Web Coach

On my Compaq Presario R30000 LT, with Windows XP Professional, I have burned a lot of CDs but most of them end up with an error before finalizing. Now these CDs are unable to run on any PC or DVD player.

Is there any way I can play them with any software to get Data back. It is case sensitive. Secondly I had an important Video on my hard drive which was burned on a CD by Windows Movie Maker. Unfortunately, that CD is broken. Please tell me any free software, which can get it back from HD. I tried Pandora but it cannot pull it back.
Mira

I am afraid Mira that since there was an error before the burning process completed successfully, you cannot really play these CDs since data writing failed. Regarding the video, since you have already deleted that file, you cannot recover it unless you haven't written anything else on the hard drive. Data Recovery software is only useful when you don't write anything on the hard drive. The data which you delete resides on the hard drive after being deleted for a period of time. As soon as you start writing more data on the drive, the old deleted data is replaced with new one. But don't lose hope, you can try a wonderful data recovery program which is not free but will surely tell you if your data can be recovered or not. It is called Easy Recovery Pro and a free evaluation copy can be downloaded from http://download.cnet.com/1770-20_4-0.html?query=EasyRecovery+Professional&searchtype=downloads. While I also found some free data recovery software but am not sure on how good they are bringing lost data back, but you can always try them: http://www.raymond.cc/blog/archives/2008/01/24/top-10-free-data-recovery-software/. Good luck!

I am using Windows XP SP2. My problem is that whenever I try to open the Add or Remove Programs applet I get an error saying that Value creation failed" at line 21. I've had this problem for quite a while now and can't seem to find a solution.
Adeel Abdullah

This error occurs mostly when you install a theme which is not compatible with Windows XP SP 1 and 2. The incompatible theme then corrupts the Shellstyle.dll file which gives out this error. To get rid of this error you can switch back to Microsoft Theme or go to /WINDOWS/Resources/Themes/<Name of theme in use> and rename the shell folder to the name of the visual style shown in the appearance tab. The above mentioned DLL file can be found at C:\WINDOWS\System32\Shellstyle.dll. Copy the shellstyle.dll file from a working machine of same service pack level to your System32 folder. Good luck.

I have a USB. When I attach it to my Computer and open its Drive, instead of opening the directory it opens Notepad. I have scanned it by Kaspersky AntiVirus with latest Virus Definitions Database and it shows no Virus.
Asif Khan

Looks to me like viral activity which Kaspersky has failed to detect. What you can do here is backup all your data and format the USB drive and see if you get the message again. Also, does the same happen if you try it on another PC? Do give this a try and things should work fine. While you can also try scanning your USB stick online at www.kaspersky.com/virusscanner.

When I try to insert a1GB DDR2 RAM stick on my PC's motherboard it restarts automatically after a few minutes. I don't know why but it runs quite good on two 512 Mb modules. Tell me why it is doing so. I have Pentium 4 processor, Intel D82915 board. Secondly can I connect two PC simultaneously to the internet through PTCL Vfone, if yes how can I do it?
Inam Hyder

This is most probably due to a memory parity error or a difference in bus speed of Ram. Also note that tech experts recommend using two different memory sticks instead of one. Doing so boosts computer speed and also helps memory hungry programs perform much better compared to one single memory module. Secondly since I don't have the correct motherboard number I cannot advice you on what RAM type is compatible with the board. Do send me the correct number as there is no such model number as D82915. If I assume you have the D815 motherboard it only supports a Pentium 3 processor and not a Pentium 4 which you say is installed on your system.

I am a regular visitor to your newspaper's website which is www.express.com.pk, but I am facing a strange problem about the website which is, when I install a fresh copy of Windows XP on my system and access the Express newspaper website for the first time, it load's quickly and perfectly and links also work fine. But after 2 or 3 days the website takes a long time to load and takes up around 5 to 7 minutes to open. The strange thing is if I visit heavy websites such as, youtube.com or webshots.com, its loads quickly and works fine. I am using Mozilla Firefox updated version, I also tried this website to load quickly on internet explorer and also I deleted my history, cookies etc. but the problem remains. I also scanned my hard disk for viruses but found nothing. I am using Avira Antivirus free edition and use cable internet at a speed of 512kpbs. Other than that I have 120GB S.A.T.A hard disk and I want to recover my three year old data using data recovery software. In these three years I have deleted and formatted my hard drive partitions quite a few times. I want to know is there any possibility to recover my old data, and then please suggest me the data recovery software.
Muhammad Yousuf

Now this is a strange error. We have never received such a complaint regarding the Express website. Since there are no problems with other websites like YouTube or Webshots, I have forwarded the query to our Webmaster and he has promised to look into it. Will get back to you as soon as I get the reply from his side. Regarding your second query about recovering data on a hard drive which has been formatted many times, I am afraid you cannot do that but you can see the first answer on this page regarding my reply to data recovery software.

How can I find which video card is installed on my computer? I have tried to find out but always I find the same answer G33/G31 Intel Express Chipset Family. Is this the video card and if yes how can I find whether its 128/256 or 512 capacity one?
Rehan Abbasi

The G31/33 Chipset family of Intel motherboards has an Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 3100. According to the Intel website, this graphic accelerator has 3D enhancements enabled with flexibility and scalability with improved realism support for Microsoft DirectX 9.0c Shader Model 2.0, OpenGL 1.4. Builtin graphic adopters are not classified by their size but share the memory from system RAM. You can allot a specific amount of memory for the graphic adopter in the BIOS settings. For more information on it check out: http://www.intel.com/products/desktop/chipsets/g31/g31-overview.htm.

For the past two years I have saved enough money to buy a 52'' Sony Bravia LCD TV. Now I wish to buy a gaming console, either Sony PS3 or XBOX 360. Can you tell me which console is best for my huge 52'' HDTV? I surf the internet and find that all games of XBOX 360 have a maximum resolution of 720P. On the other hand, PS3 not only has a Blu-ray disc player it also has many games which are in 1080P. I think XBOX 360 must have a lot of Aliasing problem on such large LCDs as compared to PS3. Also PS3 has some Exclusive titles like Little Big Planet and Metal Gear Solid 4 etc. Please give me an ''un-biased'' suggestion on which console should I buy keeping in mind the 52'' screen and above all the Aliasing issues.
Umair Mujahid

It all depends on how hardcore a gamer are you. If you are into action stuff and love blood and gore with extreme details go for the PS3. But if you are the kind of gamer who plays console games just for fun go for the Nintendo Wii. The Nintendo Wii is not only the best selling console; it would be the perfect choice for a 52 inch Sony Bravia LCD. But then again it all boils down to the PS3 and Wii, choose anyone from them and you'd be one happy guy. Good luck!