Computers

Knight Joined: 19 May 2011 Posts: 365 Location: England

Have a look at touch screen monitors or tablets etc, might be able to help. And I'm liking the sound of that guitar even more Smile

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Hear me now
Words I vow
No f****** regrets
F*** these chains
No damn slave
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EUC Staff Joined: 09 Nov 2011 Posts: 1204 Location: Nirn

Guys, my iTunes is version 9.2, and my new iPod says it needs at least 10.0.0. When I check for updates, it says 9.2 is the "current version".

If I install iTunes 10.5.2 will it wipe all of the music I have on my old one?

Edit: Never mind, it won't.

But our Mac OSX is on 10.4.3 and the iTunes needs 10.5. But when checking for software updates (for the computer, not iTunes) it says there aren't any. Am I gonna have to get a new computer? The one I'm using is old and broken and I only got it out because all of the music is already on there.

Help?
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There's always a bigger fish - Qui Gon Jinn.

You shall learn that history is an intricate weaving of many events. No one thing can be understood without the proper context.

The best techniques are passed on by the survivors.

I use a laptop for my PC gaming needs these days. Thus far it works flawlessly however now that I've gotten into more graphic intense games (TOR and Skyrim) I notice that my fans are sending out a lot of heat.

Now one thing I've done is set the graphic settings to medium or low, eliminating things like super HD shadows I really could care less about (I assume that the lower the graphic settings the less hard my computer has to work and also because I wanted to improve my FPS). I also keep my laptop on after exiting the game and wait until the air being sent out doesn't feel hot.

Anyway I'm somewhat concerned about this heat over the long term as my last laptop died after its internal heat regulator got screwed up and let it run too hot. I really want to do my best to keep my current laptop from meeting an early end. So I was wondering if you guys have suggestions of how I can help my laptop manage the heat better (I've heard of laptop cooling pads/fans but I've never know anyone who used one so I don't know if those are worth buying or what other options there might be).
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I'm afraid I don't know much by way of technology that would help. But I learned from a tech-minded acquaintance, when my last collapsed from heat exhaustion, that taking a hoover regularly to the vents helps somewhat. It makes sure any overheating problems aren't caused or exacerbated by dust and things like that accumulating in the machine. I'm presuming you keep your laptop on hard, dry surfaces like tables when you use it, and not fluffy things like cushions?

That's all I really have, sorry it's not a lot.
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I am a Star Wars fan. That doesn't mean that I hate or love Jar Jar. That doesn't mean I hate or love Lucas, or agree or disagree 100% with him. That doesn't mean I prefer the PT over the OT, or vice versa. That doesn't mean I hate the EU, or even love all of it. These are not prerequisites. Being a man is not a prerequisite. Being a geek is not a prerequisite. The only prerequisite is that I love something about Star Wars. I am a Star Wars fan.

The type of laptop I have is a Sony Vaio E Series (2010 model so just a little over a year old). I've only had 1 or 2 random crashes where it shut off due to some significant system error (random because I was only using word or surfing the web at the time). Since they have no pattern I assume it was just a random event and nothing serious since they have barely ever occurred.

I haven't noticed it running hot when doing things like surfing the web. Its just video games where it starts pumping out much hotter air and you can hear the fan(s) are really working (which I would assume is to be expected however I don't want to kill my laptop through negligence). I guess basically what I want to do the equivalent of "preventative medicine" for my laptop.

I will check the vents for dust (the most likely culprit would be cat hair, which if you have cats I'm sure you know gets everywhere). Would I be correct to assume Mara that a cooling pad wouldn't really be worth the money if the computer isn't normally overheating or running hot doing low intensity things and only heats up if I'm playing a video game?

A final thing: looking at my computer it appears that the intake vents are on the bottom of my laptop (perhaps a standard thing so forgive me if this is a Captain Obvious moment). Even though my laptop doesn't appear to have overheating issues would it still help the laptop stay cooler if I raised it up (1/4 to 1/2 inch max) using a stack of index cards placed under the rubber "feet" at its corners?
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Knight Joined: 10 Apr 2011 Posts: 434

Two computer questions that have been bugging me for months, but I didn't think to ask here before. Embarassed

1. - Back in late 2010, I had to install a program called Wimba Pronto on my computer so that I could communicate with a professor through chat. Needless to say, I don't need it anymore. I have tried repeatedly to uninstall it from my computer, but every time I click on it and hit "Uninstall," a message pops up that says, 'You must quit Pronto before installing a new version.'

WTH? I don't want to install a new version at all; I simply want to remove it from my computer!

*sigh* Can someone tell me how to uninstall Pronto?

2. - I got "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe" PC game for my computer that same Christmas (2010). I installed the game and it wouldn't play, despite multiple attempts, so I eventually threw the discs in the trash. However, I forgot to unistall the game before I junked the discs because the folder, labeled "Buena Vista Games," which leads to the subfolder "The Chronicles of Narnia," and then to "Uninstall Narnia," is still listed in my Programs tab.

Is there any way that I can get rid of those folders even though I don't have the game discs anymore?

Hey Alan,

As to Pronto, apparently the computer thinks Pronto is still running even though you may not realize it. You can never uninstall a program that is currently running. What you can do is the following:

1. Press Ctrl+Alt+Del
2. Click on Task Manager
3. Click the Processes tab
4. Sort through the list and see if anything resembles Pronto; depending on the program, it could be called just about anything, but usually they are labeled at least similarly to their real name
5. If you find it in the list, click on it and then click End Process
6. Click Yes in the pop-up window

If you did find it running and were able to stop it, you should now be able to uninstall it.

For Narnia, you should never need the CDs to uninstall something. Only to install. Go ahead and try uninstalling from that folder, everything should go as planned. If not, try uninstalling from your program list. If you're running XP, go to Start --> Control Panel --> Add/Remove Programs. If running Vista or 7, go to Start --> Type "Programs and Features", click on it and wait for the list of programs to populate. Find your problem program there and uninstall like that. That's also an option for removing Pronto.

If you need more details, feel free to ask. I just don't like assuming someone doesn't know how to do something, so sometimes I err on the side of too few instructions. Wink

Let me know how those options work for you! Smile

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"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker

Knight Joined: 10 Apr 2011 Posts: 434

I've tried exactly that for both programs multiple times, and it has never worked. I don't know what the problem is. The Narnia game folders are not listed in "Programs" through the Control Panel; I uninstalled them there. But when I click on the "Start" button and go to "Programs" , for some reason the folders are still listed.

One thing I forgot. When I tried to remove the folders from "Programs" through the "Start" menu, it appeared to work - then a window popped up saying that I needed permission to perform the action; that is really strange because it's my personal computer and my user account is the only one that exists on the machine. So how could I need permission to do something?

Ah, that happens sometimes. Folders in the All Programs listing often get left behind. You should be able to safely delete them with no side effects. Just right-click on the top folder "Buena Vista Games" and delete it.

As for Pronto, something that should work would be to uninstall it from Safe Mode. There are two ways to do what I'm trying to accomplish, and I will list both. You can choose whichever works best for you.

Start in Safe Mode:
1. *Restart and repeatedly hit F8 when the machine boots up
2. Choose Safe Mode
3. Try uninstalling via that method

*You may have to hit a different F key. Perhaps F10 or F2. It's usually F8, but it depends.

Turn off the Program in Startup
1. Go to Start, type msconfig, click on it (or type that in Run, if you have XP)
2. Click on the Startup tab and look for Pronto or Wimba, uncheck it
3. Go to the Services tab and check "Hide Microsoft Services"
4. Look for Pronto or Wimba, uncheck it
5. Click OK and restart the computer
6. Now try uninstalling

Again, those are vague instructions, but I'm running out the door. If you need more details, let me know. Hopefully one of those works for you! Smile

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"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker

Knight Joined: 10 Apr 2011 Posts: 434

Thank you, Mara!

I finally managed to get Pronto uninstalled and got the folders out of "All Programs!"

Again, thank you! You've helped me with two headaches that have been bugging me for a year!

You are very welcome! And I am quite happy that it worked! Always happy about a success. Smile

If I may ask, which method did you use to uninstall Pronto?
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"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker

Knight Joined: 10 Apr 2011 Posts: 434

I did it through Program Startup.

Turns out that the problem with the "Narnia" folders wasn't that big of an issue. I was trying to delete the "Buena Vista" folder when what I should have done was delete the "Narnia" subfolder first, and then delete the other folder.

Ah, yes. I have seen that issue before. Not sure why it gets angry about that. Most puzzling. Confused

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"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker

So its me of the perpetual computer problems (I seriously am jinxed when it comes to computers because whenever I use the printers in the campus science library I break them in some way).

anyway I have this error that keeps popping up that says there are file inconsistencies/file corruption on my hard drive. When the computer tries to run a scan at start up it reports that it can't do the scan until I activate a system restore point prior to the last software installation. When I try to do that it says system restore can't function until the disk is scanned and fixed at start up.

I tried using command prompt in admin mode and doing "chkdsk" per the recommendation of the IT guy on campus. That informs me that the disk is running properly yet the error still occurs.

My laptop is running fine otherwise but not being able to use system restore seems like too big a problem to ignore. Any ideas on anything else I can do before handing my laptop over to the IT guys on campus?
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