[Grimm]

my comp just crashed twice in 2 minutes. im trying to use that guide chan and mel, but its not helpin

so here it is: does anyone know how to wipe a hard disk?
and out of that comes many questions:
how do i reinstall photoshop?
how do i keep my stuff on a dvd?
how do i keep my music and my itunes settings?
how do i keep ANY of my program settings?
most importantly, how do i hold JA settings? (i will add all files to my dvd for sure)
will one dvd hold my entire account? (4 for each accounts, mom, sis, me, and administrator)
how do i start up my comp so i can install windows?
how do i hold the password to the administrator account?
will my dvd be completely useable wen i reinstall windows? (kinda newb question )

other related questions:
wut should i erase to free up disk space? (chaches, memory, etc.)
if i were to pull RAM out of a dead computer at skool, would it be empty? (it should cuz it gets erased each time the comp shutdowns right? its retracted into ROM right?)


anything else i should know PLZ throw it inotu r post.

chan and mel, im just not smart enuff to figure out ur help this is our last resort

thx

[Phoenix]

does anyone know how to wipe a hard disk?

If you are reinstalling your operating system the manufactuers of your comp will most likely have provided restore CD's that will guide you through the process. If not then use the format command in the command prompt. I would recommend that you look it up before doing it though. Google 'formating a hard drive' and you should be on the right tracks.

how do i reinstall photoshop?

Uninstall it from add/remove programs and reinstall it using the setup program. Pretty basic stuff...

how do i keep my stuff on a dvd?

Make sure you have a DVD R/RW drive and then get yourself a copy of a standard DVD creation software. The programs guide you though the process.

how do i keep my music and my itunes settings?

Not entirely what you mean by that, care to elaborate.

how do i keep ANY of my program settings?

Not sure what you mean by this either.

most importantly, how do i hold JA settings? (i will add all files to my dvd for sure)

Backup your base folder (minus asset.pk3 files) and also backup any mod folders such as JA+ onto a DVD.

will one dvd hold my entire account? (4 for each accounts, mom, sis, me, and administrator)

An average DVD is 4.7GB so as long as your 'Documents and Settings' folder is smaller then 4.7GB then yes. If not then you will need to use more then one DVD.

how do i start up my comp so i can install windows?

If you made your PC, then insert the operating system disk as you start up the computer and it should boot from CD by default. If you bought your computer from a manufactuer such as dell - most companies provide restore CD's with all new computers.

how do i hold the password to the administrator account?

Not sure what you mean by that. You can set an administrator password through the control panel. So as long as you know it, you can set it again after the windows re-install.

will my dvd be completely useable wen i reinstall windows? (kinda newb question Very Happy)

As long as you have DVD ROM drive with the appropiate drivers you should be fine.

wut should i erase to free up disk space? (chaches, memory, etc.)

You could do it manually but I suggest getting a program such as Ashampoo Win Optimiser which can be found here:

http://www.ashampoo-root03.com/webcache ... _1106_.htm

Download the trial and you get around 40 days. Its enough to clean out a fair bit of crap. Talk to me on msn for more info about it.

if i were to pull RAM out of a dead computer at skool, would it be empty? (it should cuz it gets erased each time the comp shutdowns right? its retracted into ROM right?)

Yes your right about it being erased but when it comes to removing ram from other computers its a risky business. The ram must me compatible with your motherboard. So its probably not possible to take Ram from the school computers.

-----

I think I answered most of those. Chan and Mel can back me up

Pho~

[Tricky]

RAM doesn't physically store data like a hard drive, it's all temporary storage, so yes -- it'd be empty.

If you're using XP, you'll probably need to change the boot order in BIOS to boot your CD drive first, and then insert a valid XP Home/Pro installation disk. Once it's started, you will have to delete the partition on your drive and format it (NTFS) to completely wipe it. Keep in mind, if you don't have installation disks for any software currently on, you'll lose it. As Phoenix said, if it's a factory computer they usually provide images of the original installation, which includes any basic drivers for operation and probably Office plus some virus protection.

As far as keeping settings, you have to find the config files for each of the programs and back them up some how (DVD/Flash Drive/Alternate Computer/etc...), same goes for any mp3s or other music files you want to preserve.

There is a way to keep the administrator's password. If you already know it, it will prompt you when reinstalling your OS to insert the password for your new account (it will erase all accounts you have when you delete the partition). I believe there is a registry file, or maybe I'm back a few Window's editions, that stores information on passwords that you can probably make a copy of and then replace once you reformat.

I don't usually mess with the registry unless I'm positive with what I'm doing, so I don't recommend even touching it unless you're experienced. This is probably more Chan and Mel's field of study, you should refer to them. But unless you have the manufacturer's image, I don't think you want to persue this, especially if your parents are some what anal about your computer usage.

[Melissa]

lol no way im still only a student and learner in the IT field Chantelles the one whose qualified systems and network administrator and does taht as her job alot of what i say which does sound clever is usually stuff she said before.

personally if you are struggling that much i would consider the fresh start.. the way chantelle explained to fix was set in a set few steps in teh corret order and i think you needed to simply remove some space.

So the above solutions explain how to erase and start again


By the way your RAM question.... theres no guarantee it will fit in your computer your dead computer could have ancient slow ram in which by puttin in your machine could slow it to a crawl stage.


Can i suggest when you setup your window installation you set a partition so basically if your hard drive is 100GB when it asks you for partition only set up say 20GB as your windows and system drive..

then once windows is installed you can setup the rest of teh drive as you want. This means if you wipe it again you can only wipe teh system partition therefore all yor programs installed on the other section are entact.



Do you have an MP3 player or iPod with a lareg capacity cos you can stick alot of your data on that before you erase.

[Chantelle]

well your doing alright without me

As everyone says above

Only thing I will point out as I said before

If you want to increase your RAM you need more hard drie space as when and if the RAM needs to transfer data to the hard drrive when its under load (known as page file) it needs at least the same amount of RAM size

MS reccomend 1.5 - 3 (this is set y default)

Just saying that since whilst potentially helping one area you are having a problem with you also still put pressure on another..

you need disk space

what is your hard drive capacity anyway? maybe another disk as mentioned before is a good idea?

At least a clean start may rid you of unessecary programs on your machine which you will not ever use again and just occupied space.

[Grimm]

the RAm prolly isnt a good idea cuz the comps at skool run windows 200 and are prolly from 1995 so im not sure how that works. infact, i think each one only has 64mb of space.

so this software pho will clean up a good chunk? disk space is wut i need but ive given up trying to screw around with it

for formatting the disk again, will it ask me how much space to use for OS?
i kinda illustrate it in my head as this:

|||||||| = 20 gigs

||||||||
||||||||
||||||||
|||||||| <--disk partitions

/ = used by OS and programs
\ = used for programs

////////
////////
////////
//////// <--current setup

\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\\\
\\\\\\\\
//////// <--mels idea with 20 gig for OS

so wen i setup the new OS from the cd, it will ask me how much space it wants me to use for the OS?

pho, photoshop needs the serial, activation, and auth codes provided by Paradox: Keygen. if i uninstall and reinstall it asks me to use the same auths and i say yes. if i wipe the disk and install i dont think it will let me use the same codes AND i think the entire software wont work with new ones.

trick, the passwords are no problem but i NEEd to have control over the admin account, its my only connection to get thru my mcafee blocks. im worried that wen me and my mom set it up, shell regain the account control and set me to limited privleges so i cant change it with command. i did hear of a trick where u set the default screen saver to a command prompt then log out so windows doesnt know ur priveleges. or i can boot into a cmd using the boot opetins. w/e, ill figure it out

mel, i just got thru chapter 4 of Cisco's IT Hardware and Software course (im not sure if ur on the same class) but that chapter is all about cmds. chapter 7 i think it is, talks about manipulating disks and windows XP, so i might wait a few weeks to complete that chapter b4 attempting anything (wow, i feel like a geek, waiting to complete skool to do anyting )

if all goes well it sounds like itll work. as for specifications, i have a 40 gig HDD (so small lol) 78 million sectors (holy crap) 512 bytes a sector (i think thats standard for all disks tho)

[Melissa]

I dunno my course it at college its a diploma in IT systems or some crap.. and Im doing a night course in networking.. after that ill do some stuff towards Microsoft Certified professional.

Chan will hopefully help me, shes far and far beyond even that level, she works as a IT network admin aswell so shes really hands on asewll.. so she has been a good mentor aswell (since she self taught) but I need to self teach now.

when u said windows 200? do u mean windwos 2000? cos windows 2000 was made in 2000-2001 and XP is pretty much just a newer version of it.. they are practically the same if what chantelle tells me is true. If I know ight the processor and board chip determein what the meomry is require on the computer.


anyway 40 GIGS isnt alot :s you will end up splitting down the middle with that I think you may want to invest in another disk as 40 wont last long otherwise sacrafise game/ program installs or at least dont stick loads of MP3s on..

But to answer your question during the early part of setup it asks you when you delete partition you will be asked to set on up and you can specify the size

[Grimm]

ok, ya, i think its time to buy a new HDD

wen i sed 200 i meant 2000, typo . in other words, theyre comps that are supposed to run win95, and are running 2000 and have a total of 64 megs of memory. have u ever seen a mouse thats a perfect 3 inch by 3 inch square with 3 buttons? thats wut these things use. the keyboards dont even have a WinKey......

well maybe they dont run win2000, we just rip them open and fool with the motherboard, they dont work at all anymore anyway. we use different ones for work....

wen u say they are the same, i definately dont agree.....she might be right, but i can barely run 98, and to me 98 and 2000 look almost the same. im too used to the new GUI of XP.

as a complete alternative, i may install the newwest version of Linux and run off that, im not sure if this will help any problem, but maybe if i run a different OS, itll remove some stress off the system running windows. only one question, wen i used a bootable linux CD, i could not access the internet, it wouldnt connect at all, as if i removed the net wire. any ideas?

[Melissa]

okay well i just asked her and she puts it like this

XP was build on windows 2000 it has a few alterations and mostly the Gui but your focusing too much on the look rather than the build

it wetn on teh new ones windows 95 to windows 98 and 98 SE then to windows ME which was that bad they never carried it on the end..

Windows Nt to windows Nt 4.0 then onto windows 2000 then since the NT was a much better system thwy worked with that for XP.

As for Linux what version are you getting since they are all differnt and tbh they dont support games very well plus tbh aswell its not very intuitive to use.. you might find you cannot do alot with it..

the live CD hmm well its only a test environment you probabaly need a properl install to do all the stuff..

[Grimm]

ya, im mostly focusing on the look. i never used NT but i heard it was pretty good.

for Linux, i would just use it for basic stuff like AIM, internet, and just as an operating system to use wen im not doing too much, so as not to put too much stress on Windows which i think may be part of the problem.

[Melissa]

but surely having 2 operating systems is increasing disk space usage which ultimateley is your main problem

[Grimm]

true.

but good news. i actually convinced my mom into getting a new HDD. all i nned is some info on good ones, wut not to use and waht to use. right now there are these ones:

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDe ... icegrabber
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDe ... e=100718-9
http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDe ... ode=100594
http://www.compusa.com/products/product ... d+drive&N=
502461+10&Ne=500000&Ntk=All&product_code=302225&Pn=250GB_Hard_Drive

*made the above link on new line - as was stretching forums. Pho~*

im not sure how good those are, but theyre lot a storage for not alot a money. but id rather have a very good 80 gig than a crappy 250 gig one. i need lots of info for good HDDs. that bottem one is the cheapest, but it could be junk.

im not sure how to figure out our motherboard without going into the case, but i would be very surprised if it wasnt ATX. and our BIOS is dell ao3 (not that that matters much), but i cant dig into the case at 1030 at night, ill fry the system being careless

but it has to fit to the form factor and crap like that. if u do find something better, it must be internal, my mom doesnt want external. also, if we dont have the windows xp installer, thats bad right? but im sure we have it somewhere. if i get a 250 gig, how much space should i set for the os, like u stated earlier?

also, if we install a bigger hard drive into bay 2, can we move everything from bay 1 to bay 2 and just discard bay 1?

[Chantelle]

OKay firstly looking at those disks they are all (except for the last one) SATA.. if your comp is a few years old theres a good chance it wont support sata.. the last one isnt. you need to check

If you want a visual check you can look at the cable that connects from teh drive to the motherboard if its a wide grey ribbon with about 80 pins on then thats IDE (what I think you have)

If its (from what I have mostly seen anyway0 narrow and often orange coloured strip its SATA

Maxtors are a good enough make reliable

for windows and system 10-20GBs is fine for XP. If you were going to install VISTA I would have said 30-40 .


If its Dell you have gotton they may have given you a disk which restores the system rather than the windows disk but whatever you have youu need it.. the setup of all that was explained earlier by tricky and mel

Dells form factors actually they tend to sometimes use specials which is a pain but I changed a hard drive on a dell the other week and it was fine

as for your question yes you can setup windows on your new disc and then copy them over

FOOL PROOF WAY -

THis way helps ensure

1) install and fix new drive in bay 2.
2) for now to make sure you dont overwrite just unplug bay 1 drive.. (it wont harm it dont worry)
3) setup as above windows or whatever
4) you can then setup the rest of your drive partitions AFTER windows installed
5)replug the bay 1 drive back in (I dont need to tell you the computer must be off)
6) it will load up one of your OSs then copy across

pointer - each hard drive has a jumper switch on the back... you will see a diagram which explains how to set that up... ideally you will want to change that to slave on your current disk and master on your new disk ensuring that when you connect both the new drive boots first.. if they are both set to master you may find none get detected.

[Grimm]

ok, so wen it loads both disks itll tell me if iwanna copy over or wut will happen?

as for master and slave, i will need a mother board map to find the right jumpers?

[Chantelle]

no the jumpers are on teh hard drive itself you will see on the back where the plugs are..

it will load up one of the copies of windows... then your other Hard drive will appear as a new drive in explorer such as D: or E: just copy over like you normally would

[Grimm]

like i normally would? ive never done it b4....i dont normally do this

im sorry im so dumb, i dont get even basic stuff yet. i dont even know, after studying for 2 months, wut a SCSI does, but thats another story.....

[Melissa]

if u dont know how to "copy" and "paste" which is what she meant

then you shouldnt really be wiping ur PC and trying to install a hard drive

[Tricky]

Just have someone install the HDD for you, if you're unsure. You may need a new IDE cable if it doesn't have a primary and slave plug on it.

As far as your RAM issue goes, I would leave them in the old computers. It's really not a good idea to be mixing and matching different models and performances of memory, as it can cause serious system instability and you might end up performing worse than you did without them. If you're going to get RAM, just buy a new dual package of something. I'm a Corsair fan, myself.

I'll tag on some recommendations:

I do almost all my shopping from NewEgg. Their customer service is amazingly good, and the prices are usually some of the best.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6822144392

I've never had a problem with a western digital, and that's a pretty good model for the price. Just so you know, for future reference, if you buy something OEM, that means that it won't come in the original packaging with all the booklets and extra cables. I rarely buy retail hard drives or CD/DVD roms, as the bonus stuff is rarely ever necessary (you can download the drivers, anyway) and they don't require any extra cables than what you already have. It shaves a couple bucks off the final cost, so I'd just go with an OEM hard drive. Make sure to check out the warranty length on them, though. Some OEM don't have the same insurance as retail, but NewEgg will refund or send you a new part, if it breaks down within a month.

I'm not sure what you RAM situation is, or how much money you have to spend. If you've got at least a gig of it, I wouldn't recommend wasting money on more, at least not for now.

[Melissa]

I think chan said its best to get ram the same frequency speed what that is depends on your processor.. if u stick ancient ram in it probabaly wont fo it any good

[Tricky]

If anything, grab RAM that's faster than what you probably have.

I'm guessing you're sitting around PC2700, so it might be safe to go with the 3200. Most will downclock to the appropriate speed, and if you ever wind up upgrading your machine, you'll at least have the opportunity to use the PC3200 to its best. I had 3200 in my old Barton and it ran fine, even though it was downclocking.

[Grimm]

i think tricky found the best HDD, so ill have my mom order it as soon as possible. i just researched master and slave again and i know how to set it. only problem is if i have SATA or not, i think i have IDE tho. is the current drive going to be connected to the cdrom, which is connected to the burner, which is then connected to the motherboard? (daisy chain or wutever) i dont plan on keeping the current HDD, it would prolly be better to just trash it, ill prolly save it for wen i get a compuer, gonna try to find basically a mother borad with case around it and work with it, but thats not for a while

thx guys, ill post again wen i have the drive and may need help with setup

[Tricky]

Well, I have my cd roms and hard drives on different cables, as I think is standard. Personally, I'd keep your current hard drive, or at least for now. If you wanna format the new one and install windows on there, you can then set the old one to your secondary and directly copy and music and what not from one HDD to the next. It's faster than going from HDD, to iPod or whatever, then back to the new HDD.

[Grimm]

w/e, il figure it out, after thats done can we get rid of the old hdd? wut im trying to do is maybe discard some viruses that may have snuck in to the old one :\

[Tricky]

Just reformat both?

[Squall]

yea hy waste something when it can be usefull grimm? let the other hdd run the pagefile