This is a compilation of questions I get asked and problems I run across in hopes it may help others.
I discovered an issue with the Logitech MouseWare software. I tested versions
9.75 and 9.76 and found that with em_exec.exe running in the background that the
FreeCell game could not be run. I tried two versions of the game, the original
1991 version and the 1998 version that comes bundled with Win98, neither would
work.
After finding the source of the problem I tried the latest version MouseWare
9.78 and found that it corrects the issues with the Win98 bundled version of
FreeCell, although I would like to mention for the record that the older 1991
version of FreeCell that comes with Microsoft Entertainment Pack for Windows
still does not function due to the running em_exec.exe background software.
This is currently the most frequently asked question by my customers
SYMPTOMS
After you install Internet Explorer 6 Service Pack 1 or Windows XP SP1, access
to some of your e-mail attachments in Outlook Express may be removed. For
example, you may experience any of the following symptoms:
When you click the paper clip in the Preview pane, the Save Attachments and
filename commands are unavailable.
When you open an e-mail message, the Save Attachments command is unavailable on
the File menu, the Attach field is missing from the e-mail message, and the
following message is displayed in the message alert bar at the top of the e-mail
message:
Outlook Express removed access to the following unsafe attachments in your
email: file_name1, file_name2
CAUSE
This behavior occurs if the Do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that
could potentially be a virus option is enabled, and the e-mail attachment is
determined by Outlook Express to be "unsafe". By default, the Do not allow
attachments to be saved or opened that could potentially be a virus option is
enabled in Outlook Express 6 SP1. When this virus-protection feature is enabled,
Outlook Express uses the Internet Explorer unsafe file list and the Confirm open
after download setting in Folder Options to determine if a file is safe. Any
e-mail attachment with a file type that is reported as "unsafe" is not
downloaded, and access to the attachment is removed.
WORKAROUND
If you are sure that the attachment is safe to download or open, use the
following method: NOTE: Because there are several versions of Microsoft Windows,
the following steps may be different on your computer. If they are, see your
product documentation to complete these steps.
Turn off the Option to Use the Unsafe File List
To turn off the Do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that could
potentially be a virus option:
Start Outlook Express.
On the Tools menu, click Options.
Click the Security tab, click to clear the Do not allow attachments to be saved
or opened that could potentially be a virus check box under Virus Protection,
and then click OK.
STATUS
This behavior is by design.
More information can be found here: http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=329570
My printer would not work one day and just blinked one green then six orange repeatedly. Researching on the net found many people with this problem and few that had found a solution. There were stories of how to reset the printer, but these didn't even help people and the printer was garbage. I have included the reset information for knowledge but the solution for me was to just replace the print head that holds the three colour ink tanks. The new print head BC-31e came with three new ink tanks and only cost $5 more than buying the ink tanks!
PRINTER RESET
After power on the 1-6-failure is gone although the model of the printer has
changed. To change it back do the following:
MODEL TYPE RESET
SYMPTOMS
When you run the Disk Defragmenter tool in Windows 98, you may receive the
following error message:
"Error Defragmenting Drive C
Windows cannot finish defragmenting this drive because it has encountered a
problem. Click Help and carry out the instructions for running Scan Disk, and
then try defragmenting again."
CAUSE
This issue can occur if the Applog file in the hidden C:\Windows\Applog
folder is damaged.
RESOLUTION
To resolve this issue, follow these steps:
On older systems (pre- November 1998) the BIOS may not support drives that
are larger than 32 GB. If the ATA hard drive you are trying to install has a
capacity larger than what the BIOS can support the drive may not be detected by
the system.
To troubleshoot this problem follow these steps.
These parameters will tell the system that your drive's capacity is 502 MB or 528 MB, a capacity that most, if not all BIOS's can support.
February 27, 2004 - What is Thumbs.db?
Concerned about a mystery file called Thumbs.db that has started appearing in
a folder or folders on your computer. Is this the sign
of some sort of hacker getting into the system and leaving his finger prints
around? The truth - as is so often the case - turns out to be much more
mundane and innocuous.
Go here to
find out more.
March 27, 2004 - Outlook and Outlook Express contact sharing
Officially, Outlook 2002 and Outlook 2000 in Corporate/Workgroup mode do not
support sharing of its contact data with Outlook Express, but there is a
registry hack that works, at least with some versions of Outlook Express. Follow
these steps:
Open the Registry Editor (regedit.exe or regedt32.exe).
Go to this registry key:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\WAB\WAB4
Add a new DWORD named UseOutlook (if it isn't already present), and set its
value to 1.
Outlook Express will display the Contacts folder in the default delivery store
(Exchange mailbox or Personal Folders .pst file) in Outlook. You cannot direct
the WAB to a particular Contacts folder, except by changing the default store.
To turn off sharing, set the value for HKCU\Software\Microsoft\WAB\WAB4\UseOutlook
to 0.
This is a valid registry entry for Outlook Express 5.0 and later versions.
Outlook MVPs have tested it with Outlook 2002 and Outlook 2000 CW and OE 5.0 and
6.0 so far.
March 27, 2004 - LG CED-8080B Problem
My LG CED-8080B has firmware 1.11 and when trying to burn an audio CD onto a
CD-R in TAO mode the burn fails at 20-40%. Although simulation mode and burning
the same compilation onto a CD-RW works fine. The work around seems to be
Burning in DAO mode and not using TAO mode.
August 23, 2004 -
HP Pavilion Notebook ze5468CL
I recently purchased a Pavilion ze5400 Notebook and I wanted to do a clean install of Windows XP as I didn't want all the extra software that Hewlett Packard figured I should have on my computer. I know some would say and even HP themselves did is that I could uninstall the stuff I don't want, but that would still leave fragments of junk behind and not the way I personally like to have my system.
Well I went on my venture of doing a clean install and freed up more than half the space it was taking up before on my hard drive! Unfortunately there was some HP software missing that I did want, and HP doesn't seem to offer it for download!
They do offer the software for the one-touch buttons but you will find that none of the programs these buttons shortcut to are included, also the wireless On/Off button no longer functions. The missing programs are all part of the notebook utilities.
Months later after getting the software the hard way, I found a link on the HP website to the infamous:
I know it says it is for the Evo N1050v family but it makes no difference.
*********************************************
However there is an order for installing to get things working well:
1.) Install HP WLAN 54g W450 Network Adapter Driver version
3.10.39.2 (325396B2 3.56MB)
2.) Install Notebook Utilities (SP27719 4.41MB)
and reboot
3.)
You may now update to this or other:
Broadcom 802.11b & 802.11g Network Adapter Driver version
3.00b (SP28537 3.30MB)
I am not sure if it will work other ways, but this worked for me.
I found that the OneTouch Buttons (SP23613 911KB)
can be installed after the Notebook Utilities or after the Update, either way it
is needed in order to have on/off control with the button on the front of the
notebook.
November 20, 2004 - Network Share Microsoft Streets & Trips
Change the 2 registry keys to represent where the data is stored:
STREETS & TRIPS 2001
====================
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Automap\8.0\USA]
"DataPath"="Z:\\Streets\\MSMap\\Data"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\AutoMap\8.0\USA]
"DataPath"="Z:\\Streets\\MSMap\\Data"
STREETS & TRIPS 2005
====================
[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Automap\12.0\USA]
"DataPath"="Z:\\Streets\\MSMap\\PFiles\\MSMap\\Data"
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\AutoMap\12.0\USA]
"DataPath"="Z:\\Streets\\MSMap\\PFiles\\MSMap\\Data"
February 15, 2005 - Save As Error: Folder isn't accessible
This problem arises when you open a file from a Windows 98 network share
with Microsoft Word or Excel, modify that file, and then use "Save As" to save
the modified file with a new name back to the network share. That is when the
error message: "The folder 'I:\windows98\mydocuments......' isn't accessible.
The folder may be located in an
unavailable location, protected with a password, or the file name contains a /
or \".
It does not matter if you try
to save to the same location or a new location ON THE NETWORK, you can only save
the "Originally named" file, not with a new name. you CAN save any NEW file to
the network, and you can also save a file that has been modified FROM a
different computer. It's just that if you open a file from the network directly
and then go to save that same file with a different filename back to the network
directly, that's when the error message arises.
The culprit is a security fix from Windows Update called KB885250 released 02/10/2005. Removing KB855250 seems to fix the problem. To remove these updates, log on as Administrator. Go to Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel and scroll down to the update you want and click on remove. You may need to check the box that says "show updates", otherwise the updates did not show up at all. Follow the instructions.
SUMMARY
Microsoft Outlook includes a feature that blocks attachments that are considered
unsafe. If you receive an e-mail message that contains an attachment that
contains one of the file types that are considered unsafe, you may receive the
following message: Outlook blocked access to the following potentially unsafe
attachments: [...] Although Outlook blocks access to the attachment, the
attachment still exists in the e-mail message.
WORKAROUND
Warning Serious problems might occur if you modify the registry incorrectly by
using Registry Editor or by using another method. These problems might require
that you reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that these
problems can be solved. Modify the registry at your own risk. Important Before
you can customize the attachment security behavior in Outlook 2000 SR1 and
Microsoft Outlook 2000 SR1a, you must first apply either Microsoft Office 2000
Service Pack 2 or Microsoft Office 2000 Service Pack 3.1. Quit Outlook if it is
running. 2. Click Start, and then click Run. 3. In the Open box, type regedit,
and then click OK. 4. Verify that the following registry key for your version of
Outlook exists. If it does, go to step 5.
Microsoft Outlook 2000:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\9.0\Outlook\Security
Microsoft Outlook 2002:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\10.0\Outlook\Security
Microsoft Office Outlook 2003:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\11.0\Outlook\Security If the registry key does not exist, create it. To create the registry key, locate and then click the following registry key: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft a. Click the Edit menu, click New, and then click Key. b. Type Office, and then press ENTER. c. Click the Edit menu, click New, and then click Key. d. Type 11.0, and then press ENTER.
Note This is the correct name if you are using Outlook 2003. If you are using Outlook 2000 or Outlook 2002, you will have to type "9.0" or "10.0", respectively. e. Click the Edit menu, click New, and then click Key. f. Type Outlook, and then press ENTER. g. Click the Edit menu, click New, and then click Key. h. Type Security, and then press ENTER.
5. Click the Edit menu, click New, and then click String Value. 6. Type the following name for the new value: Level1Remove 7. Press ENTER. 8. Right-click the new string value name, and then click Modify. 9. Type the file name extension of the file type that you want to open in Outlook. For example: .exe To specify multiple file types, use the following format: .exe;.com 10. Click OK. 11. Quit Registry Editor. 12. Restart your computer. When you start Outlook, you can open the file types that you specified in the registry.
Note We recommend that you enable only the file types that you require. If you rarely receive a particular file type, we recommend that you give Outlook temporary access to the file type that is in question and then reconfigure Outlook to block the file type by undoing the changes to registry.
STATUS
This behavior is by design.
Copyright © 1997-2007 Zomar Contracting - Most recent revision July 23, 2006