TOT computer hassle

Can anybody explain to be why I should install SP3 ? My XP with SP2 is
running perfectly well, I'm fully firewalled and AV'd up, and I never use
Outlook Express or Internet Explorer, so what's the problem ?

From the Microsoft web site:
"Windows® XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) includes all previously released updates
for the operating system. This update also includes a small number of new
functionalities, which do not significantly change customers' experience
with the operating system."

So, as long as you're up to date with the security patches, if it ain't
broke, don't fix it.

On 12/05/2008 07:22, Mark Carver wrote:

Can anybody explain to be why I should install SP3 ? My XP with SP2 is
running perfectly well, I'm fully firewalled and AV'd up, and I never
use Outlook Express or Internet Explorer, so what's the problem ?

There's no compelling reason, it may be useful to have around on a CD
"in case", if you're already up to date you have 90% of it installed
piecemeal, and eventually when windows update "forces" SP3 on you,
you'll get the 70MB version rather than the 350MB version.

"Bill Wright" wrote in message
...
A week ago my main PC went bang. The PSU exploded. It was fixed and all
seemed OK. But this afternoon when I went back to the machine after
lunch, having used it all morning, as soon as I moved the mouse it
froze, and could not be rebooted by Cont Alt Del. In the end I switched
it off by holding the button in. When it came back on it got half way
thro loading Windows and froze, so I rebooted it, and this time it came
up with a DOS message which included the option to adopt the 'last
configuration that worked normally'. Thinking this would be the
configuration that applied before lunch I selected that option. The
machine then booted up but had transformed itself into what it was on
Jan 1st 2006 when it was first used. It had become a brand new machine.
It had to go looking on the internet for the modem software, and it
declared that Corel 12 was new software, and it said that something or
other was new hardware. The only things on the C Drive were the things
I'd imported from the predecessor machine. At this point I remembered
that I hadn't backed up for two weeks.

I tried to use System Restore but there was no restore point to
restore to. I half heartedly made one, for today's date, but of course
it didn't work.

In some dispair I left the machine running in Windows and went for a
sulk. After 15 mins or so my daughter went into the office for
something and came out saying 'Why's your computer just switched
itself on?' In fact the machine was repeatedly booting up, getting as
far as Windows, then starting again. It did this about six times while
we stood looking at it. Then, when it got to the 'last configuration
that worked normally' bit I said, "All I did was select that" and did
it again by way of demonstration. The machine then went through the
reboot cycle a few more times and eventually started Windows, but this
time it was Windows as it had been before lunch, complete with all
data.

Any ideas anyone?

Also, when I was away I introduced my laptop to the Camping and
Caravaning Club's wifi. On returning home it doesn't communicate with
my own wifi. Again, any ideas?

Bill



Two things:

Right click on My Computer (or go to Control Panel/System) select the
Start Up and Recovery tab, and untick the Automatic Restart box - this
will cause the machine to stop if it errors during start-up for any
reason. Gets you out of the possible endless loop.

I can never understand why most people (including most IT
'professionals') insist in putting all their eggs in one basket.
Partition the hard disc so that you have two drives, C and D, then keep
only Windows on the C drive along with anything else that refuses to be
installed anywhere other than C. All of your software and files then
being on D, if you ever have to format C you re-install Windoze - and it
happens to us all at some time or other - then you loose none of your
'proper' software (although some may need to be reloaded) and none of
your personal files. It also has the advantage of improving you
security - how many people loose their files through a virus or hacking
because they store everything in My Documents or one of its
sub-directories?

The only down-side of partitioning is that it adds a second or two to
start-up as Windows has to read both drives.



--
Woody

harrogate three at ntlworld dot com

In article , Brian Gaff
scribeth thus
Have you got some noisy mains where this computer is? I had something like
this and after lots of hair tearing, we moved it to another ring on the
mains and it never went wrong again.


I think with wireless you have to make preferences on what network to
connect to and it seems sometimes that it forgets what you told it. Not
only that xp seems to also forget the wep passwords as well.

I seem to recall there was a third party bit of software about that could
just switch between networks bypassing all the clunky Microsoft 'wizardry'.


Yes it s called WIN 2 K Pro ...
Brian`


--
Tony Sayer

Andy Burns wrote:
On 12/05/2008 07:22, Mark Carver wrote:

Can anybody explain to be why I should install SP3 ? My XP with SP2
is running perfectly well, I'm fully firewalled and AV'd up, and I
never use Outlook Express or Internet Explorer, so what's the
problem ?

There's no compelling reason, it may be useful to have around on a CD
"in case", if you're already up to date you have 90% of it installed
piecemeal, and eventually when windows update "forces" SP3 on you,
you'll get the 70MB version rather than the 350MB version.

The 70Mb version is there now. I won't touch it unless I'm forced to (for
future security updates needing SP3). It seems to cause a rather large
number of problems for very little benefit if you already have a
fully-patched SP2 system. It's a pity MS don't make just the new updates
available without all the previous stuff (that we already have with our
fully-patched systems).

--
Jeff
(cut "thetape" to reply)

Andy Burns wrote:
On 11/05/2008 20:51, John Rumm wrote:

Don't suppose it might have downloaded at installed XP service pack
3 by any chance? This is a known bug that affects a small number of
systems -

limited to AMD machines (or some HPs that have drivers for AMD
installed "by accident")

I think that you will find there are some peripherals which cause problems
too. I don't think that these are limited to AMD machines.

--
Jeff
(cut "thetape" to reply)

On Mon, 12 May 2008 08:27:06 +0100, "Woody"
wrote:

- how many people loose their files through a virus or hacking
because they store everything in My Documents or one of its
sub-directories?

M Documents directory should not be left on the C:drive:-
http://www.techsupportalert.com/how_..._documents.htm

Geo

"Woody" wrote in message
...
"Bill Wright" wrote in message
...
I can never understand why most people (including most IT 'professionals')
insist in putting all their eggs in one basket. Partition the hard disc so
that you have two drives, C and D, then keep only Windows on the C drive
along with anything else that refuses to be installed anywhere other than
C. All of your software and files then being on D, if you ever have to
format C you re-install Windoze - and it happens to us all at some time or
other - then you loose none of your 'proper' software (although some may
need to be reloaded) and none of your personal files.

Funnily enough on previous machines I always had removable (cassetted) HDs
as D and E, and kept all my data on those. But I never bothered with this
one. However, it has got a permanent D drive, which I never think to use!
Doh!

Bill

"Bill Wright" wrote in message
...

"Woody" wrote in message
...
"Bill Wright" wrote in message
...
I can never understand why most people (including most IT
'professionals') insist in putting all their eggs in one basket.
Partition the hard disc so that you have two drives, C and D, then keep
only Windows on the C drive along with anything else that refuses to be
installed anywhere other than C. All of your software and files then
being on D, if you ever have to format C you re-install Windoze - and it
happens to us all at some time or other - then you loose none of your
'proper' software (although some may need to be reloaded) and none of
your personal files.

Funnily enough on previous machines I always had removable (cassetted) HDs
as D and E, and kept all my data on those. But I never bothered with this
one. However, it has got a permanent D drive, which I never think to use!
Doh!

Bill


Have you still got the c and d drives?
"previous good configuration" and System Restore" does
not remove data files such as documents, and what I am
thinking is that you had two partitions and the Windows
operating system was installed on both of them and now
you have lost what was the c partition and the what was
d has become c
What operating system is it
Right click on "My Computer" and chose "manage"
select "Disk Management" and post a screenshot.

--
Graham

%Profound_observation%

In article , Woody wrote:
I can never understand why most people (including most IT*
'professionals') insist in putting all their eggs in one basket.*
Partition the hard disc so that you have two drives, C and D, then keep*
only Windows on the C drive along with anything else that refuses to be*
installed anywhere other than C. All of your software and files then*
being on D,

Same here. C: for the system, D: for data.

I let it install in C:\Program files though, as nearly everything also
puts files in the C:\Windows folder system and would have to be
reinstalled anyway. But I keep the installation files on drive D: along
with all my own stuff. The whole of the D: drive is also backed up to two
external drives on alternate days, so I've never lost anything I couldn't
replace.

It's quite amazing how much faster everything works after a system
reinstallation, and how much stuff you don't need to reinstall at all
because you don't need it. The procedure has at least the same level of
satisfaction as clearing out the junk room, but is much less like work.

Rod.