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The LangaList
Standard Edition

2004-08-19

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!

1) A Complete Software Toolbox In Your Pocket

Long ago, I used to have a box full of floppy disks that I'd carry with me when I had to try to resurrect a dead PC: The floppies contained all the various diagnostic and recovery tools, common drivers, tweak- and shareware tools that I'd found most useful in bringing dead systems back to life.

When the stack of floppies became unwieldy, I moved the tools to a bootable CD. That, plus one boot floppy (for systems that couldn't boot from a CD) let me carry even more tools in far less space.

Now, I've moved my toolbox to a tiny, bootable 1GB USB pen drive (from Crucial); it holds even more tools than the CD, and is far faster than either the CD or floppy.

Pen drives come in all sizes, and are incredibly useful for anything from moving just a few files up to holding several CDs worth of data. But getting them to be bootable can require some special tricks, such as diddling the boot-order of your PC's devices and ensuring the partition type is correct on the USB device.

In the full-length (and free!) column posted at http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=28700158 , I'll walk you through the many factors affecting boot-from-USB. You'll see how to access and modify the BIOS Setup program built into your PC; how to see just what (if any) boot-from-USB support your PC offers; how to activate it if it's there; and how to add it if it's not.

We'll then look at making a USB Device itself bootable, and I'll give you links to the best free tools I know for doing this the fast, easy, and automated way. But, as usual, we'll also discuss manual ways you can use if or when the automated tools fail.

We'll also touch on the two most common errors people make in setting up USB booting. Miss these steps, and things just won't work, even if everything else is done perfectly.

Click on over to http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=28700158 . See you there!

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--- ( Your Clicks On Ad Links Help Keep The LangaList S.E. Free! ) ---

"Hi Fred, I'm very happy to have upgraded to the Plus edition of the
LangaList. In just the past couple of months, I've stored and used more
of your tips and tweaks than anything else I've ever found on the
internet. Thanks for the help! I look forward to your next newsletter,
and hope that you may dig out some tips for those of us with some hair
left to pull!"---Frank DC

The LangaList Plus! Edition is ad-free, spam-proof,
and contains even more content--- tips, tricks, advice, downloads---
than the Standard Edition you're now reading.

JUST PENNIES PER ISSUE!

http://langa.com/plus.htm

--------------( the above is an advertisement )--------------

2) Firefox Emulation

Hi Fred, I enjoy the "view in IE" feature in Firefox ( http://ieview.mozdev.org/ )... but what for the reverse ?

On my site ( http://mll02.free.fr/ ), you can download "'View in Firefox' for IE" that I quickly assembled. The name says it all...

I thought this might be enjoyed by my fellow langalist readers. Cheers, MLL

Interesting. For quite a while the Netscape family of browsers, Opera, and others have offered IE emulation, designed to help people get past rendering or processing problems caused by the different ways those different browsers treat HTML code, compared to IE. But this is a way to do the opposite--- to let you view a page in Firefox, from within IE. Thanks, MLL!

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3) XP Version Confusion

Fred-- I still am unclear about the difference between an Upgrade version of WinXP and a "full" version.

I am running Win98 and have decided to bite the bullet and move to WinXP. Checking various online sources, I note there is a full and an upgrade version for both WinXP Pro and Home.

Does the Upgrade somehow keep settings, etc. that I have now, but the full version does not? Or is the only difference the price, and the fact that as noted in 2003-06-09, the upgrade version requires that you have an original setup CD?

On a slightly different topic. I have a small WiFi network, but am by no means a power user or network guy. Will I miss much if I save a few $ and get Home, or should I just go with Pro? Thanks, --Barry

Think of XP Pro/Full as the complete version of XP: It can be installed to a blank disk (no previous OS), or used to upgrade an existing OS (and yes, it will then pick up and reuse as many settings as it can). XP Pro/Full has the complete features set, with nothing removed.

XP Home/Full also can be installed to a blank disk (no previous OS), or used to upgrade an existing OS (with its settings), but it lacks some features that Microsoft thought wouldn't be useful to Home users. (In some cases, Microsoft was wrong. Some of Pro's networking features, for example, are very useful on larger home-use LANs.)

Both Upgrade versions (Pro and Home) require that you have a legitimate copy of a "qualifying" OS, such as Win98, WinME, or Win2K. In most cases, this other OS is the one you'll be upgrading; it'll be on your hard drive. But the Upgrade versions usually can be used to install to a blank drive too, provided you have a copy of the setup CD for the previous OS: When you try to install to a blank drive, the XP setup will say something to the effect of: "I can't find a qualifying OS on your hard drive. Insert the setup CD for that OS..." Once it verifies that you have a qualifying setup CD, it then proceeds with the XP installation.

Comparing Pro and Home gets more complicated, especially when you start factoring in OEM installations, which may or may not have setup CDs, and which may or may not be as readily upgradeable as retail installations. In fact, it's way more than I can cover in a newsletter: Please see http://www.google.com/search?q=xp+pro+home+compare for all the gory details. <g>

But here's an important note that most of the above sites ignore: XP Home has a shorter support life than XP Pro. As currently scheduled, XP Home's support will cease FIVE FULL YEARS sooner than XP Pro's! You see, in Microsoft's support scheme, XP Home is a "consumer" product whose five years of active support ends in 2006. XP Pro is a "business" product that gets an additional five full years of "extended" support, out to 2011. (I hope this doesn't come as a surprise to anyone--- we've covered Microsoft lifecycle plans numerous times before.) See http://langa.com/u/5p.htm and http://langa.com/u/5q.htm and http://www.informationweek.com/story/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=8700301 .

Extended support may not be an issue if you get all your support via Windows Update, the Knowledgebase, and other such self-service tools--- they'll continue to be available for some time to come. But if you want or need the option of calling or writing to Microsoft's live tech support in the event of a disaster, it's something to think about.

My general advice has been and remains: If the money isn't a problem, get XP Pro/Full because it gives you the most flexibility, features, and support life. But, it's expensive. If you need to select a less pricy option, then this is the order I suggest you consider XP versions:

XP Pro/Full
XP Pro/Upgrade
XP Home/Full
XP Home/Upgrade

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4) PDF Form-Filler

We've discussed very handy web-page form fillers before (e.g. http://langa.com/u/5s.htm ), but here's a twist---a tool for filling out PDF-based forms:

Fred, As a Plus member the last few years, I have found many useful tips and programs in your newsletter.  I recently discovered a program that others might also find useful.  One of my (increasingly many) pet peeves is that all of my medical and dental claim forms are PDF files, some with fill in fields and some without.  The ones with fields can be filled in and printed, but not saved unless you have Adobe writer.  After searching and trying several shareware programs that purported to solve this problem, I found PDFill http://www.pdfill.com  This shareware program not only allows you to fill in and save PDF forms that have fields, but also allows you to add your own text fields in PDF forms without them.  The program has other more advanced features which I have not needed, but if they work as well as the basic functions I would expect them to work well.  The program may be downloaded as a full featured trial version that adds a watermarked ad across the saved page.  Registration to remove the ad is only $9.99.  Other programs that I looked at were much more expensive and didn't work nearly as well.

The most impressive thing to me was the customer support that is provided. After working on several forms, I came across one that did not work correctly with PDFill.  I sent a note to the support address with the offending file and received an immediate response that if the program could not be fixed within the week, I would receive a full refund.  Within days the program was updated to handle the form, which apparently was saved with some unusual parameters that the programmer had not seen before.  I was grateful for the quick response, and the programmer was grateful for a test case to improve the program.   It's a real pleasure to get a response from a software company, as my experience with large companies has not been very satisfactory. ---George McKewen

Thanks, George!

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5) Plucking Files From An ISO CD Image

Normally, massive software downloads (such as complete OS distributions) are transmitted as a single ISO file--- a kind of disk image of a CD. You can't just copy the ISO file to a blank CD; it has to be processed into separate files first. Most normal CD-burning tools have a built-in way to do this. In Roxio's "Creator Classic," for example, it's under the File/"Record Disc From Image" option. When the ISO disc creation is done, instead of having a simple copy of the ISO file, the CD will be populated with the normal folders and files that were inside the ISO file.

But some CD burner software can't handle ISO files. Or, you may only want one or two files from a collection, and don't want to be bothered burning a whole CD just to get at them. This reader found a solution:

Fred, the software that came with my Dell cannot -- as far as I can tell -- [work with ISO images]. I've discovered two tools to extract the files from the ISO.

Undisker -- http://www.undisker.com/ -- will do the extraction. You can then burn the files to a CD. Shareware, around $30.

Daemon Tools -- http://www.daemon-tools.cc/dtcc/portal/portal.php -- creates a virtual drive on your system, allowing you to treat the ISO file as if the individual files *had* been extracted and burned to a CD. Cool. Free. ---Jay Gerard

Thanks, Jay!

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6) Is This Information Useful?

If you think the LangaList is a worthwhile read, maybe a friend would find it useful too! Just use the following link to recommend the LangaList---your friend may find a new source of useful information and you just may win one of three FREE ONE YEAR SUBSCRIPTIONS to the LangaList Plus! edition given each month. (If your name is drawn and you're already a Plus! subscriber, your current subscription will be extended by a full year.)

Check out the details at http://langa.com/recommend.htm . Thanks for recommending the LangaList--- and good luck!

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7) De-Worming Your PC

This question seems very specific, but it actually applies to just about any PC or OS:

Fred: I am one of the Plus subscribers and may need some advice.  Using w98SE and found a W32/Beagle worm on my laptop.  I  don't have an antivirus program right now so I renamed the exe (susxp.exe) file to my initials and moved it to the recycle bin.  I then attempted to use regedit but it only flashes temporarily as it starts but doesn't get executed.  I also tried to install McAfee's Virusscan but it did the same.  Was unable to use Safe mode to get into regedit as it messes up my mouse.  Need any suggestions so I can clean this up.  Pls help if possible. ---John Kurowski

It can be hard to do this kind of infestation-removal manually, and sometimes, that's the only way that works. But with the more common viruses, worms, and trojans, the major antivirus vendors usually offer targeted free tools for deleting and repairing the malware infections.

For example, Symantec's free Beagle-remover is at http://langa.com/u/5q.htm , and you can find a whole raft of other free disinfection tools here: http://securityresponse.symantec.com/avcenter/tools.list.html

The vendors provide these tools as examples of their prowess, hoping you'll like them enough to spring for the full version of their software. But the infection-specific tools are usually offered with no strings, no costs, no obligations, and are certainly worth a try if your PC is infected.

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8) More Reader Sites!

Do you have a home page or website? (It doesn't matter what size.) Please click over to http://langa.com/code.htm , and maybe you can join the thousands 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://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 From Among All Listed
http://langa.com/randomlink.htm

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

Spyware Adware Malware Browser Hijackers and other Parasites
http://sambo.imageenterprises.net/

"Mom's Page"
http://mom.atspace.com/

Better Communication Through Tech
http://www.communicateusingtechnology.com/index.htm

Good Sleep
http://thegoodsleepstore.com/natural_calm.htm

Burvee photography
http://www.burvee-photography.com/

Squirrel's Nuts
http://www.tibbenham.ukfsn.org/

Travelbank Systems
http://www.travelbank.com/menusoho.htm

Dumb Hillbilly (blog)
http://voodooeconomics.blogspot.com/

Jeber-Jabber
http://www.jeber.net/

U-505/515
http://u505.dnsdata.com/

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9) A Question That Never Goes Away...

Fred: If you have a pc you use sporadically should you turn off the pc between uses? Is it better to just turn off the monitor and let the pc run? Which option will help the pc to last the longest? Currently I leave the pc running and power down the monitor when I am not using it. Is this a good option or should the entire pc be powered down. When I ask others I get a variety of answers. Consisting of its better to keep pc at a constant temperature by leaving it on, to it will only last so many hours so only leave it on when using it. Can you clear this up please? ---Tony

It's a perennial question, Tony, and one whose answer has shifted over the years as PCs have been built differently (eg the switch from socket- to to surface-mounted components); as OSes have matured (eg the advent of good power-savings subsystems); and as energy issues have become increasingly important (even when "sleeping," tens of millions of PCs combined still collectively consume a huge amount of power).

We last explored this in some depth a while ago, but I've just re-checked that text, and it's still current. So rather than repeat myself, please let me point you to that discussion:  http://langa.com/newsletters/2001/2001-06-21.htm#4 .

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10) Just For Grins

Hi Fred, Just wanted to share this with you:
http://www.personal.u-net.com/~blacksun/cosmic1.htm
It's "The Historical Development of the Meep" (and how it relates to computers). I hope you get a grin out of it! Regards, Danny

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11) Schedule Adjustment

I'd hoped that getting my office back into service ASAP during our home reconstruction would be the end of it, as far as this newsletter goes. However, the work in other parts of the house still is causing major office disruptions. For example, have you ever tried breathing polyurethane fumes for several days in a row? 8-) Even though the fumes (and dust) are being generated in other rooms, and despite the use of fans, it's still toxic enough to render my office head-spinningly uninhabitable from time to time.

So, I'm doing a lot of work on my laptop in whatever part of the house is upwind of the worst fumes each day. It's OK, but the smaller screen, slower system, and (most of all) slower connection mean I'm limping along at a fraction of normal productivity.

All of which is to say: There'll only be one issue next week, on the 26th. I'll get back to the normal schedule as soon as I don't need to wear a moon suit and a respirator to stay in my office. Cough. 8-)

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12) Plus! Edition Highlights:

• Handy Folder-Relocation Tool
     (a fast, easy way to move folders like "my documents")
• "Deep Freeze" Your Software
     (heavy-duty tools makes PC software virtually breakproof)
• Readers Respond Re: Inexpensive Ink
     (how does $5 per cartridge sound?)

Plus! edition subscribers not only get much more content in every issue (like the above), but also have access to a private web site with over 100,000 words of special content and features not found in *any* issue of the newsletter; along with dozens of private downloads and much more--- all for just $1 per month!

Plus! Edition info: http://langa.com/plus.htm 

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(Give a gift subscription to the LangaList Plus edition!
Click <a href= " http://langa.com/plus_gift.htm ">here</a>)

See you next issue, 2004-08-26!

Best,

Fred
( Editor@Langa.Com )

Please recommend the LangaList to a friend! (And maybe win a prize!)

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