Stoooopid 'Pooter Question?????

[MattF]

i don't know why the manufacturers don't give a copy of windows with new computers...
when i upgraded my last computer from ME to XP it asked for the original disk!... called microsoft and they recommended asking a friend for a copy!!

what use is that???


bouth this laptop and all it has is a "recovery disk"... how do i reformat and re-install??
(i'll have to get an external drive to save all my files)

The install files are all on your hard drive. They are just on a 'hidden', (as far as windows is
concerned), partition. The recovery disk will put the system back exactly how it was when
you first bought it.


Matt

[Gizmo]

there is a norton ghost that will wipe out norton all together and can buggar up ur puter.i had this and then done away with norton and went with avg full edition and had no probs since with anti virus

Norton Ghost is ghosting software [ie like sysprep from microsoft]. This allows you to prepare image files of the machine to be reloaded on other computers with the same devices and software to be installed.

I have Windows XP SP2 installed but have disabled the Firewall product. I am running Nortons Internet Security Suite which has a firewall in. It will not find every virus but other good freebies to be used in conjuction with this are

Adaware from Lavasoft - Ads found
Spybot S & D - Spyware software
Lastly I downloaded Mcafee's Stinger [s-t-i-n-g-e-r] on their website which has helped me out at work to clear Trojans running on the PCs - infected and renaming files and or gleaming of passwords.

Each version of Windows has been more hungry than the last [XP runs more software and functions as individual Services under the User as opposed to the system] this allows the service to be stopped without you having to restart your machine like NT4.0 and so on.

Windows also has to cope with different drivers and devices from different manufacturers unlike Apple machines [mainly geared to Publishing work in industry].

Keep your virus scanning/firewall software up-to-date and make monthly or even more checks.

Clear out your Internet Cached files [Tools/Internet Options/ Delete Files and Delete Cookies]. Every time you visit a page it will download the images and information to be cached for quick response to accessing the page next time.


As an ex NT Consultant and now an IT manager this has stood me in good-stead to date.


PS: If your running an AMD 64 chip beware of microsoft updates - there is an update which allows 32bit systems Printer Spooler to run for 64bit - this screwed up my system [blank pages would be printed only although a test page using the printer manaufacturers low level controlling software worked]. This happened to me twice and the the second time I tracked it down installing one software up-date at a time to this!!!!! so beware not all MS updates are good for you.

[Tallyman]

I've just spent almost the whole of Christmas Day trying to get my computer to work. This morning it froze up. When trying to re-boot it would enter Windows startup for about 4 seconds then immediately reboot itself, constantly.

Ended up sticking a spare HD in as master, running the Restore CD on the spare to get it to boot as it had Win98 on it, not XP, closing down and connecting the old master as a slave, then arranging for it to run scandisk on startup for the "E" drive (the slave). Scandisk found a few bad sectors and seems to have corrected them as it's now working OK but took far longer to get right than it sounds from above comments.

Now I can sit down and watch some tele at last, if there's anything worth while on!!!

[surfenstein]

hi all,can anyone tell me why my computer wont recognise that a device has been connected to the usb ports.i.e trying to transfer mp3 files from media player.computer says device not connected.mp3 player is switched on,and reset.ive done everything the trouble shooter has told me to do,but still nothing,any ideas anyone.

[BUSHWHACKER]

The only thing I can think of, is did you re-start the pooter after the installation?

[da SLUG man]

how's about this one then!....


wireless network

both computers connect to internet through router... printer is wireless too... both computers print...
BUT i want to get files off the other computer to this one (music etc) cos this only has a 40gb disk and the other is much bigger.

how do i do that?

[BUSHWHACKER]

I think you need a data cable from one pooter to the other.
Be able to tell you exactly how to do it on tuesday as Lindsay is a computer engineer.

[da SLUG man]

I think you need a data cable from one pooter to the other.
Be able to tell you exactly how to do it on tuesday as Lindsay is a computer engineer.

excellent!...

brother in law came and copied all his music over (500 albums) onto other computer and i want it on this one!... but disk isn't big enough (full of um... videos!!...hehehe!!)

[BUSHWHACKER]

Hehehe! We done that a couple of years ago, downloaded about 250 songs, the ****** computer crashed and we lost them all.

[That Ruddy Squirrel]

how's about this one then!....


wireless network

both computers connect to internet through router... printer is wireless too... both computers print...
BUT i want to get files off the other computer to this one (music etc) cos this only has a 40gb disk and the other is much bigger.

how do i do that?

What version of windows does each have ?

In XP / 2000 you can then enable sharing on one of the Hard Drives, before going to the OTHER machine and opening the shared drive via "My Network Places"

Then it's just a matter of opening "My Computer" and the other hard drive before doing some fairly familiar file copying


Trev

[surfenstein]

um ok its not finding any device that is plugged in to the puter now,

[da SLUG man]

um ok its not finding any device that is plugged in to the puter now,

check that your mum hasn't unplugged it to use the hoover!!...