http://www.bootdisk.com/ 212 February 2005

The BootLIST

Welcome to the 212th Edition of The BootLIST

INDEX
1) XP Lost My DVD/CD Drive
2) Printing Folder Contents In XP
3) I Dont Like USB Keyboards
4) Internet Connection Is Hit Or Miss
5) Odds And Ends


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1) XP Lost My DVD/CD Drive

PCGuy wrote - I've got this 1 y/o ThinkPad that has suddenly lost the DVD/combo drive. Nothing shows in My Computer, but the drive is seen in device manager with a yellow exclamation mark saying the driver is installed but cannot connect to the device. Tried to connect an external USB CD drive and get the same results. Could the device drivers be corrupt? How do I extract new ones?

Kelly suggests:
Without knowing more, see if this helps:

Save the file below to your hard drive. Navigate to where you saved it and double click the file. A confirmation dialog will appear when the script is done. You may need to reboot for the change to take effect.

Restore CD/DVD in Explorer:
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/regs_edits/xp_cd_dvd_fix.vbs

Alex N. suggests:
Possibly a driver type file (usually associated with burning software) has gone AWOL, leaving an orphan in registry. To tidy up, get a registry patch file, cdgone.reg, from:

http://www.aumha.org/downloads/cdgone.zip

Extract it, r-click on it and merge it into the registry and reboot. You will then need to reinstall any burning software that you use.


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2) Printing Folder Contents In XP

BillP inquired - If you have a folder which contains several or many files, how can you print a list of the names of these files?

WTC suggests:
How to add the Print Directory feature for folders in Windows XP:

http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=321379


*** Which is why some folks have developed an easier way :)

Print Folder:
http://no-nonsense-software.com/download.shtml

Directory Printer:
http://www.karenware.com/powertools/ptdirprn.asp


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3) I Dont Like USB Keyboards

Molecule complained - Got a new motherboard ( asus p5p800 ) with 4 usb port at the back. If I connect my usb keyboard I cannot get into bios. Put a usb-ps2 adapter and there is no problem. I found in google that other people have the same problem with different motherboards. Any ideas? (usb ports ARE enabled in the bios)


*** Look in the bios for a [Enable/Disable USB Legacy Support] or similar sounding line item as by default its generally set to Disable.

RwP adds:
Turn off "Fast POST" or [turn on] "Extended Test" (not sure which one it's called). I'd bet that your USB keyboard doesn't init fast enough [ie in time for you to hit the key to access the bios]. Or, just get another keyboard - one that inits quicker on poweron.


*** The tweak RwP is talking about may or may not slow down the boot time. The exact lingo in the bios will differ depending on your system. For example on my pc its Quick Boot [Enable/Disable]. Also note that some big brand pcs have really slimmed down bios options so you may not even have anything similar in yours.

Still, there is no guarantee that a USB keyboard will work either in dos or to access the bios even if all the bios options are set perfectly. Personally, I'd stick with ps/2 keyboards. Why not use the available port and avoid any potential trouble when you really need to get into that bios, or use that dos bootdisk/cd for that matter.


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4) Internet Connection Is Hit Or Miss

Howie asked - We are using Windows 98SE, Pentium III, 450 MHz, [Broadband] internet connection, 224 MB of SDRAM, [internal PCI NIC].

Our internet connection is hit and miss. Commonly, a "work offline" error box pops up when we first use Internet Explorer or Outlook Express. The error message states: "No connection to the internet is currently available. To view internet content that has been saved on your computer click Work Offline. Click Try Again to attempt to connect".

I re-installed the NIC card driver, and that didn't seem to work. Outlook Express (OE) doesn't connect on the first try either.

Jerry G suggested:
Un-install the networking, [reboot] and then re-install it again. [You may need the] installation CD for your operating system. This should do the fix most of the time. You can also try to first do a system file compare using the SFC utility. It may fix the fault, if it can find corrupt files and replace them.

Howie posts back:
I tried another driver, it appeared to fix my problem.


*** Howie's fix brought up an interesting point. Whether network cards or video cards, etc., if you are having an oddball problem there are up to four sources of drivers to try, and they may all be different but all be designed for the same card/chipset.

1. Drivers that are included in Windows
2. Drivers that come from the computer maker
3. Drivers from the card manufacturer
4. Drivers from the chip maker

For example, when rebuilding older systems fresh I cant even count the number of times I had to find video drivers using the information on the largest chip on the card when the ones from the card maker didn't work or were not available anymore. Often just entering that info into google brings you right where you need to be. And often the chip makers or card makers drivers are just basic and a much smaller download/install.

BTW, if you have a problem like Howie did and are using a USB NIC that your broadband company installed a common fix if you call them is they come out and install an internal NIC and that usually solves it.

On a related note, if you are using windows update and it says updated drivers are available for any of your cards or hardware DO NOT download or install them if everything is working as it should be. Also note that while Howie found what fixed his problem, all the other tweaks noted are equally valid things to try.


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5) Odds And Ends

Just in case you haven't seen either of these yet.

Upcoming Webdesign Software as a free alternative to FrontPage:
http://www.nvu.com/
[Thanks Jim B]

Windows Installer Cleanup Utility:
http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=290301


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