Vista Woes

The frustration is over

2007-06-20T15:49:00.000-07:00

OK. The frustration is over and I don't anticipate any more posts. After sending my machine back to Dell and getting a new one (actually Dell sent my new one before I sent theirs back - they're great) I got a friend of a friend to spend a couple of hours installing programs and setting up for me. It was worth it. My machine is working pretty well. Every once in a while Vista just hangs up my mouse and I have to restart. I mean, Microsoft makes good icons (like in Word) but not really that much else. But it's passable and gets the job done at a good price. That's why they're so successful. That and collusion, unfair monolpolistic practises, or so says the US Justice Department and the opinions of the judges are being appealed. Microsoft has a website all about their appeals but I'm not going to supply a link. You can google that if you're really interested. Well, see you.

Oh - the reason I'm not getting rid of the blog is because spammers take over abandoned blogs. I don't want to be associated with the creepy activities some of them are into.

Where'd the run command go?

2007-04-30T21:26:00.000-07:00

It used to be when you clicked the start button you'd have run. I still haven't figured out where they've buried it.

And the find command? Gone. Now you do it through the explore panes. How very clever.

And the sound playback/recording button, once on the taskbar? You have to go through control panel. How convenient!

Update: Here's the answer:

What happened to the Run command?

The Search box that appears on the Start menu in this version of Windows provides much of the same functionality as the Run command. However, the Run command is still available if you prefer to use it. You can even add it to the Start menu for easier access.

To add the Run command to the Start menu

Click to open Taskbar and Start Menu Properties.

Click the Start Menu tab, and then click Customize.

In the list of Start menu options, select the Run command check box, and then click OK. The Run command will be displayed on the right side of the Start menu.

Tip

You can also access the Run command by pressing Windows logo key +R.

OK. That solves that problem and also the search, which can be put on the start menu too. In fact, you can choose to display your start menu in the classic mode.

I have to admit I like some things about the new menu. But I'm tired. I must be slipping.

Internet Explorer's absurd design

2007-04-30T21:06:00.000-07:00

The new IE is the default of course though I finally managed to wrest it away and make Firefox my browser of choice. I don't like how the bookmarks appear on the Mozilla but I like everything else. The back and forward arrows are nicely visible and where I'm used to seeing them. The refresh symbol is quite good, the stop, add tab, home, and open sidebar for bookmarks are reasonably well designed compared to IE.

On the top part of the toolbar there's just the url search pane and the google. Oh, and the back and forward buttons. I'd forgotten that because they're so dark. Anyway,this is an absurd waste of space. No one needs bars this large. The three toolbars could easily have been two. But when you open IE you also get the Ask toolbar. Lucky me! What do I need a third toolbar with nothing but a search option?

The Google toolbar's particularly stupid. A tiny little overcolored icon that could be a dog's bone is supposed to be a newspaper (rolled up to hit the dog?) and an absurd pair of swirls is the button to push to search your computer. That's design worthy of an idiot. I could understand it being refresh but search? Next icon: Add buttons to your toolbar. This is a tiny icon with far too much going one. Until you know it means add buttons you have no idea what it indicates. Then you can sort of imagine it. Wow!

The third part of the toolbar. Actually second but I like the Menu bar and there's no way the Menu bar couldn't have all the icons on the 3rd row. These icons are competent but that's all. A mania for novelty has led Microsoft to pump style over substance, hype over performance. IE toolbars used to be great. This is crap.

Onboard burning, Windows Media Player, Roxio: All Garbage!

2007-04-30T07:34:00.000-07:00

Microsoft Windows Vista Operating System (peace be upon them) has a nifty feature: In explore mode (searching for files and applications) you can select any number of music files and press burn.

I did so. Great! An MP3 disc I can play in my portable CD/MP3 player and my home DVD/MP3/WMA player! Dream on. The disc is only playable on computers.

But that's probably because they have a deal with Roxio. Roxio is installed with Vista to give all kinds of media copying options. Only one problem. CDRs that you can play on any car CD player or home CD/MP3 and other format players can only be made from .wav files. I tried loading MP3 and was told I have to remove over 6 hours of music. In other words, Roxio converts MP3 files to Wave files before burning. How useless is that?

I saw an upgrade button though and went to Roxio's website where I could not see a feature that would allow me to burn MP3s on CDRs - only on DVD writeable discs.

So I tried installing my old Nero 5 .5, which came with my old LG burner. I was told I need to get "burning rights" from the system administrator, whoever he may be. I thought I was the sole owner, user, operator. How do I get "rights?"

Well, I went to Nero's home page and saw that you can upgrade to Vista compatible software if you have the code. Of course, I got my copy bundled with the hardware so I looked carefully at the features of the new product, Nero 7 I think. Great: It burns MP3s and all kinds of compressed files to CDRs so they can be played on any home or car unit that plays those files.

Better yet, they have a trial version, good for a month. I downloaded it and made a CD out of 139 songs and tried to play them on Windows Media Player. I like to play them in a random order so I picked shuffle. About 10 seconds before the end of each and every song, the player stopped playing for one or two seconds and then resumed.

I tried playing it in my DVD player and it played without a flaw. So I ordered it. $138.30

Thank you Microsoft. I'll be sending you a bill.

McAfee Woes

2007-04-30T07:11:00.000-07:00

McAfee bugged me forever to register. If I don't register, they said, they won't be able to allow updates. Then they kept asking me to re-start the engine because the updates they just downloaded wouldn't be in effect until I did. Ooooo. I'm in grave danger.

I finally got round to registering and McAfee bugs me to re-boot at least once a day. What a pest!

Printer update

2007-04-30T07:02:00.000-07:00

Well, when I re-booted I found the Microsoft Document Writer finally gone thank God. But I still have problems printing on both sides of the paper. I can do it but only if I ignore the flashing sign saying that some interactive device wants to communicate with me and should I allow it.

If I wait until all the paper's been printed on one side and the machine is quiet before clicking that button, I'm prompted whether or not to allow the communication with the non-Microsoft scum and I say yes. The screen goes black for a second and then I get the dialogue box with the "Continue" instruction to print the other side of the page.

HP says that is has made a number of their machines "Vista compliant" and mine is coming soon. All bow to Microsoft.

After 4 days of this I feel like I've been in a boxing ring for a lot of rounds.

Can I use my own printer?

2007-04-26T16:34:00.000-07:00

Well, I tried to print something but found I couldn't. Why? Well, the default was set for a Microsoft printer that I don't have. How did it get into my printer folder? Haven't a clue. But I found that my HP printer drivers needed to be re-installed. The installation failed.

I went into control panel and made the HP my default printer instead of the nonexistent MS printer. Then, later, I just deleted it since it kept grabbing the default back to a printer I do not have. "Are you sure you want to delete this?" "Are you sure you're sure?" "Are you sure you're sure you're sure?"

Wanna bet next time I try to restart my computer it won't and Vista will have to go back to some fine time before, when it did start. "You may lose some programs but your documents will be safe."

And then what will I find? The Microsoft document writer re-installed as my default printer.

Vista Is A Gift! Lord, I am not worthy...

2007-04-26T15:19:00.000-07:00

The next person I got on the phone at Microsoft was a woman who told me that, because I didn't BUY Vista but it was installed as a gift, as it were, I would have to pay $59 to talk to someone about the program that is such complete garbage.

My old Microsoft Encarta Virtual Globe can't be properly installed, by the way. Now, rather than being able to see the very streets of cities, the new Encarta, which Harry at Dell tells me is "so advanced" gives me 4 views of the globe (handy feature) and about 3 more layers of close ups. There's no way to see small towns and villages. Garbage, pure and simple. Hmmm, wonder if there's an "upgrade?"

Are you a Jew?

2007-04-26T15:14:00.000-07:00

Dell, I must say, has been supportive but they aren't responsible for the operating system. So they gave me a 1-800 number to talk to Microsoft.

After I laboriously spelled out my last name to the person on the other line who swallowed his words whole so it was nearly impossible to make him out, he asked me:

"Are you a Jew?"

"Am I a Jew?" I asked. "Yes, are you a Jew?"

"What the hell difference does that make? I called to talk about Windows Vista. Let me talk to someone else."

Anyway, the call was short-lived.

Is it Microsoft's policy to ask people's religions before giving assistance with their products?

Windows Vista orders me to buy new software

2007-04-26T15:09:00.000-07:00

I installed an older vcrsion of Wordperfect and the next time I restarted my computer it wouldn't start. I was told there may be a solution, which turned out to be to go to the settings in the past when my computer did start. But I might lose some programs. Guess what? No Wordperfect for little old me. Why should I have Wordperfect? Does Microsoft make Wordperfect? Who owns my computer? Me? Dream on. It's owned by Microsoft.

I went to Wordperfect's website and found they do have "Vista Compliant" versions of Worperfect. Perfect! All I have to do is buy all new software! Not a problem.

More woes

2007-04-26T14:32:00.000-07:00

Here's a good one:

When I type a question mark I get a capital E with and acute accent. That's helpful. When I type a forward slash I get a lower case e-acute; when I type <> I get quotation marks, single and double. So, in the middle of working on html coding, well, you can imagine my frustration.

Update: I talked to a guy at Dell and they go beyond the call there. Their business is hardware but he helped me uninstall the international character, French keyboards, etc. Now I don't have the problem. But wouldn't a French speaker use question marks? Don't Francophones write code?

Windows Vista

2007-04-26T14:30:00.000-07:00

Just bought a computer loaded with Windows Vista. My Noteworthy Composer program just ain't the same. When I try to access the help file, I'm told that Windows won't allow that. Apparently no program not owned by Microsoft can have its help files stored on my --- oops --- I mean Microsoft's computer. I mean, I just bought it. They own it.

I like Mozilla Firefox but I can't view flash files. I can view flash files on Internet Explorer though.

Didn't Microsoft lose that case about monolpolistic practises? It's almost enought to turn a free-market Capitalist into a socialist, or at least a liberal. Certainly monopolies, cartels and price-fixing does not make the market free. Well, that's why there's a DOJ (Department of Justice) but hell, MS has tons of money to appeal, appeal, appeal...

Saw Vacancy the other day. This reminds me of that.

btw: my date thought Vacancy was really bad and it sure wasn't great. The opening scenes were subtle as a brick. I leaned over and said: "I hope they die." (Not a good sign.) But, amazingly, my feelings for the couple grew and that usually doesn't happen. After it was over, I told her it wasn't a bad metaphor for America since 9/11: the loss in Vietnam being their dead child, the psychotic killers being the terrorists, the videotaping a metaphor for the difficulty of fighting a war with the world watching, the man and woman being the two Americas that will have to pull together. What was her reaction? A derisive laugh. Humpf! It was better than no theory at all!