Posts by Catweazle

At one stage, long ago, Macs definitely used to be 'better' at graphics etc than the PC. But now the relative advantages have disappeared. Doesn't matter if one chip is RISC and another CISC if they both produce the same performance, does it.

Macs are more favoured by many professional users still, but more for the implementation of software than for any peformance advantage. As one discussion I read states

this used to be true. The professional graphics world mostly uses Macs, because the top graphics apps (Photoshop, QuarkXPress, Freehand) are a little better implemented in their Mac versions than their PC versions, and because most graphics shops have a significant investment in Mac software and peripherals which they're not going to give up.

Truly high end work is more likely to be performed on fair dinkum workstations rather than on either Macs or PCs!

Mac OS is now based upon the Unix derivative FreeBSD, which already runs on x86 systems, so the transition won't really be any 'biggie'.

Or simply boot from the XP CD, commence a new install as normal, and when you get to the bit asking what partition to install on stop, delete the existing system partition and create a new one in its place. Install to that and it'll be freshly formatted for you as part of the install :)

By 'deleting' I suspect you mean 'uninstalling'. Does that mean that when you uninstalled the entries for the Intel display, as I posted about earlier, you were then able to get the NVidia installation to be successful?

I'm a bit careful about the terms used, in case others reading actually 'delete' files and make a bigger mess than they had to start with. :D

With the add-in display card working correctly? If so, could you please note what the settings were which fixed the problem, in case anyone else with the same troubles is reading this sometime and wants to know?

Nope, never used remote assistance, don't want to spend the time doing so, and consider that such a service is beyond what a forum such as DaniWeb, or its members, should be expected to provide.

Unfortunately, that info does not identify the model of your Gateway PC, and I think you need to contact Gateway's support section to find out how to disable the onboard display on that PC, unless you are lucky enough for another member here who has hands on experience with Gateway systems can offer more helpful advice.

You could try looking at the thing to see if anything is printed on the case, on the label at the back, or in the manual or other documentation which came with it!

Do you have Windows Me? System Recovery in that OS is a pretty wonky and unreliable thing. If you have it and have used it, I would seriously consider downloading and reinstalling the full installation package for Inrenet Explorer, to try and correct any system corruption.

Software like Arcsoft Photoviewer, which comes on CDs which accompanies camers, scanners etc is crap! In fact all bundled software with such equipment is generally crap, and I'd recommend only ever installing drivers from the CDs which come with your equipment.

Try downloading and using IrfanView for working with your image files, rather than using the freebies you've got. But reinstall IE first, eh?

Definitely a hyperthreaded processor. The Pentium 4 mobile processors are a hyperthread vchip, while the PentiumM processors used in Centrino laptops are not.

Hyperthreading simulates a second processor, and shows up to XP as there being two present. For applications which can actually use the multi-threading capability, performance will be improved. If you only run single threaded applications, like games and most general office software, you won't get a boost in application performance but XP itself will get a boost with multitasking, switching between apps etc.

Then uninstall that Intel entry (and any Add/Remove programs entry which is related). follow the instructions I gave for uninstalling the NVidia display earlier. Shut down when both parts of the job are complete.

Then power up and go into BIOS setup. See if you can find an entry in there somewhere for the onboard graphics, and disable it if you find one. Save and reboot. Again, make sure you Cancel out of any Found Hardware or Install Device dialogues you might be presented with.

You gotta get rid of that Intel graphics entry for sure.

It might be that a jumper needs to be changed on the motherboard to disable the onboard display. I can't be sure and you might need to contact Gateway's support section to get instructions.

You never did let us know precisely what model that Gateway system is. We might be able to find more detailed info on Gateway's website if we know exactly what we're looking for! ;)

Hang on, is the monitor connected to the NVidia card? If so, the system shouldn't be running on an Intel Graphics driver. Is there an Intel display entry showing up in Device Manager? I'm curious about what you mean by

but it still is on the Graphics Controller and in system it says Video Controller (VGA Compatible) under other devices..it has a exclamation mark on it.

Please slow down a bit and decribe EXACTLY how you have things connected up there.

Hiya Kiel,

when you finish getting that system going again, you should take up Case Modding as a hobby, and learn from this fella about the techniques you'll need to use:
http://www.motherboards.org/forums/viewtopic.php?t=40798

at the back of the power supply is a little red switch, I flick it, hear a small sound and then BZZZ a big bright blue spark flashes the whole room and gives me a sore hand.

hahahahaaaaaa!!!!!!!!

oooops, sorry. I couldn't resist that!

* slinks off chuckling.......

A No Signal message comes from the monitor, not from the computer. It means the computer isn't working. If nothing has been touched inside the system, it sounds very much like something was electrically damaged when the shut down/ power up occurred.

Probably best to take it to a repair shop to get it checked out. But first, check all power boards plugs and power leads to be sure that the problem isn't actually between the wall outlet and the computer. If there are any noises from the PC, like fans spinning etc, then it's highly likely a fault somewhere causing this.

The only thing you can do yourself really, if you are handyman minded, is to open up the case (make sure it's disconnected from power) and carefully check that all plugs components and cards are firmly and securely plugged in. Sometimes a display card working loose in its slot can cause this, or a monitor lead not plugged in securely etc etc.....

It may and it may not. I would also reinstall the motherboard chipset drivers, preferably before trying to correct any possible problems with the display drivers.

It might be that your display card is on the blink. Does the fan on it work properly? Is it spinning, and are there any slowdown/speedup fluctuations noticeable when you look at the display card fan running?

'Bad boards' don't generally fry processors.
'Bad processors' don't generally fry motherboards.

Components generally end up 'fried' when a power supply unit suffers problems, when a PC gets damaged from power surges and lightning strikes, and when components suffer undue stress either from running dirty, hot or with fans not working, or from silly users who try to overclock them and change settings to levels which are far too high!

It's also quite rare to actually get 'bad' RAM. what usually happens is that people buy cheap, shitty RAM, and the cheap, shitty RAM has 'issues' when working in a particular motherboard or when working together with a different brand of RAM module. Used in a different motherboard or on its own it will often work just fine. That said, it is not impossible to get a module which really IS faulty, it's just rare.

The ONLY brands of RAM I would recommend people use are:
Corsair
Kingston
Kingmax
Geil
OCZ

I would also only ever recommend that people use matched modules in their system, rather than mix modules of different brands/models.

Okay, simple answer only needed!

Point one. your hard drive has died. Replace it.

Point two: If you take a Windows XP installed hard drive from one computer, and bung it in another computer, it almost certainly won't boot to Windows. The copyright protection of Windows Product Activation will stop it from doing so. It will usually either keep rebooting or crash with an error message.

Point three: As you've noticed, the only drive you were able to successfully swap in was a replica of your original installation. At least I assume that it was a 'ghosted' drive image from your use of the word 'replica' If it actually was an identical drive which had been installed with Windows in a different computer, then you were very very lucky to have it boot up!

Go buy another drive and stop worrying about things that didn't happen when they weren't supposed to anyway!

:D

I'd also be checking that all fans in the PC are working correctly. It could be an overheating problem.

Also, the info about the display driver problem could have relevence. Perhaps the display driver is corrupted. Try this:
* download a display driver installation package from www.nvidia.com I'd suggest you use the 'Archived drivers' there, and download the last of the 4x.xx series drivers. Later driver versions are not really optimal for GeForce 4 cards.
* Right-click My Computer and choose 'Properties' to bring up System Properties. Run Device Manager from the Hardware tab. Locate the entry for the display card and choose Uninstall. Do not reboot.
* Use Add/Remove programs to uninstall any NVidia display driver entries you see there.
* Reboot, and cancel out of any 'Found hardware' dialogues which appear when windows restarts.
* Install the device driver by running the executable file you download from NVidia.

See if that helps.

Download and run CPU-Z

Then let us know what is reported as your motherboard make and model, and also what is reported as the make and model of your RAM modules. (You'll need to use the drop-down box on the Memory tab to find info about both RAM modules.

If that is a Gateway PC, it would also help if you let us know what model of PC it is. It's a Gateway what?

What motherboard is in your system please?

Also, are all these RAM modules you mention cheap, generic ones or are they quality brands such as Kingston, Kingmax, Geil, Corsair or OCZ?

I'm suspecting generic RAM which is having 'issues' with your particular motherboard, and suffering from the fact that Windows XP is rather intolerant of such 'issues'.

My suggestion would be to Use the 512Mb module in Slot 1, wipe the hard drive clean and install Windows fresh and clean, then see if it's stable. If so, add the other module and see if it continues to be stable.

Have you tried using just the new (replacement) 512Mb RAM module in slot 1, without the 256Mb original module installed? It sounds suspiciously like the original module might be faulty.

The 'Tips and Tweaks' section is for people posting guides about how to do stuff, not for people asking for help. I'll move your thread to the Windows XP section.

I'm kinda confused about your question. How come you've got Quick Launch on the desktop. What did you do?

Here's the correct procedure for showing Quick Launch on the Taskbar in Windows XP

http://www.daniweb.com/techtalkforums/thread4661-quick+launch.html

You may well be right! (But check that a clean install was actually, really, correctly performed :))

The Google toolbar is a better alternative for IE users. It adds more functionality.

belama, the registry tweak simply forces IE to use Google for searching, rather than the MSN search engine it's set to use by default.

My own choice:

Firefox rather than Internet Explorer. I have Google set as the default search engine, and it gives me a drop down box I can click on if I wish to use Dictionary.com, Wkipedia, eBay, Yahoo or any other engine to search with.

I consider that loading a website page for the search engine before performing a search is about the clumsiest and worst way to do searches. Much better to simply type the search terms into a box and then click a button!

Hi,

sounds to me like you THINK you performed a clean install but you really performed an 'upgrade install', loading Windows over the top of what was already there rather than wiping the drive and loading it all fresh and clean.

Check this topic for clean install info http://www.daniweb.com/techtalkforums/thread6632.html

Step one: Sell your children! Or at least put the fear of God into them!

Step two: Have a good look at the 4 computers you have to see if they have brand names and model numbers etc. For example, you may have a "HP Pavilion xxxx" or a "Dell Inspirion xxxx" or a Compaq Presario xxxx" or somesuch. Of the PCs are 'brand name ones such as this, they should have recovery CDs or some procedure provided by which you can easily wipe everything and reload the system to get it back to the state it was in when first bought and used.

Let us know what makes and models you have there, and we might be able to work out how to help you find out how it's done for each particular machine.

If any of the computers is a locally assembled 'white box' computer, you will need the Windows CD and all the software CDs to perform that job for the systems which no longer work! This topic http://www.daniweb.com/techtalkforums/thread6632.html will be helpful in learning about what needs to be done to wipe a system and then reload everthing on it. For your sake I hope those systems have a recovery CD or somesuch so that the job is an easier one!

Step three: Wipe those systems which no longer work (sounds like the one which is giving the 'Safe Mode' message and then not booting successfully into Safe Mode is also …

I'd be uninstalling v 6.0 and then installing v 7.0.

No real necessity to do that, far as I'm aware, but I just think it's the neat and sensible way to do things. I don't think Acro Reader overwrites the earlier version and upgrades it - I think it adds an additional version.

Not real sure, but play it 'safe 'n' sound' anyway :D

Oh my! Sorry, but I must have forgoten to get back to your problem as I promised. Glad to hear you've got it sorted out now :)

But I'm finding it kinda weird. I just checked the motherboard manual for your motherboard, and it seems that the board doesn't actually have onboard LAN, according to the MSI website.

Adobe Reader 7 will probably provide the solution for those pdf manuals ;)

Got Java enabled? Some download sites use java for the download process.

Got popups blocked? Perhaps you might need to add the particular site as an 'exception' because the download is gonna happen from a popup window.

Got the latest version of Acrobat reader installed? Some earlier versions had both stability issues with IE and plugin problems with Firefox/Mozilla.

The default location for your particular router should be:
http://192.168.0.1

Type that into the address bar in your browser to connect to the router's configuration interface. You will be asked for a user name and password, and if you haven't changed the defaults the username will be admin and the password will be

Has your compouter got a brand name and model number printed on it? If so what are the details?

If your PC isn't a major brand, such as Compaq, HP, Dell, Asus and so on then it's highly unlikely that this will be the case.

Did the PC originally come with instruction booklets etc etc....? Do you still have them?

There are no 'fixed rules' about how such procedures are carried out, I'm afraid. It varies from manufacturer to manufacturer, and only the major manufacturers proveded such features.

Oh my. the things I missed while I was away. I'm in full agreement with MartyMcFly.

The only valid response to a questiuon such as this, in my view, is "Ask the SA to sort it out for you." Take the program to the SA and get him/her to install it for you!

If this is asking for ways to get around such restrictions without permission or sanction, then the provision of advice from here is innapropriate in my view. Closed!

Post your HijackThis log in the Visuses, Spyware and Nasties forum section if you wish..

Bit too simple, jwshepard, because not all firewall routers have a setting specifically called "Filtering" which can be turned on and off. On my own unit, for example, the relevent settings are called "Control Web Access" and "Control Type". People infamiliar with changing settings on such equipment can easily get confused about the terms used.

According to page 5-1 of the manual for this particular unit, which I've just downloaded and checked, the relevent entry is on the 'Block Sites' page of the web interface, and it is disabled by setting "Keyword blocking" to 'Never'.

Another alternative of course, is that if the computer is a 'brand name' one it may have the files for installing OS and bundled software in a 'hidden' partition on the hard drive, and you've merely failed to see the section of the product documentation which tells you how to retrieve and reinstall them.

If, on the other hand, the "company i bought it thru" is actually the mob who assembled and sold a 'white box' PC, and has since gone out of business I'd consider it highly unlikely that installed software provided without the accompanying installation CDs is actually legitimate. In that case OpenOffice is the best available alternive considering the funds aren't available to purchase the software legitimately.

Does the CD drive work fine for all other purposes and disks? If so, it might be a case that the uninstall of the emulation software is not fully 'letting go', and the copy pretection problem is still cropping up as a result.

But it's more likely to be the case that you need a patch installed which fixes some 'copy protection bugs'. Such was an inclusion in version 1.13. Version 1.14, which includes that earlier 'fix' can be downloaded from:
http://www.pcgameworld.com/details.php/id/4901

I'd suggest you install it and see if the problem persists.

If you are using a router, the router itself should BE the 'admin computer', because it is the component running the network!

Best you check the settings in the router/firewall interface. Perhaps you have certain features blocked, such as Java applets or active-x controls, and the website you are trying to visit relies on them for it to work.

Perhaps you have somehow got certain sites or groups of sites blocked in the router/firewall settings. I'm not familiar with the interface for your Netgear unit. you'll need to check the device's manual of course. My own NetComm unit provides a firewall settings page where java, activeX, cookies etc can be blocked altogether, and also a 'URL filter' which can block individual sites either by URL or IP, or by keyword checks. It also allows exceptions to be set for the blocked sites.

See what the interface for your own device provides in the way of controls.

Yes, I'd discontinue using the download manager and see if that brings more success with the downloads.

A point not yet made here is that Windows XP Pro is not really a 'better' OS than XP Home Edition unless you have a need to connect the system to a complex network. For just about any other purpose, including operation in a simple network environment, the two are either identical or can be configured to act like each other by changing settings. For most purposes, changing from XP Home to XP Pro is a complete waste of money!

Comments about no OS being 'better' than any other except in relation to specific circumstance or task are ones I'd endorse. In fact, I'd add the comment that asking such open-ended questions is beyond meaningless and into 'troublesome' territory, because it invites responses from silly people who seem hell-bent on arguing simply for the sake of it, even though the argument itself has no point!

Program name and version please? Sounds like it might be a copy protection measure which is getting hung up on the fact that you have CD emulation software installed. Many games, for example do just that, and refuse to run when such software is installed.

New problems should be placed in a new topic of their own, rather than tacked on to the end of a long disused existing topic. But regardless, I'll offer the following advice in case anyone is reading this because they've arrived at it via a Search.

When the problem actually IS like this one (i.e. the error has occurred after power-related damage has occurred) it most likely indicates that other damage has occurred to the physical components in the system. That could be RAM, processor, motherboard or even power supply unit, or any combination of those.

If the problem does NOT resemble this one (i.e. no such damage has occurred) then it is most likely caused by faulty or mismatched RAM modules.

Any further discussion in a new topic please.

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Very little actually. It's simply a sensible move on Apple's part, because Intel can more reliably produce adequate processors than IBM seems to be able to.

Won't effect software at all, probably, because existing software can still be run via a software technology to be called 'Rosetta'. Even if that proves to give a performance 'hit' (which it's reported not to) then it's still untrue to claim that existing software (won't run).

By the way, there's an existing topic about this in the appropriate forum section:
http://www.daniweb.com/techtalkforums/thread25138.html

Power is one reason, but the primary motivation has been the continued failure of IBM to produce adequate processors for laptop configurations. If you can't produce a competitive laptop, you can't compete in today's computer marketplace ;)

Download and install OpenOffice. http://www.openoffice.org/

Use it instead. It will read and write data files which are in the form of the native MS Office formats.

Hiya Harvey. We look forward to hearing more from you as well :D

Hi Timothy and welcome. I'm sure your contributions will be welcomed, and I hope that you can yourself gain assistance from DaniWeb when and if you need to do so.

:D

Young's Literal translation:

2:19 And Jehovah God formeth from the ground every beast of the field, and every fowl of the heavens, and bringeth in unto the man, to see what he doth call it; and whatever the man calleth a living creature, that [is] its name.
2:20 And the man calleth names to all the cattle, and to fowl of the heavens, and to every beast of the field; and to man hath not been found an helper -- as his counterpart.

World English Bible:

2:19 Out of the ground Yahweh God formed every animal of the field, and every bird of the sky, and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. Whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.
2:20 The man gave names to all cattle, and to the birds of the sky, and to every animal of the field; but for man there was not found a helper suitable for him.

Webster Bible Translation:

2:19 And out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air, and brought [them] to Adam to see what he would call them; and whatsoever Adam called every living creature, that [was] its name.
2:20 And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowls of the air, and to every beast of the field: but for Adam there was not found a help meet for him.

Darby translation:

2:19 And out of …

Yeah, that comment wasn't really directed specifically at you. BuddyB. But you raise a good point.

It's pretty accurate to describe the 'Auto' or 'common features' installation procedure as the 'Install for dummies' not because of the nature of the person performing the installation but because of the intentions of the people constructing the installation. They are the ones making the assumptions about what 'average' and 'necessary' means in the circumstance! They're after two things only:

* minimising the potential for complaints by customers
* maximising the potential for customers to become 'locked in' to their products!

server_crash, I don't believe that I or anyone else could have stated the point more clearly than it was stated in that post. I'd suggest you read it over again in its entirety, then if you still don't get the clearly stated point (an example of very clear contradiction) then perhaps you might consider gracefully withdrawing from debate.

Perhaps i'm being a bit cruel there, but I am sincerely trying not to be.

Perhaps I've misunderstood what you said myself, and you are simply asking for an explanation of the word 'whoopsie'.

I mean 'whoopsie' in the sense of "Whoops! Embarrassed! Mistake!:o"

As in - "Oh dear, God made a mistake. He must've been a bit tipsy when he started telling his story, coz he said something in chapter one then completely forgot what he said and told a different story about the same thing in chapter two!"

Read your Bible, dude ;)

If you'd followed the suggestion I made, you would have found this forum section:
http://www.daniweb.com/techtalkforums/forum58.html
which is specifically for questions about VB.NET

This 'Community Introductions section is for people to say "Hello" in and introduce themselves a bit. The technical sections are the appropriate place for having technical questions answered, not here :D