Posts by Catweazle

Wallace, the 'Reinstalling Windows' link in my sig will lead you to a couple of articles. One is about preparing for the reinstall, and the other is about performing it. They're both very detailed, step by step guides.

This answer to another question links to instructions for the procedure you need to follow.

Did you have an Installation CD for the motherboard? If it's a 'name brand' computer, did you use the Revocery Cd or whatever other means was provided to restore the PC to its original state?

If it's a name brand PC what is the make and modsel number please? If not, what is the make and model number of the motherboard? The drivers are obtainable from the manufacturer websites.

If all you have done is to format and load Windows again, then your system is most likely using 'generic' drivers for its components, which may not be providing full functionality.

Hi again,

Sorry for the delay. For those purposes that system is perfectly adequate.

Hi mate,

What purpose is the system to be used for please? It seems to me that you've picked a really poor motherboard to base a system on, if it's to be used for anything beyond the most basic of computing tasks.

eerrr.... uummmm.......

Do it on a different machine, one that's already built and working, and save them to CD in preparation?

That sounds like the only sensible approach to me ;)

You're not kidding, because there really is no way to successfully uninstall DirectX. If you hunt, you'll find some sites which claim to provide directions for doing so, but I wouldn't recommend any of them because they all lead to system instability.

Seems this fella thinks the same way I do ;)

Hi,

Contact Everstrike via their Support section:

http://everstrike.com/support.htm

and lodge a request for assistance. You'll need to provide your order number or license key, and if you describe your problem as you have here, I'm sure they'd help.

I'm sorry that suggestion isn't of direct assistance to you, but I'm afraid that the people at Everstrike themselves would best know what procedures have been used to lock up those files, and it's them who should be advising you. They claim that the files themselves have not been altered, and that those files cannot be 'lost', so a request for assistance should be successful if their claims are indeed correct.

Onboard graphics, 32Mb allocated to video memory.

And yes, I'd agree you need more RAM installed. But I'm also wondering. You said you've just formatted. Are you sure you correctly installed the motherboard chipset drivers and also the display drivers?

Some of the changes you made with Spybot may have. If you have similar problems in future, run Spybot again and use the 'Recovery' feature to check. The feature reverses the changes you made ;)

Haven't got that card in the slot beside an AGP slot have you? They don't work in that one, and in fact you should not really use that slot for anything at all.

This linked Knowledge base article describes how to perform an 'In Place upgrade', which is what you need to do. It reinstalls Windows over the top of itself, and corrects a lot of system corruption issues such as you have.

I'm sure the response I just made to another of your silly comments is reaction enough to this one, Mastadex!

Here it is!

Of course SP2 is not perfect. No-one claims that it is. But those people who DON'T install it are simply penalising themselves through stubborn pig-headedness and ignorance. ALL security updates should be installed.

Being a self-proclaimed 'hacker' is no claim to credibility, and even if it was an irresponsible suggestion still remains an irresponsible suggestion. Such comments are not really worthy contributions to a Technical assistance forum!

Mastadex, I hope you don't take too much offence at the following comment, but I'm going to say it anyway, for the benefit of other people reading this.

A format and reinstall is a good thing to do in the circumstance that someone has adopted the approach you've outlined just then. That approach indicates a lack of periodic maintenance and a neglectful approach to system security. When sensible maintenance practices and preventative measures have not been adopted, then the resultant mess can get beyond fixing.

But those people who start off fresh, and then regularly use the disk cleanup tools provided by Windows, regularly install ALL their system security updates, and regularly use Antivirus and Spyware tools, together with adopting a sensible approach towards managing their personal files and refraining from installing every piece of junk they can get hold of, will NOT have very many problems afterwards. Not ones which are the fault of Windows, anyway.

Sensibly used, a PC with Windows XP installed will run happily and quite stable for years!

Those people who actually need to reformat numerous times each year really need to adopt a fresh approach to looking after their own computers, instead of attributing the blame to Microsoft for the mess they've created themselves!

That's actually the complete opposite of what I recommended. My definite reccomendation would be to newly download the most recent version of all your drivers available from the various manufacturer websites!

He means that whatever you are trying to put those files on - floppy disk, CD, a hard drive - the disk is perhaps stuffed! CRC errors are usually the machine telling you that it is having problems trying to read or write the files!

He's also saying that we need to know more about your machine itself - what sort of drives are in it and so on. Just knowing it's a 'computer' with 'Windows 98' isn't enough information for us.

No it's not. It's on your system!

Work through the suggestions in the "Helping yourself" sticky in the Security forum section, and then post a topic in there if you have remaining problems. MacAffee Virus Shield by itself doesn't detect all intrusions, I'm afraid, and it sounds like you've collected some malware from browsing. I can assure you it never came from here :D

Dismantle it, clean it, reassemble it.

The 'touchpad' contacts underneath are probably all sticky and gummed up, preventing a decent contact being made when a key is pressed. It's a helluva job. Pity you're not me - the last job like that I confronted was when one of my grandkids upended a mug of Milo over 3 blasted remote control units. A laptop keyboard is a MUCH more fiddly job!

Failing that, plug in a keyboard ;)

Sorry for the delay.

If your drive is detected during POST but doesn't appear as a system disk, then either the boot sector on the hard drive is corrupted or the system boot files are missing or corrupted. You'll find a reasonably good guide to troubleshooting the situation at:

http://www.howtodothings.com/showarticle.asp?article=662

You'll need a Windows 98 Boot diskette so you can boot from your floppy drive, and if you haven't got a woring one there then make one on a friends Windows 98 system, get your local computer shop to make one for you if they're friendly enough, or download the necessary boot diskette image from:

www.bootdisk.com

Always run the most recent version of DirectX. If a game install asks you if you wish to install ANY VERSION AT ALL say NO!!!! Get DirectX from Windows update site and ONLY from there.

DirectX is backwards compatible for earlier versions and will run them.

If a game refuses to recognise DirectX as installed when there's a later version on the system, I'd suggest you throw the game away, as it's poorly coded ;)

ALWAYS choose 'Custom install' for games, so you can specify which directory you want the game installed to, which stupid online multiplayer components you wish to omit (for example because the game is old and no-one bloodywell PLAYS it online anymore) and so on.

DirectX is ONLY included on game CDs in case your system doesn't already have it installed ;)

........Catweazle bows graciously.......

Agreed! (That article was written by a colleague of mine by the way :))

In certain circumstances, you can gain some extra performance from windows by disabling certain background services, rather than by editing the registry. You need to be careful with it though, in case you disable services which you actually need. Study it well before you make changes, and perhaps a good place to begin is:

http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm

Read it thoroughly first, and then Google for further information about the content you don't fully follow. Only after you've thoroughly researched what you're doing should you begin to make any changes.

You've also posted the same comment in this similar topic:

http://www.daniweb.com/techtalkforums/thread9924.html

I've responded there, indicating that such a problem does not exist for SP2. SP2 is already installed on a hell of a lot of PCs around the world, without any problems at all. It's already undergone a lengthy process of 'ironing out bugs' ;)

I've come across a couple of other situations where people have experienced problems after preparing a slipstreamed installation of SP2. I've not come across such problems where the installation hasn't been slipstreamed.

Damned if I know just where problems might lie, though.

But there definitely is NOT an inherent problem in SP2 which leads to such problems as slow startup or the issues described by cargenious. What you CAN get are problems where software is installed which makes illegal calls and thus does not adhere to the standards checked for by SP2s security features. For such software exceptions need to be set to security restrictions for the programs which breach such standards, and that is a fault of the programs themselves, not of Windows ;)

Must be something to do with your system configuration. I've found that the Systems I have here with SP2 installed actually boot quicker than those without it.

Download your drivers. ALWAYS get the newest versions available from the manufacturer website ;)

Wave files are definitely supported by Nero! Uninstall Nero, reboot, then reinstall Nero, as it is not working correctly.

What version of Windows is on it? Does the drive show up in the information screens when your machine is first powered up? (The POST screens of information during the checking stage, before Windows starts to load)

Has anything been changed on your system lately?

The link in my sig leads to a pair of articles. One is about preparation, the other is about installing.

The link in my sig related to Reinstalling Windows leads to two articles. One of them is a detailed guide to preparing for a reinstall.

You will need to back up your data files and other user data. Your installed programs, of course, will need to be installed again later, from your program CDs.

Got the motherboard manual? Follow the procedure described in it to 'Reset CMOS'.

If you have Windows XP you will have to wipe the hard drive and start over. If you have Windows 2000, please let us know and get instructions BEFORE you make any changes.

It's software. The programs installed are confusing the hell out of things.

Got Adaptec? Get rid of it because it's evil!
Got an older version of Nero? Replace it with a newer version.
Got Packet writing software such as InCD or DirectCD running? What the hell for?
Got multiple burning software installed? Virtual drives enabled?

Uninstall ALL burning relared software. Then uninstall the drives from Device Manager. Reboot and let the drives be redetected. You DON'T need drivers!. See if the drives function now when you press the eject button, and if so install ONLY the most necessary software. For preference, use the latest version of Nero WITHOUT installing the packet writing component and excess crap, and as little other alternatives as possible. Avoid downloaded freebies like the plague.

Let us know if that doesn't work, please, because there are registry tricks to try if the drives are still not detected properly.

This is a common problem for people who have been indiscriminate with the software they've installed. They end up with too many things trying to control and monitor the drive, and problems result.

It includes word processor, spreadsheet, presentation software, and graphics software. Used in conjuction with Mozilla, it provides an almost complete suite of office software, and if you purchase the inexpensive retail version (Sun StarOffice) you get a database application as well.

It has almost complete file compatibility with MS Office, and it can also natively write documents in PDF or Flash format, which is somthing that Office can't do!

Boot from a Windows 98 startup diskette, use 'FDISK' to delete the partition(s) and then to create a new one(s) in its place.

Then format.

If a BIOS flash doesn't correct the large hard drive recognition issue, then you'll cetrtainly find a utility on the drive manufacturer's website which would allow you to access the full capacity of the drive. ;)

Don't worry about the ATA100/ATA133 issue. In fact I'd suggest you steer clear of ATA133 drives! Only Maxtor make them, and I'd much rather recommend using Samsung, Seagate or Western Digital drives. ATA133 doesn't really give bugger-all performance difference anyway. If you do happen to get one though, it will certainly work on an ATA100 motherboard interface.

All Service packs installed?

Tried Google?

(Sorry, I'm unfamiliar with NT 4.0)

We're not an 'always on call' free service, I'm afraid, and if you start doing something before you actually receive assistance you could end up with a mess.

If your Windows XP installation has been formatted to NTFS file system, then you'll need to delete the partition and create a new FAT32 partition in its place before you can format it for Windows 98 or Windows Me.

Why would you want to get rid of a really good Windows version and replace it with a crappy one anyway?

Thanks for resurrecting this, cargenius. I missed it earlier, and reading it has given me a good giggle!

If that receiver/stereo/whatever has an inbuilt surround sound amp, then ANY stereo soundcard can be used with a suitable cable. A better card will produce better sound, of course, but Prologic only needs a stereo source ;)

OpenOffice can read and create documents in MS Office file formats.

It's not 100% compatible but it's not far from it. In fact it's only advanced macros that really differ.

Make sure it's powered OFF before you plug/unplug a PS/2 keyboard. They're not 'hot-pluggable'.

In Windows 98:

In Display properties Uninstall the display adaptor from device manager.
Reboot, cancel out of any hardware detection stuff, and then install Catalyst drivers for your Radeon card.

It's rather obscene, in my view, for a vendor to include a trial version of Office. It's costs the same amount to convert it to a fully functional version, and it can be a messy job to convert. You have two options:

- Uninstall the trial version, buy a full retail version and install that.

- Uninstall the trial version, download OpenOffice http://www.openoffice.org and use that instead!

Have a look at the "Helping Yourself" sticky in the security section for links, and try both Spybot and Trojan Remover in addition to the tools you already use.

What sort of keyboard do you have? Is it USB or a PS/2 connector on the cord.

If it's USB, then try using a PS/2 keyboard instead. If it's PS/2, then the socket may be 'blown' if the keyboard cord has been dislodged at some stage with the sytem powered up.

Knowing the make and model number of your PC or of your motherboard would help here. (This is a hardware issue, by the sound of things) Specific details about your system's hardware will help us to give good advice, as BIOS options differ from system to system.

NO! Don't do it that way for Windows XP and NTFS partitions. You'd be best to head for the Windows 98 section with that advice ;)

An 'In-place upgrade' is what's needed:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;315341&Product=winxp

Go into BIOS setup (before Windows loads) and set "1st boot device" to be your primary hard drive.

Installing ANY themes software is asking for trouble. Why risk system instability for the sake of some pretty visuals?

Considering we have members from all over the globe, it would be helpful if people mentioned their location in addition to the online store!

Pretty damn useless seeing a link to a US based online store if you live in the UK, now, isn't it? Be nice to be able to assess that at a glance ;)