Configure whether to display balloon tips

Windows XP started using balloon tips heavily, as an attempt to help the average user to understand what is happening on the computer. The balloon tip is shown like a tooltip bubble just above the taskbar to the right near the system tray (also known as the notification area). For the more experienced user the balloon tips can become a pain, but it is possible to configure their behavior.

To disable balloon tips in the notification area completely:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \Advanced]
EnableBalloonTips = 0

More Info MS KB279771
More Info MS KB307729

To disable "Show popup description for folder and desktop items" (Folder Options):

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \Advanced]
ShowInfoTip = 0

To disable tooltip for folders:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \Advanced]
FolderContentsInfoTip = 0

To disable tooltips for the start button:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \Advanced]
StartButtonBalloonTip = 0

To disable the balloon tip "To see the hidden icons, click this button":

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \TrayNotify]
BalloonTip = 1

To disable tooltips for the start menu:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Policies \Explorer]
NoSMBalloonTip = 1

To disable the welcome screen presented after login:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \SOFTWARE \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Policies \Explorer]
NoWelcomeScreen = 1

To disable the New Hardware Found balloon tooltips:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \Software \Policies \Microsoft \Windows \DeviceInstall \Settings]
DisableBalloonTips = 1

To disable the Highlighting of newly installed applications:

1. Press the Start-button and right-click at the top of the Start-Menu where your name is displayed and select Properties
2. This will open the Taskbar and Start Menu Properties-dialog
3. Select the Start-Menu-tab and press Customize
4. Select the Advanced-tab and clear the Highlight newly installed programs-checkbox
5. The above steps should be reflected in this registry key:

   [HKEY_CURRENT_USER \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Explorer \Advanced]
   Start_NotifyNewApps = 0

To disable the tour balloon tips:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER \Software \Microsoft \Windows \CurrentVersion \Applets \Tour]
RunCount = 0 (Default = 3)

More Info MS KB311489

To disable the printer spooler notification balloon tips:

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER \Printers \Settings]
EnableBalloonNotificationsLocal = 0
EnableBalloonNotificationsRemote = 0

More Info MS KB831582

To disable the Security Center notification balloon tips:

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \SOFTWARE \Microsoft \Security Center]
FirewallDisableNotify = 1 (0 = Firewall notifications)
UpdatesDisableNotify = 1 (0 = Automatic updates notifications)
AntiVirusDisableNotify = 1 (0 = Antivirus notifications)
UACDisableNotify = 1 (0 = Vista UAP notifications)

To disable the "This device could perform faster if it was plugged in to a high speed port":

1. Open the Device Manager and expand "USB Controller"
2. Right-click the USB Controller(s) and select Properties
3. Select the Advanced-tab and tick "Don't show USB errors (or similar)"

To disable Plug and Play messages like "Found New Hardware":

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \SYSTEM \CurrentControlSet \Services \PlugPlay \Parameters]
SuppressUI = 1 (Windows 2003/XP64 only)
SuppressNewHWUI = (Windows XP)

More Info MS KB311489 (Requires XP SP3 to recognize registry keys)

To disable the "There are unused icons on your desktop":

1. Open the Control Panel and go to Display Properties
2. Select the Desktop-tab and press the "Customize Desktop"-button
3. Untick "Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard every 60 days"