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The LangaList
Standard Edition

2001-05-10

A Free Email Newsletter from Fred Langa
That Helps You Get More From Your Hardware, 
Software, and Time Online

Please visit our sponsors and help keep the LangaList S.E. free!

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1) Hard Drive Thrashing

Dan Withers did some great detective work, but still was faced with disk "thrashing" and slow starts:

I've enjoyed your newsletter for sometime and recently subscribed to the Plus version. Many of my computing problems have been solved by either you or input from your readers. But, and there's always a but, I'm now at a loss to solve my latest quandary.

My Dell Dimension XPS 300 has been a most reliable machine but lately has developed an odd quirk during boot-up.... From power-on to system ready, my "boot time" [originally] took about sixty seconds. I use System Mechanic's Startup Manager to keep my start-up programs minimal and basically run a lean machine. I've also enabled the "bootlog" feature and periodically check my times and failures with BootLog Analyzer version 1.23.

Over a period of three months, my boot time has increased perceptibly while my bootlog times have remained essentially the same. My power-on to system ready time has more than doubled even when I disable ALL TSR's from the Start-Up folder, registry, autoexec and config files.

Once Windows is loaded and my start-up programs are placed in the taskbar tray, my hard disk begins to "thrash" as if it is swapping out a huge file. This process can last for a minute plus whether I load "clean" or my normal configuration. I first thought it might be an attempt to write to my virtual disk but I have 192 megs of RAM installed and wouldn't expect to see that kind of activity on boot-up.

I've enabled a process viewer (PrcView version 3.1.0.2) during start-up but that program has not identified anything that I can attribute to this excessive disk activity. Do you or your readers know of any software that monitors the hard disk and can identify just what is initiating this prolonged activity and exactly what my disk is attempting to read and/or write? Thank you for any assistance. It will be greatly appreciated.

You've done a lot of good problem-solving work already, Dan; nice job! You may find some other ideas in "Curing Sloooooow Restarts" at http://content.techweb.com/winmag/columns/explorer/2000/08.htm

But your comment on virtual memory made me wonder. It's possible that Windows is adjusting your on-disk swapfile--- the "virtual memory" area--- during those long initial bursts of disk activity. With a poorly-sized and 'dynamic' (self-resizing) swapfile, the operation can take a while especially if the drive (and the swapfile itself) is fragmented.

First, check out "Real-World Answers about Virtual Memory" at http://content.techweb.com/winmag/columns/explorer/1999/0913.htm , to see if your setup falls within the broad guidelines. There are steps there--- such as setting a generous fixed *minimum* size for the swapfile--- that can substantially reduce the time Windows spends in virtual memory housekeeping operations.

But with a fragmented swapfile (one that's scattered in little pieces all over your hard drive) you may still experience delays. So once you've set the right amount of virtual memory, make sure it's not fragmented.

If you have a utility like Norton's SpeedDisk, it will defrag your hard drive, including the swapfile; it can even place the newly-contiguous swapfile at the front of your drive, for fastest access.

If your defrag tool doesn't support moving the swap file, here's a trick: Disable virtual memory, or make the swapfile ridiculously small: Right-click My Computer, then properties, performance and virtual memory. Windows will complain, but ignore the complaints. Reboot, and hold the LEFT SHIFT key down as Windows loads (this tells Windows to bypass most of the normal startup stuff). When Windows has fully loaded, and without starting any other apps, run a full defrag to completion. When that's done, reset your swapfile/virtual memory as suggested in "Real World Answers" (above), and reboot. The swapfile will now be recreated in the proper size and in one contiguous block.

And that should help speed up not only your boot times, but routine operations, too!

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2) Free Image-Viewer

Bill Woelk found a nice beta tool:

I enjoy reading your weekly Langa Plus email column, so I wanted to contribute something back. This link takes you to the fCoder website home page. Once there, look under "Image Tools" for a program called iBrowser. This is a very nice little graphics file viewer that supports probably over 18 different image formats. Best of all it is freeware. I expect that once they perfect it, it will go shareware. I have used it for several weeks and not found any outstanding bugs to report. Recently I was putting a CDROM together for my company containing scans of all of our current Forms Handling Equipment product line for Moore North America, Inc and needed a license free viewer that I could place on each CDROM so that the end-user/customer could view my scans on the CD... The iBrowser worked perfectly!

http://ibrowser.fcodersoft.com/index.htm

Thanks, Bill. It does look good, and seems to run well. But it is a beta, so all the normal beta cautions apply.

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3) Backing Up Outlook, & Express

Every week, several readers ask about backing up their OutLook or OutLook Express files--- usually after having to rebuild their system and finding they've lost all their email, contacts, calendar.... It's a painful lesson.

We've discussed several how-tos in the past, but with the WinMag site closure, the files we referenced were hard to find. But now they're back:

Rescue Outlook Express Data: http://content.techweb.com/winmag//fixes/2001/05.htm
Rescue Outlook 2000 Data: http://content.techweb.com/winmag//fixes/2001/06.htm

What's more, reader "JasonN"  offers this:

In past issues you talked about how Outlook Express can be a pain in the rear end to back up. Well check out this program that makes it a snap and will even back up all the necessary registry, mail, addresses, and anything else associated with it. Very easy to use too! (no I do not work for them...just like the product)

http://www.tweakie.com/help/

Thanks, Jason.

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4) Rename Many Files (e.g. MP3s) All At Once

Reader Jon Crowe suggests this "neat little utility:"

Thought I'd let you know about this little program that handles batch file renaming very well. Obviously it is a specific function and might not find much use but if you ever have a pile of files that you want to rename in a hurry, this thing works wonders. A possible good use is for renaming digital camera images whihc usually come as sequential numbers off the camera. Best of all it is free.

http://www.1-4a.com/rename/

Thanks, Jon!

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5) Want To Be A Ten-Thousand-Aire?

If you think the LangaList is a worthwhile read, just use the following link to recommend the LangaList to a friend. Your friend just may find a new source of useful information; I just may gain a new subscriber; and you just may win $10,000 for your trouble (full details also available via this link): http://www.recommend-it.com/l.z.e?s=143182

Or, win a no-strings $30 Gift Certificate for any item at Amazon.Com--- books, software, hardware, kitchenware, toys... and more. To have a shot at winning, just use the following link to recommend the LangaList to a friend. Your friend just may find a new source of useful information; I just may gain a new subscriber; and you just may win a $30 Gift Certificate! (Full details also available via this link): http://www.langa.com/recommend.htm

Either way, thank you, and good luck!

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6) More Spell-Check Resources (Even Multilingual!)

We've been discussing spell-checkers for applications (such as browsers and online work) that normally don't have a spell check readily available. (See http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2001/2001-05-03.htm#2 and http://www.langa.com/newsletters/2001/2001-05-07.htm#2 ).

Here's are some additional reader-recommended favorites:

Heya Fred, Saw the article about "spell checking virtually anything anywhere" and I thought I'd toss another program idea your way. A company called CeSoft http://www.cesoft.com/products/quickeys.html  makes a package called Quickeys. After a little bit of use, you realise how essential this package really is. It does virtually thousands of tasks from finding all the files that were modified in a specified period of time, to allowing you to spell check, affix ">" to text or reformat it, to making macros with a very easy to use macro editor. There are so many things it can do, i wouldn't have time to go in to them all right now, but I highly recommend you check it out, cuz it's awesome. ;) --- Jeff .Stark

I just read the topic about spell checking in the 2001-05-03 edition of the Langa List SE (included below) and I thought you might also be interested in this: http://www.spellonline.com  The site is free and you can spell check a URL or paste whatever text you like right on the web site. ---Cynthia E. Thomas [Note: this also is a *multilingual* spell checker!]

Thanks to all who wrote in!

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7) They Loaded The Code

Do you have a home page or website? (It doesn't matter what size.) Please click over to http://www.langa.com/code.htm , and maybe you can join the hundreds and hundreds of LangaList readers who have "Loaded the Code!" (If you've already "Loaded The Code" and are wondering if your site will appear here or on the Langa.Com web site, please see http://www.langa.com/link.txt )

Speaking of which: Here's another eclectic sample of reader sites--- some professional, some very personal:

View A Randomly-Chosen Reader Site
http://www.langa.com/randomlink.htm

Manually Browse All Posted-to-Date Sites Starting At
http://www.langa.com/readersites.htm

AccessFP: Front Page Resource Center
http://www.accessfp.net/

Electronics Tutorials, Free
http://williamson-labs.com/

Mizell System Support & Service
http://mizellsystemsupport.8m.com/

Josh Derak's Page
http://www.geocities.com/josh_derak/

Fitness Success Stories
http://www.iforte.com/

Chris R. Simmons
http://fp3.hughes.net/~csimmons/

Synthetic Trips
http://synthetictrips.com/computerspage.htm

Guido's WebWatch
http://www.zbb67.ukgateway.net/Webwatch/index.html

Westcumb Amateur Radio Club (Nova Scotia & New Brunswick, Canada)
http://www.westcumb.com/

Planet Helium
http://www.geocities.com/titanimage/

ChimneyGod's Tips and Tricks
http://www.chimneygod.com/

Student Site
http://www.kingofsmackdown.homestead.com/

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8) Special Request to Past Code-Loaders

If you've previously "loaded the code" could you please take a moment to verify that your listing is still accurate? You can browse through the pages at http://www.langa.com/readersites.htm or search for your URL or site description at http://www.langa.com/search.htm .

I use an automated link-checking tool, and although I have the "timeout" set fairly high, some sites (especially on free web hosts) are *very* slow to respond. As a result, some sites that actually are OK may have been tagged as no longer working. In addition, some other sites have moved or been modified.

If your ALREADY-LISTED site is incorrect, please drop a line to CODELOADERROR@langa.com ; please give me the original now-incorrect listing, along with any corrections. I'll add the corrections ASAP.

If you submitted a site and are still waiting for it to appear, note that I am caught up to April 1st submissions. If you submitted a "code load" site before that and it hasn't appeared, that probably means that the site wasn't available when I tried to visit it; or that I couldn't find the location where you included your link to Langa.Com. Please feel free to resubmit your link to LINK@LANGA.COM, and please make sure that (1) you include an accurate, working URL and (2) you point me to where you have the link to Langa.Com.

Thanks!

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9) BIOS Recovery?

Reader "R.A.C." wants a fast and easy way to restore his BIOS settings, if they go bad:

I would like to know if there is a program that allows me to save the BIOS (backup) of my computer to a floppy, so I can flash the BIOS chip, in case of emergency. I really enjoy reading your newsletter.

There's a ton of  BIOS tools out there, as a quick search reveals: http://www.google.com/search?q=bios+restore and  http://www.google.com/search?q=cmos+restore . (BIOSes are sometimes colloquially referred to as a general chip type: "CMOS.")

Some BIOS backup/restore tools are specific to a system type or BIOS brand; others are quite generic. Your best bet is to check your system vendor's site to see if they have a recommended solution. Barring that, try your BIOS vendor (you'll see the brand name, such as "Award" or "Phoenix" when your system first boots), or your motherboard vendor.

But note that most of the BIOS tools out there aren't really for "flashing" the BIOS, per se. "Flashing" is electrically reprogramming the BIOS at the lowest level. (It's called "flashing" because the earliest form of reprogrammable chips used a bright flash of ultraviolet light to erase the contents. Now, in PCs, the process is entirely electrical.) Flashing isn't something to be done on a whim because an error can leave your system completely inert.

That's why most BIOS backup/restore software simply records the user-settable data in the BIOS and saves that info in a file somewhere. If the BIOS settings go bad at some later point, or if you make an error in setting something in the BIOS, you can used the stored information to get the BIOS back to a known-good state; no real "flashing" is needed.

The BIOS save/restore tool I've personally used the most is discussed here:
http://www.langa.com/newsletters/1999/sept-16-99.htm#cmos

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10) Just For Grins

Theresa W. Carey sends along  "....some turns of phrase to avoid:"

The Washington Post asked to readers to come up with lame analogies:

Honorable mentions:

The ballerina rose gracefully en pointe and extended one slender leg behind her, like a dog at a fire hydrant. (Jennifer Hart, Arlington)

The revelation that his marriage of 30 years had disintegrated because of his wife's infidelity came as a rude shock, like a surcharge at a formerly surcharge-free ATM. (Paul J. Kocak, Syracuse)

He felt like he was being hunted down like a dog, in a place that hunts dogs, I suppose. (Russ Beland, Springfield)

The lamp just sat there, like an inanimate object. (Nanci Phillips Sharp, Gaithersburg)

He was deeply in love. When she spoke, he thought he heard bells, as if she were a garbage truck backing up. (Susan Reese, Arlington)

She was as easy as the TV Guide crossword. (Tom Witte, Gaithersburg)

She grew on him like she was a colony of E.coli and he was room-temperature Canadian beef. (Brian Broadus, Charlottesville)

Her pants fit her like a glove, well, maybe more like a mitten, actually. (Chuck Smith, Woodbridge)

Runners-Up:

Sixth Runner-Up: The young fighter had a hungry look, the kind you get from not eating for a while. (Malcolm Fleschner, Arlington)

Fifth Runner-Up: "Oh, Jason, take me!" she panted, her chest heaving like a college freshman on $1-a-beer night. (Bonnie Speary Devore, Gaithersburg)

Fourth Runner-Up: He was as lame as a duck. Not the metaphorical lame duck, either, but a real duck that was actually lame. Maybe from stepping on a land mine or something. (John Kammer, Herndon)

Third-Runner-Up: Her artistic sense was exquisitely refined, like someone who can tell butter from I Can't Believe It's Not Butter. (Barbara Collier, Garrett Park)

Second Runner-Up: She had a deep, throaty, genuine laugh, like that sound a dog makes just before it throws up. (Susan Reese, Arlington)

First Runner-Up: It came down the stairs looking very much like something no one had ever seen before. (Marian Carlsson, Lexington)

And the winner: The knife was as sharp as the tone used by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Tex.) in her first several points of parliamentary procedure made to Rep. Henry Hyde (R-Ill.) in the House Judiciary Committee hearings on the impeachment of President William Jefferson Clinton. (J.F. Knowles Springfield)

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11) More Peltier Cooling Info; Two Complete, Free MS-Compatible Office Suites; Fred Cries "Anacol"

Today's LangaList Plus! Edition contains all ten items above, plus about 30% more content, including more information on Peltier cooling; two complete, free office suites (yours for the downloading); and a curious phrase from a recent issue. The Plus! edition also has no ads, arrives earlier than the standard edition, and has its own private web site for downloads, back issues and more. And what does all that cost? Just one thin dime. How can you go wrong? <g> Plus! Edition info: http://www.langa.com/plus.htm 

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See you next issue!

Best,

Fred

(fred@langa.com)

Please recommend the LangaList to a friend! (And maybe win $10,000!I)

An easier-to read formatted HTML version is available in the "Current Issue" section of http://www.langa.com.  (The HTML version of each issue normally is available by 9AM EST [UT-5] of the issue date.) All past LangaList issues are also available at the Langa.Com site.

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Administrivia:

Why are you getting this newsletter? This is a 100% OPT-IN newsletter: There are only three ways to get on the list--- signup via direct email request from you, or signup via the WinMag newsletter page or signup via BrowserTune's email-notification service. If you're getting this newsletter; your name came to me through one of those signup channels. At signup, you also received a confirmation email from my list software---no one is signed up secretly or against their will.

SUBSCRIBE (it's free!): Create and send a new email address it to subscribe-langalist@lyris.dundee.net

For even more content, downloads and special services, check out the LangaList Plus! Edition: http://www.langa.com/plus.htm

UNSUBSCRIBE: From the same address you used to sign up with (it's shown on the first line in the body of each email issue you receive), create and send a new email address to  unsubscribe-langalist@lyris.dundee.net .

CHANGE ADDRESS? LIST TROUBLE? HAVE QUESTIONS? NEED HELP? See http://www.langa.com/help.htm

About the advertisers:  Langa Consulting LLC will never knowingly accept advertising for a fraudulent product, company or service. However, Langa Consulting LLC makes no implied or explicit warranty, recommendation or endorsement of or for the products, companies or services mentioned in the ads.

Disclaimer: (Please see full disclaimer here: http://www.langa.com/legal.htm.) Abbreviated version: The tips and other information given in the newsletter are researched and are believed to be accurate, but we cannot and do not guarantee that all the information here will work on all systems, for all users, all the time. All information herein is offered as-is and without warranty of any kind. Neither Langa Consulting LLC, nor its employees nor contributors are responsible for any loss, injury, or damage, direct or consequential, resulting from application of any information presented here.

This newsletter is a service of Langa Consulting LLC and is Copyright © 1997-2005Langa Consulting LLC. All rights reserved. LangaList: ISSN 1533-1156

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