4 November
2001
Aftermath
- the week after
A
lot can happen in one week and this past week with Windows
XP was no different. I've decided to document some additional
issues with XP so that potential buyers know what they are
getting into before hand. It might also help those who are
also struggling with the same issues.
1.
Direct CD - I listed this first because it hosed me...do
not install version 3.X of Direct CD. Roxio tells you
not to, Microsoft tells you not to, but I listened to somebody
who said they got it to work in Windows XP. They might have,
but I followed their instructions and it caused me to have
to reinstall Windows. It was that bad. My system became totally
unstable. I was getting complete reboots for no apparent reason.
It's just not worth the trouble to be one of the few who get
Direct CD 3.X working.
2.
Infinite Loops - This has manifested itself in two
different ways, both of which have been confirmed by many
people in Microsoft's own newgroups. First, after you install
updates using Windows Update, it still tells you that you
need the update. If you check the "View Installation
History", it tells you the update was successfully installed.
I've seen where some people have fixed this by reinstalling
XP, but most people have not found a work around for this.
I don't know if it is related, but many people who experience
this problem have reinstalled XP over top of itself. I didn't
have this problem after the initial install, only after I
had to reinstall.
UPDATE:
With help from the newsgroups, I was able to correct the problem.
However, it requires editing the Registry. WARNING: Create
a System Restore Point before editing the Registry and remember,
DO THIS AT YOUR OWN RISK. A wrong move editing your Registry
could make your system unbootable.
Second,
sometimes when I logoff and back on again, I will see a message
that Windows has recovered from a "serious error".
It will then prompt me to send in an error report. After it
sends the report the same window pops up again wanting to
send another error report. This keeps on happening until I
reboot.
3.
System Restore - Don't put all your trust into System
Restore. Most of the time it works. However, when I needed
it the most (the Direct CD fiasco), it told me it was unsuccessful
in restoring my system to a point before installing Direct
CD. Argh!
4.
Windows 95 Compatibility - This is another one of those
great tools when they work. If you right click on the icon
for an older program and select "Properties", the
third tab is "Compatability". You can tell XP to
run your program in Windows 95 mode if you so desire. However,
because of the way it interfaces with XP, some older programs
just won't run in Windows XP.
5.
Windows Messenger - If you are like me, you are probably
getting tired of having the Windows Messenger icon keep showing
up in the Systray. Well there is a way to uninstall it. You
have to edit the C:\WINDOWS\inf\sysoc.inf file. Look for the
line that says "msmsgs=msgrocm.dll,OcEntry,msmsgs.inf,hide,7"
and remove the word "hide". Keep the punctuation
the same. Now when you go into ADD/REMOVE Programs, Windows
Messenger will be an option.
6.
Missing Tray Icons - I've consistantly had problems
with icons of programs running but not showing up in the Systray.
From the multitude of posts I've seen in the newsgroups, this
is a widespread problem.
7.
LAN Setup - Since my machine was working properly under
Windows ME, I figured it would just copy over all of my settings.
However, it was taking the machine forever to locate the other
PC's on my network. Then I noticed an option to "Perform
Additional Tasks" on the main screen for installing Windows
XP. Under that section is an option to setup a small network.
After going through that procedure, my network is running
up to speed again and all shared drives show in Network Places.
8.
Temporary Internet Files - This is some kind of quasi-hidden
folder thingy. I cannot view the subfolders under this folder
using Windows Explorer and Powerdesk Explorer Plus. I know
they are there because I can see them with other applications,
just not with the two applications I mentioned.
9.
CD Burning - By far the most widely reported problems
with XP surround CD burners. I've already described the problems
you can experience if you try to install an older version
of Direct CD. However, many people never get that far...XP
doesn't even see their CD burners. I was fortunate that my
drive was properly detected. I tried XP's included CD burning
capability. While the copying went fine, I had to reboot just
to get the drive to eject the CD. However, the only machines
that could read the CD I produced were other Win XP machines.
How's that for compatibility? I placed the file on our network
at work and thought I was screwed because no machines could
read the file enough to delete it. I could just imagine our
tape backup crashing because it could n't read a file. Eventually
I went into DOS and was able to remove the file.
More
Final Thoughts
This
last item is more of a rant than anything. With the long BETA
period that Microsoft used for Windows XP, no manufacturer
has an excuse for not having software and drivers ready for
the launch of XP. And yet, many of us are struggling with
those very things. The launch of Windows 2000 had the same
problems. Doesn't anyone learn from their mistakes? Consequently,
I don't have drivers for my soundcard and scanner. My UPS
and CD burning software don't work.
And that kind of response from manufacturers is unacceptable.
COMMENTS?
