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| A low-tech but ingeniously distributed E-letter by Mr. E Vol. I, No. 3 - May 13, 2001 To read previous issues of The E-List, click here. Send comments about The E-List to: elist@aumha.org Please see Legal Notice. |
This newsletter tracks new information, and improvements in existing information, on www.aumha.org, my website supporting Windows desktop systems and leading application software. I also include small, useful items that might not find a permanent place on the site, but that I would like to pass along.
Click here to subscribe. If you subscribe, you will receive email notification when there is a new edition of the newsletter. (You will not receive the newsletter itself by email. That's why I call it low-tech.) My intention is to provide a new and further way to serve the more than 50,000 people per month (and growing) who visit my site. Previous newsletters are available online, and their content searchable through this site's search engine. Enjoy! -- Jim Eshelman
CONTENTS of this Issue
---------------------- ( one miniscule advertisement ) ----------------------
I AM MY ONLY AD!
My employer closed its doors for good in February.
If you find anything of value in this newsletter or on this site,
please view my resume and pass it along to someone. Thank you!
---------------------- ( See, that wasn't very long. ) ----------------------
NEWS & VIEWS
It has been a light week around here. There have not been as many page content changes as usual. Most of the work on the site was in refining its organization and the delivery system. As a result, this week's newsletter is not as long as usual, but does reflect some trends on future evolution of the site.
MICROSOFT KNOWLEDGE BASE UPDATES
Microsoft periodically reviews (and, if necessary, updates) each of the thousands of articles on its valuable Knowledge Base. Understandably, these revisions seem to occur in cycles. This week, two things are pretty obvious when one tours the new and updated articles:
First, the heavy majority of this week's new or (as was true in most cases) revised articles on various versions of Windows deal with specific hardware. This is particularly true with Windows 95 articles. If you have an unresolved Windows vs. Hardware issue, and you have previously scoured the KB for possible answers, this might be a good time to try again. There may be new information dealing with your particular hardware problem.
The second trend of the week is, simply, that Microsoft has been really busy reviewing (and apparently updating) articles on Windows 98 and Windows Millennium in almost every category. On a typical week, there are, at most, a few dozen new and revised articles on either of these operating systems. This week, there are hundreds each on Win98, Win98 SE, and Win ME, as well as hundreds more on Internet Explorer! It's possible this is just where the review cycle fell this week. I have a sneaking suspicion, though, that it's something else. With Windows XP now officially scheduled for release, I suspect we're starting to see a big push to bring all the Windows 9x KB articles up to speed so that, in the near future, the KB staff can start putting most of its attention on emerging XP issues during the Public Preview phase of the Beta testing which begins in June, and, especially, in preparation for the big product launch of XP in the fall. Stay tuned!
SO, WHAT ABOUT WINDOWS XP?
Many readers have written asking if this site is going to start giving heavier coverage to NT-based Microsoft operating systems such as Windows 2000 and Windows XP. The answer is that, yes, I will definitely start providing more coverage of these operating systems -- but not until Windows XP is released, or Microsoft starts issuing KB articles on it (whichever occurs first). Right now, the final form and behavior of the OS isn't known yet, since it's still in Beta testing. But with its release, it will join the ranks of "Microsoft desktop operating systems," which is what my web site supports.
For those who have not heard, October 25, 2001 has been announced as the release date for Windows XP. The Public Preview of the Beta begins in June. You can watch the launch date countdown, and read the marketing department's descriptions of the features of the new operating system on the Windows XP Home Page.
So, how does the new operating system look? Well, an NT-based consumer version of Windows has been long anticipated by many people (both consumers and industry gurus). I am not part of the formal Beta test group on XP (as I was on two prior operating systems), but I do have an NDA with my signature sitting on it in a Microsoft file cabinet somewhere, so I can't give too many details about the Windows XP installation that I run about half of each day on my own computer. I will say only this: At its Beta 2 stage of development, Windows XP is a sounder, more robust, better-behaved, more promising operating system than any Windows 9x Beta 2 I ever saw. That means I am very optimistic.
But remember! It's still a Beta. Beta code is an unfinished product. There are still some holes in it that will surely be fixed between now and release time. History shows us that we can expect there to be other holes that will not get fixed before release, and maybe a new bug or two introduced before it hits the shelves. That's the reality of major software development. And since marketing has already announced the release date, and is surely already planning its launch parties and scheduling its media events, we know that there is only so long the development team can keep working on Windows XP before they release it to the market. There's no such thing as "Keep working on it until it's right." Instead, it's "Keep working on it until marketing comes to pick it up." All of this means: Nobody knows yet what we will see come October 25. But, as I said, based on where they have come so far, I am pretty optimistic.
I suspect that beginning active XP support will require a substantial redesign of my web site, www.aumha.org. Most of the issues with which people have struggled in Windows 9x simply do not exist in NT-based operating systems such as XP. Or, if the same issues exist, the solutions often are different. One thing I assure you is that I will not be dropping support for pre-XP versions of Windows. The current content will remain. I will simply be adding more. It's too soon to know the amount and form of redesign that will be needed for this information to coexist and still be easily accessible; but, neither am I too worried about it. Necessity will dictate the design path to follow. As always, suggestions are welcome on how to make this site more usable and its information most accessible.
A LITTLE BIT OF SITE MAINTENANCE
This week, I made a small change in the CSS structure of the site, to consolidate and simplify its coding. This small change required altering close to a hundred pages and getting them all reloaded. I may have missed a page here and there, and it will be quite obvious if I did -- because the page will look like there is no formatting to it at all! I think I've caught them all by now, but I may have missed an obscure one here or there. If a page on my site looks weird all of a sudden, press F5 on your keyboard to reload it from the server. If this doesn't solve the problem, please notify me so that I can fix it. (And I may be doing another round of this consolidation over the next week. I apologize in advance for any strangeness resulting from this, and always welcome visitor feedback on anything that needs fixing. Thanks in advance!)
WINDOWS SUPPORT SITES
NEWSLETTERS
Mike's List by Mike Elgan.
Mike Elgan is another Windows Magazine alum. He is, in fact, its former editor. I used to love Mike's editorials and uncannily sane industry views every issue, back when the paper version of the magazine still existed and showed up in my mailbox every month. Often his industry overview and predictions (which nearly always turned out to be insightfully accurate almost to the point of prescience) were the highlight of an entire issue. Then Mike retired into consultancy and became a crazed techno-maniac and gadget guru, writing one of the wackiest and least pretentious e-letters going. This one is not for the excessively surd! Mike writes and speaks about technology and culture, smart phones and smart people, random gadgets, bad ideas, painful implants, and almost anything else. It's a fun "weekly reader." I recommend it.
HTML HELP
Personally, I learn best when I can turn around and teach what I have learned. Therefore, when a couple of readers wrote asking for help on simple HTML questions, I decided to start putting up some HTML special-purpose guides.
I already have several HTML Tutorials & Resources listed on the site, including the excellent PageTutor.com and W3Schools.com sites, and various validators and reference pages. I owe, and happily acknowledge, a debt to every page I list in that section. (If nothing else, their influence on me can be seen in the fact that I write and maintain this entire site with a text editor -- Notepad+ or EditPad -- rather than an HTML composer.) Now, I've decided to take this a bit further and start writing concise guides on particular facets of HTML coding and, a little down the road, on more advanced web technologies.
I have completed the first versions of two of these, Coding Frames in HTML and Coding Tables in HTML They were added to the site this week. If you know basic HTML, these pages will probably tell you what you need to know to code frames and tables.
WINDOWS 95/98/ME SUPPORT ARTICLES
COMPUTER HEALTH: Getting Greater Stability in Windows 95/98/ME
I've made substantial additions and revisions to this article, especially as to general optimization principles that underlay most of the other recommendations already included. This article isn't very heavily trafficked, but it's one of my personal favorites. I think it includes a lot of common sense information on making a turgid and cantankerous Win9x system run faster and better.
MS KNOWLEDGE BASE ARTICLES (General)
As mentioned above, I've been tightening the site structure a bit, based on visitor usage patterns and page content. The individual KB article sub-pages have been consolidated and rearranged in places, so direct links to a couple of the old pages won't work anymore. In that case, you might want to visit the general Microsoft Knowledge Base Links page to see what the changes were.
I don't move things around on the site very often, and when I do, please remember that the Site Search Engine will still retrieve the information item for you.
KB ARTICLES: Error Messages
While Initializing Device VKD -- Windows Protection Error -- You Need to Restart Your Computer Win95, Win98
This error condition occurs during startup. It indicates that the keyboard is not working correctly. VKD is the Virtual Keyboard Device Driver.
KB ARTICLES: Hardware & Drivers
I have reorganized the Hardware & Drivers KB articles page, dividing off several of the articles on common topics into their own headings. In particular, there are several articles on drive letter issues, including the first one below, that was just added to the site.
DRIVE LETTERS: How to Prevent Drive Letters from Changing After You Add a Hard Disk or CD-ROM Win95, Win98, Win98 SE, Win ME
Hard Disk Errors Caused by Damaged Data or Physical Damage Win 95, Win98, Win98 SE, Win ME
This is a helpful summary of error messages that indicate either damaged data or physical damage on the hard disk.How to Tell If Drive Overlay Program is Installed in Windows Win 95, Win98, Win98 SE, Win ME
KB ARTICLES: Windows ME & 2000
Until now, nearly every Windows ME KB article reference on the site has been on the Windows ME & Windows 2000 page. This week, I migrated many of them off to other pages on the same topics, blending these with Win95 and Win98 articles. The Win ME page was originally created a few months ago to put special focus on the operating system that, at the time, was "the new kid;" but the new kid is about to get a baby brother named XP. So I'm starting to mainstream more of the previously set-apart ME articles. I recommend my Site Search Engine to locate any relocated articles you cannot find.
Some new articles were added:
How to Install Windows 2000 or Upgrade from Windows 95 or 98
System Restore Checkpoints created after 8 September 2001 do not restore your computer
There's a supported fix from MS. If anyone knows who is already having a problem with this one, please suggest they check their system date setting! (Or get us some stock tips from them!) Nonetheless, the problem is real, and so is the fix.
Happy computing, everyone!
Jim Eshelman
(Comments about The E-List can be sent to: elist@aumha.org)THE NECESSARY LEGAL STUFF
DISCLAIMER: Any information given in this newsletter, or on any other part of the www.aumha.org website, is researched by me and believed to be accurate. However, I cannot guarantee, and do not guarantee, that all the information provided will work on all computer systems, for all users, all the time. Also, I sometimes make mistakes (that's life!), and it is possible I made one or more of them here. All information herein is offered as-is and without warranty of any kind. In other words, I rely on the best information sources I can, and do my best to get it to you accurately; and, thereafter, you take your life in your own hands if you trust me on it. Neither James Eshelman, this site, outside contributors to this site, people quoted on this site, nor my cat is/are responsible for any loss, injury, or damage, direct or consequential, resulting from application of any information presented here.
The E-List. Copyright © 2001 by James A. Eshelman. All Rights Reserved.Return to the TOP of the Page.