WinXP Service Pack 2 due

[Keith]

I just heard that XP will receive a upgrade in the form of a Service Pack 2. It's an attempt to plug a lot of the holes used by hackers, etc. Many things have been tightened up and closed. Some new features.

I heard on the news that if you haven't kept your copy of XP updated the download could be as large as 270MB. Those that have kept it updated will only face about 93MB. Turn your automatic update utility ON.

Read about SP2 here:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/sp2/default.mspx

If you don't want to download it, you can wait a few weeks after the release date of the download version and request a CD copy for free, but it may take 4-6 weeks before it gets delivered.

[mouse]

There have been warnings issued by some tech sources that there can be problems if you install SP2 for some systems. So like anything backup your system before installing this SP. One of the known issues is that there can be shut down issues with some systems.

[NeilV]

If you rebuild your pc regularly you may want to download the full update for future use and pick a time like 7am so that not many people downloading it as apparently there is a limited daily download so not to overburden the server.

[Cironir]

During the beta test of SP2, there were reports that the update may break some games -- but I think that's mostly older ones that may interact with the operating system in slightly obscure ways. Hopefully, the included changes to Outlook Express and IE will help the worm flood a little, too.

[EnisDonKing]

Hi guys,

I tested almost all SP2 builds and unfortunately I can't recommend you to download and install XP SP2 at it's current state, due huge list of compability issues, random crashes (Mr. Blue Screen attacks) and other stuff which didn't occur with SP1a+pre-SP2 patches. I recommend you to download individual patches and wait for some XP SP2a addition with bugs being fixed, indeed.

Meanwhile, check out some of the stories related to topic:

Firewire firm releases firmware to fix XP SP2 fire: http://inquirerinside.com/?article=17819

Vole blocks SP2: http://inquirerinside.com/?article=17816

Win XP SP2 "turns Firewire 800 into Firewire 100": http://inquirerinside.com/?article=17794

Hunt for XP SP2 flaws seen in full swing: http://www.infoworld.com/article/04/08/13/HNhuntforsp2flaws_1.html

Users Give XP SP2 Mixed Marks: http://www.eweek.com/article2/0,1759,1635083,00.asp

Microsoft lets companies block SP2 upgrade: http://news.com.com/Microsoft+lets+companies+block+SP2+upgrade/2100-1016_3-5306227.html?tag=nefd.top

[Josh]

Wow, if thats true I'm quite surprised, the blue screen of death has almost never* popped up on me with XP, oh well I'm sure they will iron it out shortly, when it hits the real world and their tech support lines are ringing off the hook.

* It popped up a few times when I was trying to make a scanner explicitly NOT compatible with xp work (Square 98 Block, Round XP Hole)... :D

[EnisDonKing]

Wow, if thats true I'm quite surprised, the blue screen of death has almost never* popped up on me with XP, oh well I'm sure they will iron it out shortly, when it hits the real world and their tech support lines are ringing off the hook.

* It popped up a few times when I was trying to make a scanner explicitly NOT compatible with xp work (Square 98 Block, Round XP Hole)... :D

hehe, well check this out: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=884130&product=windowsxpsp2

It's Microsoft official of software which has issues with SP2.. Damn, they could make their own software compatible, at least.

[NeilV]

Thats it for the moment I think I will stick with Win 2k At least it works with the SP and patches :p

[Josh]

Wow, Norton 2003, Nero, Auto Cad, Photoshop, Word, Cute FTP, Sim City, etc

It's like they listed off every progrogram I run short of Winamp, Trillian, and Pharaoh! wow.


... wait... Installshield? :confused: how can Installshield have an issue! Everything uses that!

[Hathornefer]

... huge list of compability issues, random crashes (Mr. Blue Screen attacks) and other stuff which didn't occur with SP1a+pre-SP2 patches. I recommend you to download individual patches and wait for some XP SP2a addition with bugs being fixed, indeed.

*Sits down quietly and shivers while turning a strange shade of green*


Kind of glad that I update regularly - but it sends fear to the heart as it isnt all that uncommon to have to rebuild a pc during testing :( I hope the option to install individually isnt removed in the future when SP2 out there

*Gets normal colour back*


Hath
x

[Little von]

I run xp on my piece-o'-crap-laptop, which I also use for my games. I had an issue with MS, IE crashing at odd intervals. I'd send in the report and MS would send back that I had the sasser worm and told me how to delete the worm files that were mucking up my system. I never did find any of those files, but IE kept crashing. Finally I DL'ed mozilla and the problem has stopped.

Later xp began to lock up and go blue, then do a physical memory dump. At first it only happened on rare occasions, but last week it was to the point that I could not even start the 'puter up, let alone get online. I was certain I had some new strain of bug or worm eating up my HD. By happy chance a chat pal of mine told me about some compatibility problems the new Yahoo Messenger beta was causing. I had recently DL'ed this new beta. I deleted it (let me tell you it was one complicated, nasty bugger to get out of my system... it had files in places NO simple net communication program should have had them) and since then no more blue.

If there are already some probs with the SP-2 update, I'll just do with it like I do with most new PC game releases..., wait for the patches to come out that fix it before installing/DL'ing. Dang blasted Yahoo.... http://pages.prodigy.net/rogerlori1/emoticons/computer2.gif

[Nero Would]

I'm no great supporter of Microsoft, but they do seem to be trying to do the right thing with SP2. They are trying to tighten up security in Windows. Not surprisingly, many of the insecure features of Windows have been made use of by legitimate applications. In past updates, Microsoft has given a high priority to not breaking existing applications. This time around they are saying that if applications don't work in SP2 because they rely on insecure features that were removed, that the applications must be changed.

During the extensive beta test of SP2, many applications have been modified to work correctly in the new SP2 environment. There are some that still do not work, or that have features (which could be major or minor) that do dot work. If Microsoft stick to their guns, we should expect fixes for these incompatibilities to come in the form of changes to the application rather than patches to Windows.

So should you install SP2? I think it would be wise to proceed with caution. Find out what, if any, problems your applications have with SP2. If there are significant problems, you might want to wait for a fix. But keep in mind that in the case of older applications (especially non-current versions), there may never be a fix. In that case, you have a choice of replacing the application (or buying an upgrade), or doing without SP2.

[Eddy]

It's like they listed off every progrogram I run short of Winamp, Trillian, and Pharaoh! wow.



Geez, why don't they just list the programs that don't break instead, the list would be shorter.

[Josh]

From what I have been reading it sounds like a lot of the security "fixes" they have implemented is less fixing holes in the system, but closing options by default that open your computer up to the outside, Like enabling the firewall by default. (I dont care much for that firewall, its a little tricky to configure and a novice would have no idea why his program can no longer function (or how to open the port) unlike other (pay) firewalls it doesnt ask you if you want to let the application through or not before blocking it.)

[virus2]

Wow, Norton 2003, Nero, Auto Cad, Photoshop, Word, Cute FTP, Sim City, etc

It's like they listed off every progrogram I run short of Winamp, Trillian, and Pharaoh! wow.


... wait... Installshield? :confused: how can Installshield have an issue! Everything uses that!

Installshield = the program that creates the setup program, setup programs that comes with games and programs all work just fine.

the incompatibility with many programs and games are not bugs. Microsoft won't fix those issues. Instead the software vendors have to make sure that their program are compatible with Windows XP SP2. microsoft has repeatedly indicated this in the beta newsgroup and press releases.

The list is not a list of programs that do not work with SP2. It's a list of programs that were reported during the beta test to have problems with SP2 installed. Problems ranges from update feature not working to frequent crashes. Also not everyone will encounter those problems. A program might work just fine on your computer while it crashes at your friends computer.

Most of my programs including many from the list (nero, cuteftp, icq, autocad, unreal, Kazaa, office, realplayer, zonealarm and more) work without any problems and by disabling the firewall, every single program and game on my computer works fine. a few games and programs like C&C won't work online with the firewall but that's all.

[virus2]

There have been warnings issued by some tech sources that there can be problems if you install SP2 for some systems. So like anything backup your system before installing this SP. One of the known issues is that there can be shut down issues with some systems.

yeah if you have a illegal winxp copy. ms has now blacklisted all corp keys except PID640 keys. all cd-keys in the internet are now blocked and the best thing is it won't tell you during the setup. instead after the reboot, you will be forced to activate your windows (again) and you can't get back to SP1/RTM without a format/installing windows from scratch

[mouse]

Excuse me virus2 you are mistaken the tech newsletter warnings do not apply to illegal copies of XP. IBM has also blocked updating of all it's systems to XP SP2 because of known problems (doubt that IBM is using illegal copies of XP). XP SP2 doesn't have problems on every system but if it's your system that is trashed it really doesn't matter to you if your's is the only system.

[NeilV]

yeah if you have a illegal winxp copy. ms has now blacklisted all corp keys except PID640 keys. all cd-keys in the internet are now blocked and the best thing is it won't tell you during the setup. instead after the reboot, you will be forced to activate your windows (again) and you can't get back to SP1/RTM without a format/installing windows from scratch

Here is a quote from MS

Microsoft has worked out the 20 most pirated product IDs and SP2 will not install and run on any copy of XP bearing one of those numbers.
"The situation at the moment is that we will block those," he said.

It is unclear what effect this strategy will have in countries where much of software used is illegal. For instance, the anti-piracy Business Software Alliance estimates that 92% of software in China is pirated.

Mr Randle said Microsoft was keeping its SP2 strategy under constant review.

Service Pack 1 for Windows XP worked with almost all legitimate and pirated versions of the software.

Only those copies of XP that used the two most widely pirated product IDs were barred from getting the upgrade.


Not many company’s use pirated software but a lot of them wont up date until we know our software will work properly we had problems with SP2 (I think it was that one) with Win NT and everyone waited for the next SP to fix the problems before updating

Best advice at the moment is to turn off auto update (patch available) update manually. Fixes should be available in 2 to 3 weeks and hopefully by then MS Gets rid of that new security risk they call a firewall (other programs can disable it that sound very safe) check out Tech sites for information on when its safe to update.

[Bizkit]

I have never installed a SP. I simply re-install Windows every few months and format once a year. The system works perfectly fine, with a firewall, an anti-virus and a trojan detector keeping it clean. Never saw the need to get the SP and I probably won't, unless I run into serious problems.

[NeilV]

I have never installed a SP. I simply re-install Windows every few months and format once a year. The system works perfectly fine, with a firewall, an anti-virus and a trojan detector keeping it clean. Never saw the need to get the SP and I probably won't, unless I run into serious problems.

I do install the SP but mainly as a test so that I can then install them on to my customers PC's

I my self re-install my pc every couple of months but I format at the same time

[Son of Moose]

Does anyone know when this release will be available on the Windows XP Help and Support Center? It is still not currently available --- although I am now just a tad concerned about downloading it!!

With kindest regards

[NeilV]

got this from BBC online

Home PC users will be able to get one of Microsoft's biggest software overhauls ever later this week.

The software giant has told BBC News Online that its SP2 security patch will be put on servers that automatically update home PCs as from Wednesday.

The consumer version is smaller than the business edition released to corporate customers in early August.

I persume they mean Wed 18th But could be 25th you know what MS is like :rolleyes:

[NeilV]

Might find this interesting

Software problems

Early reports suggest that SP2 can cause problems with some programs that expect to have net access.

PC with Windows XP home edition
Microsoft is advising users to turn on the automatic Windows update
The firewall in XP is turned on by default which could make these programs work differently, or stop altogether, once SP2 is in place.

Users having problems are advised to check Microsoft's S2 support pages to find out how to get software working again.

Common programs that SP2 has an impact on include many games, business applications and even some anti-virus software.

Microsoft recommends that people tidy up their PC before they install SP2 and make sure it is clean of viruses and spyware.

Although SP2 will help prevent against some future infections, it may not notice if a machine is already infected with malicious programs.

[mouse]

Release for auto update has been pushed back at least 2 weeks and there are 47 known problems with SP 2 :D

[Son of Moose]

Thanks for the update guys! :)

So the SP2 patch might (or might not) be available for download from as early as tomorrow. I really must remember to perform a thorough virus scan BEFORE I even contemplate downloading it. :eek:

[NeilV]

Release for auto update has been pushed back at least 2 weeks and there are 47 known problems with SP 2 :D

and I only checked five min before posting reply oh well :o

[NeilV]

Intresting artical about tyding up your system befor you install SP2

http://www.thechannelinsider.com/article2/0,1759,1636894,00.asp

And this one on the release date

http://www.thechannelinsider.com/article2/0,1759,1636687,00.asp

[Keith]

For info about setting up the new SP2 Firewall function check this set of 3 pages starting at this link:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/security/internet/sp2_wfintro.mspx

[halberd388]

As a Dell Tech, I've gotten close to 200 calls since the beta release of SP2, and in all honesty, most of the problems can be resolved by formating the system, and installing the SP2 from full install. It appears the Delta Compression method still isn't bug free and causes some glitches beyond just the port issues with programs.

Also, the release of SP2 into Windows Update should occur within the next few weeks, exactly when it still just a rumor as MS hasn't released an acctual announcement to their partners (I.E. Dell) on the exact date. We have an ESTIMATED Date of the 26th of this month (August), could be sooner, could be later.

Do NOT Installed SP2b (BETA), as in it is STILL a beta. The uninstall of the beta is still extreamly buggy as well, so if you attempt to uninstall, it will most likely fail (Unless they updated that within the past 2 days that is).

With all Microsoft updates, you update Windows at your own risk, as in if something stops working... sorry mate. People kept got tired of worms after Sasser, so Ol Gates decided "If they are sick of worms, we'll lock it so tight that if a worm gets through, it won't be our fault". Will it work? It's not yet determined, as hackers and viri creators are always probing for the weaknesses within programs. Hackers are a good thing though, they pinpoint problems that programers over look, and there for in a way I applaud them.

I say yet again, don't install SP2 beta (The one that is not released to Windows Update). When it is, get the FULL installed, format your HDD, reinstall Windows, and install SP2 before installing anything else, then install your anti virus and firewall programs before installing your applications and games. You must train the firewalls or manualy configure them to your games and applications, and with SP2, certain programs may STILL not work afterwards.

Info from your friendly Dell Tech.

[wodinoneeye]

Does MicroSoft offer a free CDROM distribution of this patch??

If not, why not....

Its not my fault they originally released it full of security holes and
a 270 meg download (or 90+) is prohibitive for dial up users/ non-internet users.

Disks are cheap to produce these days -- they could even publish
it with one of their Magazines ($5 nominal user cost).

BTW big companies like IBM have held back their employees from installing the Service Pack before they have a chance to determine what
applications are broken by it (there has been news of more than a few problems..)

[wodinoneeye]

As a Dell Tech, I've gotten close to 200 calls since the beta release of SP2, and in all honesty, most of the problems can be resolved by formating the system, and installing the SP2 from full install. It appears the Delta Compression method still isn't bug free and causes some glitches beyond just the port issues with programs.

Also, the release of SP2 into Windows Update should occur within the next few weeks, exactly when it still just a rumor as MS hasn't released an acctual announcement to their partners (I.E. Dell) on the exact date. We have an ESTIMATED Date of the 26th of this month (August), could be sooner, could be later.

Do NOT Installed SP2b (BETA), as in it is STILL a beta. The uninstall of the beta is still extreamly buggy as well, so if you attempt to uninstall, it will most likely fail (Unless they updated that within the past 2 days that is).

With all Microsoft updates, you update Windows at your own risk, as in if something stops working... sorry mate. People kept got tired of worms after Sasser, so Ol Gates decided "If they are sick of worms, we'll lock it so tight that if a worm gets through, it won't be our fault". Will it work? It's not yet determined, as hackers and viri creators are always probing for the weaknesses within programs. Hackers are a good thing though, they pinpoint problems that programers over look, and there for in a way I applaud them.

I say yet again, don't install SP2 beta (The one that is not released to Windows Update). When it is, get the FULL installed, format your HDD, reinstall Windows, and install SP2 before installing anything else, then install your anti virus and firewall programs before installing your applications and games. You must train the firewalls or manualy configure them to your games and applications, and with SP2, certain programs may STILL not work afterwards.

Info from your friendly Dell Tech.



Everything at Microsofts convienence....

They should be able to make it workable to retroactively install the
Service Pack (quite user unfriendly to force them to backup 20+ gig of data
and reload and reconfigure ALL of their applications).

Ignoring all the security issues in the first release was bad enough (really should be renamed 'MicroShoddy').

If you think my opinion is unreasonable, I have professionally programmed and tested software for 20 years, and would feel ashamed to put my name onto
the Microsoft product due to its lack of proper quality. They are just more interested in making money and quick fixes than in the quality required for a consumer product. They have the resources to do it right, but they dont care.

[Keith]

Does MicroSoft offer a free CDROM distribution of this patch??

If not, why not....

Its not my fault they originally released it full of security holes and
a 270 meg download (or 90+) is prohibitive for dial up users/ non-internet users.

Disks are cheap to produce these days -- they could even publish
it with one of their Magazines ($5 nominal user cost).

BTW big companies like IBM have held back their employees from installing the Service Pack before they have a chance to determine what
applications are broken by it (there has been news of more than a few problems..)
According to the announcement I heard, there will be a free CD available a few weeks after the download is made avaiable. The only hitch is that it will take 4-6 weeks to get delivered.

[NeilV]

I say yet again, don't install SP2 beta (The one that is not released to Windows Update). When it is, get the FULL installed, format your HDD, reinstall Windows, and install SP2 before installing anything else, then install your anti virus and firewall programs before installing your applications and games. You must train the firewalls or manualy configure them to your games and applications, and with SP2, certain programs may STILL not work afterwards.

Info from your friendly Dell Tech.

:D Typical Tech support reply Format and reinstall (I used to teach Dell tech agents to say this) but I should not have to rebuild every pc that needs this Patch most of my customers now are small businesses 2-3 PCs they will not be happy paying me to rebuild their comps just to add this patch I can see most of them saying wait until we need to then. :(

Can you imagine bigger company’s doing this as well? It may be the best way but not the most practical :eek:

[Son of Moose]

This whole thing seems somewhat reminiscent of the Y2K scam where unscrupulous computer boffins cashed in "big time" on the back of widespread user panic. :mad:

[NeilV]

Just on the firewall issue

How long before the next round of anti trust/anti completive court cases start because of the firewall included in Europe we are supposed to be getting a ver of XP with out media player (but MS is fighting and stalling as normal) a lot of companies make a lot of money off firewalls but that may stop as it is included.
(The got one for free why pay for a better one group)
:) :rolleyes:

[tobing]

One good reason to use some other FW software is that the internal FW of SP2 does not bound outgoing packets, only incoming packets may be blocked. So if you install a worm that sends mail it will do so even if the internal FW is up and running.

All the other FW software I know of also does outbound protection, and that is qhy I will continue to use my free copy of Kerio.

[Josh]

I think its a good move on Microsoft's part to include such basic utilities with it's OS, Anti-trust or not, I used to hate having to install every little utility from all over the web, I mean could you imagine a OS without a basic text reader, or a browser? Stock sound players, unziping tools, and firewalls are just a new extention of this, its a basic nessesity, not an optional component. The extra features pay software offfers (Auto-unzipping, with winzip or advanced program activated port opening of norton FW) is what people will actualy put their money down for. (its when microsoft starts playing the role of the pay utilities, as can be seen with the new (rediculously bloated) version of media player.

[NeilV]

The first hole's in SP2 found already see artical

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/3583860.stm

[Sagebrush]

I haven't installed SP 2 on my computer and, of course, I don't know whether I'll actually be a beta tester but does anyone know if the Tilted Mill folks prefer the people who have applied to be beta testers to have updated their Win XP computers to SP 2 or not to have or they don't care one way of the other? I was planning to hold off until after I find out if I've been selected and if selected until after the beta is completed


Sagebrush

[Bizkit]

AFAIK, they're looking for people with all kinds of systems, so you've got a chance no matter what kind of OS or graphics display you have (within certain limits, of course). But only the people in charge can give you a definite answer.

[Little von]

Cripes, I've had SP2 popping up on my piece-o'-crap-(xp)laptop auto update since yesterday.

No, I'm not going to DL the blasted thing, yet.

[Hathornefer]

I was brave, Little Von. I had the update message this evening and I have just downloaded and installed it. It gave me absolutely no problems at all :D

Of course your experience may be VERY different - but just thought I would share that some of us seem to come out the other side in one peice :p

Hath
x

PS If I dont post tomorrow thens the time to worry :rolleyes:

[lady_mags]

I too have installed Windows SP2 and have had no problems with it. :D :D

[krclark]

So far I have updated both of my daughters' computers with no problems. However, I know a couple of the programs on my laptop and my main gaming rig have known issues.

So, for now I too will wait until further patches are available to address those issues.

Oh, by the way, many of the programs that have issues with the SP only have problems with the install/uninstall. So, if they are already installed and working properly, you should not have any problems with those programs.

For example, ZoneAlarm has issues listed for several versions, but neither I nor many of my co-workers that use it have noticed any problems so far on the systems that have been updated.

[Keith]

The order page (http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/updates/sp2/cdorder/en_us/default.mspx) is up.

[Son of Moose]

Installed it last night. Also so far so good ... :)

[Hathornefer]

*Waves hello to Mags*

Yup - still here.

[Little von]

Huh..., well then I guess I'll install mine tonight after I finish my work day.

If y'all never hear from me again, you will know the install developed some "complications." :p

[krclark]

Good luck!

I would encourage you to make a complete system image first, that would allow you get back up and running in a matter of minutes instead of hours (or even days...) in the event of problems.

Of course, if you don't already own a program to do this, it can be a (fairly) substantial investment for something you may never really need. Kind of like insurance for your computer software install.

[Sagebrush]

I ordered the SP 2 CD on line last Friday thinking I'd have 4 to 6 weeks to make up my mind about what to do with it. Well, it showed up in my mail today. So much for 4 to 6 weeks!


Sagebrush

[krclark]

Man, you have to hate when companies send you stuff you asked for right away... :rolleyes:

Seriously though, it is good to know they are taking the whole patch/fix issue seriously enough to send the discs quickly.

I will be ordering mine shortly, so I can use it to update any of computers for friends/workers with Dial-Up only connections. (Providing of course they are fully aware of possible problems with the patch first.)

[Manni]

In the wintotal-forum which is an XP-questions/help/answer platform someone has mentioned that he uninstalled the SP2 again cos "some programs caused trouble".
Afterwards there were still those troubles.......even system-snapshot didn`t work anymore..............

[tobing]

I would never trust any uninstall when it comes to really important changes to the OS. So I always create a disk image before to that I can restore to.

[Josh]

I really wish the download security stuff could be disabled, I really feel quite secure simply accepting or refusing a download, not checking that I really want this file 3 times.

Does anyone know if you can disable that stuff? (the popup tab and whatnot that comes up on the top of explorer)

[Keith]

I really wish the download security stuff could be disabled, I really feel quite secure simply accepting or refusing a download, not checking that I really want this file 3 times.

Does anyone know if you can disable that stuff? (the popup tab and whatnot that comes up on the top of explorer)
While I don't have it yet, I am sure you can make some security adjustments from the XP Control Panel.

I did pickup a small utlity program called Winner Tweak (http://www.g4techtv.com/feature.aspx?article_key=44669) from the TechTV website about a year ago. It probably hasn't been updated for SP2 yet, but it lets you change the many settings of XP all from it's one panel. TechTV is a cable computer tech show that features all the latest tech gear and software.

[Manni]

They want 22 bucks for that small tool............

[tobing]

If you want free tools, try microsofts TweakUI or the freeware XSetup. Latter is really powerful and can change many settings from within Windows which are usually hidden.

[Keith]

They want 22 bucks for that small tool............
They do? I never bought it and it seems fully functional. I just downloaded it from the TechTV site and installed it.

[Josh]

Yeah I have Tweak UI but a lot of this stuff seems really stubborn to go away, I looked through the security options for a long time and couldnt find it, (if anyone knows where it is please tell)

It just seems very stubborn, like if you dont use microsofts new (more forcefull) firewall it will keep an icon in your start bar warning you about it, Even though my network is double wrapped, (I have a hardware firewall and a good pay software firewall, port scans cant even see a computer at my IP) but yet microsoft wont let me forget that I'm not using their (hard to configure, very few advanced options, non outgoing port blocking) firewall

Overall I think this is probably a good thing in the overall scheme of things, ensuring that every idiot with a computer now has some basic security protection, and probably makes me safer because they are safer. Though I personaly feel comfortable with a little less protection and a little more convenience.

[Cironir]

*nods* Yes, it has to be so persistent to protect people (and us from them) who are very trusting and naive, or simply don't know what they're doing. I, too, would prefer if everyone educated themselves about basic security matters, but fact is, most computer owners todays are just users, not "geeks".

I've installed SP2 last night, followed by SP3 for Office. Both went smoothly without any trouble. I'd recommend to run Spybot S&D (http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html) before upgrading to SP2, by the way. Just to get rid of all the junk that may now have a harder time to stick to the system.

[Bizkit]

I have Spybot and it does a pretty good job, but it didn't get me completely rid of a few adware programs. I've got this abnoxious explorer-hijacker, that won't let me use IE. I'm on Opera now. I'll format tomorrow anyway.

I've got a question. What is your preffered combination of commercial anti-virus and firewall? I used to have Norton and Zone Alarm, then I switched to AVG and Sygate. Those and The Cleaner, against trojans.

[NeilV]

I always use

Advast :Anti V software
Ad-aware : spy ware remover (I manually run once a day)
And sygate firewall

Since use all three at once not had a virus or ad ware hyjacking of the system at all :)

[Keith]

There is a newer build of Ad-Adware available now. It's called Ad-Adware SE Personal (http://www.lavasoftusa.com/). I updated to it last week.

[Bizkit]

Me too, got it off download.com. That's where I got SpyBot too, I searched for Most Downloaded.

What's frustrating and, at the same time, intriguing about ad-ware is that some of those pesky pop-ups are actually ads for Anti-Spyware programs. Which, of course, cost money.
It's like those mad doctors who create viruses, spread them over <populated area>, then collect the fees from selling the antidote.

*sticks pins into a <adware creator> voodoo doll*

[Manni]

Spyware Blaster is a good one
Get it from www.javacoolsoftware.com

[Cironir]

I've got this abnoxious explorer-hijacker, that won't let me use IE. I'm on Opera now. I'll format tomorrow anyway.

I only use IE to get Windows and Office updates, but Firefox (http://www.mozilla.org/products/firefox/) for everything else. Been quite some time now, too, without any troubles. I've installed the Tabbrowser extension for some added comfort.


I've got a question. What is your preffered combination of commercial anti-virus and firewall? I used to have Norton and Zone Alarm, then I switched to AVG and Sygate. Those and The Cleaner, against trojans.

I had been using Norton for years, but eventually felt a bit "milked" for money. Since about a year ago, I'm using Avast! (http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html). It updates its virus definitions daily, works well with alternate email clients, and does not drag down my system performance. It's free for home users. I usually connect through my FreeBSD (http://www.freebsd.org/) machine, which functions as firewall, so I've not needed a software firewall on my Windows box. The SP2 firewall looks pretty decent, though. I also like Privoxy (http://www.privoxy.org/), a free transparent HTTP proxy.

[Cassiopeia]

I have Spybot and it does a pretty good job, but it didn't get me completely rid of a few adware programs. I've got this abnoxious explorer-hijacker, that won't let me use IE. I'm on Opera now. I'll format tomorrow anyway.


What I've seen recommended elsewhere, is to run both Spybot S&D and Lavasoft's Ad-aware. Each one finds malware that the other one misses.

[Little von]

Same here, Cassiopeia, I run them both. If there was a third freebie anti parasite software out there, I'd run that one, too.

One must be careful which free, anti "somethings" one DL's and installs, of course. Just as in RL, there is no free lunch and some of those free DL's actually have their own spyware bug built into the program.

Oh, I run the ZoneAlarm firewall, too. It's also free and if you have never had an active firewall working on your sys before, it is a real eye opener how much stuff is out there trying to invade your sys that you were never previously aware of. The firewall that comes with the XP OS is a joke.

[Mosses]

XP Service Pack2 is a real pain. If you have older game like Emperor: Rise of the Middle Kingdom they will not work. SP2 also creates alot more havoc. I have part of the SP2 still trying to load at bootup, and this is the 100th time I have booted my program. (It continues there even after you have remove SP2.) You also have to deal with the extra warnings that occur, like "downloading can be dangerous". (my shorten version of the warning). I will try again later now it more of a pain.

[Little von]

I still haven't installed SP2 to my piece-o'-crap-laptop. I'm afraid it will kill this poor sick xp notebook.

I've been having a problem with a warning that keeps popping up from the task bar, WINDOWS: delayed write failed

Than a bunch of other windows show up on the main screen about this same time telling me about individual file data contents that have been lost. While this is going on the computer freezes up, then sloooooooooooowly comes back to life. Sometimes I'll get a dozen or more of these at a time and all I can do is wait until the computer recovers enough to click each of them off individually. At times this will take half an hour or more to get a bunch done and within minutes another batch of these pop up to clog the machine again.

No way I'm introducing SP2 to THAT mess. :P

Anybody have any idea what that "delayed write failed" message means and what can be done about it?

[Pecunia]

Anybody have any idea what that "delayed write failed" message means and what can be done about it?
I don't know, but apparently the folks at Microsoft do: http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=330174
If the suggestions in that article don't help, try searching in the MS Knowledge Base or on Google on the error message, maybe you'll find a solution :)

[Cironir]

XP Service Pack2 is a real pain. If you have older game like Emperor: Rise of the Middle Kingdom they will not work.

I haven't tried Emperor, but Pharaoh works. The old Pro Pinball series works also -- in fact, I just beat my old highsore in Big Race USA when I tested this prior to writing this post. ;) Diablo II works, too. Haven't tried other, older games since I upgraded two nights ago.

[Little von]

I don't know, but apparently the folks at Microsoft do: http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=330174
If the suggestions in that article don't help, try searching in the MS Knowledge Base or on Google on the error message, maybe you'll find a solution :)


Hey, thanks Pecunia! I have such a bad attitude about M$ that even though I use their OS, I never think to contact them about anything. :o

I'm going to give option #3 a try..., thanks again. :)

[imhotep3147]

Well, I DL'ed and installed the darn thing without even thinking about it. Pure pandamonium ruled for about 2 hours because I thought that it killed my IE...... *grins sheepishly* turns out that when my bf went to plug something in behind the TV he knocked the cable out of the cable modem. Let this be a lesson to all.......make sure you check out all the idiot scenarios before you go for a more technical explanation :D

BTW: no problems so far with SP2 and I played Emperor last night for several hours and it gave me no probs either. I am running XP on a Compaq laptop if anyone is wondering.

[Buzzkill]

I have actually uninstalled the service pack because it made GTA Vice City (and other games that use the engine, ie. The Simpsons Road Rage) unplayable. If you are into those games, watch out.

BuzzKill