Idea: Windows "superguide" or guide of guides

Maybe I just haven't found it yet (although I have looked) but I think what would be useful to a lot of people is this Windoiws "superguide." It would of course include all the boilerplate that you find in any Google search, but it would go into more detail on tools, settings, etc. In particular, it wouild cover the use and comparisons/contrasts of tools like Winutil, Winaero, Chris Titus's utility, and many others. It would also cover rergistry settings, etc., etc. In other words, which tools and why, in what order, etc. Which first and what setings to use, which to use second, and which settings to use, and so on and so forth.

I know a lot of this material already exists. What I had in mind was a writeup that would stitch all this together into one, comprehensive document. In the spirit of a Wikipedia page, it could be added by users.

What do you guys think? No, I am NOT trolling, nor have I had too much spiked eggnog to drink.

x509 said:

superguide

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ArchWiki (for Linux)

I'd like to add to the SuperGuide.

Which utilities are redundant or completely replaced by other utilities, the idea being to use as few tools as possible.

To be 100% comprehensive it would be as large as a set of encyclopedias. Maybe 2 sets, beginner and intermediate. Then it would have to be updated regularly....like monthly. That's what a web search or AI is designed for. Research....and a lot of reading. By the time the user gets reasonably comfortable, it all changes so one has to start all over again with something new and different.

Pretty darn super


A Guy

I use the tutorials on this Forum or ask a question here!

x509 said:

Maybe I just haven't found it yet (although I have looked) but I think what would be useful to a lot of people is this Windows "superguide."

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This may seem to be a strange question, but how would you recognise it if you saw such a superguide? Could you give an example of how you'd imagine finding something in this superguide?

x509 said:

I'd like to add to the SuperGuide.

Which utilities are redundant or completely replaced by other utilities, the idea being to use as few tools as possible.

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That's easy to answer. Although you may not like the answer. Windows Powershell should be able to do pretty much everything, although more specialised tools for registry searching would be helpful.

glasskuter said:

Research....and a lot of reading. By the time the user gets reasonably comfortable, it all changes so one has to start all over again with something new and different.

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Most things in Windows don't change from one version to the next, and within Windows 11, there are new features, but the official tools for managing them: Group Policy and InTune/MDM have to be consistent and be updated for serious corporate users

A Guy said:

Pretty darn super

Tutorial Index

Index of Windows 11 Tutorials.

www.elevenforum.com

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The tutorials here are very good, and can be a useful source of general information but they are rightly narrowly focused for the benefit of their main target audience. I take this to be users who can follow precise instructions, but aren't interested in understanding how the underlying system works. A basic assumption is that users are members of the administrators group, which I'm sure is correct for nearly all home Windows users and visitors to this site. So, as a non-admin user I rework tutorial instructions to avoid the need for admin access.

I like to understand what I'm doing, so I try to find explanations on the Microsoft website. There normally aren't references in the tutorials, which I think is reasonable. Arguably, there could be a place on this site for 'explainers' which try to tackle techniques used. As an example, I often think that some members don't really understand how HKCR works.

OK, as the OP, let me restate my idea here, to clarify what I meant by guide of guides. I have in mind a Wikipedia page style.

Imagine section headings in the superguide like
Initial Installation - various methods like MCT, Rufus, The NT web site (I forget the exact name here) etc. Including note for systems that don't meet Win 11 requirements, upgrade vs fresh install. Just list the options and their tools and URLs, with one-line descriptions, not the full detail.
Initial Configuration scripts and tools - Various tools like Winaero, ExplorerPatcher, WindHawk, relevant scripts in the forum Leaderboard, Chris Titus, etc. I know that this list can never be comprehensive, again just one line descriptions. Perhaps include a list of tools and scripts to NOT use, and why.
Fine Tuning - Debloat and optimization - same as Initial Installation.
Program Installs. UnigetAI, other tools. Direct from the vendor's websites.
User Administration - same as above.
Backup/Restore and Export - same as above.

x509 said:

OK, as the OP, let me restate my idea here, to clarify what I meant by guide of guides. I have in mind a Wikipedia page style.

Imagine section headings in the superguide like
Initial Installation - various methods like MCT, Rufus, The NT web site (I forget the exact name here) etc. Including note for systems that don't meet Win 11 requirements, upgrade vs fresh install. Just list the options and their tools and URLs, with one-line descriptions, not the full detail.
Initial Configuration scripts and tools - Various tools like Winaero, ExplorerPatcher, WindHawk, relevant scripts in the forum Leaderboard, Chris Titus, etc. I know that this list can never be comprehensive, again just one line descriptions. Perhaps include a list of tools and scripts to NOT use, and why.
Fine Tuning - Debloat and optimization - same as Initial Installation.
Program Installs. UnigetAI, other tools. Direct from the vendor's websites.
User Administration - same as above.
Backup/Restore and Export - same as above.

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I can't wait to see how your project progresses.
Please kindly keep us informed.

OAT said:

I can't wait to see how your project progresses.
Please kindly keep us informed.

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Oh, at best I can only put together a limited subset of items, since I'm just one person and nowhere near as skilled and experienced as many of the regulars here. At best.

As has been mentioned here several times so far, The Tutorial section in this Forum is already compiled, it has a searchable index database to look for a specific problem and solution.
You don't need another database compiled

x509 said:

Oh, at best I can only put together a limited subset of items, since I'm just one person and nowhere near as skilled and experienced as many of the regulars here. At best.

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I am sure you can do better than that, if you put in the effort.
Knowledge is not acquired via others doing the work for you,
It is an endless frustrating and often lonely road but yet extremely rewarding.
You ought to try it.
Good luck and we are all eager testers!