KKIIDDSS!!!

[Bud Cline]

OK I give up! I know this is an easy one but I'll be damned if I can figure it out.

My daughter was messin' around here and has moved the "START" to the upper right hand corner of the screen. This also means the "bar" is on the right side.

I DON'T WANT IT THERE!

How on earth do I get it back to the bottom where it was. She claims to have done this by accident all in one sweeping stroke of the mouse. "Yeh Right"!!!

[Sponsored Links]

[Cami A]

HEhehehehehe- Jake does this all the time. Right click on your start button and see if there's a "preference " or just something you check for location.

[cx]

Tehehe. Kid's prolly tellin' the truth, Bud. CX does that to me alla time too.

Just grab (double click) somewhere on the bar and drag it back down where it was. It should kinda highlight the border, sorta, when you've got a grip on it. Won't look like it's moving maybe, but when you turn loose, there it goes.

You try that. Couple different times maybe. It'll work.

[Bud Cline]

Cami, right click gives me no such options. I do have options but relocating that sucker isn't one of them.

If I locate the double arrows I can enlarge the thing but not relocate it.

CX, to double click doesn't do anything but enlarge from its present location.

I've been trying all that stuff. This has happened before but it wasn't that hard to correct then, I just don't know how I did it before.

[Cami A]

Hmmmm- does Start- Settings- Taskbar allow you to change it back?

[cx]

Bud:

It's confusing at best. Try to get aholt of it in the far upper right-hand corner and drag to the bottom left-hand corner, no matter what it says it is/is not doing.

I just did what you have a couple times and it worked MOST times. Oh, yeah, it really did.

[Bud Cline]

"B-I-N-G-O"

Something you said CX made me enlarge that sucker as big as it would go, then (and only then) I was able to drag that sucker back to the bottom. The size must have something to do with the ability to drag it.

I'll bet I tried all the suggestions thirty or forty times with no results till now.

THX GUYZ

[cx]

COMPUTERS ARE FEMALE. :D

[Bud Cline]

Now THE DAMMNNED THING froze after clicking "Word".

I rebooted only to find my "START" back on the right side again. So......I took the same steps as before but again it didn't work. AND NOW....... the START is on the left as a result of my messin' around with it and still not able to access Word.

[Cami A]

Well, Bud, what can I say? I still haven't figured out how Jake took the clock display off the browser, and that was over a month ago. :D

[Bud Cline]

The clock display thingy is there I saw it today. It was a right click somewhere then you can click something else to turn the display off and on.

How's that? Pretty helpfull huh?

[Cami A]

Fair's fair, Bud. :D

[flatfloor]

This is sooo simple, just turn the monitor on it's side and give it a good shake. All the pixels will realign themselves.:D

[Bud Cline]

I'm real close to re-aligning all those pixels without ever touching the monitor. Bare-handed that is!!!

Hey Jim when your computer crashed recently what were the symptoms if any?

[jlbos83]

Try this... (for the taskbar, won't help with Word I frear!)

Click and hold somewhere in the blank area of the taskbar. Then mover the pointer down toward the bottom of the screen and then let go. The only danger is putting it too far down, but you should then be able to grad it and drag it back. She probably did do it with one sweep of the mouse!

[flatfloor]

Bud, my computer had been having some software problems on and off for a while, but nothing like what your having. I don'think the symptoms are the same. Then one morning it just wouldn't boot up. Back it up, Back it up!

Where's that big fish guy?

[jlbos83]

I am not the big fish guy, but sometimes I can convince these machines to work. (Not a web type expert liek him, though.) Any details on the current problems, and I will see if I can think of anything to try. One thing to always think about is the last thing that changed...added hardware, new software, etc.

Jeff

[Bud Cline]

The major problem now is that "WORD" won't load.

To click on "WORD" is to freeze everything. I mean everything.

Flip the switch on the tower....turn it back on....everything appears fine....click on "WORD"....everything freezes. I mean everything.

Flip the switch on the tower....turn it back on....everything appears fine....click on "WORD"....everything freezes. I mean everything.

Know what I mean Vern?

[jlbos83]

Do you have the original software to reinstall Word? If everything else is working that would fix any corrupted files in the word installation itself. Another thing you could try first might be to go through 'MyComputer' or the Windows explorer to find the winword.exe and double click that. It could be that while your little one was on your shortcut got corrupted.

Did it just stop working, was anything else running?

I assume there is no error message. What version of windows?

So many questions.....

Jeff

[flatfloor]

Now you have me worried Bud. Do you have one of those programs that's supposed to repair software? Kathleen is going to take a look at this thread in a bit.

[flatfloor]

Beats the s... out of me. :D
Kathleen

[Bud Cline]

Windows 2000. Yes I have the original CD. Did I load WORD myself originally? I don't know if anything else is or isn't working, guess I should try something else, huh?


Thanks so much Kathleen I guess I'll exhale now!!!

[Bud Cline]

OK. Other programs seem to be accessible.

I go thru START/PROGRAMS/WORD and I can get to WORD but not before this thing honks at me and I get a warning: "This program has performed an illegal operation and will be shut down".

I clicked MY COMPUTER and got honked at again. Nothing opened and I got a full page warning saying basically the same thing but this warning offered to restore my ACTIVE DESKTOP at no extra charge. I didn't know there was a problem with my ACTIVE DESKTOP.

I have no iderra wassup widat!

[Edited by Bud Cline on 02-04-2002 at 11:12 PM]

[Big Tuna]

Hey!

I need a new anchor for my boat, sounds like you have just the thing for me!!

Ha, ha, just joking! I see a whole bunch of questions/problems here, what is your current status, what's working now and what isn't.

I'll check later in the day and see how you are making out and give a few tips.

Bob

[Bud Cline]

New day!!!

Everything is status quo!

[jlbos83]

Hmmmmm....
Win2000 is pretty stable (at least my kids have never crashed it!). I feels like some file that Word uses must have been moved or corrupted (unless the problem is something else!) Since you have the Word CD (you probably didn't install it) you could try reinstalling. It won't overwrite any of you existing files (although a backup of them before you start is not a bad plan). Just put the CD in and it should autorun. If I remember correctly it will sense that you already have word installed, and ask if you want to update or repair the existing installation (it has been a while since I did this, but I think there was a choice like that). If you do that, it should lead you through without any real questions to answer. In general, the default settings are fine, and if it turns out that you want to change something, you can do it later.

If this works the next question to think about is how it happened. Unfortunately, it's not going to tell you. Is the kid that was using it a small one who could have accidentally done something?

I just though of aother thing you could try, that might give a clue as to why things went bad. I am not sitting with my Windows 2000 maching right now, but in the 'start, programs, system tools' there should be a disk check of some kind (wish I could remeber what it is called). It might find a damaged or corrupted file. It also might find a lot of others that are not related, they seem to gather over time. The good thing is that you can get rid of them. If you just want to get running, I would go straight for the reinstall and skip this step, since even if you found the problem, you'd probably just need to do the reinstall anyway.

Good luck,
Jeff

[Bud Cline]

Thanks for your suggestions Jeff I'll get to all that shortly. I'm kinda like CX has said before, I just don't want to touch nothin' in here. One bad move always seems to lead to another.

My teenagers tell me I am using about 5% of the capacity of what this machine can do. If that's true, then for me to reachout any further would only magnify my stress level in direct proportion to my machines consumed capacity.

If I where to use this machine at 50% of it's capacity, my stress level would be magnified by 10 times what it is now. That would make me borderline suicidal on a regular basis.

I'd much rather leave it alone.

[flatfloor]

Bud, have you tried shutting it down without going thru procedures, then booting it up again, forcing scan disk to run? used to work once in a while for me.

[Bud Cline]

Many times Jim.

Maybe too many times!!!

I did notice that "scandisk" takes a lot longer than usual to do it's thing tho. Suppose there's some hidden meaning in that?

[JC]

When it says "program did an illegal operation" what does it say if you click the show details button on the alert box?

Reinstall Office if you can..prolly the easiest way..should do the trick.

Make sure to Uninstall first via add/remove programs in the control panel.

Also try you can disable "active desktop" to see if that makes any differance.

[flatfloor]

Not to alarm you but when a power failure shut down my new computer, I was amazed at how quickly Scandisk ran compared to the old computer.

[kdzgon]

Bud,

First and foremost, did you run any anti-virus software on this machine?? If not, start there!!

JC, I disagree with you here on a couple of points - first, you should always try to uninstall any program by using the program's own "uninstall" function (Word has one) first - only if that is unsuccessful should you run the Windows uninstall (from the control panel). Second, repairing Word 2000 is a better first option than uninstalling and re-installing, especially if you are not real familiar with computers and/or program installations.

As to running scandisk, there is a MUCH safer way than doing an abnormal shut down - START>PROGRAMS>ACCESSORIES>SYSTEM TOOLS>SCAN DISK.
If you forget all that, just go to START>HELP, type in scandisk, and hit ENTER. Choose one of the topics, and there will be a shortcut to start scandisk. In that list of topics, you will also have the option to add scandisk to your START menu, where it will be easier for you to find next time.

It is a prudent move to run both scandisk and disk degragmenter (also in the system tools folder, or else START>HELP and type defrag) every so often on your machine. Be sure to shut down everything else that is running in the background so they will run more efficiently. Also, in windows 98, hold down control key when computer starts, or hit f8 key in windows 95 - that runs the computer in "safe mode" with limited drivers, and makes defragging your computer a lot easier (defrags eliminate empty spaces on hard drive, to make it easier and faster on your hard drive.)

Personally, I'd take a really slow scandisk operation on a computer using just 5% of its capabilities as a warning sign.

BTW, there are lots of free sites for simple computer lessons and/or tips, if anyone is interested. There is even a regular radio show in the LA area (also avail via the internet).

If you are more confused and need help, please post again - there are people here able to help out, step by step if need be.

Laurie

[JC]

Does'nt Windows control panel access the same uninstall file as the program uses? ie. if you go into a program and remove the programs uninstall .exe then Add/Remove programs uninstall will not work..Same differance. How good it removes the program is entirely up to how well that programs unistall utility works I don't think Windows does anything additional or differant. Maybe I am missing something.

Also un-installing and re-installing seems to me to be the easiest way since we have no idea what it is and finding out what is causing it will surely take longer to do(no offense Bud). Of couse I could be wrong.

[kdzgon]

JC,

It's my understanding that Windows uninstall works by reversing the steps taken while installing the program, while the program's own uninstall was written from the same programmers and will sometimes remove more files (you know that message you get from Windows uninstall, "..some files...must be removed manually.."?). Often it is the same, but sometimes it is a more complete uninstall using the corresponding uninstall.

Microsoft Office has gotten a lot more finicky - it leaves ID files behind, will sometimes balk at the product key on a re-install, etc. Most of the trouble is a result of Microsoft's attempts at limiting software piracy; unfortunately, it doesn't always work properly. It is also a time-consuming job, and involves writing to the registry, a move best avoided whenever possible. The Repair function is intended for situations such as replacing corrupted files and restoring functionality. It "looks" to see what happened, and restores the program. If it is not successful, the program will promt you to re-install anyway.

Matter of preference, I guess - I just don't like messing with that registry any more than necessary, and I have had my share of problems with re-installs of software with product key requirements.

Laurie

[jlbos83]

That's why I was thinking of a reinstall without uninstalling first. I guess it could lead to trouble, but with the Office stuff I have had success in the past this way. Just don't tell it to do a new install, or you'll be forever sorting it out.

[flatfloor]

So what's happening?

[JC]

Wait a minute, first of all microsoft software is CANNOT be compared to real software. Microsoft software keeps uninstall files in the special microsoft folders as opposed to with the parent program like the rest of the natural world.
Also the uninstall function through add/remmove with windopws programs is like the biggest joke is the universe..


A REPAIR option and a RE_INSTALL option work there is no UNINSTALL function.WTF this is one of the reasons I am so anti microsoft coz they are nothing but oppertunist retards.

No no I am correct that the uninstall works by invoking the exact same program either way you un-install. WITH NORMAL PROGRAMS.
However you may just be correct about the WINDOWS specific programs needing to be un-installed via there perspective programs..I dunno..I am still trying to figure how to fully remove Internet Exployer from my computer.

Lets see I install windows it ask me do I want the programs I so NO.. I still get the programs. I un-install them..they are still there. I delete them they are still hiddin in there, I find the file that must be deleted to FULLY remove them..oh but wait it WILL not let you delete it..THis IS why Microsoft got sued. You need to go into dos to get rid of them all the way.

You know it is no coincidance that the majority of questions in this thread are about microsoft programs..the less microsft you have on your computer the better off you are and less troubles you have.

[JC]

oh and BTW: I am not nuts, Bill Gates is trying to control the world..after all what was he doing at the globalization summit in NY a few weeks ago, handing out donuts?

j/k

[flatfloor]

If he was giving out donuts John, Bud and Dave would have been there.

BTW, I have been trying to figure out what all those people were protesting, if I could I might agree with them. I think there are a multitude of causes therefore nobody is heard.

[John Bridge]

JC,

Do you really think the folks at Microsoft are "retards"? I mean, really and truly.

Somebody say donuts? For D&J, somebody say dOUGHnuts? :)

[Bud Cline]

I spent two hours and forty-five minutes on the phone with Gateway this evening.

I have rebooted this damned thing twenty-five times.

I have lost all my tool bar links.

I have lost all my tailored sounds.

I have lost my selected fonts at specific locations.

I have my color back at JBS.

I don't want to check to see if I have my WORD back because if I don't, then I have to shut this thing down AGAIN just to thaw it out.

Not having fun now!!!

[jlbos83]

OUCH

[flatfloor]

Bud-sounds to me like it's time to bring the thing to a reputable place that specializes in this stuff, have them diagnose the problem, repair if possible. Around here I paid $75/hr. Had this done twice before I gave up and got the new one. Bench time never ran over the 1 hour.

[kdzgon]

JC, go here http://download.cnet.com/downloads/0-10106-100-3583296.html?tag=st.dl.10000-103-1.lst-7-2.3583296 (98Lite 3.0) to download a program to remove IE. BE SURE to read both positive & negative reviews and visit the bb sites for add'l hints - and, of course, you know about backups....

one caveat: many programs nowadays look for the presence of IE before running properly (actually, they only use the MS HTML rendering engine), so be sure to print out and/or read the manual closely before using this program.

Laurie

[Bud Cline]

In addition my user name and password is now required for everywhere I go. It used to be automatic.

It would be easier just to buy a new computer I think.

I think.


I think what I'll do is go light my smoker, barbecue settles my nerves.

I hate this machine.

[JC]

thx I'll check that out.

[Rob Z]

Bud

The 12 ga. or the 8 lb sledge will fix that computer reeeaaall good. Your choice.

I threatened to destroy ours the other night, but Christina prevailed. I did successfully un-install all the AOL poop on this thing, and I swear it seems to be running a little faster.

[John Bridge]

Guess that means we won't be able to IM anymore, Rob.

Unless you download Instant Messenger. ;)

[Rob Z]

Good news, John. We can use the yahoo IM program. It's a lot more fun than the AOL version.

[flatfloor]

huh?

[Rob Z]

Buckley

IM = Instant Messaging, aka a real time waster.

[Bud Cline]

This thing is all screwed up now and I just realized my entire address book is gone. Must have disappeared when I had Gateway in here last week.

Anyone know how to recover an address book?

[cx]

Well, Bud, you go to the CD upon which you had stored it, when you did your periodic backup.

Geez, I gotta 'splain ALL this confuser stuff to you? :D

[Rob Z]

You're in bad shape when you ae getting confuser advice from CX. If you have to start axing me, then you are in real trouble.

[Bud Cline]

CX who?

[flatfloor]

Perhaps it's time I stepped in.

[John Bridge]

I didn't know Yahoo had IM. Maybe we all ought to get it, eh? Save on a bunch of email.

[flatfloor]

Is the price of email going up? I guess I have to go see what your'e talking about.

[flatfloor]

Ok, I looked sounds like a chat room, yes/no?

[John Bridge]

I haven't looked, but if it's like aol it's just a two-way deal in real time. Rob and I used to use IM on aol before he got better sense and got onto a regular provider.

I have aol simply because one of my boys lives on it.

[flatfloor]

Believe it or not, I have never been on AOL and from what I hear, I haven't missed a thing.

[JC]

Download the program ICQ, it has been around the longest and is my favorite one.