IT Queries: Computer problems answered

As you recommended in your checking a disk for errors column, I ran Check Disk and it said I have “Bad Clusters”.

What does this mean?

Basically your hard drive is dying. Bad blocks mean there is damage to the surface of the disks and its a matter of time before your system stops working.

The first thing you must do is backup your data. Make sure everything valuable is off your computer.

When you’re happy everything important has been saved, get the computer to your local computer shop. They’ll be able to tell you whether the computer is worth repairing or if the costs are better spent on a new system.

I connected a usb hard drive to my dish dvr, and it reformatted it. I connected the drive to my computer, and the disk manager (the only way I could find the drive on the computer) says it is partitioned into 4 partitions, all of which are “unknown partitions”.

I want to be able for the dvr and my computer to read, swap, and play the videos on the hard drive.

I called Dish and they said they reformat into fat32, but again, my computer (XP Pro) doesn’t recognize it. Help???

The problem is the hard drive isn’t partitioned in a way your computer or DVR understands.

To fix this, plug the hard drive into your computer. Wait until the Removable Device icon appears or a message saying a new device has been installed.

From the desktop right click on My Computer and select Manage

In the Management Console go down the left hand side list and select Disk Management.

The right hand side of the Management Console will now split into two. The top half shows the formatted partitions such as the C: and D: drives. While the bottom half shows the actual disks.

In the bottom half scroll down until you find the new disk. It will show the disk split into four partitions with each marked as “unknown”.

Right click each of the unknown partitions and select Delete Partitionand follow the wizard.

After deleting all four of the unknown partitions you can start create a new partition by right clicking the drive and selecting Create Partition

Windows will start a Partition Wizard. Of the options you receive, you should choose to create a Primary partition and select the largest size possible.

At the end of the wizard you’ll be asked to format the drive. You need to do this and select Fat 32 in the File Type box when asked.

Keep in mind FAT32 has a number of limitations including being limited to 2Gb files which can create problems for backups and saving DVD sized files.

This must seem like a silly question but how do you use a memory stick?

I bought a Data Traveller 8GB so somebody could download some pictures and text and a programme to enable me to open VLN E-MAILS.I plugged the memory stick in and I clicked on My Computer and then a new icon entitled F drive which I clicked on and there they were.

The next day I found half the pictures had gone and I’ve no way of knowing where they’ve gone. Also subsequently when I’ve tried to open the pictures again it will not open unless the memory stick is installed. I thought they had been installed on the computer.

First, what is a VLN e-mail?

From your description, the photos have been moved to the new drive so that is why you can’t open them without the drive connected.

It’s very odd your photos have moved to the flash drive without your intervention and it sounds like something else is at work here. You may need to get a computer technician to look at your system’s settings.

To recover the lost photos, we’ve covered this in our Recovering Lost USB Stick post.

While removing unused software I deleted the MIDI and Realtek stuff and no longer have sound. How can I get it back?

The simple answer is to reinstall the Realtek software, however the problem lies in identifying which version of the Realtek drivers suits your machine.

While you could plow through your computer manuals or the manufacturer’s website, the simplest thing is to download the Unknown Device Identifier tool, then run it to find the Realtek model.

With that information, you can then visit the Realtek website to download and install the correct software for your system.

This can be a bit fiddly, if so then it may be best to contact your local computer specialist to help you.

 Toshiba laptop  using Windows XP home edition.  My system was working fine with battery.  

After running low  I charged it up but the battery icon on toolbar has disappeared and I cannot take out the power cord or computer shuts down.  

When I look on power options in control panel it says the battery isn’t there and says power status is AC  and battery status is unkown.  I did have a new battery put in about 18months ago.

That new battery has failed. You may want to contact the dealer and see what they can do for a replacement but warranties are notoriously tricky with batteries.

Lithium Ion batteries prefer to be partially run down rather than fully discharged. The older Nickle Cadmium had a “memory effect” where it was best for you to fully run them down all the time, but modern batteries don’t like that.

You may also want to make sure you are using brand name batteries and the proper, brand name, recharger. Cheap generic replacements can cause problems.

Why did a disc shatter in in my DVD Burner? I have just got a new computer (2 months old)with Vista Operating system.

The disk probably shattered because it was damaged. A modern CD or DVD disk drive spins disks at up to 10,000 revolutions per minute.

At those speeds, the slightest damage or flaw in the disk can cause it to shatter. A few years ago, disk manufacturers stopped selling 52X CD burners because the speeds were simply too dangerous for this reason.

If you notice damage on a optical disk (DVD, CD or BluRay) don’t use it or, if it contains important data ask your computer tech to burn a new copy for you at the lowest possible speed.

You may also want to get your computer tech to check the CD drive wasn’t damaged by the exploding disk and remove any left over plastic.

I can insert a SD card and read it, I can then eject it using the icon with a green arrow on it. however when I put in another SD card it won’t find it. I’m using win 2000 profesional. it works OK with usb flash drives.

The problem is the drivers for the SD card reader. Windows 2000 is particularly buggy with flash media as it was only becoming coming at the time of it’s release.

It’s unlikely you’ll find updates from the manufacturer for Win2k and the device itself is probably ten years old. Although a visit to the Windows Update

I recently bought a mobile broadband modem which connects on every machine but the one I need it too. I have a Dell Inspiron 1720 running Vista.

The software loads, there are no conflicts but when I try to connect to the net, I get “connection terminated”.

I have removed and re-installed the software several times and rebooted the machine.

As it works on other computers, I would think the mode is not faulty. Any suggestions?

The modem isn’t faulty. As you’ve gathered, if it’s working on other machines then it isn’t the hardware.

This problem is almost certainly a Vista driver problem. The solution will be to download the latest software for the modem from the manufacturer’s website.

When you do this, make sure you uninstall all the old software and reboot before setting up the modem using the new drivers.

There may also be some quirks with the telco’s setup having one of your other computers handy will allow you to check your settings to make sure you are accessing the right access point and have the right login details.

I am using XP home edition as my OS. When I try to convert an AVI file to a DVD file using DVD Flick or Convert X to DVD my computer freezes up and eventually turns itself off. This is a recent problem as i had no bother using both programs before last week. Any suggestions? Thanks

Given this has recently started, is happening with two different programs, both of which are heavily CPU intensive, and the computer freezes before turning itself off, it sounds like the system is overheating.

Open the computer and see if there’s dust build up, particularly around the CPU. If there is a light brushing or a squirt of compressed air should shift the dust.

Before doing this, unplug the computer from mains power and leave off for an hour or so before working on it as hitting hot CPUs with a blast of icy compressed air may damage your system beyond repair.

It’s also worthwhile investing in an anti static strap as doing any work inside your computer risks damaging your system with static electricity.

Finally, note that opening the system may get you into warranty disputes with some suppliers. Although a system supplied with Windows XP Home is probably well past its warranty period.

If all of this sounds a bit much then contact your local computer tech to look at it for you.

The ram of my laptop is 248 kbps how to upgrade that free of cost?

Unfortunately you can’t upgrade RAM for free. It involves buying memory and it’s best to have it installed by a competent technician.

In your case, it sounds like you have 248 Mb of RAM in your laptop which indicates a fairly old system so you may struggle to find reasonably priced memory.

If the computer’s running slow, it might just need a cleanup. Should you need new RAM, you may find a new system is a far more sensible purchase.

I’d suggest taking your system to the local computer shop and asking them what the options are.