Archive through September 12, 2003
TV ClubHouse: Archive: Computer Problem - I need advice/help (ARCHIVES):
Archive through September 12, 2003
Egbok | Thursday, September 11, 2003 - 09:10 pm     Dra, my son is in a dorm room and has been told that he needs a Wireless Ethernet card to be able to connect to the net. The college IS people told him to go to Best Buys and pick one up. Someone on his floor asked him what format they told him to buy...A, B or G. Now, my son is very confused and reaching out to his momma for help...and well, I want to help him but I don't know nuthin' about computers....so I'm reaching out to you! Any suggestions and/or education would be appreciated. Thank you SirDra!
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Donut | Thursday, September 11, 2003 - 09:42 pm     draheid, juju and jed: THANK YOU SO MUCH! sorry this comes so late, but with starting work, etc, i completely forgot that i asked a question! I just found all your answers in the archives and cant wait to try this weekend to see if i can do it! everything made sense, although there was mention of reducing things for sending, unless the reciever was going to want to print high quality resolution, so i may be back with the question of what you do if you DO want the receiver to be able to print with photo quality...although it sounded like just saving it as a jpeg might be the answer.. Thanks again! |
Draheid | Thursday, September 11, 2003 - 09:59 pm     Donut: Jpg (or Jpeg) is not the preferred file format if you want the best quality print from a scanned image. The jpg format is ideally suited for things like online images because it allows the greatest compression while retaining the majority of the image quality - enough for most online content. There are many other image formats, choosing one that the receiver has the ability to read and print will need to be considered. I would suggest .tif as an uncompressed format more suited for print. Just be aware that any uncompressed file is going to be considerably larger then using something like jpg. Hope that helps. |
Texannie | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 04:55 am     ARRGGGGGGGGGGGGG!!!!!! It started doing the hicupping typing and scrolling lag again, so I ran virus scan and it didn't work!!! When I ran scan last time (and it worked) and this time, there were some write protected files that came up and some ad aware stuff, but not viruses found. This is making me crazy! Help!!! |
Draheid | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 05:41 am     Texannie: You say there is/was some ad aware stuff - did you allow the program to remove that? What about the 'write protected files'? Probably the only way to eradicate those will require you to reboot and immediately run virus scan. If you would bring up your task list as soon as you notice the problem (press [Ctrl]-[Alt]-[Del] at the same time) and scan through that list, you might see something there that is causing the problem. If you would like to type out that list in a post here, I would be happy to research it and explain what each running program is and whether or not you need it, and possibly how to remove it if appropriate. Also, if you would include what version of Windows you are using and how much memory you have please. Let me know. |
Texannie | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 06:11 am     Thanks Dra. I am using Windows ME. I have 384 MB of RAM. Here's the list that came up. Explorer, ZoneAlarm, Mcvsecn, Rundll, PSfree, Devldr16, Mcagent, Systray, Mcvsrte, Bcmdmmsg. I went to MSConfig yesterday and looked at my startup and took some stuff off, but that didn't help. And to confuse matters even more, I tried to do a scan diks and defrag and it keeps looping and starting over. I hate computers!!!!!!!!! |
Texannie | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 06:16 am     PS..Virus scan is taking about 45 minutes to run too.... |
Twinkie | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 06:18 am     Texannie, write protected can also be a clue that you might have a CD or floppy disk in. Check both of those to make sure they are empty. |
Draheid | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 06:55 am     Texannie: Here is what I've found for the list you provided:
Explorer | Required Microsoft Program. | ZoneAlarm | ZoneAlarm Personal Firewall. | Mcvsecn | UNKNWON Can not find any reference. | Rundll | Required Microsoft Program. | PSfree | Popup Stopper | Devldr16 | Soundblaster 16-Bit Emulator for DOS Games | Mcagent | McAfee Auto-Updater for Networks. | Systray | Microsoft Program - leave alone. | Mcvsrte | McAfee Auto-Updater for older versions. | Bcmdmmsg | Broadcom Modem Driver. | Based on this information, I must ask what version of Virus Scan software are you using? The running programs seem to indicate an older version which may not be able to detect the latest potential virus threats. Are you using a dialup connection to access the internet? The Broadcom Modem Driver is the software interface to your dialup modem. Do you use any older DOS game software that requires the Soundblaster 16 emulation software? If not, you might be able to remove or disable that too. The amount of memory is sufficient that you shouldn't have any trouble with that so, other then these items, I'm not sure what to advise you next. You may want to use one of the current online virus scans to see if you have any problems. Symantec offers a very good one on their site at www.symantec.com, click on 'Security Response' and find the free online virus scan there, which would check your system for you and report to you any potential problems. Hope this helps. Please let me know what you figure out and if I can help. Edit to add: The Mcvsecn I suspect may have been a typo and is probably another McAfee resource. |
Texannie | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 07:29 am     It probably was a typo. I have uptodate McAfee, so don't know what the old program is. We have Road runner, so no dial up. No DOS games, but I think one of the games my ds plays uses sound blaster???? In running virus scan, I am getting alot of "potentially unwanted programs" that look like they are adaware stuff (i went in yesterday and manually cleared logs) the files are C:\_restore\temp\AO and then a number Program name Adaware BDE, CWS or SRNG also Dialer-RAS>.ag The scan seems to be searching through alot of restore\archive files but when I do a search to find those files, nothing comes up. this is making me crazy! |
Texannie | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 07:45 am     OK..ran the damn scan again..those same files came up as "write protected" so I can't do anything to them. Restarted, tried to run scan disk and defrag and nothing happens. What the heck is going on? But..the lagging has stopped! LOL |
Draheid | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:00 am     Texannie: The directory you mention C:\_restore is a Hidden/System directory and usually not looked in with the normal search. I strongly recommend that you upgrade your virus scanner as soon as you are able and run that on your system in a 'full system scan' - which will take a while depending on the size of your hard drive and amount of information stored there. Also, have you run defragment on your hard drive recently? This can sometimes help the system run better and help alleviate some of the possible cause of the 'stuttering' you describe. I'm sorry it's making you crazy. There is unfortunately never a single simple answer to computer problems, usually it takes several steps to correct a situation and those steps can be arduous at times. Hang in there, we will get through it eventually I'm sure. |
Draheid | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:02 am     Well, look there - I forgot to take my own advice and refresh before posting again! lol - It's quite possible the lagging has stopped because you rebooted the computer. As for the 'write protected' files, that could also have to do with the hidden/system folder described before. A newer version of the virus scanner may be able to deal with those also. |
Juju2bigdog | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:02 am     Texannie, try the free online virus scan Draheid linked up there. Good luck. Things going wrong is such a time waster. Heh. I know. Who can tell me what settings I want for maximum clarity on Bigdog's Windows 98? After restoring things yesterday, his pictures somehow seem fuzzier. I am wanting him to work on his pictures because I know there are people in the Road Trips thread just dying to know what SpongeBob was up to on my trip to Yellowstone. Plus, we came home to a dahlia that was almost bigger than my head and got a pic of that to post. |
Draheid | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:07 am     Egbok: I am afraid your DS is going to have to contact the IS department again to determine which 'version' he will need to access the wireless network. There are 3 different versions as you describe and getting the matching one will require knowing what that is. The alternative would be to purchase one which is capable of all 3 versions. That will probably be a little more expensive, however it would give DS the ability to 'adapt' to any wireless network if that would add any benefit to the situation. If you would like help choosing one that matches the school's network, once you find out what version they are using, I would be happy to look up the information and post it here for you, just let me know. |
Egbok | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:19 am     Thanks Dra, I'll check with him this weekend. But I do have an additional question. If he bought the more expensive version that is capable of covering all 3 versions, would this be the better deal for long term use? What I'm asking, is...he will be using the computer now and post-college...so is wireless internet connectivity going to be around with these three version? Also, which version would cover all 3...A, B or G? Thanks again, I appreciate your help here. |
Juju2bigdog | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:19 am     Egjunior probably found it out 5 seconds after he hung up with Egmom. In a college dorm full of 18 year olds in 2003, there has to be at least 50 geeks. |
Draheid | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:37 am     Egbok: With a 'Dual-Band' (that's the main difference between an 'a/b' and 'g' wireless network is the frequency) your DS would be compatible with nearly any wireless network he would encounter. Be aware that this makes the device considerably more expensive. A 'b' version (which appears to be the most prevalent) runs $50 - $70 at Best Buy where a 'Dual-Band' is $95. Click Here to view the Linksys Dual-Band. Hope that helps. |
Buttercup | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:40 am     I am running XP on my laptop and have wireless connection abilities. When visiting a friends' house who has a wireless network setup, my computer automatically picked up the signal and let me know that it was available. The status window showed that I was connected, however, I was still unable to connect to the internet. I am obviously missing something in my setup. Any advice would be appreciated
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Egbok | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:41 am     Yes it does...thank you Dra! Came back with EDIT Mode to Juju: Unfortunately EgJr got placed in a dorm with mostly football and baseball players. I'm pretty sure he would have rather been placed with the geeks at this point. He tells me these guys are big and buff and he calls them "sir"..LOL! |
Draheid | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:43 am     Juju2bigdog: To answer your question of resolution settings, it really depends on the monitor. Usually the higher the settings the better the resolution - however, being able to read the 'fine print' is also something to consider. The higher the numbers, the smaller everything is. So a lot depends on the monitor itself and it's ability to display. One suggestion I would make is to try to set the highest possible refresh rate (usually expressed in numbers such as 85hz, etc) so the monitor will be better for BigDog's eyes. Lower refresh rates tend to 'flicker' at higher resolutions and can cause the eyes to become strained more quickly. In order to achieve the optimum settings, you will need to be sure you have the latest drivers installed for your video card. I think you already went through that process though, so you should be fine with that. You may also find it easier to find the best settings by making sure the computer knows what both the video card and the monitor model are as those will help prevent you from trying to select a mode that is not compatible. Hope that helps. |
Draheid | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:49 am     ButterMommy: My first thought is that your friend has Wireless Encryption security setup on the network. This is intended to keep neighbors from being able to access the wireless network and utilize your friend's resources. I highly recommend this be activated in any wireless network for the owner's protection. What you will need to do is find out what the settings for the WEP are and configure your laptop with those settings in order to actually access the network. Your card is correct in letting you know that it is available and establishing the basic wireless connection but without the encryption settings and the appropriate 'key' you won't get anywhere. Hope that helps. |
Texannie | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 08:59 am     Dra, I am a subscriber to McAfee so I get automatic upgrades, I manually checked and it says I am all up to date. Here are all the options that it runs when it does a scan Scan all sub folders, all files, within compressed files, for new unknown viruses, and potentially unknown programs...I have all options checked. I had to go into safe mode, but was able to run defrag and scan disk. The lagging is a little better, but not 100%. |
Draheid | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 09:31 am     Texannie: I can only guess that there must be something running in the background causing the problems you are describing (lagging) and for some reason it is not showing up on the task list. You might consider looking in some of the areas that affect the startup process and see if there are things loading that are not necessary. Look in the folder 'Start - Programs - Startup' and look in the startup files by running 'MSCONFIG' from the 'Start - Run' command. If you see things that you don't recognize, you can temporarily disable them to see if they affect anything else you need. If not, there's a good chance they don't need to be running and using up your resources anyway. Let me know if you decide to try any of these ideas or if you have any questions about it. |
Juju2bigdog | Friday, September 12, 2003 - 09:48 am     Just bopped in to say Bigdog twinked (sorry, Twinkie) his settings and has now got it to where he can see a red, uhhhh, body hair. |
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