Activating Special Effects

Windows XP includes all sorts of special effects, not all of which are turned on by default. These effects are applied to the way certain elements look or the way they pull down or pop up onscreen.

Enabling ClearType

ClearType is a new display technology in Windows XP that effectively triples the horizontal resolution on LCD displays. (In other words, it makes things look sharperand smoother.) If you have a flat-panel monitor or a portable PC, you definitely want to turn on ClearType.

To turn on ClearType, follow these steps:

1.	Open the Display Properties dialog box and select the Appearance tab.
2.	Click the Effects button to display the Effects dialog box.
3.	Check the Use the Following Method to Smooth Edges of Screen Fonts option.
4.	Select ClearType from the pull-down list.
5.	Click OK when done.

Using the Effects Dialog Box

Some Windows special effects are activated from the Effects dialog box, which you access via the Display Properties dialog box. To change these special effects, follow these steps:

1.	Open the Display Properties dialog box and select the Appearance tab.
2.	Click the Effects button to display the Effects dialog box, shown in Figure 5.4. Figure 5.4. Activating special effects via the Effects dialog box.
3.	Make the appropriate choices from the options available.
4.	Click OK.

The Effects dialog box offers a variety of special effects. You can choose to add transition effects for menus, display drop shadows under menus, display large icons on the desktop, display the contents of windows when they're dragged, and hide the underlined letters on menu items.

Using the Performance Options Dialog Box

Even more special effects are activated from the Systems Property dialog box. You access these effects by following these steps:

1.	Click the Start button to display the Start menu.
2.	Select Control Panel to open the Control Panel folder.
3.	Select Performance and Hardware, and then select System to open the Systems Properties dialog box.
4.	Select the Advanced tab and click the Settings button in the Performance section.
5.	When the Performance Options dialog box appears, click the Visual Effects tab, as shown in Figure 5.5. Figure 5.5. Use the Performance Options dialog box to select more subtle display effects. tip If your system is running sluggishly, click the Best Performance button to turn off all the resource-draining visual effects.
6.	Choose which effects you want to activate.
7.	Click OK when done.

Most of the effects in the Performance Options dialog box are self-explanatory, although some are extremely subtle. If you aren't sure which effects to choose, select either the Adjust for Best Appearance or Adjust for Best Performance option. The first option turns on all the special effects, and the second option turns them all off. Even better is the Let Windows Choose What's Best for My Computer option, which activates a select group of effects that won't slow down your system's performance.