FAQS! FACTS! FAX!  537 (31/10/06)

Q. I have recently networked an older laptop running XP to an up to date desktop with a Belkin wireless router. Everything worked fine to start but following a Windows update the system no longer works despite receiving an excellent signal. I have tried using System Restore to return the machine to a date before it stopped working but no luck.

Dominic Radford, via email

A. Some wi-fi problems can be quite tricky to trouble-shoot but when a previously reliable connection fails, and there’s been no obvious changes to your firewall or anti-virus settings, then it is often due to something quite trivial like an incorrect or invalid Internet Protocol (IP) address. I would start by running a little Microsoft utility called Wntipcfg, which will release and renew your IP settings.

Wntipcfg is very similar to the old Windows 98 utility Winipcfg but for reasons best known to Microsoft it is not included with XP. It is actually part of the Windows 2000 Resource Kit but it works perfectly well in XP. Download and install the file then run the program (you will find it in C:\Program Files\Resource Kit). It will display your current IP settings, if you think they may be wrong click the Release button first, then Renew and this will ensure that your PC is assigned a new valid IP address.  

Q. I have had a wireless network set up at home for my wife's home business, but I'm having a lot of difficulty linking my elderly (but still perfectly serviceable) Sony laptop to it, so that I can access the Internet. The laptop recognises the network but after I enter the access key, nothing seems to happen. I've spoken briefly to the chap who set up the network and he said that maybe the laptop doesn't like or can't cope with the network security settings. Sony won't help be because they say they have now stopped providing any support for my type of machine. Can you help?

Max Findlay

A. Wi-fi security and encryption is handled by the wireless adaptor and the software that came with it; providing they are compatible with your PC and operating system then the age of your machine is largely irrelevant.

The first thing to do in your case is determine if encryption really is the problem and the easiest way to do that is to temporarily switch it off, both on the router and on your PC’s wireless configuration utility. If you can access the Internet then you need to switch the encryption back on again and triple check the settings and that you are entering the correct key. Your adaptor is clearly working so once again (see previous question) I would begin by resetting the IP address. If you are running Windows 98 use the built in utility, go to Run on the Start menu and type ‘winipcfg’ (without the quotes) and Release and Renew the connection.

Q. I was just wondering if there was an easy way to save files attached to multiple emails? I have over 100 emails each with a single file attached and I need to save them to a folder. Clicking on each one individually is giving me RSI!

Estelle Manson-Whitton, via email

A. If you are using Outlook Express the answer is no, at least not from within the program, but there is a utility called Outlook Express Attachment Extractor that will do the job. The registered version costs $15.95 but you can download the free trial and see if it works before you commit yourself.

Q. I've just bought an Epson Colour Laser printer, which gives excellent pictures on plain paper.  However, I have quite a lot of inkjet paper (gloss, matt, and satin) and would like to use this before buying any more specialist paper. Are there any problems using these inkjet papers with a laser printer?

Ian Marshall, via email

A. Laser printers use a heated roller or ‘drum’ to fuse toner particles onto the surface of the paper. This could melt the film coating on glossy and satin inkjet papers. At the very least the results are likely to be poor, at worst it could damage the drum or the toner cartridge. Don’t try it, stick to specially formulated laser paper.

Q. How can I print out a list of people who I have sent mail to from Outlook Express?

Doug Langmead, via email

A. I have a couple of solutions. The first is a program called Dbx2mail, which extracts email addresses (but not names) from Outlook Express mail folders. There is a free trial version but this is limited to mailboxes with less than 5mb of data, but at least you’ll be able to see if it is suitable for you. The fully functional version costs €24 to register.

My second suggestion is a little more involved, but it is free, and it definitely works. The idea is to capture the list as an image and print that but first you might want to configure the Outlook Express folder layout. Open Sent items or the mail folder of your choice, right click on the column header bar and select Columns.  If all you want are the To and Date columns deselect all of the other column headings then OK. Now you can take a ‘snapshot’ of the list -- as it is displayed on the screen -- by pressing the PrtScn key. To view, edit and print it open the image in Windows Paint or your preferred graphics program. If you want to turn the list into a text file then you will have to run it through your scanner’s Optical Character Recognition (OCR) program. If anyone has a simpler solution please let me know. 

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© R. Maybury 2006, 2410