How To Create Hidden User Account (Hide User Account From Welcome Screen) in Windows My Digital Life

7/2/13
How to Create Hidden User Account (Hide User Account from Welcome Screen) in Windows My Digital Life
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How to Create Hidden User Account (Hide User Account from Welcome Screen) in Windows
Windows operating system including Windows 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP allows multiple user accounts to be created on the computer, be it administrators or standard users. When there is more than one user accounts been defined and created on the PC, Windows will display Welcome Screen, with all available user accounts listed so that user can click and login. However, showing and displaying of user accounts on the Welcome Screen is probably a weakness in the security point of view, more so if the user account is intended to be a hidden or backup user account. In fact, there is trick to make user account or administrator account that normally been listed on the Welcome Screen to be hidden from view.
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In order to hide a user account (which also means create a hidden user account) in Windows XP, Vista, or Windows 7, just go to Control Panel User module and create an additional user as usually do (Control Panel -> User Accounts and Family Safety -> User Accounts in Windows 7 and Windows Vista). If you already have an existing user that wants to be made hidden, invisible or disappeared from Welcome Screen, then go straight to guide below. 1. Run Registry Editor (RegEdit.exe). 2. Navigate to the following registry key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\SpecialAccounts\UserList
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Note: If SpecialAccounts and UserList is not found, create new sub-key and name them accordingly. 3. Select UserList, and in the right pane, right click on any blank space, and point to New -> DWORD (32-bit) Value . 4. Name the new DWORD registry value name as the exact same name that match the name of the user account to be hidden. For example, if the user ID of the user account is John, the name the registry value as John. 5. Double click on DWORD registry value, and set the value data to 0 in oder to hide the account from Welcome Screen. Tip: To display the user account on Welcome Screen again so that its visible again, delete the registry entry, or set the value data to 1.
www.mydigitallife.info/how-to-create-hidden-user-account-hide-user-account-from-welcome-screen-in-windows/
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6. Exit Registry Editor. 7. Log off or restart computer to make the change effective. Tip: In order to login into Windows using an user account that has made hidden and invisible, just press Ctrl+Alt+Del to bring up Windows Logon dialog, and then type in the user name and password manually. Related Posts: How to Automatically Log On or Sign In to a User Account in Windows 7 How to Disable or Deactivate User Account in Windows 7 Reveal All Hidden User Folders In Send To Right Click Menu in Windows 7 Turn Off or Disable User Account Control (UAC) in Windows Vista How to Clear and Dont Display Last User Name who Logged In On Windows Logon Screen
110 Comments
Max March 2, 2013 at 6:53 am
Or you could just type net user enter_account_name_here /active:no in a command window after running it as Administer
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Jeff March 4, 2013 at 8:18 am
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Max, there is a huge difference between this and using /active:no. You can still use accounts hidden through this method, ie in Run As User, or for remotely logging onto the computer
kaz
February 12, 2013 at 2:16 am
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Here is the quick solution to everybodys problems [Vista and 7]: 1) Log in to any user on the computer 2) Start>Run [Win>R, keyboard] and type in regedit. A UAC (User Access Control) window will pop up. 3) Enter credentials of hidden user account 4) ??? 5) Profit.
marcus February 3, 2013 at 11:22 pm
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everyone shut up for a sec people like me are saying that when we press ctrl alt del it doesnt work, now help
IT lover November 11, 2012 at 1:35 pm

It works perfectly! thanks
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edwin January 26, 2012 at 5:24 pm
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ok, let settled this matter once and for all. @all, b4 you hid any user account using the method above, pls do the following if you are a win7 or vista user. type in secpol.msc into the start menu search box and then navigate to Local Policies \ Security Options. Find the setting for Interactive Logon: Do not display last user name and change it to enabled. @poster, pls update your post.
Wammy August 28, 2012 at 9:59 pm
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secpol.msc is not available in Win7 Home Premium. Either that or Im doing something wrong. The registry edit worked, but now theres no way for me to get to the hidden account from the login screen.
Anonymous November 19, 2012 at 12:23 am

That will work in only in Windows 7 Professional or higher versions..Genius!
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Hiding User Account Renders Administrator Inaccesible Overclockedtechies January 10, 2012 at 6:10 am
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[...] for the kicker, I was told the user followed this tutorial (http://www.mydigitallife.info/how-tocreate-hidden-user-account-hide-user-account-from-welcome-scree that post should be DELETED) to hide the admin account, if you read the comments you will find [...]
Kshitiz
January 3, 2012 at 12:30 am
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Thanks very much. it was very useful
jekjan December 15, 2011 at 10:16 pm

hey when i press control +alt + del nothing shows up
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Thanks October 25, 2011 at 12:23 pm
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Thanks! It works! I wanted to create a new admin account for backup processing but dont want to show it on my logon screen. I have another admin account that I use normally. *cheers*
lolcat October 21, 2011 at 7:16 pm
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an easier method would be to enable Interactive logon: Do not display last user name in the local group policy editor,and that wont lock you out of your admin account like the method described here.
prince September 27, 2011 at 3:38 pm
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is there any way to hide it totally without it been seen in control panel or in local user account
jonnie walker September 20, 2011 at 2:13 am

after restart when i press ctrl alt del. nothing happens :S
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Lars September 14, 2011 at 1:10 pm
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I took three eggs and cracked them on the side of the bowl, added three cups of orange extract, two teaspoons, no, oops, two TABLE spoons of cane sugar and a cup of flour. Even though I baked for 30 minutes at 350 degrees I still can't find my underwear when the dryer goes to the delicate cycle because, let's face it; DAMN. I need to go on a diet.
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What's say you?
Ramy September 9, 2011 at 6:32 am
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this post is hillarious "including Windows 7" seriously? What a poorly written article. WARNING Once you do this in Windows 7, you WILL disable all accounts that you put into the UserList (including Administrator if you add it to the list. Ctrl Alt Del does NOT work in Windows 7 to bring up classic login box. All of the "noob" comments are worthless also since this article is aimed toward them.
Cunty November 27, 2012 at 5:02 am
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WROOOOOOOOOONG. Ctrl+Alt+Del can be enabled to bring up manual login on Windows 7. Thought thats pretty basic stuff.. Youd think that all these geeks on a computer post would know what theyre talking about. But no, ALAS. All the virgins have got it wrong.
LoLz @ U Lot August 16, 2011 at 4:21 pm
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the whole point of hiding it is so it cant be logged on! why would you want to hide it if you wanted it to be usable aswell, there are many uses for that account e.g. network logon and as mentioned above, running elevated tasks. also why hide the only admin account? your obviously locking yourself out! We have an id10t problem in here and its nothing to do with me.
Orlynao? August 26, 2011 at 7:38 am
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I have my way to get through it and access the winlogon account via the winlogon, with a certain logon program. If you know what you are doing, you will certainly able to make use of this function well. With this, I have my account hidden nicely.
Undefined July 23, 2011 at 8:28 pm
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This is a good post though it does work only for XP and Vista maybe but windows 7 does not have "Special accounts" folder in the registry. But as I was reading through the comments, I just found out that the comments are posted by damn stupid no0bs who don't even understand what they are doing.. Just following the steps isnt enough, u need to knw what you are doing ! Anyways this is a good post
scorp July 6, 2011 at 2:41 pm

Omg guys,
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if you hide your account, it does not mean it has been disabled. Simply run cmd under any user and write: "runas /u:admin cmd" where "admin" is your hidden account, it will prompt for password. Type it there and system will run command line with the rights of admin. Then type "regedit" and delete that account from registry. no need to do anything with restore or similar workarounds..
hans May 26, 2011 at 11:13 pm

The above steps only work for previous / earlier versions of windows except VISTA and Windows 7
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Alex May 26, 2011 at 10:11 pm

I followed your directions and hid my only admin account, hoping to access it using the combination but it failed.
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I strongly suggest you indicate that the Ctrl+Alt+Del shortcut works ONLY on pre-Vista.
But for the fact that I'd created a System Restore point on the previous day, I might have had to reinstall my OS.
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Andres May 21, 2011 at 3:17 pm
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this bullshit post screwed my computer up I can't access or unblocked my administrator accountplease helpmy operating system is vistaDO NOT FOLLOW THIS POST, IT IS GONNA BLOCKED YOUR ADMINISTRATOR ACCOUNT FOREVER STUPID WEBSITE :/
Pissed May 20, 2011 at 8:29 am
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Why are you guys leaving this post up. I just wasted 20 minutes fixing your lame handy work. TAKE DOWN THIS POST. AND IF YOUR READING THIS, I URGE YOU TO STOP NOW! The simple fix: First off, don't panic, yes you just got screwed! Then navigate to your system drive, and open your windows folder. Typically "C:windows". Find "regedit.exe", while depressing the shift key, right click the file, and choose "Run as different user". Enter your credentials and walla. Note: selecting "Run as administrator" will not work. And baring any folder lockouts, this could also work on the "system restore" link under "all programs / accessories". And again, "REMOVE THIS POST, YOUR INVITING TROUBLE FROM THE WRONG PEOPLE!!"
Eph July 9, 2011 at 9:46 am
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Thanks for this post. The people that are complaining dont understand what the purpose of this action is. Please dont delete this.
grant May 6, 2011 at 7:31 am
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Please note that hitting Ctrl+Alt+Del twice doesn't work on Windows 7 (when tested with Windows 7 Professional, May, 2011). This article is very helpful for other operating systems, but please don't try it with Windows 7. You may have to go in and reverse the registry change in order to have your hidden account show up again. Dear MDL Editorial Team do you have an update with some tips for Windows 7 users on this issue? Thanks!
Chris May 4, 2011 at 6:14 pm
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NOTICE TO ALL PEOPLE: the ctrl+alt+del only works if the last operation was a restart or log off. It does not work if you just switch users.
andycire March 9, 2011 at 10:15 pm

Just follow the comment posted by Carlito: ** QUICK FIX FOR PPL LOCKED OUT OF ACCOUNTS ** This process will truly help you
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ankit February 18, 2011 at 6:50 am

oh that's awesome baby thanx
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MrBIL January 9, 2011 at 11:22 am

SOLUTION If you have locked yourself out by implementing this in Winders.7 and hiding all Admin accounts:
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From another Win7 machine on the same LAN, do a Remote Desktop session to the problem computer. (If you cannot find the icon, just type "mstsc" (without the quotes) in the search box and press [Enter]) Via Remote Desktop, logon with Admin credentials, then reverse what you did to hide the admin accounts, make it/them visible again on the logon screen.
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If the problem computer is already on the logon screen, you'll need to either login with any available account, then log back off OR restart Winders in order to see the effects of your change. Enjoy!
akhil July 13, 2011 at 1:35 am

thanks man! awsome, you've just made my task easier
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UGH. December 26, 2010 at 11:50 am
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what the hell i am so screwed. YAR i didnt read your comment before making this and i made the only admin on our cpu invisible. AM I SCREWED?! is there any freaking way to fix this?? please help i have like files that i really need.
MaltaBoy December 7, 2010 at 5:56 am

*before* you hide users, *enable* CTRL-ALT-DEL for logon as follows, since it is NOT ENABLED by default in Windows 7: - Go to the start menu - in the search box type: netplwiz - right click netplwiz and chose "run as Administrator" - in the user account floater that appears, go to the tab "Advanced" - now tick "Require users to press CTRL+Alt+Delete"
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AtechSupportGuy July 30, 2011 at 12:12 pm
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This^^^ Thanks. Most important bit of information in the entire page. You should email this to the guy that wrote the article.
Jonathan September 22, 2011 at 6:45 pm

YOU ARE THE ONE, MAN !
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Koffecopter December 7, 2010 at 5:43 am

I'm not sure if I did right, but this bs doesn't work for me,
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I created "SpecialAccounts" in WinLogon and then created "UserList" in that one, then that registry key value to the User ID and then changed the value to 0. I followed the instructions exactly, but it doesn't work..
Yar December 7, 2010 at 4:47 am
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As others have pointed out since Windows 7 removed the ctrl-alt-del[2] function that temporarily enables the mandatory login prompt, this trick is NOT recommended on Windows 7 and will likely cause significant impairment. If you have the discretionary login enabled (the welcome screen where you pick an account) and you hide an account, then you can never access that account again without peforming one of the painful recovery steps that other commenters have listed. As long as you keep one admin account enabled you can use a program like WinBubbles to manage this fairly easily, but if you hide all your admins, or even worse, all of your users, then you are in trouble.
Biomorph November 11, 2010 at 11:54 am

OK. THE "Ctrl, Alt, Del" to reveal hidden users in Win7 logon screen does not work. Here is how I fixed it so that I could get back control of my machine.
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Grab a copy of Offline NT Password & Registry Editor http://pogostick.net/~pnh/ntpasswd/ Create the boot cd from the .iso Boot with the cd.
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Choose "Promote User" from the menu. Promote a normal user to an admin user. Save changes and reboot into win7. Login with the newly promoted user and delete the registy entry previously created. Logout, and the hidden user now shows on the login screen. Note to the author of this site: PLEASE UPDATE THIS TIP TO POINT OUT THAT THIS WILL CRIPPLE A WIN 7 MACHINE!!!
hello October 8, 2010 at 8:02 am
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i love this.use the "Run as" if u dont need to log-on(shift +right click a program, enter account credentials of hidden account).i just use it to make the pc more secure.i never need to log in to the account, just to run elevated stuff. happy days.and to all the noobs who didnt do it write, you make me laugh.hahahahhahaha.also, you can change windows to use the ctrl+alt+delete screen-look on the net somewhere.
Ravi October 6, 2010 at 5:17 am

Fuck Who's wrote these.after creating new key-sub keythe process not working.
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Awesome September 30, 2010 at 7:31 am

Cheers for the info. Worked like a charm.
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Perkele September 28, 2010 at 4:26 am
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WTF, now I must reisntall my pc, because I have workin admin account now. that should be hang by the neck who wrote that fucking instraction.
Nime September 15, 2010 at 5:17 am
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Restart in safe mode then you will access the administrative or hidden account(s) again.
Robaye August 23, 2010 at 7:11 pm

There are a couple of freeware hide utilities I've seen. I keep them both handy. User Control usercontrol.isgreat.org XP User Hide intelliadmin.com
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Wilson August 15, 2010 at 6:47 pm
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This was not useful at all because I can't go on any farther than the logon screen BECAUSE I CAN'T LOGIN.
pokematrix247 July 23, 2010 at 12:19 pm

I can not get any of it working, speacial users does not show up, + alt+ctrl+dlt doesn't work!!! help
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Siamak Shams Windows 7: How to Hide User Login May 21, 2010 at 10:35 pm REPLY
[...] account. This is done by manipulating Windows Registry. I found the most useful instructions at My Digital Life. Youll find the same or similar instructions in quite a few places too. The instructions are [...]
Tito May 3, 2010 at 3:48 am
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try pressing "Ctrl + Alt + Delete[2]" means press Delete twice, it will surely work
Mayflower May 3, 2010 at 3:09 am

DOESN'T WORK!!! VERY DISSAPOINTED.
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Pyvarex April 26, 2010 at 10:34 am

the ctrl alt del function only work on the home screen when no users are logged on!
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isaac April 25, 2010 at 9:35 am

i had an error
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Albert April 15, 2010 at 9:53 pm
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Close but no cigar. How can you log on to the account once it is hidden. The CTRL DELETE will not work. Nice Try tho.
Riddles April 12, 2010 at 5:27 pm
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I was able to hide the other user account but the Ctrl+Alt+Del DOES NOT WORK!!!! on logon screen for Windows 7.
Hamid April 12, 2010 at 3:52 pm
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I did this to Hide my Adminstrator. Now I can't log on as an Admin, I tried to delete it but it wount let me. can you please help me.
writinghelp May 12, 2011 at 8:53 am
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Dear Hamid you can do it from another account. Delete that registry key and the issue would be resolved.
Hawken April 11, 2010 at 2:42 pm
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But you can still see it from control panel is there any way to hide it from there as well? The information is awesome Keep up the good work
Naineesh April 10, 2010 at 2:33 am

you guys are awesome,you have every information which everyone needs.
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How To Create Hidden User Account (Hide User Account From Welcome Screen) in Windows My Digital Life

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Living Digitally and Electronically

Feb 21, 2009

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TRANSLATE THIS PAGE Select Language

Jeff March 4, 2013 at 8:18 am

February 12, 2013 at 2:16 am

marcus February 3, 2013 at 11:22 pm

IT lover November 11, 2012 at 1:35 pm

edwin January 26, 2012 at 5:24 pm

Wammy August 28, 2012 at 9:59 pm

Anonymous November 19, 2012 at 12:23 am

January 3, 2012 at 12:30 am

Thanks very much. it was very useful

jekjan December 15, 2011 at 10:16 pm

Thanks October 25, 2011 at 12:23 pm

lolcat October 21, 2011 at 7:16 pm

prince September 27, 2011 at 3:38 pm

jonnie walker September 20, 2011 at 2:13 am

Lars September 14, 2011 at 1:10 pm

Ramy September 9, 2011 at 6:32 am

Cunty November 27, 2012 at 5:02 am

LoLz @ U Lot August 16, 2011 at 4:21 pm

Orlynao? August 26, 2011 at 7:38 am

Undefined July 23, 2011 at 8:28 pm

scorp July 6, 2011 at 2:41 pm

hans May 26, 2011 at 11:13 pm

Alex May 26, 2011 at 10:11 pm

Andres May 21, 2011 at 3:17 pm

Pissed May 20, 2011 at 8:29 am

Eph July 9, 2011 at 9:46 am

grant May 6, 2011 at 7:31 am

Chris May 4, 2011 at 6:14 pm

andycire March 9, 2011 at 10:15 pm

ankit February 18, 2011 at 6:50 am

MrBIL January 9, 2011 at 11:22 am

akhil July 13, 2011 at 1:35 am

UGH. December 26, 2010 at 11:50 am

MaltaBoy December 7, 2010 at 5:56 am

AtechSupportGuy July 30, 2011 at 12:12 pm

Jonathan September 22, 2011 at 6:45 pm

Koffecopter December 7, 2010 at 5:43 am

Yar December 7, 2010 at 4:47 am

Biomorph November 11, 2010 at 11:54 am

hello October 8, 2010 at 8:02 am

Ravi October 6, 2010 at 5:17 am

Awesome September 30, 2010 at 7:31 am

Perkele September 28, 2010 at 4:26 am

Nime September 15, 2010 at 5:17 am

Robaye August 23, 2010 at 7:11 pm

Wilson August 15, 2010 at 6:47 pm

pokematrix247 July 23, 2010 at 12:19 pm

Tito May 3, 2010 at 3:48 am

Mayflower May 3, 2010 at 3:09 am

Pyvarex April 26, 2010 at 10:34 am

isaac April 25, 2010 at 9:35 am

Albert April 15, 2010 at 9:53 pm

Riddles April 12, 2010 at 5:27 pm

Hamid April 12, 2010 at 3:52 pm

writinghelp May 12, 2011 at 8:53 am

Hawken April 11, 2010 at 2:42 pm