The Computer Problems thread!

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

How much can your box take?

At least half a gig, more if you can get it.

[Vidar]

How much can your box take?

At least half a gig, more if you can get it.

Before you ask, that information should be in the manual of your mainboard, or computer (depends on whether you have a home-build pc, or a standard 3v1l storebought one).

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

... or, if you follow the link to crucial.com I provided earlier, they'll automatically figure it out for you.

Isn't teh intarnets wonderful?

[Dakata]

My scanner isn't turning on. Unplugging cords, pressing random buttons and being mean to little boys who might've screwed it up aren't helping. Don't know what else to do....

(...Except for yell at mom because she messes with it too. But it's her BIRTHDAY today. >>)

...Free art for the dork who helps me make it work.

[Tapewolf]

My scanner isn't turning on. Unplugging cords, pressing random buttons and being mean to little boys who might've screwed it up aren't helping. Don't know what else to do....

Firstly, what kind of scanner is it?  A USB connector (usually small and square), parallel port or SCSI?  More recent ones are USB, although my Dad's old SCSI HP5 is quite happily working away.
Is it externally powered (mains cable) or is it powered by the USB system?

For the USB one, try plugging it back into a different USB port, since windows is weird and treats the ports as being totally separate instead of abstracting them away from the system.  See if it then detects the scanner.

[Dakata]

USB, I think. And externally powered.

Edit: Pfft. Someone just messed with the on/off switch on the scanner. >> I feel stupid for not noticing it. Bah. Nevermind.

(Do I owe you art anyway, Tape? )

[Tapewolf]

USB, I think. And externally powered.

Edit: Pfft. Someone just messed with the on/off switch on the scanner. >> I feel stupid for not noticing it. Bah. Nevermind.

(Do I owe you art anyway, Tape? )

Well, if you're offering, I am kind of collecting other people's drawings of Jakob Pettersohn.

I did that with the portable printer at work, by the way, although it was made less obvious because it was also battery powered.  When it got unplugged, it lost the ability to communicate via bluetooth, although it would still do linefeeds and stuff.  Much head-scratching ensued.

[Aridas]

Okay.. I've been silent (or at least not so vocal) about this up until now, but I think I'm ready to ask if anyone can make sense of this:

Code Select Expand

// OpenCP Module Player
// copyright (c) '94-'98 Niklas Beisert <nbeisert@physik.tu-muenchen.de>
//
// BPA "archive" reader
//
// revision history: (please note changes here)
//  -2.0a++e  Felix Domke <tmbinc@gmx.net>
//    -first release
//  -kb980717 Tammo Hinrichs <kb@nwn.de>
//    -changed some structures to fit this into the new version
//    -added _dllinfo record
//  -fd981206   Felix Domke    <tmbinc@gmx.net>
//    -edited for new binfile
//  -ryg981216  Fabian Giesen  <fabian@jdcs.su.nw.schule.de>
//    -finally fixed this damn bug (at least it should; this modification
//     helped at least the UMX reader)
//
// .BPA-files are from REMEDY's "DeathRally(TM)", and are crypted file-librarys.
// The file "MUSICS.BPA" contains the DeathRally-Songs (S3Ms) and the samples
// (XMs). DON'T PLAY THESE XMs BECAUSE THEY MIGHT CRASH THE PLAYER!
// All files have the extension .CMF (CryptedMusicFile?)
//
// The crypt-method is something with ROLs and SHIFTs. :)
// Look in the source, I can't remember exactly.. :)


#include <stdlib.h>
#include <string.h>
#include "binfstd.h"
#include "pfilesel.h"
#include "psetting.h"

unsigned char Rol(unsigned char v, int c)
{
int a=v;
a<<=c;
int o;
o=a&0xFF00;
a&=0xFF;
a|=(o>>8);
return((char)a);
}

static int adbBPAScan(const char *path)
{
  char ext[_MAX_EXT];
  char name[_MAX_FNAME];
  char arcname[12];

  _splitpath(path, 0, 0, name, ext);
  fsConvFileName12(arcname, name, ext);

  sbinfile file;
  if (file.open(path, sbinfile::openro))
    return 1;
  arcentry a;
  memcpy(a.name, arcname, 12);
  a.size=file.length();
  a.flags=ADB_ARC;
  if (!adbAdd(a))
  {
    file.close();
    return 0;
  }
  unsigned short arcref=adbFind(arcname);

  long entriesinbpa;
  if (!file.eread(&entriesinbpa, 4))
  {
    file.close();
    return 0;
  }
  if((entriesinbpa<=0)||(entriesinbpa>0x10000)) return(0); // <=0 files?!?!? >65535 files?!?!?

  unsigned char pw;
  while (1)
  {
    pw=0x8B;

    unsigned long nextpos=file.tell();
    char bname[14];
    if(!file.eread(bname, 13)) { return(0); }
    for(int i=0; i<13; i++)
    {
      if(bname[i]==0) break;
      bname[i]+=pw;
      pw+=3;
    }
    long size;
    if(!file.eread(&size, 4)) { return(0); }
    if(!size) break;
    a.size=size;
    a.parent=arcref;
    a.flags=0;

    _splitpath(bname, 0, 0, name, ext);
    strupr(ext);

    if (!strcmp(ext,".CMF"))
    {
      fsConvFileName12(a.name, name, ext);
      if (!adbAdd(a))
      {
        file.close();
        return 0;
      }
    }

  }
  file.close();
  return 1;
}

static int adbBPACall(int act, const char *apath, const char *file, const char *dpath)
{
  switch (act)
  {
   case adbCallGet:
   {
    char target[_MAX_PATH];
    _makepath(target, 0, dpath, file, 0);
    sbinfile afile;
    if(afile.open(apath, sbinfile::openro)) return(0);

    long entriesinbpa, ssize=0x10F3;
    if (!afile.eread(&entriesinbpa, 4)) return 0;
    if((entriesinbpa<=0)||(entriesinbpa>0x10000)) return(0); // <=0 files?!?!? >65535 files?!?!?

    unsigned char pw;
    long size;
    while (1)
    {
     pw=0x8B;

     char bname[14];
     if(!afile.eread(bname, 13)) { return(0); }
     for(int i=0; i<13; i++)
     {
       if(bname[i]==0) break;
       bname[i]+=pw;
       pw+=3;
     }
     if(!afile.eread(&size, 4)) { return(0); }
     if(!size) return(0);
     if(stricmp(bname, file)==0) break;
     ssize+=size;
    }
    afile.seek(ssize);

    char *data;
    if((data=(char*)malloc(size))==NULL)
    {
     return(0);
    }
    sbinfile tfile;
    if(tfile.open(target, sbinfile::opencr|sbinfile::openrw)) return(0);

    afile.eread(data, size);

    {
      int co=0;
      unsigned char g=0x93;
      while(co<size)
      {
        data[co]=Rol(data[co], co%7)+g;
        g-=0x11;
        co++;
      }
    }

    tfile.write(data, size);

    free(data);

    tfile.close();
    afile.close();
    return 1;
   }
   default:
   {
    break;
   }
  }
  return 0;
}

extern "C"
{
  adbregstruct adbBPAReg = {".BPA", adbBPAScan, adbBPACall};
  char *dllinfo = "arcs _adbBPAReg";
};

[topher chee]

well it seems this might be the one i am getting, i am going to compare prices and then just go with whats best^^

[xHaZxMaTx]

My computer crapped out on me earlier today when I tried to see how many browser windows I could have open at one time (351), and when I restartded my computer, it was like I had just installed Windows.  There were no drivers installed, but all my programs were left intact.  I tried to do a system restore, but there were no restore points beside one made today.  So now my wireless internet's acting up, and a number of other programs are acting weird, so I decided to zip up the My Documents folder and transfer to my dad's comp while I reformat.  Though I havn't started yet, so if anyone has some advice, I would like to hear it.

[Kitsune Ascendant]

I've got a new one, guys, and it's a doozy.

the basic story is that I just installed ubuntu (a version of linux) on a second hard drive. and now I can't boot windows. it will reach a certain point a few seconds after I select windows and it will flash a blue screen for >0.5 seconds (so I can't even read what it said). tried in safe mode and it still won't boot.

possible causes that I can think of:
ubuntu installed something for booting on the first hard drive (which is where windows is on)
norton goback stopped showing it's little screen  it shows when you boot when I installed ubuntu, so having it on a computer running linux may be a problem.

ubuntu can still read from the first hard drive, but since it's ntfs, it's read only. so, wcs, I can back up stuff on cds, and use my recovery cds. but I'd prefer not to have to do that, so any suggestions would be appreciated.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Okay.. I've been silent (or at least not so vocal) about this up until now, but I think I'm ready to ask if anyone can make sense of this:
[snip]

Looks like C or C++ code. Unfortunately, it looks like part of some code that is called by something else. What, exactly, were you expecting us to figure out about it?

well it seems this might be the one i am getting, i am going to compare prices and then just go with whats best^^

Go for the CL=2.5 stuff, it's slightly faster.

Though I havn't started yet, so if anyone has some advice, I would like to hear it.

uh... don't do that again?

more seriously, no. Backup and reinstall is the windows mantra. Sorry about that :-/

I've got a new one, guys, and it's a doozy.

the basic story is that I just installed ubuntu (a version of linux) on a second hard drive. and now I can't boot windows. it will reach a certain point a few seconds after I select windows and it will flash a blue screen for >0.5 seconds (so I can't even read what it said). tried in safe mode and it still won't boot.

possible causes that I can think of:
ubuntu installed something for booting on the first hard drive (which is where windows is on)
norton goback stopped showing it's little screen  it shows when you boot when I installed ubuntu, so having it on a computer running linux may be a problem.

ubuntu can still read from the first hard drive, but since it's ntfs, it's read only. so, wcs, I can back up stuff on cds, and use my recovery cds. but I'd prefer not to have to do that, so any suggestions would be appreciated.

Have you got a windows install cd? If so, you can boot off it and get it to re-write the boot sector. This will stop you accessing linux for the moment, but it will enable access to windows.

once you've got that, there is a series of tasks you can go through to get windows booting happily and co-existing. I believe there's a howto around somewhere, let me have a look...

http://tldp.org/HOWTO/MultiOS-HOWTO.html <-- that's not it, but might help.
http://tldp.org/HOWTO/Multiboot-with-GRUB.html or http://tldp.org/HOWTO/Multiboot-with-LILO.html may be what you're after.
http://tldp.org/HOWTO/Linux+WinNT.html may also help.

Hope that offers some help, there...

[topher chee]

ok thanks, im about to go to best buy in a bit^^

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

Take note of the prices from crucial before you go.

Certainly over here in the yUK, there's very very few reputable places that supply good RAM at a better price point.

[Tapewolf]

I have just acquired a second-hand laptop and am trying to set kUbuntu up on it.  The stock kernel has a 250hz timer which is insufficient for running the Rosegarden sequencer.

There are two problems:
Firstly, when I tried to rebuild the kernel it failed to boot, with the error 'VFS: failed to mount root fs at /dev/hda7'.  The other kernels in GRUB all have the root partition there too, and they work.  I am confused.

Secondly, it takes about 2 hours to recompile the kernel.  This is on a P3-933 with 512MB of memory, running off the mains so it should be at maximum CPU speed.  It takes more like 5 minutes on my 1Ghz T-bird, and that was before I upgraded the memory from 256MB to 1GB (to match the clock speed )

Any ideas?  I'm going to try a complete custom kernel now, although I would have preferred to keep the original kernel tree, as I don't know what weird things they've added to their version.

[topher chee]

i would order it from crucial.com if its price wascheaper, but right now my mom is having a credit card crisis, someone stole her identity so we are laying low for a bit

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

There are two problems:
Firstly, when I tried to rebuild the kernel it failed to boot, with the error 'VFS: failed to mount root fs at /dev/hda7'.  The other kernels in GRUB all have the root partition there too, and they work.  I am confused.

Ooo! I can do this one!

You've not compiled in reiserfs, if you're using reiser as your root partition format. Or ext3, if you're using that. Instead, you've got it as a module, so.. it needs to read the module off the partition that it needs the module to read the module off the partition that it needs to...

Secondly, it takes about 2 hours to recompile the kernel.  This is on a P3-933 with 512MB of memory, running off the mains so it should be at maximum CPU speed.  It takes more like 5 minutes on my 1Ghz T-bird, and that was before I upgraded the memory from 256MB to 1GB (to match the clock speed )

"Should be" is not necessarily the case. If you don't have the laptop stuff loaded, the bios may be winding the CPU down -heaps- before you start. Try catting /proc/cpuinfo to see what it says.

Also, chances are the disk isn't running optimally, from what you've said.

Heck, talk to me via IM if you want. I run debian all the time, and I've been meaning to recompile my laptop kernel for a while...

i would order it from crucial.com if its price wascheaper, but right now my mom is having a credit card crisis, someone stole her identity so we are laying low for a bit

Yup. If it's not cheaper, then no worries. I just didn't want you going out, getting it, and then finding you could have got it for half the price off somewhere else :-)

[topher chee]

that would definitely suck

[Tapewolf]

You've not compiled in reiserfs, if you're using reiser as your root partition format. Or ext3, if you're using that. Instead, you've got it as a module, so.. it needs to read the module off the partition that it needs the module to read the module off the partition that it needs to...

Got it in one.  Why would anyone ever want to do that?  How did the kernel even work in the first place?  I'm starting to wonder if the .config file i've got was actually correct.  Maybe I should just take the configuration from the desktop and use that.

Secondly, it takes about 2 hours to recompile the kernel.

"Should be" is not necessarily the case. If you don't have the laptop stuff loaded, the bios may be winding the CPU down -heaps- before you start. Try catting /proc/cpuinfo to see what it says.

That was my first port of call.  It says 929, although I wasn't sure if that was the value on first boot or the current value.

Also, chances are the disk isn't running optimally, from what you've said.

Any ideas?  It's got readahead and DMA enabled according to hdparm.

[Kitsune Ascendant]

because of the way emachines did their support for this computer, I don't actually have a windows cd. instead, the three cds they included are all part of a norton ghost image of the hard drive. kinda sucks. any other options?

[Vidar]

because of the way emachines did their support for this computer, I don't actually have a windows cd. instead, the three cds they included are all part of a norton ghost image of the hard drive. kinda sucks. any other options?

Besides blatantly pirate a copy of windows off of your favourite P2P network, I got nothing. A windows pc without a proper windows cd is madness.
Those "restore cd's" companies like HP, Dell and such like to ship with their computers reet the whole thing back to factory defaults, including everything you had on your hard disk before stuff hit the (cpu-)fan.

[Tapewolf]

Besides blatantly pirate a copy of windows off of your favourite P2P network, I got nothing. A windows pc without a proper windows cd is madness.

Like my laptop.  It was supposed to have XP Pro on it, but had XP home.  No CD at all, and an OEM license - not the one on the bottom.  I've just picked up a shrink-wrapped Windows 98 off ebay to install on that one.
(Linux is finally up and running on it, Llearch - thanks for the help.  Still not sure which module went AWOL).

The question is the license, I guess.  Microsoft seem to like saying that the license is tied to the motherboard, so if you have a 'borrowed' copy of the disk but use the licence key for that laptop, it should be okay.  I'm sure they'd love to force you to buy a new license each reinstall, of course, so don't take it as gospel.

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

FWIW, unless you have a good reason to use 98, I personally would install 2k by preference. Simply because it's still supported.

I wouldn't install XP, but then, I dislike the default kindergarten interface, since you're supposed to learn something while using it, rather than playing with the system like big blocks and wondering why things break...

I'll admit I'm slightly biased, and somewhat of an elitest - my "elite" group consists of those who are willing to learn, a somewhat select group...

[Tapewolf]

FWIW, unless you have a good reason to use 98, I personally would install 2k by preference. Simply because it's still supported.

I've been thinking of using 2K on the desktop actually, since the activation business with XP is driving my round the bend.  I can't find a supplier, though.

On the other hand, copies of '98 are fairly easy to come by, and it's a less complex system with less mysterious processes in the background.  For the purpose of running SONAR it should be perfectly adequate.

[Vidar]

The question is the license, I guess.  Microsoft seem to like saying that the license is tied to the motherboard, so if you have a 'borrowed' copy of the disk but use the licence key for that laptop, it should be okay.  I'm sure they'd love to force you to buy a new license each reinstall, of course, so don't take it as gospel.

They would like you to buy new copies for windows as much as possible: more profit. (if they could, MS would have you buy a new licence for every time you change the screen resolution, or turn on your PC, or save a file)
Tying the licence to the mainboard is a bit nutty: mainboards can break, and when they do, they should be replaceable without forking over another $x00,- to the nearest computer shop.
That's where Microsoft's "activation feature" comes in. When you replace a component in your PC, you should get a warning that you need to re-activate your copy of windows within a timelimit, or it will stop working (if you have a legal, unhacked version). If you replace stuff too often (according to MS), you get tagged as a software pirate, and you won't get a reactivation code, and your copy of windows stops working. In theory.
In practice, the computer-savvy hate the activation and the WGA crap, and hack it out with a (pirate) patch.

The activation scheme was put in, because MS thought businesses were using too many pirate copies of windows.
The irony here is that there is a enterprise version of windows XP for large corporations, that doesn't have the activation stuff in it, so it completely misses the boat, and the average Joe Sixpack is left with the inconvenient and incredibly in-effective anti-piracy measure. </rant>

FWIW, unless you have a good reason to use 98, I personally would install 2k by preference. Simply because it's still supported.

Windows 2K can do almost anything Windows XP can. Except for using Nintendo's WiFi router for the DS. 

Windows 98 is an outdated, instable DOS-based travesty. Kill it with fire. (more fire == better)

I wouldn't install XP, but then, I dislike the default kindergarten interface, since you're supposed to learn something while using it, rather than playing with the system like big blocks and wondering why things break...

And it's ugly, plasticy, and bleh. Good thing you can turn it off.

I'll admit I'm slightly biased, and somewhat of an elitest - my "elite" group consists of those who are willing to learn, a somewhat select group...

They're called 'geeks' or 'nerds', depending on who you ask.
Mind you, "elite" and "l33t" are not the same. Anyon who calls him/her self "l33t" should be labeled "lame".

[Tapewolf]

I'm sure they'd love to force you to buy a new license each reinstall, of course, so don't take it as gospel.

In practice, the computer-savvy hate the activation and the WGA crap, and hack it out with a (pirate) patch.

I know all this of course, and I tried to patch XP Home, but without success.  All the patches I could find were for Pro, and besides most people simply steal the corporate edition.  But I have this problem - I'm too honest for that.  Sometimes I wish I wasn't.

FWIW, unless you have a good reason to use 98, I personally would install 2k by preference. Simply because it's still supported.

Windows 2K can do almost anything Windows XP can. Except for using Nintendo's WiFi router for the DS. 

I think 2K is already dead, but I could be wrong.  XP Home is going to be not supported soon too from what I hear.

Windows 98 is an outdated, instable DOS-based travesty. Kill it with fire.

I liked DOS - that's why I went for Linux - it's the next best thing.  That's also why I hate Microsoft, because I used to work on DRDOS and they killed it!
From a programming point of view, DOS is lovely.  It steps aside and lets you have complete access to the system.  I would not have been able to make the Mellotron software work in Linux or Windows, for instance - not without introducing latency issues.  By contrast, the DOS system works in realtime by feeding the DAC directly by running the INT8 timer at audio-frequency (impossible in protected mode).

I'll say it again - the laptop has Windows on it for one purpose, and that purpose is to export SONAR files as MIDI files so that they can be performed under in Linux.  Windows 98, buggy and unstable and DOS-based as it is, is perfectly adequate for the task.  It is not going on the internet, in fact I'm going to rip out the TCPIP stack.  It is going to run SONAR and that's that

Yes - I could just on stick the corporate edition of XP or pay half the laptop's value for a legitimate copy, but when Windows 98 can be had new for £23, there seems little point.

Now Windows ME, that simply needs to be put out of its misery..

[Leafar]

i have a midi file that used to play normally now it doesn't anymore...not even wmp plays it...any program refuses to play it, even if the file is not corrpted, the program behave normally showing bar status and all...
wtf?

[Tapewolf]

i have a midi file that used to play normally now it doesn't anymore...not even wmp plays it...any program refuses to play it, even if the file is not corrpted, the program behave normally showing bar status and all...
wtf?

Do you want to put it up somewhere so I can take a look at it?

[llearch n'n'daCorna]

I liked DOS - that's why I went for Linux - it's the next best thing.  That's also why I hate Microsoft, because I used to work on DRDOS and they killed it!
From a programming point of view, DOS is lovely.  It steps aside and lets you have complete access to the system.  I would not have been able to make the Mellotron software work in Linux or Windows, for instance - not without introducing latency issues.  By contrast, the DOS system works in realtime by feeding the DAC directly by running the INT8 timer at audio-frequency (impossible in protected mode).

Have you tried freedos? Not that I'm pressuring - use whatever works for you. Just... it's slightly better than win98, in that the guys who wrote it will a) give you the source code, and b) are still supporting it...

And if you're running dos only, as sounds likely, this will be a hell of a lot less crud to install...

[Tapewolf]

Have you tried freedos? Not that I'm pressuring - use whatever works for you. Just... it's slightly better than win98, in that the guys who wrote it will a) give you the source code, and b) are still supporting it...

And if you're running dos only, as sounds likely, this will be a hell of a lot less crud to install...

If all I needed was DOS, I'd put DRDOS on it since I know many arcane optimisation tricks for it.  The Mellotron emulator is indeed booting DRDOS off a compactflash card.
Unfortunately SONAR needs a minimal Win32/DirectX installation in order to function, and that's exactly what it's going to get.  I did try ReactOS 0.3, but it wouldn't boot.

Here is a question: I have managed to find what I hope is a NOS, full version of Windows 2000, which means I should finally be able to kick Windows XP in the nuts and get rid of the horrible thing.
Now - is there a way to permanently disable TCPIP support in Windows 2000?

**EDIT**
To clarify, the idea is that Windows should be physically incapable of getting on the 'net.  With XP I've currently disabled the network adapter, but I'd like something more drastic, in case the hardware wizard decides to lose/find it, like is constantly happening with the USB audio devices.