Computer related questions. Volume 35

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Tue 14 Dec 2004 12:54
Computer related questions. Volume 35 - Dynamic Dave

******** This thread now closed. Please see Volume 36 ********

www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=28035


In this thread you may ask any computer related question for which you need help, advice, suggestions or whatever.

Usual rules apply,

No motoring related discussion,
No politics,
No Speeding, speed cameras, traffic calming
No arguments or slanging matches
Nothing which I think is not following the spirit of the thread
Nothing that risks the future of this site (please see the small print for details www.honestjohn.co.uk/credits/index.htm )

Any of the above will be deleted. If the thread becomes difficult to maintain it will simply be removed.

There is a wealth of knowledge in here, much of which is not motoring related, but most of which is useful.

This is Volume 35. Previous Volumes will not be deleted.

A list of previous volumes can be found here:-
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=20892


PLEASE NOTE:

When posting a NEW question, please "Reply to" the first message in this thread, i.e. this one. This keeps each question in it's own separate segment and stops each new question from getting mixed up in amongst existing questions. Also please remember to change the subject header.
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Tue 14 Dec 2004 10:27
Windows 2000 equivalent of msconfig - Mike H
I've used msconfig frequently on Windows XP machines, does anyone know if there is an equivalent of this on Windows 2000? Ta.
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Tue 14 Dec 2004 10:42
Windows 2000 equivalent of msconfig - Stuartli
Found at:

www.computing.net/windows2000/wwwboard/forum/59796...l

"Msconfig for Win2000 can be found at:

webpages.charter.net/bdube/downloads.html

Scroll down the page.

I have a short cut on my desktop and the program will run just as in Win98 etc."

Then:

"I don't know what version I have, because I've never used it. But here's what I got:

C:\temp\->dir/s/b r:\msconfig*.*
r:\I386\MSCONFIG.CH_
r:\I386\MSCONFIG.EX_
r:\WinXP.SP1\SP1\msconfig.ex_ "

Followed by:

"Two files ( the XP versions ) are needed for W2K

MSCONFIG.EXE goes into WINNT\System32 folder

MSCONFIG.CHM goes into WINNT\Help folder"

Also:

"Go to:
Start > Programs > Administrative Tools > Services

In "Startup Type" column select "Automatic"

Which may solve it all in one go...:-))
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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Wed 15 Dec 2004 00:14
New version of AVG anti-virus - PhilW
Stuartli has mentioned version 7 which has just come out, and I have just received a reminder from AVG to install it - I mention it just in case others have missed it. Version 6 not being updated after January.
free.grisoft.com/doc/2
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 20:04
New version of AVG anti-virus - Anglesey Ian
Further to downloading AVG version 7 on my computer (running Windows Home XP) all manner of strange things have been happening. This has included (mainly) computer refusing to boot up and several warning signals indicating general 'fault' malfunctions.

Only solution was to Press F5 during 'boot up' and using system restore to a time before this new version was downloaded.
After a recent attempt and having downloaded new version, I immediately updated with a 'patch' from Grisoft and it appears that my system is now running OK.

Couldn't find ny reference to this new version being the source of problems. Have any backroomers experienced this ?

AI
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Thu 16 Dec 2004 09:27
Diagnosing problems - rory
I recntly installed some hardware ( NEC DVD burner, very good it is too ) and had some subsequent problems, which were 'easily' fixed by taking my machine to a techy I know ( luckily, no charge ) who said a dll ( whatever that may be ) was missing, and problem was easily remedied. I'm not all that pc-literate, but I do get by. So, I asked, how could I have found this out for myself, and fixed it for myself ? The answer was: "ah, well, you see, I've got special software I can load on and do the run and fix" So, my question is: what do 'teccies' use and where can we get it ?
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Thu 16 Dec 2004 09:42
Diagnosing problems - Stuartli
>>So, my question is: what do 'teccies' use and where can we get it ?>>

I suspect you've been taken for a bit of a ride...:-)

How much did it cost you for the "fix"?

Depending on what operating system you have (Windows 98, ME, 2000, XP or whatever) you can run the system's own System File Checker (SFC) which will find and repair any corrupt/damaged files (it installs them from the original installation disk if necessary).

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Thu 16 Dec 2004 10:26
Diagnosing problems - rory
Thanks for the swift response, and I'll bear it in mind. As you'll no doubt notice, it didn't cost me anything to get the original fix. Rgds
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Thu 16 Dec 2004 14:03
Diagnosing problems - Stuartli
By the way, a .DLL is a dynamic library link - it's a library (probably for Windows in your case) in which blocks of library code can be shared by several tasks when running applications.

If you ever require a .dll again and you know exactly which one, you can download and install it quickly from:

www.dll-files.com/

which can prove quicker than SFC.
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What\'s for you won\'t pass you by
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Thu 16 Dec 2004 15:43
Diagnosing problems - smokie
Unless you got a message saying a dll was missing, it could be hard to find. But sometimes the trick is to know where to look for those messages. Some products write a log file, or a message to the system log file, which are sometimes in plain and easy text, and other times are apparently meaningless codes and numbers.

But more often than not a good techie will define the symptoms of the problem, then research it using any number of different freely available (or subsciption) search tools to narrow down the cause of the problem and find the resolution. Your techie may not have known up front that a dll was missing, but something brought him to that conclusion.

It is quite a temptation when faced with a problem to "reload Windows" or to take a scattergun approach, using the first similar sounding problems you come across. More satisfying is to properly diagnose the problem, ensure you can reproduce it then apply the fix and prove it has worked. Bit like diagosing car problems I suppose.

There are some "known" DLLs - as Stuart says, they are shared code called by many different (and sometimes unrelated) programs, often to perform standard functions within the operating system. So, for instance, although Nero and EZ CD Creator look different and operate differently, when it comes to the part where it's physically writing a CD they are probably both calling the same piece of (Microsoft) code. DLLs are written with a standard interface which is published, and coders write code which passes and receives data through those interfaces. Many products use Microsoft DLLs, and some overwrite with their preferred version at installation time, often upsetting other applications. There are no doubt some which are fundamental to operating a CD writer, so if you happen to know which they are then that helps. If a dll is missing, I'd also be considering *why* it's missing, and what else might be missing, not just replacing it. But then...I'm old skool :-)

(
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Thu 16 Dec 2004 22:10
NTKERN problem. - PhilW
Please bear with me on this - I am not very computer literate.
Son was trying to load an uplink program for his Motarola mobile phone on to his computer which is a bit old and running Win98.
He got the message
"The NTKERN.VxD device loaders for this device could not load the device driver (Code 2)."
so I went to Microsoft support and found this
support.microsoft.com/?kbid=299264
which supposedly was to solve this exact problem.
We followed the stages advised exactly to the letter but when it came to rebooting his computer it will only start in safe mode. Scandisk says there are no errors. He also says he cannot reboot with CD support because safe mode will not allow this.
I have looked up the NTKERN problem on Google and the only solutions I can find are ones referring to Microsoft as above.
Can anyone suggest
a) How to overcome the NTKERN problem or
b) How to get his computer back to its previous state?
Thanks for your help - but please keep it simple!!!
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 01:00
NTKERN problem. - Mark (RLBS)
Another reference;

support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;2...2

Can you explain this bit a little more -

>>He also says he cannot reboot with CD support because safe mode will not allow this.
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 01:01
NTKERN problem. - Mark (RLBS)
And this might be worth a read....

www.bios-drivers.com/drivers/39/39567.htm
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 08:29
NTKERN problem. - PhilW
Thanks for replies Mark.
I saw the first reference you quote - but am I right in saying it only applies where Win 98 remains but Windows has been upgraded to ME or XP elsewhere on computer (different drive)?
Your second reference might also work but he can't get on to internet to download it! I had also seen elsewhere that it may require changes to BIOS - but given our computer illiteracy we didn't like to go that way!
He cannot use his CD (of Win 98) when in safe mode because the CD drivers are not loaded in that mode.
Hope this makes sense!
Situation is not helped by the fact that he is in Leeds and I am in Leics!
Thanks again
Phil

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Fri 17 Dec 2004 12:17
NTKERN problem. - Marky Mark
Should be able to load cd drivers if you boot from a DOS boot disk/Win 98 startup disk. Unfortunately if you haven't got one handy and can't download one on the affected PC from www.bootdisk.com)it's a pain. Having not read the whole support articles, can you not load Win 98 in safe mode & uninstall the software or delete offending hardware from Control Panel --> System ---> Hardware?

MM
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 12:20
NTKERN problem. - Mark (RLBS)
As Mark says, create a normal DOS Boot disk with the relevant line in either autoexec or config.sys will give you access to the CD.

However, 98 doesn't normally force Safe mode although it may refuse to load drivers. If you select the "step by step" one, or whatever its called, then you should be able to allow the cd to be recognised but prevent everything else - there may be a bit of trial and error involved.

Mind you, if some sort of rollback is possible, then that would be the way to go.
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 11:06
NTKERN problem. - Dalglish
philw -

answers to your two questions

a)
- i have not read the links you and mark(rlbs) have posted - so apologies if the ones that i point to are giving the same message.
www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/win98/t1087142579
also search "google groups" for " NTKERN.VXD device loaders for this device could not load the device driver " and look up the numerous results.

b)
try stuartli's suggestion
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?v=e&t=24...0
quote:
There are also, to the surprise of many, Registry restore points in Windows98SE (five normally, although you can increase them if necessary); after booting up hit F8 for Safe Mode and choose option 5 (command Prompt Only line).

You then type in scanreg /restore (note the space) and follow the prompts. Select a suitable restore point and then press Enter.

To see all your scanreg options, type scanreg /? at the DOS prompt

Scanreg /restore saved my bacon on quite a few occasions...:-)
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 12:26
NTKERN problem. - PhilW
Thanks all - will try your various suggestions this evening (could be a lengthy phone call!). Son says he has got a start up disk - just a question of finding it!
I didn't realise there was a restore thingy on W98.
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 12:32
NTKERN problem. - Mark (RLBS)
He will have to find the startup disk *AND* add the relevant lines to enable the CD drive.
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 12:35
NTKERN problem. - Mark (RLBS)
I just had a thought;

W98 used to have a facility to be able to create a set of startup disks which would include neccessary hardware drives and other stuff.

As I said above, use the step by step approach to get it fired up in one mode or another, but *with* the diskette drive. Then create a set of startup disks, which I think is about 5 diskettes, and then you should be able to work your way through everything sufficiently to be able to repair and/or repair W98.

I remember doing this once now, for a very similar reason. I shall probably remember more about it as the day goes on. I do remember that it was a sod of a job though. I spent hours trying to get the CD drive to work, and then found that the easiest way was to create and then use the startup disks, and then booting on them was able to repair everything.

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Fri 17 Dec 2004 16:26
NTKERN problem. - Stuartli
It's some time since I used Windows 98SE - how memory fades over a comparatively short period! - but I do remember having a Windows Startup/Boot floppy.

It can be created on all earlier versions of Windows from, IIRC, Add/Remove Programs>Startup Disk tab.

Inserting a blank floppy in the drive and then clicking on something like Create StartUp Disk is all that is required.

It loads the necessary basic Windows drivers onto the floppy to get the system up and running and allows you to find/resolve/correct problems.

If the disk can't be created it can be downloaded from:

www.bootdisk.com/

There's also lots of other valuable advice and downloads at this website.
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 16:53
NTKERN problem. - smokie
All useful advice above. Seems from the problem description (and from what brought on the error) that the USB may be at fault. The new software probably updated the USB drivers to a level above that supported by the device, or to a version for the wrong operating system maybe?

You could try either disabling (or is it de-installing?) the USB in Device Manager then rebooting. I'm guessing that once it reboots it will find a new device, if you cancel when you get to the "where shall I get the files" bit then it may go ahead and complete booting into Normal mode, giving access to both CD and internet.

You could also try (but it probably won't work) pressing Ctrl as you boot, to get into the Windows Mode option - then select Normal instead of Safe. it will probably ignore you and boot into Safe anyway.

I wouldn't be touching the BIOS settings at this stage...unless you know what you are doing - although you *may* be able to disable USB in the BIOS. Make sure you note what you change, so you can change it back again.
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 17:00
NTKERN problem. - Stuartli
It's easy enough to check Bios configuration and, if necessary, Exit without Saving to preserve the status quo.

In Device Manager, USB configuration can be Update or Uninstall.
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 19:54
NTKERN problem. - PhilW
Thanks very much for all the responses - much appreciated!
We (You!) have got the computer working again after trying various things. What seemed to do the trick in the end was to disable all the USB things via Device manager and then it started normally. It also still allowed him to use a "bluetooth" connection to his phone (don't ask - I didn't!) but his little Disgo memory stick thing doesn't work via USB. Since I had spent about 2 hours on the phone while he restarted his computer about 200 times by this stage I said we should leave it at that and think about the Disgo when the brains had cooled!
One or two of your suggestions didn't work (but thanks for trying anyway) - for example the Restore function, disappointingly - we found it and tried it, and I have also made a note of some of the others, like the link to "bootdisk.com" in case it is useful in the future. The link to Google groups provided several hours of reading! There were over 80 pages of questions about NTKERN (about 8 qs per page!!) from people who were even more desperate than us. Needless to say, HJ contributors solved the problem much more quickly!!
Thanks again to all who helped
PhilW (and son)

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Fri 17 Dec 2004 19:39
Broadband connection problems - peterb
Any help gratefully received. I once before posted on PC woes before and the problem was sorted immediately!

I have high speed Tiscali broadband at home and connection has not been reliable. Periodic re-installation of the modem helps, but SWMBO is very unhappy (she works from home).

The modem often disconnents and then there is a "no dial tone" error message (the green modem status triangle goes red). This problem has become significantly worse recently.

I fear that a possible explanation is that I'm using an extension socket. If that's the problem, is there any way of installing a wireless connection to the main socket downstairs (running a cable from PC to main BT socket would be a serious pain)? And how secure are wireless connections?

Many thanks in advance.

PS The Tiscali helpline (located overseas, I think) have tried their best, but not solved the problem.
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Fri 17 Dec 2004 20:15
Broadband connection problems - Robin Reliant
I have Tiscali Broadband and had the same trouble running from an extension, as did a friend. A dedicated broadband cable is a must, probably the same with all broadband connections.

Can't help with wireless, no doubt others will put you right.
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Sat 18 Dec 2004 00:01
Broadband connection problems - Mark (RLBS)
I suspect your problem is that you are using a slave socket. But just to check, you are using filters on all the extensions ?

Firstly go and buy/make/borrow/obtain a very long extension lead and use it to plug your pc into the master conenction downstairs. Try to make sure it is a two pair lead rather than a single pair wich the cheaper ones can be.

See if it solves the problem.

If it does, then you can covert the socket near the pc to master and the current master to slave. Not easy and a pain, but possible.

A wireless connection downstairs and using it upstairs is emminently do-able and probably cheap. The newer your house the more likely this is to be effective due to the comparative flimsiness of floors/ceilings.

It is likely that your problem is within the house, and the master/slave thing is the most likely, although there are other possibilities.

Try the extension cable thing and see how you get on.
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Sat 18 Dec 2004 00:36
Broadband connection problems - Welliesorter
If that's the problem, is there any way
of installing a wireless connection to the main socket downstairs (running
a cable from PC to main BT socket would be a
serious pain)? And how secure are wireless connections?


You'd need an ADSL router at the main socket and a wireless network card (is that the correct term?) in the PC. Wireless connections are secure if you make them secure. There are ways of encrypting the signal between the router and the PC. If you don't do this, your neighbours, or any passer-by with a laptop or PDA could use your connection.

Mark's idea of swapping the master socket and extension isn't a DIY job. You can do what you like with extension sockets but the master socket (and the wiring that leads into it from outside) is BT's property.

Your problem could easily be caused by dodgy filters or extension wiring, but I'd try to prove this before spending money on a solution.
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Sat 18 Dec 2004 00:40
Broadband connection problems - Mark (RLBS)
By the way, wireless LANs are as secure as you make them as WS pointed out. It is worth of emphasis that by default they are not secure at all - not even slightly.

Whilst Welliesorter is correct about the ownership of some of the wiring, the penalty for messing with it is that if you either cause a fault, or a future issue is found which is perceived to be caused by the alteration, then you will be charged for its repair.

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Sat 18 Dec 2004 09:51
Broadband connection problems - peterb
Thanks, guys.

I do have a filter for all 'phones. I'll probably go down the wireless + security route.

Cheers

Peter
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Sat 18 Dec 2004 14:50
Broadband connection problems - Altea Ego
If all the above excelent advice does not work out.

You may have course have a poor telephone signal. If you are a few KM's away from the exchange, and have a dodgy connection on the "pole or hole" you may be dropping below ADSL signal threshold.

If you buy a an ADSL wireless router, they usaully have an indication in the settings somewhere what your telephone signal (in DB) is like.

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Sat 18 Dec 2004 20:20
Broadband connection problems - defender
peterb,before you do anything else it might be worth asking bt to increase the gain on your line ,phone bt faults and they can check/alter it remotely.the card connections in the exchange can also have an effect on internet .if plugging in to the master socket doesnt help ask bt to check connections on your line
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Sat 18 Dec 2004 22:28
Broadband connection problems - Welliesorter
before you do anything else it might be worth asking bt
to increase the gain on your line ,phone bt faults and
they can check/alter it remotely.


This is worth doing (if only for the puposes of elimination) on a dial-up connection but there's no point on ADSL.
the card connections in the exchange can
also have an effect on internet .if plugging in to the
master socket doesnt help ask bt to check connections on your
line


Not quite. It may be BT's job to check these things, however, your contract is with Tiscali, who are, in turn, re-selling a service provided by BT Wholesale.

If you phone BT yourself, you'll be speaking to BT Retail. Assuming you pay your normal phone bill to BT Retail, they will deal with line problems that affect telephony but won't get involved with matters to do with your ADSL connection.

If the fault lies with BT, it's your internet service provider's job to report it, not yours.

It's not just a matter of where the contractual relationships lie, and who is whose customer. If BT Retail were to send an engineer it would be one who isn't trained to deal with ADSL problems. You'd probably end up paying a callout fee for nothing.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 09:57
Broadband connection problems - rory
Errrmmmm, "......a filter for all phones" It could be you have a similar problem to the one I had. In my exitement (and ignornace) of getting in broadband I too made sure that all my phones had filters. Ans that was the problem. There should only be one filter between your pc and the 'outside world@So, if, say you are on, say, an upstairs extension - with a filter - and the downstairs phone alos has a filter, you could have a problem. Try expeimenting with thre gradusdl removal of filters. It worked for me.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 13:57
Broadband connection problems - Welliesorter
There
should only be one filter between your pc and the 'outside
world


In a sense, there should be no filters at all between your PC and the outside world. The filter is there to remove noise from your phone. It shouldn't have any effect on the workings of your ADSL modem or router. Filters do (obviously) have a socket for the modem but that's all it is: a socket. You don't need a filter for the modem if you're not also connecting a phone at the same point: you could get away with just using an adaptor that enables you to connect the modem cable to the standard phone socket.
So, if, say you are on, say, an upstairs extension -
with a filter - and the downstairs phone alos has a
filter, you could have a problem.


This is true if you don't connect them correctly. The basic rule is not to filter another filter: if you plug an extension lead into a filter, and then have a second filter at the other end, you probably will have problems, especially if you use that lead for your modem. If your extension lead by-passes the filter at the main socket it should be OK.

The advice that you need to connect a filter for each phone is correct in most cases, but the worst consequence of not doing so would normally be noise on the line when the modem or router is in use.

Whether you need multiple filters depends on exactly how you've set things up. Solwise is a well-known provider of ADSL stuff and it has a far better explanation on its site than I can provide. See www.solwise.co.uk/adsl_splitters.htm#EXPLANATION .


Try expeimenting with thre gradusdl
removal of filters. It worked for me.


Good advice for any phone or modem troubleshooting, but don't confine it to the filters. If it's at all possible, you should connect your modem at the main socket with all the extension wiring disconnected. It often only takes one faulty or incompatible piece of equipment (or wiring) to prevent everything working.
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Sun 19 Dec 2004 10:12
Printing off the Web - budu
A novice's question. I sometimes want to print a single page I see on screen but end up with another 20 or more. How can I tell in advance how many pages there are and how can I select just one?
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Sun 19 Dec 2004 11:21
Printing off the Web - smokie
Many products have a Print Preview button under the File menu.

You can also often print only the text you want to print by highlighting with your cursor then using File/Print, then check Print Selection.

Changing you paper settings may also help - for instance use Landscape to prevent wide pages using two sheets.

There are also a number of software products out there which sit between your program and your printer (as another print spooler) which give you a preview of how it will look. The one I use is Fineprint (www.fineprint.com) and I have it set as my default printer. It is easy to use, and gives a number of other options such as printing 2, 4 or 8 pages to a page, booklet printing and watermarks. I'd recommend it - the unlicensed version has some limitations but I don't think it cost much to license it for full functionality.
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Sun 19 Dec 2004 11:23
Printing off the Web - smokie
Oh, and Fineprint will also scale your pages down to whatever paper your ptinter is set up with - for instance you can set your IE paper setting to A3 and it will scale it down to A4, thus avoiding the irritating feature whereby IE assumes you are using Letter size and lops off the r h side of the page.

www.fineprint.com
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Sun 19 Dec 2004 21:52
Printing off the Web - Welliesorter
A slightly tangential solution I know, but the current (February!) issue of Personal Computer World has a very useful program called Visage Expert PDF on the cover CD. This enables you to 'print' pretty much anything to an Acrobat file. By doing this you won't waste any paper. It's also very handy for saving copies of web pages in exactly the form in which you'd print them.

As well as saving on paper, buying the magazine will save you the several hundred pounds it would cost for Adobe Acrobat!

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Mon 20 Dec 2004 18:23
Printing off the Web - budu
Thanks, smokie and Welliesorter, for these tips.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 10:38
Partitioning a hard drive - THe Growler
Given that everyone I know in the IT community appears to suffer from some form of mild autism and is unable to express anything in any intelligible linguistic form, can a normal human in the BR explain in words of not more than 4 syllables how to do this?




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Mon 20 Dec 2004 11:08
Partitioning a hard drive - Stuartli
The Growler

www.hardwarecentral.com/hardwarecentral/tutorials/.../

partition.radified.com/

www.pcworld.com/howto/article/0,aid,109711,00.asp

Should keep you occupied...:-)
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 11:09
Partitioning a hard drive - Dalglish
the growler -
i will let someone else reply to this question; but can i ask how you fared with the question/replies (as posted in the previous crq vol 34 ) to your cumulative security update for oe6 ?

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Mon 20 Dec 2004 11:18
Partitioning a hard drive - THe Growler
Dalglish -- thanks for remembering. Got nowhere I'm afraid, nowhere on MS could I find the fix you mentioned Q???.exe. Took solace in a rather fine Merlot instead.....


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Mon 20 Dec 2004 11:31
Partitioning a hard drive - Stuartli
This is the latest IE6 update (Service Pack 1):

tinyurl.com/3drq

It will include any earlier updates/critical updates etc; however, still worth checking whether there are any new updates after installing it.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 11:34
Partitioning a hard drive - Stuartli
PS

I would think this is the update referred to earlier by Dalglish:

tinyurl.com/6mplk
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 16:02
Partitioning a hard drive - smokie
I've said it before here: I can't think why anyone would want to partition a drive these days. Especially now drives are so cheap. If you need a second (third or fourth) drive then cheap to buy one - and less chance of catastrpohic failure is one drive "goes down". My usual recommended configuration would be 1 "system" drive, with the OS and all program files, then one "data" drive where everything you care most about is kept. Hopefully your "system" drive would have enough free space remaining to leave room for a backup of your most sensitive data, if not all of it.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 16:27
Partitioning a hard drive - Dalglish
I can't think why anyone would want to partition a drive
these days. Especially now drives are so cheap.

>>

one of the links
( partition.radified.com/partitioning_2.htm )
posted by stuartli gives a number of very good reasons - and after taking account of the cheapness of hard-drives.

stuartli - thanks for the gentle reminder re. tinyurl. i was just too lazy to use it. (i prefer the one which i cannot remember now, that lets you preview the actual link details before it opens ).

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Mon 20 Dec 2004 18:54
Partitioning a hard drive - smokie
Thank you Dalglish, that article pretty much supports multiple drives better than partitioned drives!

The writer's advice under Advantage 1 says "Personally, I advocate the use of a small, fast drive to run your O/S and apps, and a large, slow drive for (cheap) mass storage. Your 50-gigs worth of MP3s don't need to be storage on an expensive, high-performance drive." 'Nuff said eh?

But all the other advantages are misleading as well.

Advantage 2 isn't an advantage of partitioning, it's an advantage of having two separately addressable drives, whether they are physically separate or the same drive.

Advantage 3 - as advantage 2. If you have 100 gb of data it will pretty much be an overnight (or longer) job anyway whether it's on the inside or outside of the drive. The guy is a little misleading with his swicthing between different uses of the word data..

Advantage 4, 5 & 6 are all equally, actually better serviced by having two separate drives.

So all in all, the article shows no advantages unique to partitioning. (The performance gains from data position on the disk may appear significant, but they really won't show up much on the screen unless you are doing disk intensive work. Which most people don't sit at their PC doing. So an extra 30 seconds on a hour's DVD rip won't really notice...)

The other serious but rather nerdy advantage for two separate drives is to be able to spread I/O which will give a much more significant performance advantage in most operations than having all the I/O going on on one drive.

But IMO, and all things considered, for the average home user partitioning is an overcomplicated waste of time.
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Thu 23 Dec 2004 09:40
Partitioning a hard drive - Stuartli
As I only have one (60GB) HDD, it contains two partitions.

The first is the main (C) drive and the second partition (R = Restore) is used to house all my important files and folders.

These are regularly backed up using Norton Ghost; if C goes down I can then fall back onto the second partition without losing important data.

And yes, "C" did go down earlier this year after it became corrupted for no apparent or obvious reason; the hard drive itself was discovered to be faultless afterwards and is still used.
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Fri 24 Dec 2004 00:09
Partitioning a hard drive - Citroënian {P}
Hi Stuart,

Apologies if I'm being a bit over careful here but I've seen too many disks fail...

Are you backing up your important data elsewhere? Even with two partitions, a failure of the disk could well take out both partitions.

Hard disks are almost for free now, might be worth getting another to push data onto, or just back up the good stuff to CDR/CDRW.

I have a sneaky feeling you've already got this covered, but I'd feel terrible if you lost data for the sake of a post.

Same advice goes for everyone else too, don't put all your eggs (data) in one basket (hard disk)!


--
Lee
Having a Fabialous time.
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Fri 24 Dec 2004 00:19
Partitioning a hard drive - smokie
...and then there's your backup device...this is just for the sake of a true story, not to alarm anyone.

One of our customers, a major European travel company, had a monthly backup cycle, with the tapes from 1st being over-written on 1st of the next month, 2nd on 2nd and so on.

He replaced the tape device he was using for the backups for a new model. The backups worked perfectly, and verified afterwards.

Then he had a catastophic disk crash. No problem, he thought, I have backups. But the device would not read them. Nor would any other similar device. They had been kept correctly in the fire safe etc etc.

Without his major system his business was down the tubes.

We spent two weeks manually recovering data from his crashed disk. We managed about 80%, which was enough for him to continue in business. It cost a lot, but they were most grateful. And it was very satisfying too...


And do I learn? No. I was in the habit of backing up my music collection to DAT tape. It eventually ran to about 5 tapes. I used to do a full backup about every 3 months. The only time I needed to restore it, I found the software product was incapable of doing so. It would get about 2/3rds they way through a tape then reject the rest. I lost quite a bit of music, albeit temporarily.


And I still don't understand the point of partitions...
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Fri 24 Dec 2004 00:42
Partitioning a hard drive - Citroënian {P}
Good advice smokie, I've seen it a good few times too.

Went to a series of John Craddock lectures last year ( www.kimberry.co.uk/IndexFlash.aspx ) and he made the point very clearly about backups & failures.

Along the lines of:
"A failure is an event. Everything falls apart and you just reach for the manual and follow what you planned and it all works out nicely.

And how do you know your plan is going to work? You test it regularly by actually doing it"

We have "fire drills" at our place where we do rebuilds as if from a total failure. Nice to know it works when you need it to!

Course I still don't really get around to it at home. Maybe next week... ;-)



--
Lee
Having a Fabialous time.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 13:01
growler's oe6 update problem - Dalglish
the growler -

assuming you are running 98se:

here are the links for direct download of the files:

march 2004
Cumulative Security Update for Outlook Express 6 (KB837009)
tinyurl.com/3ohe2

july2004
Cumulative Security Update for Outlook Express 6 Service Pack 1 (KB823353)
tinyurl.com/4lgl3

december 2004 - (update referred to by sturatli)
Cumulative Security Update for Internet Explorer 6 Service Pack 1 for Windows 98, Windows NT and Windows Millennium (KB889293)
tinyurl.com/5wbn7

to apply the updates - follow microsoft guide as below:
Instructions
Click the Download button in the upper right-hand corner of this page to start the download, or choose a different language from the drop-down list and click Go.
Do one of the following:
To start the installation immediately, click Open or Run this program from its current location.
To copy the download to your computer for installation at a later time, click Save or Save this program to disk.


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Mon 20 Dec 2004 15:37
growler's oe6 update problem - Stuartli
Dalglish

Just in case you don't have or are not aware of TinyURL, you'll find it reduces massives U%RLs to tiny ones:

www.tinyURL.com

All you have to do (except it seems for Firefox) is to click on the tinyURL button on your browser windows which you will have dragged from its website - the large URL is automatically reduced and copied to your clipboard.

All that is required then is to paste it into your posting or wherever you wish it to be placed.

Firefox users will have to Contl+C and then +V the new URL to copy and paste it into another document.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 17:48
TinyURL for Firefox - Baskerville
Stuart

There is a Firefox extension to do this here:

tinyurl.com/5c7cq

Chris
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Thu 23 Dec 2004 09:32
TinyURL for Firefox - Stuartli
Many thanks for the link.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 16:21
growler's oe6 update problem - THe Growler
THanks all.

What I was really hoping for was something which went like this:
----------------
Partition disk

Proceed? (Y/N)
Please wait.....

Disk partitioned successfully.

----------------

Seems technology has a way to go yet.

Thanks again.







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Mon 20 Dec 2004 16:35
growler's oe6 update problem - Altea Ego
Growler.

We (in the IT game) have worked very hard for a large number of years to mystify things. Indeed we even coined an acronym (as we do) called FUD to cover this (Fear, Uncertainty & Doubt)

When the days of computers started to look as tho they would become consumer devices, we worked hard to to make sure the least suitable candidate was widely accepted. Thank the lord we succeeded.

Our gospel and teachings has been accepted far and wide. Video recorders became too complicated to use with too many little used features. Car radios are festooned with small buttons and pretty but useless features.

Now let us all pray. On bended knees.

Hail the God of Technology
Give us the powers to bemuse, confuse and belittle our consumers
Death to techno dinasours.
Amen.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 16:35
disk partitioning - Dalglish
Seems technology has a way to go yet.

>>

growler - you would not do the same with a shell of a house, would you?

the builder asks - do you want the house partitioned?

you reply yes, you want the space allocated in specified proportions for living, dining, cooking, sleeping, garage, toilets, etc.

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Mon 20 Dec 2004 19:01
disk partitioning - frostbite
Indoor toilet?

How unhygienic.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 19:07
disk partitioning - Adam {P}
I knew something was wrong when I could cook, bathe and watch TV all from the comfort of my own bed.
--
Adam
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 19:33
disk partitioning - NowWheels
I knew something was wrong when I could cook, bathe and
watch TV all from the comfort of my own bed.


Not at all, this is the normal pattern of existence* for a student. Students live in bedsits: I watched in The Young Ones, when I was young.

* except for the bathing bit. A male student who bathes had better not do it too often, or he'll be ostraicised by t'others.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 19:53
disk partitioning - Adam {P}
You're joking! If I'm not wearing a new jacket every week I'm berated - think stereotypical student and then reverse it completely.

It's a what thread? Computers?
--
Adam
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 22:47
disk partitioning - Dalglish
Indoor toilet? How unhygienic.

>>

:: ;-) ::
so now we all know where you got frosted. never mind, some blonketty blonk bloke will help fill in for you. that's my contribution to toilet humour.
:: ;-) ::

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Tue 21 Dec 2004 04:01
disk partitioning - THe Growler
But I don't live in a hard disk.

It is supposed to be working for me, not the other way around. I mean I can put a set of hot cams in a Harley and have it all back together and running before lunch, and it does as it's told (if it won't a 3lb hammer provides an occasional incentive)--- but a bunch of stupid bits of what-all in a plastic box -- the instructions are worse than the UK Gov't Pension Claim Form.......

I think I shall take this heap of ordure to one of those shops where there are nameless wiry things halfway out of open boxes all over the floor, plastic trays full of discarded fragments, "n" number of PC's degutted and none actually working, and where a strange form of life consisting of gnomic figures with peculiar haircuts, clothes from the thrift shop and coke-bottle glasses communicates in polyphonic grunts.




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Fri 24 Dec 2004 00:03
disk partitioning - Citroënian {P}
Hiya Growler,

I think the closest thing to what you need is partition magic - not quite as simple as you'd like, but much, much, much, much easier than trying to do it all again from Windows.

hth,
--
Lee
Having a Fabialous time.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 20:50
Super fast hard disk search - Robin
This is not a question but a pointer to a new addition to Google that I have recently downloaded. I have found in the past that searching my hard disk for a known word in an unknown file, whatever flavour of Windows I have had, has been painfully slow. The sort of thing you do when looking for a lost file. Google desktop does this amazingly quickly. I have just searched my half full 80 Gbyte hard disk for a word and it has found 2488 hits in 0.03 seconds! Phenomenol. I think the standard program on Windows Xp would have taken in excess of 10 minutes. Well worth downloading - you can get it from the Google UK homepage: just follow the link to "more" above the search bar.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 20:53
Super fast hard disk search - Altea Ego
Indeed

It makes for searching on your hard disk *by other people* so much faster.
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 20:58
Super fast hard disk search - Robin
Would you care to explain? By "other people" do you mean externally via the net or by someone with physical access to yur PC?
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Mon 20 Dec 2004 21:07
Super fast hard disk search - Baskerville
Primarily by people with physical access to the computer, since it searches all of the computer if you have administrator rights when you run it (and if you're a Windows user you probably will). But as of today there's an exploit that allows remote access too. Nice: get the users to install a trojan that searches everything and reporst back on what it finds.

And don't think the Yahoo or MSN versions of this are any better. Ooooh no.
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 00:39
Disk Search - MSN Toolbar - Citroënian {P}
{awaits flaming}

The Google bar is very good, but Microsoft have launched a beta (install at your own peril sort of thing) of their toolbar. Much like the Google version but it seems to get along better with Outlook/Express.

Best thing is it doesn't need to call home to complete the search. It's at

beta.toolbar.msn.com/

{gets fire extinguisher ready}

--
Lee
Having a Fabialous time.
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 01:01
Disk Search - MSN Toolbar - Welliesorter
I certainly wouldn't flame someone who's having a Fabialous time!

One other issue with these search tools is that they work by creating their own index of your files. To do this, they have to run in the background, slowing down your PC. This will be more of a problem if you have a slow hard drive or limited memory.

It's almost standard advice to disable the Microsoft Findfast feature found in some versions of Office.
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 08:40
Disk Search - MSN Toolbar - Baskerville
It's not so much the phoning home--we can trust Google, right?--it's the fact that it indexes everything. This is a gift to anyone who wants to collect data for nefarious purposes. When these things are hacked (and they will be hacked) it's going to be fun, fun, fun down at Identity Thefts R Us. Then of course there's the spotty youth to whom you take your PC for repairs/upgrades. Too risky for my liking--it looks like one of those "features" that turns out to be a security nightmare two years later to me.
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 08:57
Disk Search - MSN Toolbar - Stuartli
>>it's the fact that it indexes everything>>

Clearing IE History should also delete the Google index (I'm presuming you mean auto-completed Google URLs lists).
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 09:29
Disk Search - MSN Toolbar - Baskerville
No, this is a different thing. Google Desktop Search indexes everything, but everything on your hard drive, not just web-related stuff. The idea is to make things on your computer easier to find.
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 09:39
Disk Search - MSN Toolbar - Stuartli
Google Desktop Search indexes everything>>


I know exactly what it is - my son decided to install it for me as a gesture of kindness a while back.

I removed it within 24 hours....:-)
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 09:41
Disk Search - MSN Toolbar - Stuartli
PS

The reason I removed it was due to the unwanted shopping "links".
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 04:10
Super fast hard disk search - THe Growler
Robin: Please tell us where you got what looks like a new wonder drug: Phenomenol. Does it need a prescription? I searched Google but I couldn't find it. I think it may be the answer to my problem :+)
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 19:44
Thrown out of the backroom! - helicopter
I've just returned from a business trip abroad and tried to get into the back room at work as usual.

My home page is Yahoo and I appear to have acquired a pop up blaster which chucks me out of the backroom almost as soon as I go in , very frustrating.

I've tried disabling the pop up blaster and advising that pop ups from HJ website are allowed , also tried going in through Google but it just seems to jump back to Yahoo within seconds.

Any suggestions as to how to fix it appreciated please.. I'm logging in OK from home at the momemt.
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 19:49
Thrown out of the backroom! - No Do$h
I've tried disabling the pop up blaster and advising that pop
ups from HJ website are allowed , also tried going in
through Google but it just seems to jump back to Yahoo
within seconds.
Any suggestions as to how to fix it appreciated please.. I'm
logging in OK from home at the momemt.


I've had a couple of emails on this from other backroomers and the problem *may* be the Ask Jeeves ad as this creates a pop-under in some circumstances; certainly the messages copied to me by other users have identified this as the culprit. Not within our control as the second part of the ad would appear to run offsite, but interesting to note that this ad is preventing you accessing this site from work where much of the software is not under your direct control. Makes me wonder how many other users are currently unable to view from work.

Regretably no answer on this one to date. Any suggestions welcome.
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 21:12
Thrown out of the backroom! - Mark (RLBS)
Interestingly traffic has been lighter for a few days. I wonder if there is a connection.
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Tue 21 Dec 2004 22:09
Thrown out of the backroom! - Pugugly {P}
Or employers that have cottoned on....
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 01:12
Thrown out of the backroom! - Welliesorter
Or employers that have cottoned on....


I work for a large company where any attempt to access the Back Room (but not the rest of the HJ site) is met with a warning that it is categorised as 'chat' and therefore barred. As my employer buys in the web filtering service (or at least the list of inappropriate sites) from an outside company, it can't be the only organisation to do so.
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 08:55
Thrown out of the backroom! - helicopter
Well I am logging in from my work computer today as it seems to have decided not to throw me out this morning. Very strange.

As I am the boss of the firm in the UK it is not that my employer has cottoned on or limited access. My IT man is based in the Middle East and he does as I tell him.

Anyway its nice to be back and buying fuel at 80p a litre - my last purchase in Doha was 28 litres for 20 Riyals (£2.83)

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Wed 22 Dec 2004 09:05
Playing DVD on Laptop - Alfafan {P}
I have a Toshiba Satellite laptop (about 2 years old)which is supposed to play DVDs. Up to now I haven't had occasion to use it. I've recently tried to play a DVD and although I get a picture, the picture is "jerky" and the sound broken up. I'm running on XP. Are there any simple adjustments I can make to rectify this?

I know I could go out and buy a cheap DVD player, but since I have the device which is supposed to do this, I'd rather not.

Thanks in advance
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 09:06
Playing DVD on Laptop - Alfafan {P}
Apolgies to moderators, should have put this on computer related questions. Can you move it please?
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 09:17
Playing DVD on Laptop - BB
What RAM is in your computer?
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 09:41
Playing DVD on Laptop - Altea Ego
Ensure your power saving settings are not throttling back the CPU
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 09:54
Playing DVD on Laptop - Stuartli
What are you using to play the DVDs?

If it's Windows Media Player then you will have to ensure that DVD plus all the file types are enabled from Tools>Options>File Types tab. It may also be necessary to download the latest codecs pack from www.micrsoft.com (go to the WMP home page).

You will also require PowerDVD or similar from Cyberlink, although you may be able to download a freeware version of such a program from one of the download sites such as www.tucows.com or www.cnet.com
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 12:35
Playing DVD on Laptop - Stargazer {P}
I am running win2k on a toshiba tecra 9000 laptop (just over 3 years old) with 256MB RAM and 1.2MHz PIII, I use the intervideo winDVD software that came with the laptop. Can be a little slow if running anything else (sound/picture jerky and out of sync) but usually ok. Not very good in battery mode as speedstep processor slows down to 50% speed.

What speed processor and how much memory?

Try shutting down everything and running from mains power so the processor isnt in powersaving (slow) mode.

StarGazer
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 12:43
Playing DVD on Laptop - Alfafan {P}
Thanks for the answers so far. I'll have to wait till I get home to answer the questions on RAM and CPU speed.

I'm also using the WinDVD software that came with the laptop and am also running from mains power.
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 14:40
Playing DVD on Laptop - Stargazer {P}
I am running win2k on a toshiba tecra 9000 laptop (just
over 3 years old) with 256MB RAM and 1.2MHz PIII,


Oops, That should be a 1.2GHz PIII.....not even my original IBM machine running at the 'standard' 4.77 MHz was quite that slow!
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 20:18
Playing DVD on Laptop - Alfafan {P}
I've just had a look. Seems to be 1.7GHz with 384 Mb RAM
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 20:58
Playing DVD on Laptop - smokie
DVD is a heavy user of CPU (and memory) so the more the merrier. (There used to be an additional card you could get for a desktop which took away much of the processing from the processor to improve DVD performance on slower machines). A decent video card helps, but on a laptop you are somewhat strapped for what you can do.

I think you'd have to try to make sure nothing else is running. You could try reducing the colour quality if you have it set high (right click on dekstio, go to properties then settings).
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 21:22
Playing DVD on Laptop - Welliesorter
I've just had a look. Seems to be 1.7GHz with 384
Mb RAM


My desktop PC has only a 933Mhz processor and the same amount of RAM. It plays DVDs without any problems. Could there be something running in the background on your PC that's slowing it down?

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Wed 22 Dec 2004 22:00
Playing DVD on Laptop - carl_a
Press Control-Alt-Delete and check the percentage of CPU Usage that is being used, perhaps a program in the background is taking to much. If you don't have the correct graphics driver loaded then this will also cause problems.

Did any one see the recent comments by the guy (just retired) that invented Control-Alt-Delete at IBM. He said "I invented Control-Alt-Delete but Bill Gates made it famous".
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Thu 23 Dec 2004 09:19
Playing DVD on Laptop - Stuartli
I used to watch DVDs quite happily with a 400MHz Celeron system - even now it's using "only" a 550MHz PentiumIII Kamai replacement...:-)
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Wed 22 Dec 2004 21:59
Playing DVD on Laptop - Mark (RLBS)
Do CDs play ok ?
Can you play a similar format video file if it is on hard disk ?
What speed is the DVD player ?
What country is the Laptop from ?
Which region is the DVD ?
Which software is the laptop using to play the dvd ?
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Fri 24 Dec 2004 00:46
This threads gone funny! - Robin Reliant
Weird,

Only on this thread, but the page has expanded horizontaly by about a third pushing the right hand menu bar off the screen. Every other thread is as normal, anyone else got the same or is it a gremlin my pc has picked up?
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Fri 24 Dec 2004 00:50
This threads gone funny! - Dynamic Dave
Tom,

I suspect it's because someone has posted an extralong url link. I'll go search for it and tinyurl it.

DD
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Fri 24 Dec 2004 00:55
This threads gone funny! - Dynamic Dave
Better?

I am unable to tell as I'm viewing on a 17" monitor.
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Fri 24 Dec 2004 01:13
This threads gone funny! - Robin Reliant
Back to normal now, thanks DD.
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Fri 24 Dec 2004 01:16
This threads gone funny! - Dynamic Dave
Excellent. That means I can now lock this thread and start a new one ;o)

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