15 ways to fake Windows XP for free

Add XP-like functionality

If you spend any time at all browsing Microsoft's Windows XP Web site, it may give you the idea that the folks in Redmond came up with everything from zipping files to connecting two computers.

Wrong. To prove our point--and to prove that Windows 98 and Me aren't dead yet, thank you very much--we've assembled these five tips to show you how to add features found in XP to your older, slower OSs.

Zip it up
Windows XP, like Windows Me before it, builds in support for the ZIP file format: it displays zipped files as folders, from which you drag files to extract them from the archive. You can also create ZIP-style archives from within Windows.

If you run Windows 98 or 95, you'll have to add this capability to your PC. It's easy: just download and install the premier ZIP utility, WinZip 8.1. WinZip adds commands to the right-click menu within Windows Explorer so that you can extract and compress files with minimal fuss.

It's about time
One of our favorite behind-the-scenes XP tricks is automatic clock synchronization. Computer clocks are notorious for not keeping good time--our Windows 98 and Me machines typically lose a minute or two every couple of weeks--so if you rely on the PC's clock rather than your wristwatch, you'll need to manually update the time now and then--a real pain.

XP, however, automatically synchronizes your PC's clock with a server that tracks time by the official sources: the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the U.S. Naval Observatory. That's not a new idea; in fact, you can keep your own PC's clock updated in the same way.

Download and install the free Atomic Clock Sync, the most popular clock-keeper-upper on CNETAsia's Download.com. This free download gets the correct time from NIST's servers, and, since it can be set to automatically update your PC's clock, does the same job as XP.

Cascading controls
We like the way XP turns the Control Panel into a cascading-style menu under the Start menu, making for faster selection of the applet we're after. (A cascading menu is one like those under the Programs part of the Start menu; when you select a folder, all the contents of that folder automatically appear in another menu to the side.)

If you use Windows Me, just turn on the Cascading Control Panel feature. From the Start menu, select Settings > Taskbar & Start Menu. Click the Advanced tab and, in the list at the bottom of the dialog, check the box marked Expand Control Panel. Click OK.

Incorporating this feature into Windows 98 and earlier editions is a bit trickier. The fastest way is to download Tweak UI, a freebie from Microsoft. After you install this program, it shows up as a Control Panel applet. Run it, then click the Desktop tab. In the list under the Desktop tab, right-click Control Panel and choose Create As File, then choose the Desktop for its new location. Click the Save button.

Now there's a new folder, called Control Panel, on the desktop. Drag it to the Start button and drop it onto the spot where you want it to appear. We put it at the top of the Programs list, but another great place is right under the Start button. Voilà! Cascading menus for the Control Panel.

A friend in need is a friend indeed
Number 8 on Microsoft's Top 10 reasons to get Windows XP Home Edition is, and we quote:

Remote Assistance:
Remote Assistance lets you allow a friend or support professional who is also running Windows XP to remotely control your computer to demonstrate a process or help solve a problem.

Hello? Remote control, which is essentially what Remote Assistance is, has been around for years. (CNET recently revisited the remote control app category; check out our roundup here.)

If you want to help out a friend or family member who don't have XP (you must have Windows XP installed on both computers in order to use Remote Assistance), you and the person on the other end have several options to get the two of you connected. The best way, we think, is to use the free trial of GoToMyPC to connect the two computers over the Internet. This Web service lets you access and control a Windows PC from any other Windows machine anywhere, anytime. The free trial expires after you've been connected for 60 minutes, but that may be long enough to solve the problem. If you like what GoToMyPC does (and we do), you can subscribe for $20 per month. That's pricey, but there's nothing that says you can't sign up, pay one month's fee, solve your friend's troubles (or get yours fixed by a technically astute friend), and cancel the plan.

Card, please
We're the first to admit that we waste a ton of time playing Solitaire on the PC. Windows XP harbors this productivity killer, too. In fact, the XP edition issues some new designs for the card deck, and, unlike some of the decks bundled with earlier editions, they're not as ugly as sin.

We haven't figured out a way to rip off the new deck designs from XP and bring them into Me or 98, but we have found some cool freebies that beat classic Solitaire. Our top two picks: 123 Free Solitaire and South Park Solitaire.

And just because you're not using Windows Me or XP, both of which have online games (such as Internet Backgammon and Internet Checkers) in their Start menus, doesn't mean you can't play these simple games over the Web for free. Just head to MSN Gaming Zone, where, as long as you have a Passport account, you can play backgammon, spades, cribbage, checkers, chess, hearts, and other games at no charge. (The Gaming Zone is the same Web site used by the Internet games included with XP and Me.)