can make a folder which neither can be deleted nor be renamed.
Well, if you have, then you have come to the right place. With this trick, you
will be able to create folders in Windows which cannot be renamed or deleted.
A Test
To test this concept,
make a new folder in Windows and try to give it a name same as any keyword
suggested above.
Result
Result
Windows will not
rename your folder to any of the keyword given above.
Trick
Trick
So the question
arises, how can we make a folder with a keyword as its name? The solution to
this problem is included in Windows itself. As we know that Windows has evolved
from D.O.S.(Disk Operating System), its commands can be used in Windows. You
can use D.O.S. Programming in Windows to create a folder with a keyword as its
name using the steps given below:-
- Click on Start.
- Click on Run. Type in "cmd" without quotes.
- In the Command Prompt Window that opens, type the name of the drive you wish to create your folder in the format <drive-name>: and press Enter. e.g. If you wish to create the undeletable folder in D drive, type "D:" without the quotes. Note that the folder cannot be created in the root of C:/ drive (if C: is your system drive).
- Type this command- "md con\" or "md lpt1\" without the quotes and press Enter. You can choose any of the keywords given above as the name of your folder.
Now
Windows will create an undeletable, unrenamable folder in the drive you entered
in Step 3. However the folder can be renamed to another keyword using Windows Explorer.
Deleting
the Folder
Although
it is not possible to manually delete the folder, you can delete the folder by
typing "rd con\" or "rd lpt1\"
in Step 4 instead of "md con\"
or "md lpt1\".
4-Shutdown Your Computer or a
Remote PC via Command Prompt
Most of us shutdown our
computers using the power button given in the Start menu. Some of us use the
physical power button on our machines. Very few people actually use other means
of shutting down a computer and even less is the number of people who use the
command prompt to shutdown a computer.
A reason for this is that most of us don't know that the command prompt can be used to not only shutdown, restart or log off our computer instantly but also to shutdown a remote computer provided you have administrative access. It can also be used to hibernate a computer and give a comment containing the reason for shutdown. This post will show you how to do all this.
A reason for this is that most of us don't know that the command prompt can be used to not only shutdown, restart or log off our computer instantly but also to shutdown a remote computer provided you have administrative access. It can also be used to hibernate a computer and give a comment containing the reason for shutdown. This post will show you how to do all this.
Required
A computer running
Windows (XP, Vista, 7 or 8) with the command prompt working perfectly, i.e. not
disabled by a virus.Initial Steps
1) Press Windows Key + R.
2) Enter CMD and press Enter.
This will start the command prompt. Follow the instructions below depending on what you want to do.
Shutdown Local Machine (Your Computer)
Type "shutdown -s" without the quotes in the command prompt and press Enter. Shutdown is the command being executed and
the switch -s tells the computer to shutdown.
Restart your Local Computer
Type "shutdown -r" in the command prompt and press Enter. In this case, the command switch -r is telling the computer to restart after shutdown.
Log Off the Current User
Type "shutdown -l" in the command prompt and press Enter. The -l command switch tells the computer to log off.
Shutdown a Remote Computer
Type "shutdown -s -m \\name of the computer" in the command prompt and press Enter. Replace \\name of the computer with the actual name of the remote computer you are trying to shutdown. As mentioned earlier, you must have administrative access to the computer you are trying to shutdown. To know if you have administrative access, press Windows key + R and then type the name of the computer and press Enter.
Note: If you don't remember the name of the remote computer, you can look for it by opening a list of all the computers you are connected to by executing "net view" in command prompt.
If you can connect to the computer, you will be asked to login with your username and password. Upon entering them, a window will display the list of all the directories available to you. This should help you know whether you can or cannot shutdown the remote computer.
Hibernate a Local Computer
Type in "Rundll32.exe Powrprof.dll,SetSuspendState" without the quotes and press Enter. Your computer should hibernate, if it does not, then you must enable hibernation to do this.Shutdown your or a remote computer after a specific time
Type "shutdown -s -t 60" to shutdown your computer after 60 seconds. Upon executing this, a countdown timer displaying a warning message will be shown. This command uses the -t command switch followed by a variable (which is 60 in this case) which represents the number of seconds after which the computer will shutdown.Display a Message containing the reason for shutdown
Type shutdown -s -t 500 -c "I am tired. I don't want to work anymore." (with the quotes) in the Command Prompt and press Enter. The -c switch is used in the code to give the reason for shutting down and what is followed in quotes will be displayed in the dialog box as the reason. This can be used to display all sorts of funny messages. One example :-
Skynet has become self aware. John Connor did not stop me. You can not use your PC anymore.
Stop a System Shutdown
Type "shutdown -a" and press Enter. This will stop the system from shutting down if the countdown to shut down has not reached 0.
5-Know if your neighbours are stealing your Wifi connection
6-Make your Computer
Talk
Have you ever wondered how can you make your
computer speak whatever you input to it like in the movies? Would it not be
fun? If only it was possible! Rejoice, because now it is possible. Well, if you
wish to know how to do this, then you have come to the right place. With this
trick, you can create a script in Windows which will make your computer speak
whatever you input to it.
To
create one such talk script, follow the steps given below:-
Steps
- Open Notepad.
- Copy and paste the exact code given below.
Dim Message, Speak
Message=InputBox("Enter text","Speak")
Set
Speak=CreateObject("sapi.spvoice")
Speak.Speak Message
3. Click on File Menu, Save As, select All Types in Save
as Type option, and save the file as Speak.vbs or "*.vbs".
4. Double click on the saved file, a window will open like the one in the
image. Enter some text in enter text column and click OK.
Now
your Computer will speak / talk what you typed in Step 4. Try it
yourself.
Windows
Compatibility: This VBS file can be executed on all versions of Windows including Windows
XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8.
Personal
Experience: I personally showed this trick to many of my friends and they were
literally left awestruck. You too can impress your friends by making your PC
talk and be the Computer Wiz.
7-Create a Harmless Funny
Virus with Notepad-Continuously eject CD/DVD drives
This VBS trick will create a code which will continuously
eject all your connected Optical drives. If you put them back in, it will pop
them out again. Copy this code and paste it in Notepad as Virus.vbs or *.vbs.
Set
oWMP = CreateObject("WMPlayer.OCX.7")
Set colCDROMs = oWMP.cdromCollection
do
if colCDROMs.Count >= 1 then
For i = 0 to colCDROMs.Count - 1
colCDROMs.Item(i).Eject
Next
For i = 0 to colCDROMs.Count - 1
colCDROMs.Item(i).Eject
Next
End If
wscript.sleep 5000
loop
Set colCDROMs = oWMP.cdromCollection
do
if colCDROMs.Count >= 1 then
For i = 0 to colCDROMs.Count - 1
colCDROMs.Item(i).Eject
Next
For i = 0 to colCDROMs.Count - 1
colCDROMs.Item(i).Eject
Next
End If
wscript.sleep 5000
loop
Double
click to open this file and you will be impressed by this awesome trick.
8-Cool Keyboard Tricks (Windows) : Make a Disco
Keyboards
usually have small LEDs which indicate whether different types of locks are
activated or not. Here is a trick to use the lights of your keyboard in a more
creative manner in Windows.
This trick uses a simple Visual Basic Script which when activated makes your Scroll lock, Caps lock and Num lock LEDs flash in a cool rhythmic way which gives the perception of a live disco on your keyboard.
This trick uses a simple Visual Basic Script which when activated makes your Scroll lock, Caps lock and Num lock LEDs flash in a cool rhythmic way which gives the perception of a live disco on your keyboard.
To
make your own live disco, follow the steps given below:-
1. Open Notepad.
2. Copy paste the exact code given below:-
1. Open Notepad.
2. Copy paste the exact code given below:-
Set
wshShell =wscript.CreateObject("WScript.Shell")
do
wscript.sleep
100
wshshell.sendkeys
"{CAPSLOCK}"
wshshell.sendkeys
"{NUMLOCK}"
wshshell.sendkeys
"{SCROLLLOCK}"
loop
3.
Save the file as Disco.vbs or "*.vbs".
Double
click on the Saved file to see the LED lights on your keyboard go crazy and
make your own cool disco.
This
trick has been tested on Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7 and
Windows 8 and found to be working perfectly.
You
can disable the keyboard disco by starting Task Manager and ending the
wscript.exe process.
9-Lock a
Folder With Password Using Free Folder Protector
Surely,
you can store this information in a hidden folder. The only problem is that
anyone can easily search the contents of a hidden folder using Windows Search
itself.
The only viable solution is storing this content in a password protected folder so that only those people knowing the password of the folder can access it. There are many folder locking programs available online but the problem is that most of the good ones are paid. Even if you do manage to get a good free one, you will be looked at suspiciously when people see a folder locker in the list of your installed programs.
If you too find yourself in a similar situation, you can try Folder Protector, a password protector for Windows folders that is not only free but is also portable meaning that it does not need to be installed. Just click on the exe file and the program will start running. I have created this program based on suggestions and feature requests that I have received by email over the last two years.
The only viable solution is storing this content in a password protected folder so that only those people knowing the password of the folder can access it. There are many folder locking programs available online but the problem is that most of the good ones are paid. Even if you do manage to get a good free one, you will be looked at suspiciously when people see a folder locker in the list of your installed programs.
If you too find yourself in a similar situation, you can try Folder Protector, a password protector for Windows folders that is not only free but is also portable meaning that it does not need to be installed. Just click on the exe file and the program will start running. I have created this program based on suggestions and feature requests that I have received by email over the last two years.
Folder Protector
Folder
Protector offers each user a protected folder that can only be opened by
entering the password in FolderProtector. Unlike most security programs, Folder
Protector is small in size (nearly 58KB) and does not show the folder that it
is protecting. This gives an additional advantage that people who don't know
the password do not have a target to try and hack their way into. As the software is portable, you can hide it or even delete it after
protecting your folder and no one will have a clue that it was used. Then
whenever you need to access protected files, you can re-download the program
from this page, enter the password and access your protected files.
Download Folder Protector
How
to use Folder Protector?
When
you run Folder Protector for the first time, the program will ask you for a
password that you want to use. Enter a password that you can remember as this
will be the password to your protected folder.

After
entering the password, the program will open a folder named SecuredFILES. This
is your protected folder. You can add all your private files in this folder.
This folder is located at the Desktop. After adding all your files, you may
close this folder.
Then,
you can use the menu in the program to lock your folder. To lock the folder,
type lock as your action. After successfully locking the folder,
FolderProtector will display that the folder is locked.

Unlocking
the protected folder is easy. Just type unlock as your action. Then the program
will ask you to enter your password. Upon successfully entering the password,
the program will display the contents of your protected folder.
Changing
the Password: Just type change as your action. The program will ask you for
your current password. Upon successful entry of the current password, the
program will ask for your new password and change it instantly.
Acknowledgment:
This software has been made possible only through the suggestions of readers of
this blog, especially Ernell Albert Galido for his idea of using a menu based
interface.
Windows
Compatibility: This program has been successfully tested on Windows 8,
Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP.
10-Change Facebook Theme,
Color & Appearance
Facebook is a social
networking site which enables people to connect with friends and people around.
That's how Facebook is usually introduced. However, Facebook is beyond the need
of being introduced as almost everyone is on it. Despite its popularity, Facebook
has one flaw; the default blue theme is really boring.
Some even consider it an annoyance while visiting Facebook. As Facebook does not allow users to change its theme like MySpace used to, users are left with no other option but to bear the theme Facebook wants them to use.
However, it is relatively easy to change the Facebook theme to a stylish one using an addon and custom themes which are available free of cost on the internet.
An example of the final outcome would be something like in the image.
Some even consider it an annoyance while visiting Facebook. As Facebook does not allow users to change its theme like MySpace used to, users are left with no other option but to bear the theme Facebook wants them to use.
However, it is relatively easy to change the Facebook theme to a stylish one using an addon and custom themes which are available free of cost on the internet.
An example of the final outcome would be something like in the image.
![]() |
This
is the Ferrari theme. More themes are available for you to choose.
|
Requirement: The basic requirement for this
to work is to have Mozilla Firefox or Google Chrome as your browser.
Steps to achieve this : If you use Google Chrome, click here. Mozilla Firefox users should carry out the following steps to successfully change Facebook theme.
Steps to achieve this : If you use Google Chrome, click here. Mozilla Firefox users should carry out the following steps to successfully change Facebook theme.
- Open Mozilla Firefox and install 'Stylish' addon.
- Follow the basic steps to install the addon.
- Restart Firefox after successfully installing the Stylish addon.
- Login to your Facebook Account and click on the small 'S' button in your Firefox status bar.
- Click on "Find Styles for this Site" to open a new tab with free themes to use for Facebook.
- Click on any theme and a preview will be shown.
- If everything is fine in the previewed theme, click on "Install with Stylish" button at the top right corner of the page.
- A dialog box will open.
- Click on Install in the dialog box.
Steps for Google Chrome
- Install Stylish for Chrome from the Chrome Web Store.
- Navigate to Facebook.com and click on the S button.
- Click on "Find Styles for this Site" to open a new tab with free themes to use for Facebook.
- Click on any theme and a preview will be shown.
- If everything is fine in the previewed theme, click on "Install with Stylish" button at the top right corner of the page.



- Now whenever you open Facebook, it will show the theme that you have installed with Stylish instead of the boring old blue theme.
11-Create a Shortcut to lock your Computer
Have you ever left your PC in a hurry? Have you ever felt that it is a
pain to lock your system in the simple way of doing CTRL+ALT+DEL? I
would imagine that you have and then, this trick is for you. This trick
enables you to create a shortcut to lock your computer instead of doing
the regular CTRL+ALT+DEL, thus providing you a way to quickly and easily
get away from your PC whenever you are in a hurry.
To use this trick, follow the instructions given below:-
Steps
To use this trick, follow the instructions given below:-
Steps
- Right Click on an empty slot on Desktop, point to New and click on Shortcut.
- In the dialog box that pops up, type the following code without quotes in the Type the location of the item.
rundll32 user32.dll,LockWorkStation3. Click on Next and type a name for the shortcut in the Type a name for this
Shortcut textbox.
4. Click on Finish.
Now you will be able to lock your computer by double clicking on the created shortcut. You can also add this shortcut to Quick Launch toolbar to lock your system with only a single click.
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