FAQS! FACTS! FAX!  386 (21/10/03)

Q

I use Windows ME and Outlook Express 6. After going online to download my emails, I find that they some go into the Inbox as they should, but others go directly into the deleted box. Can you help?

Les Powell

A

I suspect that you have inadvertently added some ‘friendly’ email addresses to your ‘Blocked Sender’ list. This is easily done with a careless click on the Message drop-down menu in an open email window. To remove legitimate senders from the list go to the main OE window then Tools > Message Rules > Blocked Senders List and select the Blocked Senders tab.

Q

Over the past few weeks, Outlook Express has started behaving oddly. When I try to delete the messages in the Inbox, nothing happens. The only way that I can get rid of them is to move unwanted messages to a new folder, then delete the whole folder. I tried re-downloading IE6 but it hasn’t made a difference.

Lynne Chapman

A

It’s possible that the Deleted Items folder is corrupted (it’s not replaced when you re-install IE6). The trick is to close down Outlook Express then open Windows Explorer and find your way to your mail storage folder, which in Windows 9x (95/98/ME/SE) will usually be in:

C:\WINDOWS\Application Data\Identities\{GUID}\Microsoft\Outlook Express

(GUID or Global Unique Identifier is a long string of numbers and letters).

In Windows XP you’ll find it in:

C:\Documents and Settings\[your name]\Application Data\Identities\{GUID}\Microsoft\Outlook Express.

Delete the ‘Deleted Items.dbx’ file in your store folder and close Windows Explorer. When you next open Outlook Express the Deleted Items file should be automatically recreated and hopefully work as normal.

Q

I want to link two modems together to gain improved speeds on the Internet as Broadband is not available or likely to be in this area.  Can you point me in the right direction? 

M. F. Norton

A

Apparently it can be done, but in addition to the second modem you will need a second telephone line. This technique doesn’t increase connection speeds but it can increase bandwidth, which has the same overall effect when it comes to downloading large files. However, whilst Windows supports this feature (known as modem ‘bonding’), many ISPs do not, moreover it is fiendishly difficult to set up and not very reliable. There’s a useful though somewhat dated article on the subject at: 

www.56k.com/reports/bonding.shtml. 

Don’t despair if you can’t get broadband, there are alternatives, including a new satellite service for consumers, which we hope to be looking at in Boot Camp in a few weeks time.

Q

I've recently bought a new computer with XP 'Home' operating system.  I find that XP doesn't recognise my printer unless it is switched on before I boot up my computer.  This didn't happen with my old Win 98 SE computer, where I only had to turn on my printer when I needed it. I've tried uninstalling and re-installing my printer (Lexmark X85) and it did overcome the problem initially, but as soon as I rebooted my computer it reverted to not recognising my printer. How can I overcome this irritation, or is it a feature of XP?

Peter Cole

A

You’re not alone with this one and there does seem to be a couple of problems associated with the combination of a USB connection, some Lexmark printers and Windows XP. The solution is to uninstall the printer and start over but first you should run Lexmark’s ‘cleaner’ utility that removes all traces of previous installations. You’ll find it at: www.lexmark.com/, follow the links from ‘Drivers and Downloads’. Whilst there check to see if you have the latest version of the driver software. After running the cleaner and before you reinstall go to Run on the Start menu and type ‘msconfig’. Select the Services tab and click ‘Enable All, then go to the Startup tab and do the same. Finally, make sure the printer cable is disconnected from the PC before you start the installation utility.

Q

Occasionally I get the following message when part way through booting up my otherwise well behaved Windows 98 PC. "… search for new drivers for Wave device for Voice Modem". Mostly I just cancel it and the boot up continues but if I click the Next button it searches the hard disc and the Windows Update website and says it has "Failed to find the driver". Then I just carry on regardless and everything continues to work well.

It is just one of these irritating little things and I cannot say I am hard done by, but it would be nice to have an explanation.
Jack Palmer

A

Windows is looking for an information (*.inf) file associated with your modem or sound card but depending on your setup it may be on your Windows installation disc, so the next time the message appears have it to hand along with installation discs that came with your modem and sound card, or the possibly the driver disc supplied with your PC. Load each disc in turn and let the Wizard search for the missing file, which it should find, though you might have to help it along by directing it to the CD-drive, and clicking through the sub folders as they appear in the Browse window.

Q

My computer seems to have been infected by a very annoying series of popup ads sent by a firm called destroyads.com these seem to have got into my computer even though I have a firewall and virus checking. The firm states that this is possible and the only way to remove them and prevent a reoccurrence is to buy online their software for removal. This seems a very shoddy way to run a business and naturally I do not intend to pay them money to remove what they put in my computer. I would rather reinstall all my software. I get often up to 10 ads to remove before I can use my computer. How do I remove these unwanted parasites and how to prevent a further occurrence?

Bryan Heard

A

This is yet another example of Spammers abusing the Messenger service in Windows XP, which is designed to allow network managers send text messages to users. By default it is switched on, to disable it go to Run on the Start menu, type 'services.msc', double click the Messenger entry, click the Stop button and on the Startup Type drop-down menu select Disabled. Click OK, close the windows and you should see no more of this pest.