IT Queries: Computer problems answered

Uninstall a W98 to WXP OS upgrade.

Many thanks in advance

Yikes! This is a lot of trouble for an old computer.

The problem appears to be that you have some old programs that were installed to the wrong location that have been subsequently deleted. It might be best to run the Windows Installer Repair Tool and  then run a registry cleaner.

If you still want to uninstall Windows XP then you should continue right past the message where you stopped. The Windows Updates are irrelevant to Windows 98.

You may find however that Window 98 won’t work properly after you’ve uninstalled as, depending upon the choices you made during the installations, there may be shared components.

If you are determined to reinstall Windows 98 and then XP, then it’s probably going to be quicker and easier just to back up your data, reformat your hard drive and start with a fresh install. Your computer will love you for it and the system will be far quicker.

Overall though, this computer is old. In human terms, it’s pushing 120 years old. The poor beast is probably due for retirement.

Keep in mind that, like all old technology, the costs of keeping it running are often higher than the costs of a new system.

We have a computer which we are intending to sell. Could you please advise how to clear the hard drive of all info prior to selling?

The answer depends on who you are selling it to and what state you want it in when it’s sold.

You can wipe the computer hard drive completely, repartition the drive and reinstall the operating system. This is a long winded way of doing things however it’s probably the best if you are selling it on the open market. It also requires some degree of computer knowledge.

A quicker fix is to simply delete the user profiles currently on the system.

In Windows go to the Control Panel, click User Accounts and add a new user. Choose to make the user an Administrator. Log off and log back on as the new user,  go back to the user accounts and delete the accounts you currently use, choose to delete all user data when it asks you.

On the Mac, go into System Preferences and open the Accounts settings. Create a new user and give them rights to adminsister the computer. Log off and log back on as the new user and go back to the accounts. Select the user accounts you want to delete, then click Delete then Delete Immediately.

On both systems you’ll need to explore the hard drive to see if any applications have left data in other locations. Some programs, particularly accounting packages, have a habit of not storing data in the user folders.

Once you’ve deleted the data, you may want to ensure it’s securely deleted by running erasing software across the hard drives. Free programs include Eraser for Windows and Permanent Eraser for the Mac.

Remember to make sure any important data has been backed up before you do any of this.

I have Windows XP and Office 2003. I can’t open tif. documents when sent via email, unless I buy Winzip which I don’t particularly want to do….is there another option please?

 Winzip probably won’t help you with this either. You need an image viewing progam that can handle .tif programs.

The built in graphics editing program on Windows XP, MS Paint, will do this. When opening the file, right click it and choose Open With. In the list of programs that appears, choose Paint.

Some email programs require you to save the attachment before doing this, if that happens save the file to a location you’ll remember then open it through the Paint program.

If you’re prompted to always open with this program, click yes and you shouldn’t have this problem again.

I am using Vista on my Laptop and now i want to change back to XP.

Please help on to how to install XP on laptops already running vista

The problem isn’t XP or Vista, it’s the type of hard drive you have. Windows XP doesn’t recognize SATA drives. You have to tell it what it is and supply the disk with those drivers on it.

Early in the Windows XP installation routine you’ll be asked to press F6 to add mass storage controller drivers. Unfortunately Windows XP will only do this from floppy disk. This presents two problems.

First, these drivers usually come on CD, you’ll have to copy them to a floppy disk. To figure out which drivers you need, you’ll have to look at the specifications of your computer. It’s probably a good idea to download the latest drivers.

The second problem is many Vista machines don’t include hard drives. You can buy a cheap USB floppy drive for under $50 and use that.

It’s often simpler to use a slipstreamed version of Windows XP which includes all the drivers and up to date service packs for your system.

If this is all to hard, you may want to take the system to your local  computer shop and let them do it for you.

When i turn on my PC an errors appear on the screen, “The system has recovered from a serious error. A log of this error has been created ….”

What is the problem? do I need to reformat my PC? or this is a virus?

It could be a number of things. Something is causing an error when your computer shuts down.
First, you should check your hard drive is free of errors. Be warned that this can take some hours to run. We find it best to leave it overnight.

Once the chkdsk has finished make sure your computer doesn’t have a virus or spyware infection.

Once that is finished, uninstall any programs you don’t use.

Then, clean up your computer.

If the problem is still continuing you’ll need to consider reformatting or calling a tech to investigate further. We’d suggest the latter as it actually could be something benign.

Remember though to backup your data as these sort of messages are often an indication something may be going badly wrong.

I would like to use windows mail , and have a yahoo email address. It was working but somehow I’ve messed it up . I now read all mail on the Yahoo server, but would like it to download to MS Mail.

The reason for it stopping is Yahoo! Mail has been through some changes in the way it handles POP (Post Office Protocol) mail which Outlook Express and Windows Mail use.

To enable it, go into your Yahoo! mail folder and click Options on the top right hand corner of the screen.

Select POP Access and Forwarding and click the button next to I want to receive all messages, including those that SpamGuard thinks are spam.

You’ll need then to run the account setup wizard in Windows Mail, fill in your own details and enter pop.mail.yahoo.com.au as your incoming mail server and  smtp.mail.yahoo.com.au as your outgoing mail server.

While in the Options page you can export your Yahoo! address book by clicking  Address book then Import/Export then choose to export your addresses as a Comma Separated Value (CSV).

You can then import the addresses into your Windows Mail.

When opening any application such as Internet explorer and even add or remove programs in control panel my computer says “The file does not have a program associated with it for performing this action. Please create an association in the folder options control panel”

Even when i try to run command prompt, it is asking to choose the program in which we want to open. What is the problem with my system?

This error message is the computer telling you it doesn’t know what to do with a particular type of file. Normally this is a simple fix of either installing the correct program or opening My Computer, clicking Tools, Folder Options and File Types where you can change the settings.

In your case the computer no longer knows what to do with .exe files so you can’t run programs.

Fixing this is a fiddly problem luckily Doug Knox has provided the answer and you can download the .EXE registry fix from his page.

It is probably that you’ll have trouble running the regedit tool or the zip functions because they are damaged as well. Doug explains what to do about this at the top of the page. It is essential you read and understand his instructions.

Once you’ve fixed the problem, scan your computer for viruses or spyware. It’s highly likely this problem is due to such an infection.

If you still have problems with your systems

I’m running Vista Premium on a Dell Dimension 9200 using Adobe Reader 8.1.1.It will not install updates or uninstall Adobe Reader–Error 1402 Could not open key. HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Softwareclasses\CLSID\(D38064DA). Adobe will not provide tech help as it was a free download except for a lengthy instruction which involves fiddling with the Registry–which I dare not do.I could not find any reference in your archives.Thanks.

It sounds like something is tying up your Adobe installation. You may want to try starting the computer in Safe Mode and seeing if it is possible to uninstall Adobe that way.

If it isn’t possible, then disabling any Adobe products that are starting with the computer is the next step. You’ll need to open the System Configuration Tool and take the ticks off anything referring to Adobe in the Startup tab.

Finally, you could try creating a different administrative user and seeing if this repairs the problem.

If none of these work, you’ll have to call in a technician to fix the registry problem.

Sometimes it’s necessary to create a new user profile on your computer. To do this, click Start, Settings and Control Panel. Then choose User Accounts. In Windows Vista, choose Users.

Choose Create a new Account and follow the wizard which will include giving the account a name.

When you are asked if you want the account to be an Administrator or Limited User, we recommend Limited User for day-to-day use and Administrator for running maintenance tasks such as installing software and removing viruses.

However it’s best to first allow the new user to be an Administrator while you set up their profile.

Once you’ve set up their email accounts, Microsoft Office preferences and the like you can then change to Limited Users.

How do I get rid of Windows XP asking me to log on when it starts up?

To do this, click Start, Run and type Control Userpasswords2 then click okay. The User Accounts box will appear.

Highlight the user you want to automatically log on as then take the tick off users must enter a user name and password to use this computer box.

Click Okay and the log in will go away.