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| 28 APR 2006 at 12:53am |
SirDaveGuild Master
Posts : 4941
Joined: 17 OCT 2002
Location: US
Status : Offline | Lucky you! Really! And smart move getting the Acronis TrueImage.
Here's what I do.
First, I hope you have a Drive D (ie. either a 2nd hard disk or the main hard disk partitioned) because you need a Drive separate from Drive C for backups. So, I'm assuming you do.
Even if the computer comes with a Restore Disk, I install Acronis before doing anything else, create a directory for my backups on Drive D and then make a pristine image of Drive C. Acronis is reasonably intuitive; any good adventure game player should have no problem!
Next, I spend some time setting Drive C up the way I want it doing such things as customizing my desktop, removing any unwanted icons, adding any favoritie utilities and setting up various options such as (for me) not having Automatic Update on, and so on. Then I make another Drive C backup. That becomes my core backup- the one that I can return to if anything really bad happens in the future or if I just want to start off real fresh!
Resist the urge to install an AG until you've done the above because part of the benefit of a utility such as Acronis TrueImage is the ability to have a backup the includes both your customized system and a registry unspoiled by an installed program.
BTW: Another decision you will have to make is how you will handle installed programs. What I usually do is install any utilities to Drive C and any games to Drive D, the reason being that if I have games installed to Drive C, the periodic Drive C image backups become somewhat humongous! After all, Drive C, is the heart of your functioning computer.
Once someone gets used to using an image program such as TrueImage, it becomes very easy to do. My routine is to backup to Drive D every month or so, depending on how much my system has changed. I also (as indicated above) try as much as possible to keep Drive C lean & mean so that the images can fit on a 4.7g DVD (in practice, you can actually fit about 4.5g) or at the most 2 DVDs, but preferably one. That way, it is easy to periodically off-load the images that are on Drive D to a DVD to free up space on Drive D. However, I always keep the most recent 1 or 2 Drive C images on Drive D.
A side benefit of a routine such as the above is that you don't have to be as concerned about picking up Adware & Viruses. Yes, it's still a good idea to use a virus-checker and to periodically clear out Adware, but the fact is, if you ever get dinged with a virus or some gawdawful stinker that takes over your homepage or adds a gazillion shortcuts to your desktop, you'll be back up in no time with the most recent good Drive C image.
The future ain't what it used to be!
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| 28 APR 2006 at 2:56am |
SusanGuild Master
Posts : 5485
Joined: 13 OCT 2002
Location: 0
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Caroline (28 APR 2006 12:33am)
And the first game I'm going to play is Myst V......
After that - spending spree! [smiley=umbrella_grin.gif]
I miss my Bubba: 1986 - 2006.
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| 28 APR 2006 at 4:04am |
krkdnosePrivate Detective
Posts : 707
Joined: 9 JUN 2004
Status : Online | Originally Posted By SirDave (28 APR 2006 12:53am)
Here's what I do.
That is almost exactly what I do as well.
Great minds do think alike
Congratulations on the new baby, Caroline. Hope it brings you many weeks of joy before it's obsolete again
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| 28 APR 2006 at 4:08am |
BazzaLBPrivate Detective
Posts : 512
Joined: 27 AUG 2005
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Caroline, You probably said this in another thread, but what the heck...
What did you end up with?
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| 28 APR 2006 at 4:10am |
BazzaLBPrivate Detective
Posts : 512
Joined: 27 AUG 2005
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By krkdnose (28 APR 2006 4:04am)
Originally Posted By SirDave (28 APR 2006 12:53am)
Here's what I do.
That is almost exactly what I do as well.
Great minds do think alike
and fools seldom differ
BTW, I don't do any of that, and I'm a professional software developer! (however, I probably should )
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| 28 APR 2006 at 4:36am |
MarkGuild Master
Posts : 3803
Joined: 10 OCT 2002
Location: US, Georgia
Status : Offline | Thanks, Caroline. [smiley=blush.gif]
Actually...we just want you to be as tortured by technology as we are. :
Please proofread your posts carefully to see if you any words out.
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| 28 APR 2006 at 6:30pm |
SirDaveGuild Master
Posts : 4941
Joined: 17 OCT 2002
Location: US
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By krkdnose (28 APR 2006 4:04am)
Originally Posted By SirDave (28 APR 2006 12:53am)
Here's what I do.
That is almost exactly what I do as well.
Great minds do think alike
Being the knowlegeable computer dude you are, I take that as a great complement. (How are you enjoying your Toshiba Libretto 110ct and Portege 320ct? )
I have mentioned this technique to several people at work and have actually set it up for one of them. They don't listen and she doesn't use it. More than once they have had their computers 'go down' due to software-related problems (viruses, adware, worm, program conflicts and driver problems) and they spend days and a fair amount of money to fix the problem. A common fix for them is a trip into BestBuy where the Geek Squad closely analyzes the problem and fixes it with a total wipe-out of the hard disk and re-install from scratch for, oh around, $150! You & me- we're back up in about 20 minutes.
The future ain't what it used to be!
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| 28 APR 2006 at 7:30pm |
MorgausePrivate Detective
Posts : 687
Joined: 2 SEP 2004
Status : Online | Originally Posted By SirDave (28 APR 2006 6:30pm)
A common fix for them is a trip into BestBuy where the Geek Squad closely analyzes the problem and fixes it with a total wipe-out of the hard disk and re-install from scratch for, oh around, $150! You & me- we're back up in about 20 minutes.
Well, I guess I'll ditch my English studies and do that sort of thing instead. Techno-babbling your way out of a problem shouldn't be too difficult, and $150 per user is fair enough. If I can get away with installing something other than Windows/MacOs on their boxes, I will just set up an automated install script (that should take a few hours at worst), and just run it on their computer. Hmm, spending fifteen seconds per user is efficient enough, and I can always offer to help them with their new and obscure operating systems (I'm not sure which one yet... FreeDOS perhaps, or one of the BSDs). Thanks for the tip SirDave!
So backups are good, especially when using more than a single harddrive (HD failure is nasty. A RAID set-up or similar, with two disks sharing the same data for reliability, might be good for this purpose (particularly if you cannot find a use for a few hundred gigabytes). Well, *any* backup is good to have around.
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| 3 MAY 2006 at 3:28am |
SirDaveGuild Master
Posts : 4941
Joined: 17 OCT 2002
Location: US
Status : Offline | FWIW: Just completed a real-world example of what I've been talking about:
I have a newer laptop with a 1.7g CPU (purposely powerful enough to run most AGs, but not super-powered so that it can be light enough to sit on my lap and not burn parts of me that wouldn't appreciate the experience). It reserve its use for more recent AGs. I decided to temporarily remove an AG I was working on and for which I set a Restore Point before installing it and have decided to try Keepsake.
So, first I deinstalled the previous game which gets rid of most of the game, then I Restored to the Restore Point I had set which guarantees that all vestiges of the previous game are removed from the Registry. Now, before installing Keepsake I set a new Restore Point, but since there are rumors that Keepsake uses Starforce (I'm now having doubts that the U.S. version does, but that's another story), I do a 2nd step- I make an image of Drive C using Acronis TrueImage. It only took about 8 minutes. Then I installed Keepsake.
Now if, when I'm done with Keepsake, I'll simply restore the TrueImage Drive C image and there will be absolutely nothing left behind. As well, I'll have the Restore Point if I want to do something less drastic (such as do a clean re-install of Keepsake, something that is unlikely, but you never know.).
The future ain't what it used to be!
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| 3 MAY 2006 at 3:50am |
CarolineJA+ Overseer
Posts : 16540
Joined: 28 JAN 2007
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Didn't someone start a list of games with starforce? Is it on Myst V?
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| 3 MAY 2006 at 8:00am |
BazzaLBPrivate Detective
Posts : 512
Joined: 27 AUG 2005
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Caroline (3 MAY 2006 3:50am)
Didn't someone start a list of games with starforce? Is it on Myst V?
Hey, you didn't answer my question a few posts up :-?
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| 3 MAY 2006 at 10:08am |
CarolineJA+ Overseer
Posts : 16540
Joined: 28 JAN 2007
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Sorry Bazza
Right, I'm going to sound DEAD SEXY now..... reading off the invoice, new toy is:
AMD Athlon 64 3800 D/Core CPU
Gigabyte GAK8N-SLI M/B
DDR 512 Mb PC3200 400 Mhz RAM
Gigabyte NX79T256DB-RH GeForce 7900GT (had to wait 3 weeks for a shipment of these to come into the country, proving very popular apparently)
256 Mb PCIEx16
Western Digital 74Gb 10,000 RPM SATA HDD C drive)
Seagate 250 GB SATA II 8Mb HDD
Benq 16x Dual Layer DVD Burner DW1650
Enlight 8in 1 internal card reader
1.44 Floppy Drive
Lian Li PC-7B+ black case (very sleek looking)
ATX Silverstone 650 W PSU ST652F
Windows XP home
Logitech 2.1 speakers
Thing powers up in SECONDS!!!!! I'm now used to the look of XP and am enjoying being able to play the video clips on MSN for the first time. She sounds like a helicopter though, with these fans but I've got used to that too.
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| 3 MAY 2006 at 3:25pm |
SusanGuild Master
Posts : 5485
Joined: 13 OCT 2002
Location: 0
Status : Offline | [smiley=rofl.gif] I don't even know what half those things are!
ATX Silverstone 650 W PSU ST652F = :-?
I miss my Bubba: 1986 - 2006.
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| 3 MAY 2006 at 3:32pm |
Terry PenrodGrand Inquisitor
Posts : 6693
Joined: 16 OCT 2004
Location: US, Texas
Status : Offline | .
Originally Posted By Sweet -n- Sour Susan (3 MAY 2006 3:25pm)
[smiley=rofl.gif] I don't even know what half those things are!
ATX Silverstone 650 W PSU ST652F = :-?
It's a beefy 650 watt Power Supply Unit made by ATX.
Cheers, Terry
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| 3 MAY 2006 at 4:42pm |
SusanGuild Master
Posts : 5485
Joined: 13 OCT 2002
Location: 0
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Terry Penrod (3 MAY 2006 3:31pm)
It's a beefy 650 watt Power Supply Unit made by ATX.
They couldn't just say, Beefy 650-watt Power Supply Unit made by ATX? :
I miss my Bubba: 1986 - 2006.
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| 3 MAY 2006 at 4:55pm |
SirDaveGuild Master
Posts : 4941
Joined: 17 OCT 2002
Location: US
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Yog (3 MAY 2006 8:14am)
Originally Posted By Caroline (3 MAY 2006 3:50am)
Didn't someone start a list of games with starforce? Is it on Myst V?
SoreDave is paranoid about starforce. PM him.
:
The future ain't what it used to be!
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| 3 MAY 2006 at 9:54pm |
BazzaLBPrivate Detective
Posts : 512
Joined: 27 AUG 2005
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Caroline (3 MAY 2006 10:08am)
Sorry Bazza
Right, I'm going to sound DEAD SEXY now..... reading off the invoice, new toy is:
.. specs removed to protect the jealous ..
Thing powers up in SECONDS!!!!! I'm now used to the look of XP and am enjoying being able to play the video clips on MSN for the first time. She sounds like a helicopter though, with these fans but I've got used to that too.
Yep, very nice. 650W PSU is mass overkill unless you plan on running SLI .. , but better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it
I've recommended the 7900GT to a mate of mine. It looks like a pretty good price/power trade off to me. Hope its not still hard to get. I got my X1900XTX the day I decided I wanted one
I'm one of the lucky ones who have never had a problem with starforce. I Burn DVDs, run Daemon tools etc etc etc. Not a single glitch. This is fortunate as most Australian releases these days are starforce protected and they still package PC software in those stupid little cardboard boxes that contrain nothing but a DVD case. Australian publishers / software distributors like to kill trees and encourage piracy through their incompetent software distribution.
Have fun with the new toy!
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| 3 MAY 2006 at 11:06pm |
MarkGuild Master
Posts : 3803
Joined: 10 OCT 2002
Location: US, Georgia
Status : Offline | Why have poop (i.e., StarForce) residing in its hidden, nasty little chicken bone-strewn cave on your hard drive and in your registry when it serves absolutely no useful purpose?
Get rid of it.
And like several of us have been carpin' and harpin' for over a year now:
Make a mirror image of your entire system before you install a StarForce-infected game.
A word to the wise.
Please proofread your posts carefully to see if you any words out.
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| 4 MAY 2006 at 12:26am |
SirDaveGuild Master
Posts : 4941
Joined: 17 OCT 2002
Location: US
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By Mark (3 MAY 2006 11:06pm)
Why have poop (i.e., StarForce) residing in its hidden, nasty little chicken bone-strewn cave on your hard drive and in your registry when it serves absolutely no useful purpose?
Get rid of it.
And like several of us have been carpin' and harpin' for over a year now:
Make a mirror image of your entire system before you install a StarForce-infected game.
A word to the wise.
Hmmmm. Does this mean I'm not the only one 'paranoid' about Starforce (see above)? 8-)
The future ain't what it used to be!
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| 4 MAY 2006 at 12:52am |
CarolineJA+ Overseer
Posts : 16540
Joined: 28 JAN 2007
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Please tell me, how can I find out if a game has starforce?
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| 4 MAY 2006 at 7:10am |
sg7Sorcerer Apprentice
Posts : 213
Joined: 8 JUN 2004
Location: UK
Status : Offline | Try thiw web site http://makeabackup.com/database-M.html , Myst V: End of Ages (DVD) SecuROM 7.00.00.0029
Playing ME3-Citadel ,TOMB raider ,Skyrim Dragonborn
Waiting fot journey down episode 2 ,Dragon AGE 3
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| 4 MAY 2006 at 8:03am |
CarolineJA+ Overseer
Posts : 16540
Joined: 28 JAN 2007
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Thank you, that looks like a handy site. So will Myst's protection leave my pc when I fully uninstall? That's really the litmus test isn't it? I had to disable my burning software first which annoys me really. Makes you think that your pc isn't really your own.
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| 4 MAY 2006 at 7:07pm |
| Deleted User | Originally Posted By Caroline (4 MAY 2006 8:02am)
Thank you, that looks like a handy site. So will Myst's protection leave my pc when I fully uninstall? That's really the litmus test isn't it? I had to disable my burning software first which annoys me really. Makes you think that your pc isn't really your own.
Future software business models under consideration at Microsoft will make it even more of a reality that you don't really own your pc. The trend is towards 'renting software', not purchasing a lifetime right.
Can you imagine if adventure games went this route? Imagine loading your trusty old copy of say Myst (any of the I.II.III.Riven.IV.V) and not being able to play it without sending the Rand Bros. a rental renewal payment.
And no, Starforce doesn't go away when you remove the game that loaded it/ One must either run one of the removal programs found on the internet, and/or depending on the success of the removal tool, fiddle with your registry.
btw - I have Starforce on my pc along with Nero and have no problem at all.
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| 5 MAY 2006 at 2:36am |
BazzaLBPrivate Detective
Posts : 512
Joined: 27 AUG 2005
Location: AU
Status : Offline | Well whaddya know. I just had my first problem running a legitimate copy of a game despite having the original DVD in the drive. This is Tomb Raider: Legend and it uses securom for its protection...
Luckily there's a nocd patch so I could actually play the game, but this in itself makes the whole copy protection fiasco ludicrous.
PS. My Software business model is exactly along the lines of "annual license fee".. You dont pay your fee, you dont use. Our software costs hundreds of thousands to develop and our low volume niche market could not possibly pay large upfront costs, so we have no choice but to have an annual license fee arrangement. Horses for courses.
BTW, why would you need to fiddle with your registry to remove the starforce drivers? Why can't you just go into Control Panel/System/Hardware/Device Manager and View/Show Hidden Devices then navigate to "Non-Plug and Play drivers" locate all the "starforce protection" drivers and uninstall them via the right click menu?
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