# Odd, mostly trivial, change to my Win XP computer that I don't understand **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 10, 2010, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791 "2010-08-10T04:21:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791/1 "2010-08-10T04:21:43Z")
I have a Dell Inspiron laptop with Win XP on it. It’s working fine, but something odd happened a few weeks ago when a friend borrowed it for the day. She allowed someone else to use it, he did something, and now when I click Start, Shut Down, instead of the pop-up window I used to get, which had three large buttons – Stand By, Turn Off, Restart – I get a box with the Windows logo and a drop down box with the same three options, plus “Log off commasense.” Everything else seems fine, and this isn’t a real problem, but I don’t understand what he did that resulted in this change, or why he would have done it. BTW, I have no evidence of, and no reason to suspect, any sort of malicious intent. Can I go back to the old pop up box? Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 4:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791/2 "2010-08-10T04:25:43Z")
He created a new user account. Go to control panel-\>users and see which accounts are listed. ---
**Author:** ![mikews99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac91a4/32.png) [@mikews99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mikews99)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 10:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791/3 "2010-08-10T10:53:38Z")
Start button, then Control Panel, User Accounts, Change the way users log on or off, tick the checkbox “Use the Welcome screen”, then click the Apply Options button. ---
**Author:** ![GusNSpot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gusnspot/32/436_2.png) [@GusNSpot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GusNSpot)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791/4 "2010-08-10T19:26:10Z")
Letting someone use my computer is like letting them ride my motorcycle. Ain’t gonna happen. ---
**Author:** ![robcaro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/df705f/32.png) [@robcaro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robcaro)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791/5 "2010-08-10T20:12:24Z")
I hate to let someone use my computer. They always change something or let something in that I don’t like on my computer. Nuff said?:mad: ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791/6 "2010-08-10T20:31:09Z")
> [@mikews99](#): > > Start button, then Control Panel, User Accounts, Change the way users log on or off, tick the checkbox “Use the Welcome screen”, then click the Apply Options button. This did it, after I uninstalled the Client for Netware, which is apparently what he had done, so that she could connect to the internal network. Thanks! > [@GusNSpot](#): > > Letting someone use my computer is like letting them ride my motorcycle. Ain’t gonna happen. It’s not my only, or even my main, computer. If it were trashed or lost it wouldn’t be the end of the world. > [@robcaro](#): > > I hate to let someone use my computer. They always change something or let something in that I don’t like on my computer. Nuff said?:mad: The friend in question was my fiancée, Nuff said? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Lare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@Lare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lare)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791/7 "2010-08-10T20:49:12Z")
Two words: Guest account > **[Windows help & learning](https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/windows)** > > Find help and how-to articles for Windows operating systems. Get support for Windows and learn about installation, updates, privacy, security and more. (And a description for those interested: [http://support.microsoft.com/kb/300489](http://support.microsoft.com/kb/300489)) ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 9:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791/8 "2010-08-10T21:24:21Z")
Not a bad idea in principle, I admit. I didn’t even think about it. But in this particular case, they apparently had to install the Netware client to connect to a LAN. So if I had set up a guest account without Admin rights, she would have been unable to get to the Web, which was her reason for borrowing the computer in the first place. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791/9 "2010-08-10T21:35:39Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > The friend in question was my fiancée, Nuff said? 😃 Yeah, you had to let her use it. But you said she let\* someone else\* use it… ---
**Author:** ![ChrisBooth12](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e95f7d/32.png) [@ChrisBooth12](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ChrisBooth12)\ **Post date:** [August 10, 2010, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/odd-mostly-trivial-change-to-my-win-xp-computer-that-i-dont-understand/549791/10 "2010-08-10T21:55:19Z")
Thats why I love Ubuntu, Temp guest accounts any changes they make are taken off once they logoff and they must have you be present to login