KK Presentation September 24, 2007

Tips re installing Vista:

1. Scenario: You want to install Vista on your PC alongside your XP installation, on the same drive. You have already installed XP. (If you installed Vista first, see our other tutorial on How to dual-boot Vista and XP - with Vista installed first.)

http://apcmag.com/5023/dual_booting_xp_with_vista

2. Use Microsoft Virtual PC 2007 to run multiple operating systems at the same time on the same physical computer. Switch between virtual machines with the click of a button. Use virtual machines to run legacy applications, provide support, train users, and enhance quality assurance.

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/products/winfamily/virtualpc/overview.mspx

3. On a true Dual-Boot, switching from one OS to the other requires a restart, then selecting your OS of choice during boot-up. When you have Virtual PC, it is installed in your main "Host" machine, then each additional OS is installed much like any PROGRAM...This makes the "Guest" OS available with a couple of clicks and can run at the same time with no reboots

Software Incompatibilities

Guide for presentation: Smart Computing Mar 2007 Pgs. 58 to 60

General

Software (third party e.g. MS Word or built in with OS e.g. WordPad) is great when working well

Source of great frustration when not functioning well

May fight over resources e.g. RAM

Conflicting instructions to hardware with resulting crash

May result in a slow PC

Diagnosis of software problem

Symptoms occur when certain software loads e.g. Free Cell, Media Center

Problem occurs with the installation of new software e.g. Norton AV

No hardware problem yet PC acts up

Use Device Manager to r/o

Situation occurs only when using a specific feature e.g. search function in Outlook

TSR (Terminate and Stay Resident) removal is successful

Software error message which names a specific program

Problem solved by deleting temp files, rebooting or removing the software in question

Problem solved with diagnosis (scan) and successful treatment (removal) of virus/malwear

Problems caused by new software or software features

If you note symptoms after the installation or when you use some special function of new software the following can be successful therapy:

Uninstall and install

WinXP: Start> Control Panel> Add Or Remove Programs

Vista: Start> Control Panel> Programs and Features

Rebooting is essential after above process

Tweaking the Registry (only if you know what you are doing)

If above do not work, contact software maker re potential fix

Get rid of extras if necessary

System temp files

WinXP: Start> Search> All Files and Folders> type *.tmp> My Computer> click More Advanced Options> select Search Hidden Files And Folders and the Search Subfolders box> click Search button

If above fails, search for less common types e.g. *~.*, *.~*, *.old in the All Or Part Of The File Name box. Do so with caution!

Vista:

Stop all TSR and background programs to r/o system conflict

Open Task Manager

Right click Taskbar> Processes tab> select name of suspected program> End Process (use only your User name and NOT SYSTEM or NETWORK SERVICE)

Process identical in Vista

Some practical tips

When in doubt reboot!

If system conflict disappears, it is most likely a software problem

Always do a good virus and spyware scan i.e. first line of defense

R/O hardware problem if not sure with use of Device Manager

Windows XP: Windows key + Pause/Break> Hardware tab> Device Manager and check for red X or yellow question mark next to a device

Vista: Windows key + Pause/Break> select Device Manager under Task (left column)

If all fails, get help

Registry Primer

Take a cautious tour!

Always backup prior to opening Registry!

Never change anything unless absolutely certain (no warnings are available)!

Contains a wealth of crucial information that determines how your OS looks and behaves

Easily accessible and surprisingly simple to comprehend

Central depository re installing programs, making changes, etc

One common location using a unified format that s easy to navigate

An alternative to INI, or initialization, files that held similar settings in early Windows versions; often a configuration nightmare

The Basics

Exists as a series of files, including Sam, Security, Software, System, Default, and Userdiff, in the C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\Config folder on the drive or partition where Windows is installed

Above files are consulted re how to configure hardware, programs and the OS then continue to access these files as you use your PC

Registry utility is a viewer and editor (ALWAYS BACK UP with Export function off HD)

For browsing the various settings and even edit as needed

WinXP: Start> Run> type regedit> OK

Vista: Start> Run> type regedit> OK

Demonstration

Similar to Windows Explorer i.e. Hives, Keys, and Subkeys as path that you will need to navigate in order to reach the final stored information which is the Value.

Left pane

Plus (+) sign beside My Computer to expand multiple entries

Hives (subtrees, nodes) begin with HKEY (Handle to Key)

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT contains application data, including file associations that help Windows to determine which application should open certain file types. This hive also stores information related to the Windows user interface

HKEY_CURRENT_USER and HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE can contain similar configuration data related to your PC s hardware, software, and OS, but they can differ depending on Windows interaction with the hives at any given time. For example, applications generally first seek configuration data in the HKEY_CURRENT_USER hive, but if the data doesn t exist there, the application will look for it in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE hive

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE: When writing information to the Registry, applications first attempt to access this hive; if unable to access it due to user restrictions (for example, if the user doesn t have administrator privileges), they ll write the settings to the HKEY_CURRENT_USER

Generally HKEY_CURRENT_USER contains configuration settings exclusive to the user currently logged into the computer, while the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE hive contains information that s relevant to all users of the system

HKEY_USERS: contains information about each person who has an account on the Windows system.

HKEY_CURRENT_CONFIG: uses information specific to the current user to deliver the proper hardware configuration and settings

Demonstrate Keys and subkeys of HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE : contain values, which serve as the actual dwelling of configuration settings; Each key and subkey has a default value, and some might have additional values. When you click to select a key or subkey, you ll see the values in the right pane. WinXP uses multiple types of values, including String (or REG_SZ), Binary (or REG_BINARY), DWORD (or REG_DWORD), Multi-string (or REG_MULTI_SZ), and Expandable string (or REG_EXPAND_SZ).

Demonstrate 3 columns in right pane i.e. Name, Type and Data; at times cryptic names and numeric value patterns; data field is modifiable (double-click on the value name); string values use alphanumeric entries with Boolean values e.g. True or False; multi-string and expandable-string values feature additional configuration capabilities

Binary values store raw binary data in hexadecimal pairs that use characters between the numbers 0 and 9 and the first six letters of the alphabet. DWORD values include data represented by four-byte numbers that use the following basic format: 0x00000000. These values are modifiable using Boolean values that can be as simple as 1 to indicate that a function should be turned on or 0 to indicate that a function should be turned off.

Examples of Use

1. You want to change name of owner:

Click the root key HKEY-LOCAL-MACHINE, click the + next to Software, click the + next to Microsoft, click the + next to Windows, click on the Current Version folder, Right click Registered Owner, select modify, type in correct information i.e. your name. The new information will appear in System Properties box.

2. You want to uninstall a stubborn program e.g. McAfee

Open Registry> Edit menu> Find and type in name e.g. McAfee> delete> F3

3. You may need to follow instructions to get rid of a virus or spyware