Making Windows start programs automatically Many people sit down at a computer, turn it on, and go through the same mechanical process of loading their oft-used programs. Believe it or not, Windows Vista can automate this task. The solution is the Startup folder, found lurking in the Start button’s All Programs menu. When Windows Vista wakes up, it peeks inside that Startup folder. If it finds a program lurking inside, it immediately tosses that program onto the screen. To make your favorite programs wake up along with Windows Vista, follow these steps:

1. Click the Start button and choose All Programs.

2. Right-click the Start menu’s Startup icon and choose Open. The Startup icon, which lives in the Start menu’s All Programs area, opens as a folder.

3. Drag and drop any of your favorite programs or files into the Startup folder. Windows Vista automatically places shortcuts to those programs inside the Startup folder.

4. Close the Startup folder. Now, whenever you turn on your PC and log onto your user account, Vista automatically loads those programs or files so that they’ll be waiting for you. When you finally spot your program’s name, just click it. That program hops onto the desktop in a window, ready for action.

- Still don’t see your program listed by name? Then head for Article 6 and find the section on finding lost files and folders. Windows Vista can track down your missing program.

- There’s another way to load a lost program — if you can find something you created or edited with that program. For example, if you wrote letters to the tax collector using Microsoft Word, double-click one of your tax letters to bring Microsoft Word to the screen from its hiding place.

- If you don’t spot a program listed, type the program’s name into the Start menu’s Search box. Type Windows Mail, for example, press Enter, and Windows Mail pops to the screen, ready to send e-mail.

- If you don’t know how to navigate through your folders, visit Article 4. That article helps you move gracefully from folder to folder, decreasing the time it takes to stumble across your file. Buying the right kind of blank CDs and DVDs for burning Stores sell two types of CDs: CD-R (short for CD-Recordable) and CD-RW (short for CD-ReWritable). Here’s the difference:

- CD-R: Most people buy CD-R discs because they’re very cheap, and they work fine for storing music or files. You can write to them until they fill up; then you can’t write to them anymore. But that’s no problem, because most people don’t want to erase their CDs and start over. They want to stash their burned CD for a backup.

- CD-RW: Techies sometimes buy CD-RW discs for making temporary backups of data. You can write information to them, just like CD-Rs. But when a CD-RW disc fills up, you can erase it and start over with a clean slate — something not possible with a CD-R. However, CD-RWs cost more money, so most people stick with the cheaper and faster CD-Rs. DVDs come in both R and RW formats, just like CDs, so the preceding R and RW rules apply to them, as well. Beyond that, it’s chaos: The manufacturers fought over which storage format to use, confusing things for everybody. To buy the right blank DVD, check your DVD burner to see what formats it uses: DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+R, DVD+RW, and/or DVD-RAM. (Most new DVD burners support all of the first four formats, making your choice much easier.)

- The disc’s “x” speed refers to the speed at which it can accept information. Your drive can write information onto a 40x CD five times faster than onto an 8x CD. Buy CDs with as fast an x rating as your burner can handle.

- You’ll often find your CD or DVD burner’s format and speed listings printed directly on the drive’s face. If the information isn’t there, check the receipt for your computer. If you still have no clue, buy reasonably fast discs. Slow burners can still write to speedy discs, but not as quickly as faster burners.

- Blank CDs are cheap; borrow one from a neighbor’s kid to see whether it works in your drive. If it works fine, buy some of the same type. Blank DVDs, by contrast, are more expensive. Most neighbors’ kids won’t let you have one. Ask the store whether you can return them if your DVD drive doesn’t like them.

- For some odd reason, Compact Discs and Digital Video Discs are spelled as “discs,” not “disks.” Be prepared for the agape mouths of shocked proofreaders.

- Although Windows Vista can handle simple CD-burning tasks, it’s extraordinarily awkward at copying music CDs. Most people give up quickly and buy third-party CD burning software from Roxio or Nero. I explain how Windows Vista creates music CDs in Article 15.

- It’s currently illegal to make duplicates of movie DVDs in the United States — even to make a backup copy in case your kids scratch up your new Disney DVD. Vista certainly can’t do it, but some programs on Web sites from other countries can. (Don’t ask me where to get them, as I don’t know.) Copying files from or to a CD or DVD CDs and DVDs once hailed from the school of simplicity: You simply slid them into your CD player or DVD player. But as soon as those discs graduated to PCs, the problems intensified. When you create a CD or DVD, you need to tell your PC what you’re copying, and where you intend to play it: Music for a CD player? Movies for a DVD player? Or simply files for your computer? If you choose the wrong answer, the disc won’t work. Here are the Disc Creation rules:

- Music: To create a CD that plays music in your CD player or car stereo, flip ahead to Article 15. You need to fire up Vista’s Media Player program.

- Movies and photo slide shows: To create a DVD with movies or slide shows that play on a DVD player, jump to Article 16. You want Vista’s new DVD Maker program. But if you just want to copy files to a CD or DVD, perhaps to save as a backup or give to a friend, stick around. Follow these steps to write files to a new, blank CD or DVD. (If you’re writing files to a CD or DVD that you’ve written to before, jump ahead to Step 4.) Note: If your PC has a third-party disc-burning program, that program may automatically take charge as soon as you insert the disc, bypassing these steps completely. If you want Vista or a different program to burn the disc instead, close the third-party program. Then right-click the drive’s icon and choose Open AutoPlay. There, you can tell how Vista to react to an inserted blank disc.