Add Shutdown Icon to Your Desktop

Today, I added a shutdown icon to my Dad's Windows XP desktop, to make it easier for him to turn off the computer. This is how you can do it:

• Right-click on the desktop and choose New > Shortcut.
• Type shutdown.exe -s -t 00 in the location box and press Next.
• Type Turn off computer as the name of the shortcut and then press Finish.
• Right-click the new icon that has appeared on the desktop and select Properties.
• Click the Change Icon... button on the Shortcut tab.
• Type %SystemRoot%\system32\SHELL32.dll in the location box and pick the Shutdown icon, which looks like a red square containing a circle with a vertical line.

Now, you can shutdown your computer by simply clicking the "Turn off computer" icon on your desktop, instead of going via the Start menu.