Re: Pls help/advise planning reformat/reinstall attack
- From: "Anna" <myname@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 12 Apr 2007 14:17:26 -0400
"Munching Downs" <not@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:ddjs13h5r23l1mkke9gbsmcmfnieatm96i@xxxxxxxxxx
I have a hand-me-up, "learning" laptop that started out with Windows
ME then got the XP Pro Upgrade (purchased in the box so licensing
isn't an issue). For several months the laptop served me well, and I
have learned enough to feel comfortable taking this *good* XP
machine
online.
Now, however, due to some malfunction which has shrunken the
useable desktop size by more than half I *think* I have to reformat
the
learning laptop to make it a *readable* machine. Everything's too
small to read from more than a few inches away. Previous Owner
says
this happened to her before but she can't remember how she fixed it,
and the registry has approx 2000 problems, anyway, according to
*three* different registry checker/cleaner programs. That's too many
for me to play with, which is my favorite reason for going with the
extreme action of starting clean.
Is it reasonable to assume that I should start the process with the
original WinME recovery then upgrade to XP? If so, do I let any
time
pass between the two (like letting a baked item set), or do I just
follow one with the other right away?
On the other hand, is it possible that simply reinstalling the XP Pro
Upgrade might fix the readability problem, maybe some of the
registry
issues, and I could tackle remaining problems a few at a time? I do
like the learning-by-doing stuff when I don't need a teacher over my
shoulder. <g>
Since getting my first desktop (Tandy) back in 1986 I've never had to
do a reformat/reinstall so this whole thing feels rather scary. The
good news is that Previous Owner can't find any of the original disks
and other goodies, and the Upgrade box is empty, so apparently I have
plenty of time to plan my attack.
Please tell me if you need any *specific* info as I couldn't think of
anything else. And thank you very much for reading this.
Munching Downs:
Obviously there are different options open to you as I think you recognize,
but based on your description of the current situation I would lean at this
point to making a fresh install of the XP OS (including SP2 of course).
I'm assuming in this that you're aware that should you take this action all
your programs and user-created data will disappear and it will be necessary
for you to reinstall these programs from the installation media you
hopefully have at hand. And, in addition, you would need to download/install
*all* the MS critical updates issued since SP2 - an onerous task if you're
using a dialup connection. Presumably you would have little or no difficulty
copying your user-created data over to removable media (CDs, DVDs, flash
drives) before undertaking this fresh install.
Otherwise, you could just do a reinstall of the XP OS and presumably salvage
your current programs & data (although you should make a prudent backup of
your user-created backup just in case...). This reinstallation of the OS is
generally considered a "Repair" install. If you're unaware as to how to
undertake this operation do a Google search of "XP repair install".
Of course, you may also be experiencing some hardware problem of one sort or
another re your "shrunken desktop". Whether that's a result of a defective
video card/screen or a video driver issue (as John John seems to think) is
open to question. So some serious defective hardware issue (if that is
indeed the case) may signal a more serious situation and may even result in
your decision to replace this "learning laptop".
Anna
P.S.
BTW, without getting into the details, I would generally agree with John
John's comments as they apply to so-called "registry cleaners" and other
registry "diagnostic tools". They can, under certain circumstances, with
competent users, be useful tools but in the main they seem to cause more
mischief than solutions.
.
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