Chappy

Windows Experts
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Everything posted by Chappy

  1. No, you don't need to have a TV Tuner card unless you want to run a TV signal thru your computer to the TV, which is not necessary. All you need is the graphics output to have either S-Video and an RCA jack audio outputs, or use VGA to Analog TV adapter. There are multiple ways this can be done and it all depends on what inputs your TV has and what Outputs your computer graphics has. S-Video cannot support a true HD signal. New TV's can usually support VGA and/or DVI inputs now, and also HDMI which is the new standard, but you're computer outputs are going to limit you here to what it suppor
  2. Lordy...it almost sounds like you've suffered thru a Hosed File System, a Hosed MBR, & a Hosed HDD all nearly at once...maybe more too. Yah, it's definitely an experience when things go really haywire and normal t-shooting is nearly impossible. I once had multiple different services and processeses begin stopping randomly, always different ones. Repair installs failed during file copies at different points, then worked and service errors started again right away. I had a feeling it was bad RAM, but MemTest 86 said it was all good and I did 20 passes 3 times overall, that took days. Suffere
  3. Definitely a problem with one of them for sure. You're option now is to reinstall the Windows update, reboot and then try a burn, if it works then it's the Nero one that was bad. If it doesn't work, uninstall it, reboot again and try another burn. Now if the burn works after you uninstall the Win Update, reinstall the Nero one, reboot and try again. This should tell you for sure which one, or possibly both, are causing this problem for you. I would say that it's probabably the Nero one that's got a problem. If so, contact Nero Support to let them know, and see if they possibly already have a
  4. Hello Besttechie Members! We're just a very curious bunch here (read as - I'm very curious), and we would Love to find out just how many of you have made the jump to Vista already, or have plans to in the near Future. If you choose "NO" for your first answer, you can also select one of the Other Choices if they Apply! Also, we'd like to know if there's ANYTHING that we can do to help you with that decision, if you're having trouble making it. We know it's a big step sometimes, to go to a new Operating System, and especially one so different than what you're used to. We started the Windows Vist
  5. Why am I Denied From Viewing the Contents of Some Hidden Shortcut Folders in Vista? Today's Tip is a TRAP!! And it's a Trap that almost ALL Vista Users have been caught by in the beginning, myself included...thank you very much. Most Power Users, and many Intermediate Users run their systems with Hidden Files set to show, and in Vista this has been the cause of some Mass Confusion to say the least. When I first started Vista, I immediately set about getting the settings changed to the way I like them, and setting System & Hidden Files to show is one of my first basic changes. I do allot of
  6. Add the "Copy To Folder" and "Move To Folder" Shell Extensions into Vista Context Menu As most of you will probably remember, sometime ago I pointed out a way to add 2 very handy options into the right click context menu in XP, "Copy To Folder" & "Move To Folder". "Copy To Folder" gave you the option to quickly Copy any item in a directory to any other directory folder, while leaving the original intact. "Move To Folder" gave you the option to quickly Move any item in the same way, but deleting the original item. These required you to make changes in the Registry, or I made a Registry Scr
  7. Exactly Liz! Thats what I mean, really good size and for a premee not to be jaundiced is very unusual really. He's got a good start, should grow up Big & Strong, like Grampa!!
  8. The New "Start Search" Feature in Vista Start Menu Hi Everyone! I'm sure many of you new Vista Users have seen the new Start Search box in the Start Menu, and like most you don't really know just how Powerful this new litte feature can be. You've probably also noticed that the "Run" box has been removed from the Start Menu by default in Vista, and the reason for that is the Start Search Feature. This handy little box can take the place of the Run box, and MUCH more! As you use Vista, it learns. It learns what Programs you use most often, or which Documents you open allot, and it remembers thes
  9. Change the Name of the Registered Owner In today's Tip, I'm going to show you how to change the name of the Registered owner on an OEM Machine. Something that's ALWAYS bothered me about an OEM machine is that it will show the "Registered Owner" of the machine as "Hewlett Packard", or "Dell", or "Gateway" for the entire life of the machine, and doesn't allow you an easy way to change that. I'm sorry....but YOU bought this machine, YOU own it, and YOU should show as the "Registered Owner"...am I not right here? What in the World would give Dell or HP the right to think that THEY should be the Re
  10. Well done Matt! Oh...and Well done to the rest of the Cast & Crew also!! I give it a "2 Thumbs Up", but it lacked a bit of early Character Development, and the Sex scenes were a bit Gratuitous IMHO. All in all, the car chase scenes were well done and the plot twists developed nicely and became clear at the end of the movie. Oscar material for the Soundtrack and for a first time director, Matt held his own with the likes of Speilberg and Lucas! Rating - XXX...Xcellent, Xceptional, and Xpensive!
  11. Lemme change that......GREAT Color for a premee!!! He looks very well and a good size for being a bit premature still! Oh yah...grampa's beard is gonna be awful sore for awhile..
  12. Sorry, got busy with some new site stuff. Thats the problem when you're a top Admin and still answering posts...sometimes site stuff keeps you away for some time. Anyway, if your BIOS allows it, the HDD Geometry is where all the parameters of the disk are entered, such as the numbers of Heads, Cylinders and Sectors, and the Sector size. This is done automatically in the BIOS nowadays, but some BIOS still allow you to manually enter it. I would Google your BIOS version and find the home site for it, they should have instructions on how to do this if your version will allow it. That's the best w
  13. Whew....thank god I'm not Alone... I thought it was just ME that had those moments, and that everyone else had Perfect Memory! Now I can sleep easier knowing that I'm not alone, stumbling around lost in the dark recesses of my brain... ^-^
  14. Hello Members & Guests After a few days of smashing heads over in our Administration board, the Staff of Besttechie.net has decided it's High Time we make a new section devoted to helping our Beloved Members & Guests, find their way around Microsofts newest Operating System, VISTA. Immediately afterwards we decided to send someone to WalGreens for Aspirin...smashing heads can cause severe headaches you know... So on behalf of All Besttechie Staff, I'd like to Welcome Everyone to our new "Vista Tips, Tricks, & Tweaks Forum" which is located in our PC Support Section. Those of you wh
  15. Personalize Your Desktop Icons Hi Folks We all know that Vista is a major "Visual Treat" for those of us that like color, texture, and clarity in our lives. I remember so many people complaining when XP was released that it looked like "TeleTubbies", and immediately went about trying to make it look exactly like W95 or W98 did. Myself, I embraced the changes because I always wanted more color on my computer screen...Greyish-Tan was never my idea of "Color". I can only imagine how they feel about Vista Aero now...LOL!! Anyway, for those of us that like to "Personalize" our system's, here's a l
  16. Change the Vista Boot Screen For some reason unknown to anyone but Microsoft Engineers, Vista still displays a boring little "Scroll bar" type screen while Vista is loading. Very old school and very drab, but it wasn't always going to be that way. MS had plans to make a nice new boot screen to go along with the new Vista Aero Interface, but dropped it at the last minute for some reason. Well, I know a way that you can get part of that back, and get a look at what might have been the beginnings of a colorful new Boot Screen...and it's an easy thing to do as well. Vista by default, has removed t
  17. Use a Check Box To Select Multiple Items in Vista Hello Members & Guests! I have a very useful tweak for you today. If you're like most people, there are times when you have to select numerous items from a page while leaving others unselected. Most of you probably know by now that selecting an item and using SHIFT+CLICK on another item lower or higher, will select whatever is inbetween the 2 clicked items. Also, using CTRL+Click will select multiple items one at a time while leaving others inbetween unselected. Well, you'll probably also know that anytime you accidentally click something i
  18. ATTENTION NEW POSTERS Everyone is welcome to post their Vista Tips here, all we ask is you follow our few simple rules: *Please, NO Vista Support Questions Here! This section is for Vista Tips & Tweaks ONLY, all regular Vista Support Issues will be handled in PC Support as usual. *One tip per post. Please keep your tips in separate posts, it's easier to find the tips this way. *Vista tips ONLY! *Please inform members and guests if your tip is untested or may cause other known issues. *Posts that can possibly cause undo System Instability or severly lessen User Security, are subject to rem
  19. New Windows Vista Tips, Tricks & Tweaks Section Welcome Members & Guests! Those of us who have purchased any one of the various available permutations of Microsoft's new Vista Operating System, will know just how different it is from anything ever made by Microsoft before. And it's not just the visual changes either. There are many important folder and file location changes inside of Vista, and along with the fundamental operational differences Vista has from previous operating systems, all this can make the "Learning Curve" for Vista a fairly long one. For many people it can take a mo
  20. SiSoft Sandra is probably the most powerful and featured system audit tool for windows. The pro version isn't cheap and is used by all the top system benchmark sites and systems engineers. The free version is also very full featured in itself and I find it has more than Everest, Aida or Belarc.
  21. Can you enter the HDD Geometry manually in the BIOS and get it recognized that way? Some BIOS don't allow you to manually enter disk geometry but most do and this could get it recognized once more.
  22. I used 7 for a few months and rarely had issues with it. I use Roxio 9 now but I still know Nero. I think you need to clarify your question allot tho. You obnly burned 1 disk before you updated? What type of disk were you burning..Data, Music, Pictures? Did you get any error messages with the failed burn attempt? Nero usually says something when it fails and it writes logs for Everything, have you checked the logs? Was this a copy you got from P2P? I don't care either way, but some of those are damaged goods to start with. As much as you can tell us helps us find the problem for you.
  23. Congrats Mark!! I got my second grandchild last November, better tell your daughter to get on it so you can catch up soon...heheh. Hope everyone is doing well, the baby looked like a good color & size, hopefully Mom is doing as good!
  24. Good advice Jeff! Also Martint, you'll probably find about 80% of knowledgable users who have a Hardware Firewall such as a Router with NAT, will also run a trusted software firewall client as well. These 2 will not conflict like 2 software solutions will and can actually work very well in an enhanced environment like that. I know some that use their hardware firewall to control all incoming and use a software client to better control the outgoing packets. Seems it's easier to use the s'ware interface for that purpose than it is using the h'ware one. You can try it to see if it suits your need
  25. I also use Eudora! Best darn Mail client ever produced IMHO. I despise getting those long listed, forwarded emails with all the addy's right out there for all the spambots to pick up...grrr. I usually try to reply to the senders and explain to them the Wonders of BCC and why folks like us HATE getting those 2000 visible recipient ones. Yep, good advice Brian! I think we may need a little reorganize around here to have a Tips & Tricks section for things like this that don't really fit as a "Tutorial" as such, but are still worthy tips. We'll see what happens soon.