FAQS! FACTS! FAX!  523 (25/07/06)

Q. I am running Windows ME with all of the usual bundled programs. I would like to change to an open source system, Thunderbird and Firefox say, and some sort of simple office suite. Can I uninstall ME so as to save resources or do you need to keep the original OS? I do not have ME on CD as it was pre-installed, but I do have an ME folder in D:\ME.

Howie Williams, via email

A. There is nothing to stop you running open source software under Windows ME, though if you want to go the whole hog that will mean reformatting the C: partition and installing a Windows-like Linux distribution such as RedHat or SuSe. However, this is a fairly big commitment, especially for a beginner but I suspect the ME folder on your D: drive or partition contains the operating system recovery files so there’s a way back, but check before you do anything drastic. If that sounds a bit daunting then stick with the Windows versions of Firefox and Thunderbird and for an office suite I suggest OpenOffice.Org, which is a very user-friendly alternative to (and compatible with) Microsoft Office and like all open source software it is completely free.

Q. You recently pointed a reader towards a freeware caps lock alert program called DKOSD.  I downloaded this program and in the process received a warning that it wanted to update a file with a later version. I have not found this a problem in the past so OK'd the request. From that time I have been unable to perform any functions and in all cases receive the following warning: The OLEAUT32.DLL file cannot start.  Check the file to determine the problem Can you please suggest any way I can get my system (Win 98SE) back to normal?

R. F. Ruth, via email

A. I’m not sure why this has happened but OLEAUT32.dll is an important Windows system file concerned with a function called Object Linking and Embedding. Somehow it has been corrupted and needs to be replaced. The easiest way to do that is use your Windows 98 Startup disc.

Pop in your Windows CD ROM and boot the PC from the Startup Disc and when prompted select Option 1 (CD ROM support) then press Enter. When it has finished loading you should see a flashing A: prompt at which point you type ‘ext’ (without the quotes) then press Enter.

You will now be asked to enter the path to the Windows cabinet or ‘CAB’ files on the installation disc in the CD ROM drive, which will now have the drive letter E: (the Startup disc creates a temporary ‘virtual’ drive D and all drives move up one letter, so D: becomes E, and so on). At the prompt type the following: ‘E:\Win98’ and press Enter then type in the name of the file you want to extract, i.e. ‘OLEAUT32.dll’, followed by the path of the directory you want to copy it to which will be ‘C:\Windows\System’ then press Enter. Confirm that you want to overwrite the file by pressing Y then Enter. When it has finished it will return to the flashing A: prompt, at which point remove the discs from the PC and reboot.

Q. I know this is a very old query but I can't find a way of getting rid of the annoying Office Assistant (Clippit). Using your previously published fix I open Windows Explorer then Program Files > Microsoft Office > Office, but I cannot find the folder called Actors, which you are supposed to rename to ‘dead actors’, so I appear to be stuck with it. Any suggestions?

John Edwards, via email

A. That’s normally where the Actors folder lives but I have known it to turn up elsewhere. If you are using Windows 98 try C:\Windows\application data\Microsoft\Office but if all else fails go to Find or Search on the Start menu and look for it from there.

Q. I am having trouble with Windows Media Player, which I have used it for several years without problems. About two months ago it developed a fault, which results in it only playing through one speaker. Other programs such as RealPlayer, and discs in my CD and DVD drives work OK. I have tried upgrading, uninstalling and reinstalling but to no avail. I can carry on using other players but I had got used to WMP and the fact that I cannot use it properly has become an annoying niggle. Can you help?

Jim Phillips, via email

A. That’s an odd one and I’ve been unable to find any references to this problem but it seems certain that WMP is the root cause. I’m not surprised that upgrading to a later version didn’t work as most of the core components will remain. You need to completely uninstall it and start again. Unfortunately this is easier said than done, especially on Windows XP after installing Service Pack 2, or if you are using WMP 10. Have a look at the WMP uninstallation guide at: http://erpman1.tripod.com/current/wmp9del.htm, which covers the various version and operating system variations.

Q. Re: Faqs! Facts! Fax! 11/07/2006 and the question from Les Morgan regarding
a shortcut for pasting your email address in documents and web forms. There is a freeware program called MemoKeys which stores text and pastes it into any program by using a keystroke combination.
Alan Clarke, via email

A. Thanks for that and I’m grateful to F!F!F! readers Richard Pugh and Terry Leaman who suggested another freeware program called Shortkeys Lite

Q. I have been running Mozilla Firefox as my default browser for some time – very successfully. Recently some updates for the program were downloaded and now every time I open Firefox I get a dialogue box that says ‘Firefox cannot find the server’.

David Rees, via email

A. This sort of error message is usually caused by your Firewall, particularly if you are using ZoneAlarm and the solution is to check the configuration settings to see if Firefox is being blocked. If your version of ZoneAlarm is more than a year or so old then it’s time to upgrade.

---end---

© R. Maybury 2006, 1807