My Experiences with Windows XP SP3

Entry for December 30, 2008

Well folks, it has finally happened -- AskWoody.com has issued the status MS Defcon 5 -- ALL CLEAR. This applies to Windows XP SP3 only now.

Windows XP sp3 is now safe to install, except that it reverts Flash Player (update that) and may mess up Microsoft Updates (Go to MS Updates and run through the process to fix that.).

There may be a patch which needs to be removed before the sp3 install, and all anti-virus, firewalls, and background processes should be shut down before installing sp3. I recommend getting the CD version from Microsoft and installing sp3 from there. (The download takes forever!)

As always, I am responsible for the content of this blog, but my information comes from AswWoody.com, Windows Secrets web site, and other reliable tech resources on the Internet.

Update Wed., Jan.14, 2009, 6:55 PM CST:

I just finished installing the Acronis 2009 and Disk Director 10 programs, and the Acronis 2009 Update. There were also new Rescue Media to burn. I still haven't figured out what I'm supposed to do to make a BartPE Rescue Disk -- my efforts so far won't boot.

Update, Dec. 6, 2009, 3:02 PM CST:

I did finally get the BartPE Rescue Media working. The Media are OK up through True Image Home 2009. TIH-2010 may not yet have BartPE specific Rescue Media. I should check in with Acronis about that sometime soon, I suppose. (End Edit.)

I also installed Windows XP Service Pack 3, and the installation ran FOREVER! I thought the thing had failed, but after two hours, it indicated success. This was confirmed by visiting Microsoft Updates and running Secunia Personal Software Inspector (the desktop version of this version tracker). And I must say that Microsoft really dropped the ball when they downgraded Flash Player Active X to Version 6! That is unforgivable, as even last March, Flash Player was in Version 9. It took a lot of reconfiguring of Internet Explorer (which I usually keep tightly locked-down) to get the Flash issue resolved. And the Comodo Firewall was not cooperating with the Flash downloader or its installer. (Note: The Flash Downloader Helper turned out to be classic adware -- I erased the Active-X Control with the Acronis File Shredder utility, and I recommend others to do likewise for security reasons.)

Speaking of Comodo, they have gone over to a full-scale security suite, in a free version or a paid version. The firewall now offers an option of including a Stack Overflow ("leak test") protection module on top of Defense +, which is proactive protection beyond a traditional firewall. And it is not necessary to install the whole suite (with AV and AS). If all you need is a firewall, you can choose that option. I think the Firewall, Defense +, and Memory Firewall (Stack Overflow protection) is the best combination, and for AV/AS, I use Avast 4.8 (free version) with Super Antispyware (free version) for additional AS scanning. Scans take about an hour with SAS, and another hour with Avast on my computer. Your mileage may vary.

No ill effects from these upgrades so far. I'll post further if anything interesting develops.

-- LittleWolf --

Updated Wed., Jan.14, 2009, 6:55 PM CST

New update, Mon., Feb. 23, 2009 --

I noticed that when I hibernate my laptop lately for more than one day, it fails to recognize any of the account passwords, and I am forced to reboot. This may be a side-effect of installing Windows XP SP-3. More as it develops, but this is the first sp-3 glitch I have yet suspected.

As of Dec. 6, 2009, this little glitch seems to have gone away. But I do not hibernate my laptop for very long anymore.

-- LittleWolf --

Entry for January 14, 2009

Edited by LittleWolf Wed., Feb. 25, 2009, 12:30 PM, CST:

As stated here before, I have upgraded to Windows XP SP3, and I will continue to list that as an MS DEFCON 5: All clear, and very few problems encountered so far. Just make sure you keep up with Image Backups of your SP3 system. Once the upgrade is applied, your OEM restore media will no longer be able to return you to SP2 Windows without destroying your data. So make the SafeMedia Rescue CD, and use Acronis True Image Home 2009. It will be perfectly adequate, even if the computer will not boot. (That's what the Rescue CD is for.)

-- LittleWolf --

Last Edited by LittleWolf Sun., Dec. 6, 2009, 3:05 PM CST.

Digital TV Converter Boxes -- One Year Later

Entry for March 09, 2008

I've been spending a lot of time this week and especially this weekend, locating converter boxes for my Analog TV set and several VCRs. I wanted to try several brands, so that there would be as little code overlap for the Remote Controls as possible. My findings in the Chicago area (Southwest Suburbs) are as follow.

Zenith's unit (bought at Circuit City) worked just fine. Insignia and GE (Digital Stream) units were OK. The GE Unit (bought at Radio Shack) gets the best reception with a normal amplified antenna (nothing special), and Insignia (bought at Best Buy) is about the same as Zenith. (In fact, the Zenith and Insignia units share the same Remote Codes.) Magnavox (from Wal Mart) is unacceptable. Terrible sensitivity and poor outputs. CBS-DT (Channel 3 around here) has terrible reception, probably due to signal-bounce and its relatively long wavelength. WTTW (Channel 11, and its sub-channels) offers the best use of its digital allocation, having four distinct channels of digital content, only one of which duplicates its analog counterpart. And ABC-7-DT does the best job of presenting 24-hour news and weather/traffic information. Even distant Channel 56-DT (Indiana) comes in pretty well sometimes on some antennas.

Antennas also make a difference. The best results are in locatins free of nearby metal or thick masonry. (Metal reflects signals, causing interference, and masonry can block signals.) The exact angle of the antenna is important, and amplification is recommended at most distances from the signal sources. The antenna needs to be strongly directional and discrete, rejecting competing signals. And both VHF and UHF will be used after the completion of the Digital TV Transition. But Channels 2, 3, 4 and 5 VHF will no longer be used (thank god!). Rescanning for channels after June 12, 2009 will be necessary.

What I need now are some extra coaxial switches, and maybe a new antenna or two, and I should be set up for the DTV conversion mid-year (2009). Recordings of the downconverted analog outputs on VCRs work just fine, especially with Composite (RCA) connections (Line In). April 30, 2009: Note that VCRs with tuners are no longer available in the USA.

One annoying thing about these tuners is that they do not change channels at specified future times, so timed recordings have to be set up on one channel per device only. I recently (March, 2009) found the TiVo Pal at my local K Mart. This unit uses the TiVo Guide but does not require the use of the TiVo Subscription Service, and can be timed to tune to a specific event, channel and all, and to switch channels for each event. Same price as the non-programmable ones, too. This is what I wish I had gotten for all of my VCRs. On the other hand, stand-alone VCRs are not being sold in the USA anymore, so I think time-shifting without a subscription service may be on its way out. That would be a dark day for consumer freedoms in the USA.

So that's it for now. More on DTV later, as I discover more.

(Edited Mon., March 10, 2008 by LittleWolf )

(Edited Thurs., April 30, 2009 by LittleWolf)

Sunday March 9, 2008 - 05:40pm (CDT)

Edited by LittleWolf Thursday, April 30, 2009, 2:20 PM CDT

Welcome to LittleWolf's blog

Welcome to my new blog location!

I got sick and tired of Yahoo not maintaining their servers for Yahoo 360, so here I am, one of many Yahoo refugees, I suspect. I will try to continue my blogging practices from Yahoo 360, except that illustrations seem not to be in vogue over here. I'll find out about all of the details later. Right now, I need to post some content.

My interests include computers, home user software, and television watching. Musically, I am not into any specific genre, but just about any form which would appeal to a fifty-something American male would be tolerable to me. As I post, probably a few more details about me will filter out.

Time to get started here!

Taking content from Yahoo 360 over here is easy if done manually. I may do editing and labeling later, but right now, I'm just going for the content.

More updates as warranted. I love it here so far!!

Update: For those who are into such details, this blog is time-stamped to Central Time, USA (with Daylight Savings Time when needed). Still loving it here. but I wish I had more time to blog about my own thoughts and opinions -- of which I have many. See my frequent Comments at Infoworld blogs ( http://www.infoworld.com/blogs ) , PC World (Home Page or News items, as well as the members-only Forums) ( http://www.pcworld.com ) , or AskWoody ( http://www.askwoody.com ) .

Entry last edited by LittleWolf Wed, Oct 14, 2009, 11:26 AM CDT (USA).