3-D Objects: Highlights and Shadows
Active Window Tracking (X-Mouse)
Add/Remove - Remove unwanted entries in the Programs Box
Arrow - Turn Off the "Click Here to Begin" arrow
AutoComplete - Delete Entries
AutoPlay - Disable

3-D Objects: Highlights and Shadows

Open up the Registry Editor.
Go to the following SubKey:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Colors

There you will find a list of various system items, such as buttons, and active title bar, etc. Actually, it adds to the information that is editable in the Control Panel's Display Properties dialog Appearance tab.
The information is presented as RGB data, which means that each color is represented by three values to simulate the various colors that will be displayed on your screen. The three values are Red, Green, and Blue. Each of the three can have values between zero (0), which represents black, and 255, which represents white.

EXAMPLE: 0 0 0 represents black 255 255 255 represents white all other colors are somewhere in between

The RGB Color Model is an additive model that is used to determine how colors are displayed on computer monitors.
RGB values for the various colors can be found in the following place on your system: Control Panel, Display, Properties, Appearance, Color, Other
In this dialog, the RGB values are found in the lower right corner. Be sure to write down the values of your favourite colors, so they can be changed easily.
Knowing all this, you are ready to further customise the shadows and inverse colors of 3-D objects in the Windows 95 system.

Active Window Tracking (X-Mouse)

This tweak makes you most control the Window focus, therefore wherever you move your mouse the window will become active, similar to X-Windows on Unix.
Open the registry and find the key:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Mouse Create a new DWORD value called 'ActiveWindowTracking', or modify the existing value, to equal '1' for enabled.(0=disable)
Note: Restart your computer for the changes to take affect.

Remove unwanted entries in the Add/Remove Programs Box

All Windows 9x or NT compatible programs must include an Uninstall program, sometimes though the program may get removed but the entry in Add/Remove programs doesn't, from this key you can remove those orphaned entries.
Go to:

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\ SOFTWARE\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Uninstall

Under this key will be a number of sub-keys, each representing an installed application.
To see which application each sub-key represents, open it and there should be at least two values

DisplayName and UninstallString.

DisplayName is the name used in the Add/Remove programs list, and 'UninstallString' is the program used to uninstall the application.
To remove a program from the list you can simple delete the sub-key representing that program.
Open, and remove any unwanted keys under "Uninstall."

Turn Off Click Here to Begin Arrow

The Click Here to Begin arrow that bounces off the start menu when you first start Windows95 was irritating right off the bat.
I suppose it's useful for those folks who can't figure out what Start means,
Microsoft claims that it is impossible to get rid of the little bouncing arrow, but we've figured it out:
Go To:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\ Software\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Policies\ Explorer.

If it's not there, create a binary value and call it NoStartBanner.
Double-click on NoStartBanner, and enter the value 01 00 00 00, and press OK.
Repeat the same steps for HKEY_USERS\ .Default\ Software\ Microsoft\ Windows\ CurrentVersion\ Policies\ Explorer.

Delete AutoComplete Entries

Delete the entries that you don't want at the following location.

Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\TypedURLs.

Also look in

HKEY_USERS\Default\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\TypedURLs

Autoplay

Tip supplied by Max (Endeavor)

In XP (most likely in 2k && NT) you do can go following:
Navigate to:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Services \ CDRom \ Autorun
REG_DWORD : 1 == on, 0 == off.
This must disable all the function _completely_ ...so this won't bother you any further :)
The problem can be for those who use the system's "write" functions -- it will be disabled too (hey, is there anyone who dared to trust Windows burn a cd?! :)
But if you record cds using ANY OTHER program, you should not worry -- it will work properly of course.
...If you just knew how many people asked me how to do this!!..