Computer/Technical Help

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Originally posted by NVWC2006 A had at one point a value of "oem11.inf" in one key, when B had a value of "oem25.inf" when searching through SOFTWARE in Local Machine

That's normal, since oem*.inf files are created as device drivers are installed, so the number there can change depending on how many devices have been installed and in what order.

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I decided to look under SYSTEM, just for kicks. Computer A is complety missing a value Computer B has in a Key on both computers that has information about scanning. the value is "ActiveService"="usbscan" I tried creating a new key on A, but would get an error that this registry file cannot be modified. i assume because whatever key is in use, or something.

Try rebooting into safe mode and adding it there. If that doesn't work, you can export that particular registry key on Computer B and post the contents here, and I'll see if I can create an INF file that will help add that value.

Safe mode did not help in adding the registry file.

code: 1: 2: 3: 4: 5: 6: Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00 [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\ControlSet001\Enum\USB\Vid_043d&Pid_0060\6&4ddfe3b&0&1\Control] "ActiveService"="usbscan"

Oh, the Enum folder is controlled by Plug and Play, so that can't be edited. Instead, try doing a registry search for the correct Enum key for your scanner, then uninstall the scanner drivers and reboot. After that, find the same Enum key as above and delete it (if the device is no longer installed, it should allow you to do that). Then, install the scanner again and the Enum key will be rebuilt, which should hopefully add that value.

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Originally posted by Krang Oh, the Enum folder is controlled by Plug and Play, so that can't be edited. Instead, try doing a registry search for the correct Enum key for your scanner, then uninstall the scanner drivers and reboot. After that, find the same Enum key as above and delete it (if the device is no longer installed, it should allow you to do that). Then, install the scanner again and the Enum key will be rebuilt, which should hopefully add that value.

I unplugged the scanner, uninstalled from Add/Remove Programs, and then from the cleaning utility, but the error still comes up when I try to delete that or any Lexmark value in Enum.

i don't know the cause, but maybe it hasn't once uninstalled correctly?

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Originally posted by NVWC2006 I unplugged the scanner, uninstalled from Add/Remove Programs, and then from the cleaning utility, but the error still comes up when I try to delete that or any Lexmark value in Enum. i don't know the cause, but maybe it hasn't once uninstalled correctly?

Make sure you're in Safe Mode, then right-click on the registry key and select its permissions. Give yourself Full Control permissions and you should be able to delete the key from there.

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Originally posted by Krang Make sure you're in Safe Mode, then right-click on the registry key and select its permissions. Give yourself Full Control permissions and you should be able to delete the key from there.

All right... So I did that. Went through SYSTEM and all the Enums and every key that mentioned Lexmark or AllInOne or anything similar, restarted the computer, it wasn't there, so I installed the software again and... same problem.

The problem is definitely with the scanner service that is part of Windows. To attempt to repair it, I would recommend running a repair installation of Windows, then applying any additional service packs again if necessary. You might want to do a full backup of your hard drive first, though. Another option is to borrow a USB scanner from someone and install it to see if it repairs the scanner files, but I'm not sure whether or not that will fix the problem.

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Originally posted by Krang The problem is definitely with the scanner service that is part of Windows. To attempt to repair it, I would recommend running a repair installation of Windows, then applying any additional service packs again if necessary. You might want to do a full backup of your hard drive first, though. Another option is to borrow a USB scanner from someone and install it to see if it repairs the scanner files, but I'm not sure whether or not that will fix the problem.

Repair installation, I assume that copies over the system files on the HD from the CD, trying to save all user files in the process? What does that to do installed programs?

I'm a bit hesitant on that because I don't have a backup HD. I've backed my data to CDs, but that's it, not settings or anything else.

I will see if a friend has a USB scanner. I don't know anyone off the top of my head but I'll look.

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Originally posted by NVWC2006 Repair installation, I assume that copies over the system files on the HD from the CD, trying to save all user files in the process? What does that to do installed programs? I'm a bit hesitant on that because I don't have a backup HD. I've backed my data to CDs, but that's it, not settings or anything else.

Yes, that option will overwrite all Windows system files and shouldn't touch any installed programs or settings. I would definitely recommend a full backup first in case anything goes wrong (preferably using a disk image program such as Drive Image, Ghost, or True Image), so you might want to wait on that for now if you don't have a spare hard drive. There's also the chance that the repair installation won't fix the scanner problem, and if that happens, it would probably be best to restore from the backup.

For now, I'm going to wait with such a repair.

In other news, I just tried to stream a Realmedia file, and to my "horror," it didn't work.

I don't have RealPlayer installed. I have RealAlternative, which has worked fine for playing files I have on my HD in Windows Media Player, as well as, at least in the past, playing files like RM, RAM and MP4 in Media Player Classic. I also have some kind of plugin that lets me play said formats in Winamp.

So I tried streaming today, and it wouldn't work. I know it's not supposed to stream in WMP, but MPClassic would say "cannot render file" and Winamp would simple not play it, though it would bring up info like creation date of the file, original publisher, etc.

Is this an actual error in my plugins, or do I just have to have RealPlayer installed to stream their files?

An example of a file I wanted to stream was http://arrangerspublishingcompany.com/au...no_nar/Karn.ram

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Originally posted by NVWC2006 For now, I'm going to wait with such a repair. In other news, I just tried to stream a Realmedia file, and to my "horror," it didn't work. I don't have RealPlayer installed. I have RealAlternative, which has worked fine for playing files I have on my HD in Windows Media Player, as well as, at least in the past, playing files like RM, RAM and MP4 in Media Player Classic. I also have some kind of plugin that lets me play said formats in Winamp. So I tried streaming today, and it wouldn't work. I know it's not supposed to stream in WMP, but MPClassic would say "cannot render file" and Winamp would simple not play it, though it would bring up info like creation date of the file, original publisher, etc. Is this an actual error in my plugins, or do I just have to have RealPlayer installed to stream their files? An example of a file I wanted to stream was http://arrangerspublishingcompany.com/au...no_nar/Karn.ram

I also use MPC and RealAlternative, and that link works for me, so you don't need to install RealPlayer. In MPC, try going to View > Options > Player > Formats, then scroll down to the listings for the RealMedia formats (Real Audio file, Real Media file, and Real Script file). Make sure there is a check beside each one (unless you don't want to associate MPC with RealMedia files), and make sure the text to the right of each one says "RealMedia" instead of "DirectShow" or anything else. If that text is wrong, click it and it will allow you to change it.

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Originally posted by Krang I also use MPC and RealAlternative, and that link works for me, so you don't need to install RealPlayer. In MPC, try going to View > Options > Player > Formats, then scroll down to the listings for the RealMedia formats (Real Audio file, Real Media file, and Real Script file). Make sure there is a check beside each one (unless you don't want to associate MPC with RealMedia files), and make sure the text to the right of each one says "RealMedia" instead of "DirectShow" or anything else. If that text is wrong, click it and it will allow you to change it.

All right... If I click the link, it opens in MPC and plays, so the problem has been solved! wooooot. it's been a while since i've had a problem that could be solved so easily, yesh.

Ok, this is really odd, but...

For some reason, I am unable to connect to Google. At all. It just times out every time I try to go to the site.

Edit: Nevermind, ISP error. SRY

It's been a while, but once again I've experienced slowness. The kind where, despite closing programs, there is still a very definite lag in how Windows runs EVERYTHING. logging off and back on did not fix it as it usually does, and before i rebooted, i had the idea to check Process Explorer.

System is taking on a large load. It's ranging from 30 to 45.

Within it, Services.exe is taking about 1.5 on average. Hovering over it brings up "Event Log" and "Plug and Play"

Occasionally another proccess will pop up with anything from 0 to 2 taken up, I assume that's okay and normal.

Another thing I've noticed... side effect? Playing MIDI using my Roland virtual sound Canvas results in no playback- trying to run Roland programs results in it saying it cannot open the audio device. playing MIDI using the built in Wavetable midi drivers results in a sound delayed just like all the lag I have on the computer. Since MIDI can hog a lot of memory, i'm assuming that the Roland can't operate under these conditions.

So... logging can't hog that much can it? Is it Plug and Play causing the problems or something else more hidden that we don't yet know?

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Originally posted by NVWC2006 It's been a while, but once again I've experienced slowness. The kind where, despite closing programs, there is still a very definite lag in how Windows runs EVERYTHING. logging off and back on did not fix it as it usually does, and before i rebooted, i had the idea to check Process Explorer. System is taking on a large load. It's ranging from 30 to 45. Within it, Services.exe is taking about 1.5 on average. Hovering over it brings up "Event Log" and "Plug and Play" Occasionally another proccess will pop up with anything from 0 to 2 taken up, I assume that's okay and normal. [...] So... logging can't hog that much can it? Is it Plug and Play causing the problems or something else more hidden that we don't yet know?

Considering that Services.exe is only taking up a small percentage of the CPU used by System, it seems like the problem is elsewhere. Try right-clicking on System and selecting Properties. Then, on the Threads tab, see if you can determine which thread is using up the most CPU.

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Another thing I've noticed... side effect? Playing MIDI using my Roland virtual sound Canvas results in no playback- trying to run Roland programs results in it saying it cannot open the audio device. playing MIDI using the built in Wavetable midi drivers results in a sound delayed just like all the lag I have on the computer. Since MIDI can hog a lot of memory, i'm assuming that the Roland can't operate under these conditions.

Actually, the first part sounds more like incompatible drivers or hardware. The delayed playback may be related to the same problem, though.

Kay, so a neighbor of mine heard I was good with computers and asked me to take a look at theirs.

So I went up tonight, and took a look.


It's an old Compaq, and it can't locate the date and time, and when it's done booting, it gives the following error: "BIOS read error 04". I googled that and apparently '04' means to "Look for ROM at E000"...... ok so now what do I do?

If there's anything to be done that is.

Oh and they don't have the floppy the comp asks for.....

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Originally posted by R.Smith Kay, so a neighbor of mine heard I was good with computers and asked me to take a look at theirs. So I went up tonight, and took a look. It's an old Compaq, and it can't locate the date and time, and when it's done booting, it gives the following error: "BIOS read error 04". I googled that and apparently '04' means to "Look for ROM at E000"...... ok so now what do I do? If there's anything to be done that is. Oh and they don't have the floppy the comp asks for.....

There should be a jumper on the motherboard that will allow you to clear out the CMOS. Check the manual (or look for an online manual) for instructions on how to do that and see if it helps. If not, see if there are any BIOS updates available online, and if so, try installing the latest one.

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Originally posted by Krang There should be a jumper on the motherboard that will allow you to clear out the CMOS. Check the manual (or look for an online manual) for instructions on how to do that and see if it helps. If not, see if there are any BIOS updates available online, and if so, try installing the latest one.

Ok, I'll look up on both of those..... as I'm semi-cluless about the insides of computers.....


Oh and the second time I went up to explain I was waiting for some help, she showed me this "Fix-It Utilities 6 Professional" thing she said she had used....... and said maybe she deleted things that caused this *sighs*.

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Originally posted by R.Smith Oh and the second time I went up to explain I was waiting for some help, she showed me this "Fix-It Utilities 6 Professional" thing she said she had used....... and said maybe she deleted things that caused this *sighs*.

Changes made within Windows are not likely to affect the BIOS, so it was more likely caused by a hardware change or a dead CMOS battery.

at my father's business, files and emails and such were not backed up, there has been trouble w/employees concering whatever... he now wants the computers setup so that employee user accounts are more restricted.

he wants to be able to monitor all email traffic, as well as visited websites. it also seems like a good idea to put restrictions on user accounts, so that users cannot access everything.

in regards to said monitoring, it is his want that, while his workers can access email, he either has a copy of each email, or they can't delete the message from the server, or whatever. something easily convienient so that any message sent or received from employee computer business emails can be tracked. i think having another computer on the network, either his personal computer or another, should have some software that does said monitoring, and records the data, maybe can burn it to CDs for later viewing.

i've looked around online, and saw some software, was wondering if these were good or if there's something better. Activity Monitor, Net Spy Pro, SpectorCNE.

also, since we're restricting accounts, i figured some registry edits were in order. I'm thinking disabling Run, regedit, any system modification for anyone that isn't administrator. i know how to do some of these from within a user's account, but it'd be prefered if there was a way to do it from administrator so that whenever a new user was made, they automatically received these settings.

any ideas that you have for more restrictions or similar ideas would be sweet.

and i was wondering myself, if i want to put the company logo somewhere during the computer's startup.. maybe the boot screen, or the windows Welcome screen or while logging on... how do i go about that?