dacs.doc electric

Random Access

Instant Replay: May 1998

Bruce Preston, Moderator

Q. Using Windows 3.1 on a 386 machine, I get inconsistent startup results. Sometimes my computer stalls during the power-on self test (POST) memory check or the mouse check; other times it dies while Windows is starting.

A. Check to see that all of your adapter cards are firmly inserted into the motherboard. You might want to remove each one (one at a time) and reseat them. Also take your thumb and make sure all socketed chips on the motherboard are firmly seated. Sometimes they can work themselves loose after many thermal (warm up/cool down) cycles. Another possibility is that the battery that is used to keep data in the CMOS may be failing. The CMOS is the place where the system keeps track of such things as the size of the hard disk, the types of drives (floppy, hard) etc. Before you remove the battery, be sure to go into the CMOS setup (often by pressing DEL during the POST) and record the settings.

Q. A friend's machine insists on saving Microsoft Works files as icons on the desktop. How do we change this to a more normal location?

A. There's either a default file location, or Works is remembering where the last file save was. The Desktop is a pseudofolder that is one level higher than My Computer. You can get to it by moving up and to the left in the File/Open dialog window. Our guess is that MS Works is remembering the directory where it last saved or opened a file; in this case, it's the Desktop. Try forcing the save to a different directory, then reopen the file and exit Works. Restart Works and see where it defaults the File/Open dialog. If Works provides a default location, it is probably a menu item, perhaps under VIEW, OPTIONS, or TOOLS.

Q. I have an IBM machine which informed me that a portion of memory was bad. I used the diagnostic disk and had it delete the memory range. I have now had the memory SIMMS tested, and they are good. But the machine doesn't recognize the memory. How do I get it back?

A. No one in the audience was familiar with this capability. The best guesses were to see if the diagnostic disk has an option to retest the memory. Another suggestion was to record all of the CMOS settings (such as hard disk parameters, port assignments, etc.), and then to remove the battery for a few minutes in order to erase the CMOS settings. Now restart the machine, and run the diagnostics routine to permit the restoration of the CMOS settings.

Q. I have an attorney in Newtown who is running Windows 95 with Novell Perfect Office Suite Legal Assistant for Windows 3.1. It is crashing a lot. Is there a fix?

A. Legal WordPerfect 7 was just released last week.

Q. I replaced my computer but kept my old SVGA display. When I try to get more resolution through the control panel, the best I can do is 640x480. If I go to a higher resolution, the screen 'tears.' The display was built in 1991.

A. A monitor of that age probably does not support the higher synch frequencies that are needed to support resolutions higher than 640x480. Check that you have the most recent video driver for the video adapter card, but it is likely that your problem is the display rather than the adapter.

Q. I'm running Internet Explorer 4.0 and need advice, either pro or con, on a proxy server. One recommended to me was Lucent's Personal Web Assistant. Does anyone have experience with proxy servers, and with this one in particular?

A. Before you do anything else, upgrade to IE 4.01, which has some major bug fixes. Then download the two security bug fixes. Beyond that, there were no recommendations.

Q. I received an e-mail with an attachment of type .DOC. If I double-click on the attachment, WordPad starts, but I get garbage. What's wrong?

A. Further questioning revealed that you do not run Microsoft Word 97 on your machine.The document was probably created with MS Word 97 (confirmed by questioner) and is not format-compatible with prior versions of MS Word or Windows 95 WordPad. The cure is to download either the free viewer, called WordView, from Microsoft, or the patch to Word 6.0 (the version of Word that was released concurrently with Windows 95) that permits it to read Word 97 formatted files.

Go to the Microsoft home page, then to the Office product pages, then look for 'free downloads.' You will have to 'register' your mail address and you will have to accept 'cookies' in your browser.

Random Access

Instant Replay: May 1998

*Bruce Preston, Moderator*
Q. Using Windows 3.1 on a 386 machine, I get inconsistent startup results. Sometimes my computer stalls during the power-on self test (POST) memory check or the mouse check; other times it dies while Windows is starting. A. Check to see that all of your adapter cards are firmly inserted into the motherboard. You might want to remove each one (one at a time) and reseat them. Also take your thumb and make sure all socketed chips on the motherboard are firmly seated. Sometimes they can work themselves loose after many thermal (warm up/cool down) cycles. Another possibility is that the battery that is used to keep data in the CMOS may be failing. The CMOS is the place where the system keeps track of such things as the size of the hard disk, the types of drives (floppy, hard) etc. Before you remove the battery, be sure to go into the CMOS setup (often by pressing DEL during the POST) and record the settings. Q. A friend's machine insists on saving Microsoft Works files as icons on the desktop. How do we change this to a more normal location? A. There's either a default file location, or Works is remembering where the last file save was. The Desktop is a pseudofolder that is one level higher than My Computer. You can get to it by moving up and to the left in the File/Open dialog window. Our guess is that MS Works is remembering the directory where it last saved or opened a file; in this case, it's the Desktop. Try forcing the save to a different directory, then reopen the file and exit Works. Restart Works and see where it defaults the File/Open dialog. If Works provides a default location, it is probably a menu item, perhaps under VIEW, OPTIONS, or TOOLS. Q. I have an IBM machine which informed me that a portion of memory was bad. I used the diagnostic disk and had it delete the memory range. I have now had the memory SIMMS tested, and they are good. But the machine doesn't recognize the memory. How do I get it back? A. No one in the audience was familiar with this capability. The best guesses were to see if the diagnostic disk has an option to retest the memory. Another suggestion was to record all of the CMOS settings (such as hard disk parameters, port assignments, etc.), and then to remove the battery for a few minutes in order to erase the CMOS settings. Now restart the machine, and run the diagnostics routine to permit the restoration of the CMOS settings. Q. I have an attorney in Newtown who is running Windows 95 with Novell Perfect Office Suite Legal Assistant for Windows 3.1. It is crashing a lot. Is there a fix? A. Legal WordPerfect 7 was just released last week. Q. I replaced my computer but kept my old SVGA display. When I try to get more resolution through the control panel, the best I can do is 640x480. If I go to a higher resolution, the screen 'tears.' The display was built in 1991. A. A monitor of that age probably does not support the higher synch frequencies that are needed to support resolutions higher than 640x480. Check that you have the most recent video driver for the video adapter card, but it is likely that your problem is the display rather than the adapter. Q. I'm running Internet Explorer 4.0 and need advice, either pro or con, on a proxy server. One recommended to me was Lucent's Personal Web Assistant. Does anyone have experience with proxy servers, and with this one in particular? A. Before you do anything else, upgrade to IE 4.01, which has some major bug fixes. Then download the two security bug fixes. Beyond that, there were no recommendations. Q. I received an e-mail with an attachment of type .DOC. If I double-click on the attachment, WordPad starts, but I get garbage. What's wrong? A. Further questioning revealed that you do not run Microsoft Word 97 on your machine.The document was probably created with MS Word 97 (confirmed by questioner) and is not format-compatible with prior versions of MS Word or Windows 95 WordPad. The cure is to download either the free viewer, called WordView, from Microsoft, or the patch to Word 6.0 (the version of Word that was released concurrently with Windows 95) that permits it to read Word 97 formatted files. Go to the Microsoft home page, then to the Office product pages, then look for 'free downloads.' You will have to 'register' your mail address and you will have to accept 'cookies' in your browser.

Bruce Preston is president of West Mountain Systems, a Ridgefield, CT-based consultancy specalizing in database applications. A DACS director and moderator of the Random Access sessions opening the general meetings, Bruce also leads the Access SIG. Contact Bruce at bpreston@mags.net.