FAQS! FACTS! FAX!  526 (15/08/06)

Q. I have a D-Link wireless router which is connected to my PC by wire and which I also use for connecting my laptop to the Internet. However from time to time my PCs lose their Internet connection and I have to pull the plug and reboot to get the connection back.

I find this very strange as, if I type the web address of the D-Link router into the address bar, I can get through and can sometimes succeed in refreshing the connection settings.  How can my connection to Internet Explorer go down but am still able to get through to a D-Link page? Others with different routers tell me of similar problems. Quite frankly all of the various settings for the router are meaningless to me. 

Trevor Holcroft, via email

A. Your PC is actually connected to two networks, the Internet and your local area network or LAN, which comprises your PCs and the router. Every device attached to a LAN or the Internet  -- PCs, routers, web servers and so on -- has its own unique Internet Protocol or ‘IP Address’, made up of four groups of digits. There are two types of IP address. ‘Public’ addresses are used on the Internet but we rarely see them as they are translated by the Internet and the browser on your PC into the familiar ‘www’ web address. For example, if you put http://213.219.36.107 into your browser you will be transported to the Telegraph.co.uk website.

‘Private’ IP addresses are used by devices attached to LANs, like your PCs and the route and on a home network usually look something like this: http://192.168.000.100. So when you type your router’s IP address into your browser you are actually making a direct connection with it, through your LAN, to its own built in web server. This generates web-like pages, which are used to configure the router’s internal settings. In general you should leave them alone as most routers work perfectly well on the default settings.

Your intermittent Internet connection is another matter. This could be due to any number of reasons, from poor line quality or being a little too far from the exchange, to problems with your internal phone cables, outdated modem driver, the modem itself and other devices attached to the line  (phones, fax machine, Sky boxes etc) interfering with the connection. Check the modem manufacturer’s website to see if there’s an updated driver available (reinstall the latest one anyway) If the problem persists ask BT to test the line. If it is okay try disconnecting other devices attached to the line. Phone extension sockets and wiring can be troublesome; if they’re getting on a bit they may need replacing. If everything checks out ask your ISP to replace your broadband modem.

Q. On my previous computer using Windows 98 a voice told me when I had email. I cannot find this facility in XP and the 'chimes' are irritating.  Can you help please?

Brian Parratt, via email

A. The email notification ‘voice’ on your old PC wasn’t included with Windows. The audio file probably came from an ISP’s installation software. If you still have the machine you should be able to copy it to your new PC, or you can create your own custom sound or announcement.

It’s easy. Open the Windows Sound Recorder utility (Start > Programs > Accessories > Entertainment. Just plug a microphone into your PC and use it like a tape recorder. When you have finished give the resulting ‘.wav’ sound file a name and Save it in My Documents or C:\WINDOWS\Media. Now go to Start > Control Panel > Sounds and Audio and select the Sounds tab. In the Sound Events box scroll down and highlight ‘New Mail Notification’ then use the Browse button to locate your custom audio file, click OK and it’s done. If you want to try something a little more sophisticated I suggest using an audio editing program, like Audacity, which can make and edit recordings from CDs or other audio devices connected to your PC.

You can use the Sounds utility in Control Panel on your Windows 98 PC to track down your old email notification. Simply copy the file to a floppy or USB flash drive and paste it into the Windows Media directory.

Q. My Internet security system blocks a lot of Internet pages, including the manufacturers own! Now Windows tells me that I have a pirate version of XP (via Dell) and I cannot access anyone for help. What am I Supposed to do now?

David Major, via email

A. You can disable or reconfigure your web security program’s web blocking or just switch to a less aggressive system but I think the first thing you need to do is sort out this Windows piracy issue.

This is connected with the Microsoft Windows Genuine Advantage (WGA) program now installed on your PC as a result of a recent update and it checks to see if your copy of Windows is pirated or counterfeit.  Around 1 in 5 copies of XP fail the WGA check, which is roughly in line with industry estimates for the number of unlicensed copies of XP in circulation 

If your copy of Windows was preinstalled in a Dell PC then you should contact the company as there has clearly been an administrative error and should be quickly resolved. If, however, you have bought a Dell OEM copy of XP, believing it to be unregistered then you have probably been conned.

According to Microsoft the number of ‘false’ WGA alerts are quite small. Most concern stolen ‘volume’ licensing keys and pirated and counterfeit copies of XP that purchasers believed to be genuine. There have been a number of cases where a previously registered or illegitimate copy of Windows has been installed by someone (usually a friend or colleague but sometimes a company) attempting to repair a PC. If you have any doubts about the authenticity of your copy of Windows you should contact Microsoft. If your copy of XP is legitimate then it was probably caused by a data entry errors and it can be simply rectified by reactivating your copy of Windows. 

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© R. Maybury 2006, 0808