For some reason, in Windows XP, my Internet Explorer windows vary from

For some reason, in Windows XP, my Internet Explorer windows vary from session to session. How can I make Internet Explorer always open in full screen mode?
-Chuck

This question was answered on October 28, 2002. Much of the information contained herein may have changed since posting.

The actual control for the default window size varies from program to program, but for the most part it is determined by what size it was when you closed it For instance, if a window is full screen when it’s closed, it will generally open in full screen mode If it is in ‘windowed’ mode and in a certain position on the desktop when it’s closed, it should open in that exact size and position when it is opened next With pop-up and pop-under ads becoming so prevalent on the Internet, it is possible that the last Internet Explorer window that you closed was an ad, which would explain why your browser sometimes opens in windowed mode Try to pay attention to the size of the Internet Explorer window (or any program for that matter) before you close it If it is not full screen, click on the ‘Maximize’ icon (between the _ and the X in the top right corner of the window) before closing the window If you want to force Internet Explorer to open in the exact same size every time, you can use a trick incorporated by many web developers that allows them to view their projects at specific resolutions Click on ‘Tools’ then ‘Internet Options…’ and place the following in the Home Page Address section: (all one line, no spaces) javascript:resizeTo(800,600);moveTo(0,0);document.location.href='yourhomepage' Be sure to put your desired start page in the single quote marks at the end (example: https://www.datadoctors.com ) The (800,600) portion should be set to match your display settings if you want it to be full screen The above example is for 800 by 600 pixels To determine your screen resolution setting, right-click on any blank part of your Desktop, then choose ‘Properties’ to open the Display Properties window Click on the ‘Settings’ tab, then look in the ‘Screen Resolution’ section for your current setting If you alternate screen resolutions, enter the highest resolution you will use in the script so that it will always be full screen as you increase or decrease your display size If you are having similar problems with other programs, such as the Windows Explorer or just can’t seem to get the above suggestions to work, there is a free program that you can download that will force the opening size and position for virtually any program It’s called ‘AutoSizer’ from a company called South Bay Software It’s a fairly small download (125 Kb) and it works with just about any version of Windows (95, 98, ME, NT, 2000 & XP) It runs in the background in the ‘System Tray’ (down by the clock) so it works without constant user interaction You can download it from their web site at: http://southbaypc.com/autosizer .