What is Digg?72 Comments
- junkking, on 10/12/2007, -2/+49The whole point of a clean XP Install is to remove all of that "user software" that has been installed on your machine over time so you can only reinstall the "user software" that you use.
Misleading title, but its still a worthwhile article on how to repair your XP installation while trying to keep as much data as possible. Just don't kid yourself that this is a clean install.
Nothing beats the freshness of a clean OS installation. - raid517, on 10/12/2007, -7/+32How many times does this have to get back on the front page in one week?
What's next? How to create desktop icons in Windows XP?
What the hell is happening to this site? It used to be a site for techs, run, by techs with a huge tech savvy following.
Now it just seems to be populated by an infestation of total n00bs. - Xiata, on 10/12/2007, -8/+29Look folks this article is about fixing problems with windows. While I disagree with the method (spyware that infested the system is still technically there, just inactive) it is more or less a quick fix.
We do not care that you like Macs.
We do not care that you like Linux.
Every person uses an OS for a particular reason, I myself have all three OSes in use for different purposes but none satisfy all my needs by itself. So please troll somewhere else. - Xiata, on 10/12/2007, -4/+19@therealduckie
Does switching to OSX or Linux solve your windows problems?
Does OSX or Linux play all my games?
Does OSX or Linux support all my windows software?
Does OSX or Linux support all my hardware?
No, and very likely most other people will agree to at least one of the above. This article was about fixing a problem with windows. It's just like someone complaining about a linux problem and the microsoft fanboys saying "install windows". It is not solving the problem and is counterproductive. I am not saying windows is superior to OSX or linux, it in my opinion is far inferior, but to my average everyday usage, I require the use of windows. Most other people with some technical expertise will agree to roughly what I have said.
This article is not an opportunity to flog another product. It is a method to fix windows. If you do not post relavently to the topic, don't bother at all. - violentvinyl, on 10/12/2007, -3/+16If you see the same stories on the homepage it means there's a glitch in the Matrix.
If you see the same stories on the homepage it means there's a glitch in the Matrix. - TheMattrix, on 10/12/2007, -0/+12@Battlecry
I've done this before and still ended up spending 5 hours reinstalling my software because it deleted all of the registry entries pertaining to most of the programs I had installed. - EdLesMann, on 10/12/2007, -2/+13As a long term Linux user I ask you to please stop this non-sense. I am tired of seeing it on digg.
No one will read your "Linux is teh |337 and winblowz sukz0rz" and think "wow he is right, I better switch to Linux!" In fact all you are doing is pissing off the users of every OS and you are not helping the problem at all!
Yes, I believe that Linux is a better OS but starting up flames on threads and trolling just to annoy only hurts the cause of Linux! Comments like that are the reason why people assume that all Linux users are elitest *****! (we all arent, I promise! )
If you have a valid point, then by all means post! Just please stop the trolling for the sake of pissing off fanboys. - Battlecry, on 10/12/2007, -2/+13True, it's a misleading title, but I don't know how many times I've had something screw up with windows and had to do a full reinstall. Sometimes you just don't want to spend 5 hours reinstalling all your software.
- violentvinyl, on 10/12/2007, -7/+17"Digging it down doesn't make it untrue or go away."
Then you won't mind if we proceed to bury it. - skoles, on 10/12/2007, -5/+14Agreed. This the 3rd time being posted to the front page.
The site used to be heavily tech oriented. - violentvinyl, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10Agreed that it's not the most useful, but any good tech has this in their repertoire...
1) Reboot
2) System Restore
3) Repair Install
4) New Install
That's 99% of Help Desk jobs right there. - TheMattrix, on 10/12/2007, -4/+12@therealduckie
It goes away from my field of view. - violentvinyl, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Unfortunately the people who blindly Digg stories that have made the rounds, are probably not the same people that read comments.
- revmoo, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6Isn't this old news?
I'm not trying to be an elitist here, but this is not exactly cutting-edge stuff. In fact, you've been able to do a similar process since back in the Windows98 days. - duggmeister, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4"Yea but can Linux/OSX run my Commodore PET applications????"
I know you're kidding, but... here is a long list of Commodore emulators for the Mac:
http://emulation.victoly.com/c64/ - Darth_tater, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3or just do a fresh install with the softawre you want. and make a backup image.
dont bother reinstalling the OS, just format and restore the image.
saves time, and all your stuff is already there! - Xiata, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3@therealduckie
Better? Cheaper? Do you consider me a dolt? There are plenty of free and open source works available for windows as well (in fact, at least a 3rd of my software is either open source or free). However I have plenty of games that are not supported by Cedega/CrossOver/Wine or at a playable level.
Do I use MS Office? No. Do I use Adobe and Macromedia products? Yes, but only because I feel many open source tools are useful for certain tasks but are not a complete replacement (and don't flog GIMP on me, that software does not satisfy my needs). Most of my software is legit on this system, others are scheduled to be bought or are just being evaluated to see if they help me with my work.
And that 'myth' that linux and os x do not have the same library as windows IS correct. While there may be an open source replacement, they often sport an unprofessional user interface, have many bugs, or do not offer the same functionality. Granted I am not saying that OS X doesn't offer it's own tools that more than rival Windows offering, I have used a few of those products and happily use that operating system for that purpose. Most useful linux tools that are available for linux has been ported to windows in which case further bolsters my usage for windows primarily because I don't have to deal with unique problems linux has given me. And your arguments for macs are pointless, it has not replaced Windows, it is merely dual booting it.
So again, quit flogging other products. You are off topic. - Kittyflipping, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4So... this accomplishes a rollback of all the security patches and system updates you've installed, but all your spyware and viruses are intact, yay!
The main reason you do a total reformat is to get rid of all the apps you tried out, but left junk behind after the uninstall and all the shell extensions and start-up programs that are slowing down your system... And of course spyware and viruses.
The only use I see for this is if you accidentally deleted some system files or royally screwed up your registry and have an otherwise unbootable windows install. Other than that, what's the point? - hello2usir, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Digg isn't a news site for experienced professionals and it never has been.
Although admittedly I sometimes forget that and I am just horrified at some of the crap that makes the front page. Slashdot is slightly better but it's still too general.
If I want tech news/alerts I turn to usenet, mailing lists, and private communities and niche sites. The people there tend to know what they're talking about, and discussions are much more productive. - JustinT9669, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3To saved alot of time:
1. Make a clean XP install
2. Make a backup with Norton Ghost (I prefer Norton Ghost 2003)
*and whenever you have a problem, restore the image with the fresh XP install (which takes less than 5 minutes). - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Not only is it old news, but it made main page on Digg quite a few months ago.
- managizzle, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4Yea but can Linux/OSX run my Commodore PET applications????
- teamparadox, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1This story was on the front page a couple weeks ago...and again before that
- condensed, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2we need Equal Opportunity diggers
- Dotnetsky, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1It surprises me how few people know how to do this, all you do is wait till the setup identifies existing operating system(s) , choose the right one, and press the (R)epair key. Don't need a whole article with graphics to explain this! But the best way to repair a bad OS is usually just to restore a previously saved Registry. Use ERUNT - even works for 64-bit systems now. 9 times out of ten, you never have to go through all this crap.
- Bender1012, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4This is lame. The author starts out making you think that this is some hidden, secretive thing, but anyone familiar with installing Windows has to already know about this. Dissapointing.
- DarkN00b, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Exactly what is bad about n00bs coming to a site where they can actually learn useful things about the machines they own? Especially if they are running windows. I read people everyday complaining about how ignorant or naive Windows users are.
Here's your chance to give a "n00b" a helping hand, maybe help him/her make the internet a slightly more secure thing.
People have to learn somewhere and Digg is a very good place to go to get some very good information. I read Digg long before I joined, and I joined because of people like you. Diggers were once happy to help someone who needed it. But now Digg seems to be more and more infested with arrogant ***** who just want to push their own favorite OS or application. You don't have to read the article, just pass it by. - berlamont, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3I guess it's useful when the registry hasn't been completely trashed, but yeah your usually still going to want to start completely over to take care of real issues.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -9/+10DUPE
Lordy people, are you blind? - Ashkc88, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2@ therealducky
This discussion is about helping Windows users fix their computer without reformatting, not to debate on which operating system is better. If you wish to argue about which operating system is better, find another digg article.
Edit: Hadnt fixed my computer yet after reading this artickle. - Ashkc88, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2This discussion is about helping Windows users fix their computer without reformatting, not to debate on which operating system is better. If you wish to argue about which operating system is better, find another digg article.
- fani, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Also, you can try backing up or exporting your registr y and load it up after, no ?
- Urusai, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Summary of article:
Install normally, except hit [ENTER] instead of [ESC] when asked if you want to repair your installation. - EdLesMann, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"Yea but can Linux/OSX run my Commodore PET applications????"
I am hoping that you are not trolling and that it is a genuine question (though with that many ?'s I am guessing troll). If it is a genuine question then take a look at Vice http://www.viceteam.org/
I have never really cared to attempt to run commodor programs under Linux, but I knew someone that wanted to play some of his old games. He used this for a bit, but I dont remember if it was the one he ended up using long term. A little later he found some Linux gaming site that had all his games redone so I dont think he even uses it anymore, but I really dont know.
Anyway, to answer your question. Yes you can run Commodor emulation under Linux. - dpcamp, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1why not just go into recovery console and repair whatevers wrong? If you do it his way your not going to have any of your programs in the start menu and that alone is a pain in the ass to get back up.
- spacebar14, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Thats fine and dandy. Unless you have an OEM copy of Windows without the actual disks.
- Blazeix, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1raid517: I agree. Do we really need three articles on how to do a repair install in windows XP? I mean, really, all you have to do is follow the prompts. There are 150,000 articles on google for '"Repair install" windows xp'. (No, really, there are 150,000, try it)
- h4lofourt33n, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2Um, any self respecting pc technician knows about this already...but for the homebrew's I guess it's good.
- productionguy, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Simple solution that I use for multiple machines. Use a programmed called Boot-it. You do a fresh install of windows and all of your drivers....software...backgrounds....etc..... and use the bootit tool to create an image. takes about 15 minutes from start to finish the create the image and about 5 to reinstall the image. its nice. i would give out like but i hope we are all savvy enough to find it our selves.
:-D - moeq, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Jesus H. Christ, how many times is this freeking article going to be posted to Digg?
This is like the tenth time! - cal0140, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0*edit* above post should be @maino
- bj00rn, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Not rebuilding the registry is not usually a good thing... I have tried the repair option many times, but it has never been of any use to me. So now I only use Ghost (disk image), which is a much better option in most cases IMO.
- cal0140, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1@nono
This isn't meant to fix all problems with XP. All it fixes are system file problems and some issues with damaged registry hives. If you have issues that haven't damaged system files or certain registry components, then this repair option isn't for you.
Many techs call this repair option an "overlay" because it essentially installs the OS over itself, only overwriting files, not removing any. - jeff4379, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1...Until you try ghosting it to dissimilar hardware (Yes, I know you can sysprep it, but who syspreps their pc before every backup)
- iSEPIC, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3QUOTE
Sure Windows has its advantages, but it's tendancy to slow down when your install is no longer fresh or when it's been too long since a reboot is undeniable.
/QUOTE
Funny thing is, I have the same problem on my Mac Mini and my iMAC - I don't get wtf you're trying to say. - Xiata, on 10/12/2007, -5/+4Thanks edLesMann, you make more sense than most fanboys I've ran across.
- chesterton, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2I haven't seen this before, despite the comments that this is a dupe.
This is helpful, since I want to do some 'grunge' cleanup on my computer, but I don't want to have to locate and reinstall all the software I have on this machine. This could be a real timesaver for me. - sych0, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1I never knew about this. I thought the R from the first screen (repair console) was the same as the R further in. The repair console is pretty much useless.
Good to know - scatman, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0Your comment was gay. Buried.
- ignign0kt, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1This isn't hidden, and honestly can't be too bright if you've never seen this option before.
Oh and, this was dugg a long time ago. Buried. -
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