Monday, November 12, 2001		Dr Tribune

Q. I have an assembled PC with P III 500 MHz, 810 motherboard, 64 MB RAM, 10.2 GB HDD, Creative 48X CD ROM Drive, Philips Monitor, TVS Gold keyboard. My problem is that I had to format C: drive due to virus. After that whenever I tried to install sound card, it stops at 85 per cent of installation. Please suggest a solution to this problem. Also please tell me the method to enhance the Internet speed. 

— Vivek Madan, Jalandhar

A. Please run scandisk in thorough mode before installing the sound card driver. It appears that your problem is primarily related to some kind of cross-linking of data or any other problem related to the data structure. Running scan disk will take care of any such problem and you will be able to install the sound card driver correctly. However before you attempt to install the sound driver, make sure that you remove it completely first, as without removing the previous version, this probably may continue to happen again. Regarding the methods to enhance the Internet speed, please send us more details of your specific problems and data speed of the Internet. The solution and method to enhance the Internet speed would largely depend on specific cases and conditions.

Q. I need to know the SMTP and POP server name to configure the mail services of rediffmail.com and indiatimes.com to my Outlook. Please help me with this.

A. Since Rediff and Indiatimes are Web-based e-mails, therefore their SMTP and POP3 addresses are not available. In the absence of these information, it is not possible to configure them in Outlook Express.

Q. Whenever I defrag the hard disk, after defragmenting up to 4 or 5 per cent, it again starts displaying the message: "Drive’s contents changed, restarting defragmentation. I even tried to defragment the drive after disabling the screensavers but still the same message appears and the defragment process starts again.

A. This problem could be due to many reasons, and in most of the cases it is because some of the program, which may or may not be in your knowledge while running can hinder the cost of disk defragmentation. So take care to close all open programs, especially any virus scanning program that might be running on your system. Normally, if you have disabled the screen-saver then this problem is attributed mainly to the anti-virus software. So close all programs including the virus scanning software. You should also close all program running in your Systray (next to the clock). Anything that is accessing your hard drive will make defrag see a change in the hard drive and start over. Another possible reason could be the Comet Cursors running on your computer. This could also hinder completion of disk defrag. For closing Comet Cursors, press Ctrl +Alt + Del and close any program, which might be running on your PC.

Q. I have bought a PC Intel Pentium III, 20 GB hard disk, 128 MB RAM, Mercury 810e motherboard, 56 KBPS D-Link external modem. I have some problems related to it:

1. Its speed is very slow. I regularly perform scandisk and defragmentation.

2. It takes along time to open a site. It disconnects from the Internet after a short period, say 5-10 minutes and I have to reconnect.

3. Initially I installed Windows ’98 on it but now it shows "starting Windows ’95" while booting and "leaving Windows ’95" while shutting down. This happened after I installed Norton Anti virus.

A. Regarding your first problem, I would suggest that you reinstall Windows again as it is also linked with your last problem. Sometimes, despite having the best of the hardware the performance of the system is slow and can be rectified by reinstalling the operating system. Sometimes due to corruption of registry and other important system files the performance of the system goes down. Reinstallation will not only ensure restoration of all these critical files but also makes your system more stable. I hope that this will solve the problem. Regarding the second problem of frequent disconnection from the Internet, please check the telephone line first for any possible cuts and joints. Cuts and joints normally add noise to the telephone line and causes data loss. In all such cases try changing the line with a new copper wire. Second, you must reduce the number of extensions or other applications like fax machine from your telephone line when using the Internet. Another possible solution could be using the latest modem drivers. However if you think that the above-mentioned conditions does not apply to you then you can try to add the Syntex, S10=50 in the advanced tab of modem properties under modem configuration. For entering this setting, first of all open the dialup networking and then right click on the icon of your Internet connection. Now click on the configure tab located near the bottom and then click on connection tab. Now click advanced option and in the extra setting box write S10=50. This setting will reduce the frequency of Internet disconnection.

Q. I have a hard disk of 10 GB divided into two sections of each with 4.75 GB.17" LG monitor and P III with Windows ’98. DLink DFM-560 external modem. My problem is that whenever I work on the Net while surfing the connection does not last for much time. It disconnects after 15 minutes but the system does not give any message. Earlier, whenever the connection would go off my computer would give a message to reconnect again. Even after turning off the modem, the Internet would go on working and does not stop. Whenever I used to end task by giving an Alt+ Ctrl+ Del command, it would stop and then an error used to appear that Explorer has performed illegal function close it. And then PC generally hangs. Is there any problem with software or does the hardware need to be changed. Please suggest.

A. Regarding the problem of not getting the reconnection message, simply double click on the modem icon in the control panel and choose to be prompted in case of disconnection. This is actually not a problem but a matter of modem setting. Regarding your other problem of the Internet going on even after turning off the modem, I don’t really understand the meaning of it. Practically it is not possible and could happen due to the enabled off line browsing feature. Regarding the problem related to the error message: Explorer has performed an illegal operation, please write us the exact message that you get in order to help us solve the problem.

Q. My PC is 128 RAM, Celeron 533 and Windows ’98 with Motorola 56 KBPS and now the problem is that currently I installed a new CD ROM (LG). When I restart the computer, it always gives an error: BOOT FORM CD-ROM ATPI:- "DISK BOOT FAILURE INSERT SYSTEM DISK" But when the computer is restarted, error does not appear. It always appears after shutting down the computer. Sir, please tell me an effective solution.

A. This problem is because you have selected CD-ROM as the first choice in the boot sequence. In order to solve this problem, hit Del when the systems is booting when you get the energy logo on your computer screen to enter the set up. In the BIOS features set up, go to the option boot sequence and change the option to C, CD_ROM, A. now hit the Esc key and then choose option save and exit Setup. Next time when you will start your PC your problem will disappear.

Q. I have used Partition magic 5.0 software. I have encountered a problem. My system configuration is Celeron 600 MHz, 64 MB RAM, Seagate Hard Disk (40 GB),Windows ’98 (Second Edition) Operating System. My problem is related to partition magic. I have 3 partitions on my hard disk: C, D and E having capacity 2 GB,16 GB and 20 GB respectively. I wanted to move the free space from drive E: to drive D: I did this with the help of partition magic 5.0. I did not take the backup of the data in drive E. But during execution, when it is 24 per cent complete, my system hangs. So I restart my computer with by pressing Ctrl + Alt + Del. After restarting, my system shows just two partitions i.e., C: and D: Has all my data in drive E: been deleted. How can I again get my drive E: with all data. Please help me rectify this problem and send the solution through e-mail. I shall be very thankful to you.

A. It is always recommended that you take your backup first before experimenting with your partitions, data, registry etc. This is a common but very serious problem with very limited solutions. All you can do is go through the details of this program for recovering your data from lost partition. There should be a utility in this software for recovering data from lost partitions. Otherwise you may need the help of professionals to retrieve your data.

Q. Whenever I try to make my computer standby, a message appears: "Your computer cannot hibernate or standby because the Soundmax Integrated Digital Audio cannot enter into low-power state." By mistake I associated the Log File to always open with Notepad. Now I am facing many problems. Whenever I double-click on the log file, it opens in Notepad. Please tell me that to which application I should associate in the LOG file?

A. There is nothing wrong in opening the log files with the Notepad. As long as you are able to access data of the log file, there’s no problem in opening it with Notepad. However, if you come across any problem, then please mention it to us clearly for the correct solution.