Subscribe Feed (RSS)Having trouble booting into windows with hal.dll errors and the like? Here’s how to get rid of your problems. Make sure you back up before you do it.
Things you need
- Your Windows XP CD
- About an hour of free time
- Computer with Boot problems
Posts Tagged ‘xp’
Fix Boot Problems with a Windows XP Repair Install
October 4th, 2010 by Connor McBrine-Ellis | No Comments | Filed in How TosAll HP Pavilion dv6753ca XP Drivers
September 29th, 2010 by Connor McBrine-Ellis | No Comments | Filed in Tech
When I first got my HP Pavilion DV6753ca computer, it had Vista installed on it! This was back in 2008.
I felt like downgrading to XP, because I liked the experience on XP better, and one of my favorite applications wouldn’t run on Vista, but would only work on XP. So I downgraded, but I soon realized that HP, the manufacturer, didn’t really provide any XP drivers for this laptop! I was really thrown for a loop!
After HOURS and HOURS of endless searching, I’ve managed to compile an almost complete list of all the drivers you need, and I’ve included downloads also, so you can get them all of this one page! BOOKMARK IT! Some of these drivers are out of date, like the nVidia drivers, but they work just fine, and I don’t think there are any newer version available for XP, so if you really want XP you’ll have to put up with that.
Otherwise, you could go with Windows 7 . What’s handy about installing Windows 7 on this particular laptop is that you don’t have to really manually install any drivers at all! Once you’ve installed windows, it automatically installs all the drivers for you, including your video drivers!
The DRIVERS:
Intel® Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN
I hope that all of your driver installations run smoothly! Please comment here if this works for you, or comment if you have a problem.
Thanks!
Tags: audio, Download, driver, drivers, files, graphics, hardware, internet, software, video, windows, xp
Get a GNOME look in Windows XP
December 17th, 2009 by Connor McBrine-Ellis | 5 Comments | Filed in Offline
GNOME is a popular *NIX desktop environment, which has a very soft, simple, and user-friendly interface many have tried to emulate. It is possible to get GNOME themes for Windows XP by using a hacked uxtheme.dll file.
Let’s install our hacked DLL file:
- Download a small tool called Replacer. Let’s extract Replacer to the desktop.
- Run the file replacer.cmd
- Open up C:\Windows\system32 and find uxtheme.dll. Drag the file into the command prompt window. Hit enter.
- Drag that unlocked uxtheme.dll file you found earlier into the command prompt window. Hit enter.
- Agree to replace the file, and when the tool finishes, restart your computer.
Done! Now lets get some awesome GNOME visual styles.
To install these styles, extract them to (C:\WINDOWS\Resources\Themes). The name of the msstyles file should match the name of the folder it’s in.
Enjoy your newly skinned Windows XP!
Downgrading from WMP 12 to 11 in Windows 7
October 20th, 2009 by Connor McBrine-Ellis | 5 Comments | Filed in How TosWindows Media Player 12 in Windows 7 has a new UI that doesn’t include as many sleek transparency features as WMP 11 did, and Microsoft also for some reason removed the Advanced Tag Editor, one of my favorite features because my WMP Custom Album Art tutorial uses it, and because you can edit a whole albums tags in batch.
I see no real benefit to using Windows Media Player 12, as Windows Media Player 11 seems, at least to me, to be a much more well-rounded, and better looking too, music / video organizer and player.
How to install Windows Media Player 11 onto Windows 7:
- Go to the start menu, type services.msc and hit enter.
- Stop the Windows Media Player Network Sharing Service.
- Install this registry edit (zipped): Take Ownership Context Menu Hack.
- Now take ownership of these items by selecting them in Windows Explorer and then right-clicking them and selecting Take Ownership in the context menu:All files in “Program Files\Windows Media Player\” folder
All files starting with “wmp” in System32 folder
wmploc.dll.mui in “System32\en-us\” folder.
- Download Windows Media Player 11 for Windows 7 and install. If you get an error message saying that wmploc.dll.mui is in use by a process, then kill sidebar.exe. You’ll need to restart after install Windows Media Player.
- Run regedit and delete the key “HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\MediaPlayer\Setup\Installed Versions”.
- If you want a good Windows 7 theme for WMP 11, check this one out:
http://bogo-d.deviantart.com/art/7-for-Windows-Media-Player-11-105796300
This skin is quite amazing – it combines the best elements of both WMP 11 and 12 to make an amazing looking skin.
I hope that you’ve enjoyed my tutorial, and enjoy your newly installed WMP 11 on Windows 7!
A better version of this tutorial: http://www.askvg.com/how-to-get-windows-media-player-wmp-taskbar-toolbar-back-in-windows-7/
Tags: 11, 12, audio, microsoft, Music, vista, windows, windows 7, windows media player, WMP, xp
Quick Tip: Faster Boot Times
October 2nd, 2009 by Michael Louie | 2 Comments | Filed in How TosIf your like most people out there who are expieriencing an aging computer. You may want to try this quick tip on how to make your computer boot faster. (This method will apply for XP and Vista. )
Steps:
1.Click Start<Select Run
2.Type in msconfig
3. Wait for the following window to open.
4. Click on the startup tab. Your screen should look like this.
5.As you can see, these are the programs that startup with your computer which cause the delay. You may recognize some of the programs such as if you have a logitech wireless mouse you might see a logitec application in the list. Click the unnecessary programs that you won’t need to start up such as Quicktime or Messenger.
Be careful with what you uncheck. You can google the startup item if you aren’t sure what it is. Don’t ever uncheck important programs such as your wireless mouse’s program or your antivirus program.
6. Click apply then ok and you are done. You will be prompted to restart but that is your choice.
*Note: I am not responsible for any damage or incidents caused by this tutorial. Use at your own risk.*
This is a very basic tip and should not cause any harm usually. Though if you feel unsafe dont try it.
Tags: boot, faster, hack, msconfig, startup, time, vista, xp
Windows 7 – Is it worth it?
October 1st, 2009 by Michael Louie | 1 Comment | Filed in TechSome people have heard the new name, Windows 7, Codenamed Blackcomb and Vienna. Lately, you might have heard that you can get Windows 7 for free when buying a new PC or You can upgrade to Windows 7 at a discount price. But is this new OS worth it? (note: light review)
So we all know about the lows Vista set with its paranoia over everything and multiple errors / driver issues and benchmarks at all new lows. This of course made many stay back at home with their Xp computers.
But little do people notice the great things about Vista. With its new Aero feature, improved support for 64 bit and multicore processors, peer to peer file transferring and sharing and etc. These new features would set the path for the next OS to improve on these new programs, features and layouts.
(screenshot of Windows 7)
This here is the new Windows 7. There are some obvious differences…..obviously. Some parts you may recognize such as the start menu but you notice our classic taskbar looks a little different. This new little gadget is called Aero Peek. Now unlike the previous aero which shows a preview of the window when hovering above it, Aero peek will show you the windows all by hovering over the ONE app. So lets say you have 3 internet explorer windows open. Instead of hovering over one at a time to find which one you are looking for, you can hover over the internet explorer icon in the taskbar and you will see all three in realtime and if you hover over the preview, you can get a large screen preview . =)
Another New feature is the Snap In feature. Open two windows drag them on the two sides of the screen and they will adjust to fit perfectly in your monitor ,and don’t worry the pesky messages that black out your screen just to ask the redundant question of permission are gone.
Now for the features that you won’t notice right away. So first you get improved accessories, boot times and performance on multi-core processors. (yippe for me and my core 2 quad) Your control center has been renovated with extra items such as Clear type and Gadgets. Also, for the sake of XP which kept windows alive in my opinion will have its cousin in Windows 7. Which will be Windows XP Mode which will basically run XP in a virtual machine. Read more about Windows XP Mode.
To be honest, Windows 7 isn’t going to be as revolutionary as Vista was yet it still improves on the great features of Vista.
I will be definitely upgrading to Windows 7 because of the improved benchmarks and benefits it features. It has many organizational upgrades too. I wouldn’t lie to you. Its up to you whether you are going to upgrade but beware….Windows is back.
The planned release of Windows 7 for consumers is set for October 22, 2009.
If you want to, you can read even more here: http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2009/08/windows7-seven-reasons/
Make a Webcam Timelapse Easily
June 18th, 2009 by Connor McBrine-Ellis | 2 Comments | Filed in Apps, How Tos, TechWanted to make a timelapse of you doing something, such as putting lego blocks together or eating a cheesecake? Now you can, and quite easily too, with the Timershot Powertoy for XP.
Requirements
- Windows XP (I’m not sure that the Timershot powertoy works on vista – this is only tested with XP)
- Timershot Powertoy
- Windows Movie Maker (included with XP)
- USB Webcam / USB Digital Camera
Steps
- Download the Powertoy and install it – pretty straightforward.
- Go to Start Menu > All Programs > Powertoys for Windows XP > Timershot and launch the application.
- The program will most likely start taking pictures right away. Don’t worry about it. Just set the capture rate as one picture every second, and set it not to just take one photo and replace that one, but to take individual photos each time, and so that way you’ll end up with the “frames” for your timelapse.
- Set a folder for the pictures to go into (not just your desktop – that will be messy !!! Remember , it takes 1 picture every second!!
- Now, point the webcam where you want it to take the timelapse , and away you go!
- Open up Windows Movie Maker (Start, All Programs, Windows Movie Maker)
- Go to the Tools menu, click Options, and click the Advanced tab.
- In the “Default Durations” section, decrease the Picture Duration to the lowest amount possible, and click OK.
- In the Capture Video section inside the “Movie Tasks” pane, click Import Pictures.
- Go to the folder you saved all your timelapse photos into, and import all the photos in that folder.
- Now, highlight all the pictures in the “Collections” pane (which is just right of the “Movie Tasks” pane) by pressing Ctrl + A, and then drag them to the timeline / storyboard below.
- In the Edit Movie section of the “Movie Tasks” pane, click View Video Effects (or just Effects, in Vista).
- Now, in the timeline / storyboard, click one of the pictures and press Ctrl + A to select all the pictures.
- In the “effects” window, click on “Speed Up” and hit “CTRL + D” to apply it to all the frames you have selected.
If everything went correctly, each frame will now have a star at the bottom, indicating it has an effect paired with the frame. You can hit CTRL + D as many times as you want, if the video is still too slow. - Now just hit Ctrl + P to save your movie, and share it with your friends or upload it to YouTube!
You can view a couple sample timelapses I made myself:
Enjoy! Thanks to onlinephototutorials.com for the “Speed Up” enhancement to this tutorial. Also, thanks to Microsoft for their great Windows XP Timershot PowerToy.
Time lapse videos show motion over a long period of time. Set the camera on a tripod, switch it to manual focus, and you’re pretty much done. The hardest part is finding interesting things that will change over time, clearly. Many things change over time, in that you take one photo and they’re gone the next. However, things like clouds or stars are interesting as they move fluidly.
The goal of this tutorial is not taking the photos to make the timelapse, rather assembling the photos into a timelapse of high quality. Step One Before importing, set Windows Movie Maker’s “default image duration” to it’s fastest setting of 0.125 at “Tools > Options > Advanced”. First, you must import the necessary images into Windows Movie Maker. Hit “CTRL + I” and navigate to the folder where they are stored. Since Windows Movie Maker doesn’t support RAW or sizes about 1080p [1920x1080], I suggest you set your camera to the smallest JPEG size at “fine” or “high” quality. This means it won’t take as long to import all the images to your computer, it’ll take less space, and Windows Movie Maker will be faster. Step Two Under the “imported media” window, click on an image and hit CTRL + A to select all. Hold and drag the images into the timeline or storyboard at the bottom of the screen. 
Step Three At the left hand pane, select the “effects” option under the “edit” category. 
Now, at the bottom of the screen, select the “Storyboard” view. Select one of the images and hit “CTRL + A” to select all. 
Step Four
In the “effects” window, click on “Speed Up” and hit “CTRL + D” to apply it to all the frames you have selected.
Tags: import, powertoy, timelapse, timer, timershot, usb, webcam, windows, xp
Cracked LegitLibM.dll for Windows Media Player 11
February 3rd, 2009 by Connor McBrine-Ellis | 56 Comments | Filed in How Tos, Offline, Online, TechStill having trouble downloading Windows Media Player?? Here’s how to download and install it easily.
Download Windows Media Player 11 here without any WGA validation requests.
After doing that, you have your Windows Media Player Installer. Install a program like WinRAR and then right click on the WMP installer and click on ‘Extract To’.
Now open the new wmp11 folder that appears, not the original .exe.
The folder will look like this (the important files are circled):
You need to replace LegitLibM.dll with the cracked one. Download the cracked LegitLibM.dll and then drag it into the directory. Windows will ask you if you really want to replace the file – replace it.
Click yes to replace it, and then go into the folder and launch setup_wm.exe as you saw in the above folder picture.
Enjoy Windows Media Player 11!
Tags: 11, bypass, crack, legitlibm.dll, Music, validation, windows, windows media player, winrar, WMP, xp
Windows Setup freeze
December 12th, 2008 by Connor McBrine-Ellis | No Comments | Filed in How Tos, Offline, TechHaving trouble with windows setup not starting, and just freezing on “Setup is inspecting your computers hardware configuration”?
Here’s a couple handy suggestions:
- If you happen to have one plugged in, try unplugging your external hard drive
Note: This also works for regular Windows XP installs, when they hang on startup and it just shows a blank screen until you unplug the drive.
- if the above one didn’t work, try creating an NTFS partition that is smaller than the whole drive (you can do this using a linux live cd like Ubuntu).
Tags: drive, external, hard, hardware, linux, NTFS, partition, setup, ubuntu, xp
Acer Dual-booting Problems!!!
January 11th, 2008 by Connor McBrine-Ellis | 4 Comments | Filed in Offline, TechOk, ok, I was really stupid! Don’t go posting comments saying how stupid I was!
So here’s the story. I get my Acer Extensa 5420 at Costco, and come home and open it up, and I get all excited, and I’m happy! So then about a week later, I accidentally delete the partition that Vista’s in when dual-booting XP in order to use legacy apps (STUPID ME!). So I try and get a recovery CD from Acer because my built-in eRecovery option wouldn’t work. Here’s a letter I wrote to Acer explaining what happened from then on:
To Whom It May Concern:
About a week after I got my Extensa computer, I wanted to use the built-in eRecovery feature that my laptop was supposed to come with. So when it was starting up, I pressed alt+f10, as I was directed to by the laptop’s manual, but this didn’t work. So, I called acer’s “Customer Interaction Centre”, and I had them send me some recovery CDs. This was when the problems began. Here’s a list of the issues I had with these first cds:
- The CD’s operating system (my computer came with Vista Home Premium – the cd’s recovery os was Vista Home Basic)
- The CD’s language (my computer came with english as it’s main language, but the recovery cd installed spanish, and I couldn’t understand what the computer was saying)
- Wouldn’t recognise a whole bunch of my hardware – including my graphics card, my dvd drive, my card reader, and my wireless internet connection.
- The invoice said my cds were french, but on the cds themselves they said they were spanish. so the invoice was incorrect.I called in to the customer interaction centre, and gave my order number, and the person there said that the person who had sent me the first set of the disks had, #1 – sent me ones that weren’t designed for my computer, and #2 – they were the wrong language (i already knew this), and finally #3 – they were the wrong operating system (i ALSO already knew this. He said he’d resend the disks.
Now, I have a week of wasted time and money because i have NO access to my computer whatsoever, while I wait for the cds to arrive. The person I was talking to on the phone said they would arrive in two business days!
Finally, after a week’s wait, my cds have arrived to me, and I start using them, only to find out that they are FRENCH! Maybe the person thought that I wanted french cds, because on the first invoice I recieved it said Vista home basic french, whereas the cds were in actuality spanish.
I would like it if someone could kindly send me some recovery cds, with windows vista home premium designed for my acer extensa 5420, IN ENGLISH, please!
Thanks in advance for your help and assistance,
Connor McBrine-Ellis
No one bothered replying for a day, so I get impatient and call Acer’s Customer Interaction Centre, and I get a really helpful person who told me that he’d send me the right CDs, en anglais, s’il vous plait!
I’ll update you on whether these CDs were actually english when they arrive. They’ll arrive in about 3-7 business days because they use FedEx express shipping.
Connor :p
