PC Doctor

Q: My PC crashes repeatedly whenever I am on the Internet, using either AOL or Freeserve. The only way to resolve this is to switch it off and then back on again, which I don't like doing because of the damage it can do to the computer.

Gloreeves1@aol.com

A: First, switching your PC off and on again may be annoying but it is extremely unlikely to cause any harm at all. Windows runs Scandisk after such crashes as a precaution rather than because there is a real danger of disk damage.

Without more details, it is difficult to be precise about the cause of your crashes, but one likely candidate is your graphics driver. If it is out of date, it can cause many apparently unrelated difficulties - try downloading the latest driver from your graphics card manufacturer's Web site.

If this fails, reinstalling AOL, Freeserve or both may help to sort out any conflict, as may downloading any upgrades to Internet Explorer. This is a case of trial and error though.

Q: I like to use Photoshop to edit images that I have scanned into my computer. However, when I installed PaintShop Pro 5 from your cover CD it reset all the file associations for graphics. While I want to use PSP for most purposes - it is easier to use - for some tasks I want to open images in Photoshop. Is there an easier way to do this than launching Photoshop and then searching until I find the file I want to open?

Miss C Ricklewood, Norwich

A: It's possible to do this in two ways. First, you could set up a shortcut on your Desktop to Photoshop. Find the file Photoshp.exe on your system, then right-click and drag it to your Desktop. Choose Create Shortcut Here from the menu. Now, you can drag and drop any image file onto the shortcut icon: Photoshop will open automatically.

An alternative is to create a second association for a particular file extension. Double-click My Computer, then choose Folder Options from the View menu and select the File Types tab. In the Registered File Types box choose the image type you want to associate with Photoshop - for example, JPG File. Click the Edit button, then choose New.

Type Open with Photoshop in the Action box, and "/Photoshp.exe" "%1" in the Application Used box; the quotes are important. (Note that stands for the full path to Photoshp.exe - on our test PC this is C:/Program Files/ Adobe/Photoshop 5.0/Photoshp.exe). If you double-click a JPG file, it will still open with PaintShop Pro, but if you right-click it you will now have the option to open it with Photoshop.

Q: If I want to print just a few paragraphs from Word or from the Internet is there any way of doing this rather than cutting and pasting into a new Word document? At the moment I often end up printing four or five pages for a few words.

Cameron Bate, Launceston, Cornwall

A: This is easy in both Word and Internet Explorer. Just use the mouse to select the text you want to print, and then choose the Print command from the File menu (you can also press Ctrl + P to bring up the Print dialog box). Now go to Page Range (in Word) or Print Range (in Internet Explorer) and choose Selection: this will print only the sections you have highlighted.

Changing the subject, can we also ask you - and thousands of others who use Outlook for e-mail - to turn off HTML mail. Sending text-only e-mail and newsgroup messages ensures that they use the minimum amount of storage space, send and download more quickly (saving your phone bill) and can be read by everyone.

Because HTML is a protocol which ensures that Web pages display correctly, many e-mail programs and newsreaders just display the HTML coding as junk characters or as unnecessary attachments: this is annoying at best, so some ISPs won't actually let you make HTML newsgroup postings.

Simply go to Options on the Tools menu, and choose the Send tab. Now, for both e-mail and newsgroup postings, select Plain text rather than HTML.

Q: A friend told me that I could download a whole CD-ROM onto my hard disk so that I didn't need to insert it when I wanted to run the program. Is this true, and how can I do it using Windows 98?

Ed Hollinghurst, Bristol

A: With some programs, you have the option to copy all the files to your hard disk when you install it, while with others you can simply copy the contents of the CD to your hard disk, and then direct the program to this new directory. You can, for instance, do this with Windows so you don't need to insert the disc every time you want to install different elements.

It generally puts all the compressed installation files in C:/Windows/Options/Cabs.

Other applications demand that the CD-ROM is actually in the drive before they will run. It's possible to buy software that will create a virtual CD-ROM drive on your hard disk, then copy an image of the CD-ROM which you can insert into the virtual drive. One such is CD Copier Pro, from IMSI. It can't cope with all titles, but if you've got plenty of disk space it can provide an elegant solution.

IMSI: 0181 281 2000

Q: Following a number of problems with both Freeserve and TescoNet, is there any way for me to confirm that my e-mails to them have actually been delivered correctly?

Alan Thomas, Middlesex

A: Unfortunately, Outlook doesn't have any way of asking for a receipt or indeed of returning one. Other e-mail software like Lotus Notes or AOL's own e-mail client can request receipts, but these don't always work across the Internet.

Some company e-mail systems, especially customer service or technical support addresses, do send an automated reply to confirm that your message has arrived - but if this doesn't arrive it could simply be that one isn't configured.

Q: My self-built PC runs with no problems except one, related to shutting it down. Whenever a software install tries to reboot it, or I attempt a soft restart, it will shut down but will not start up again unless I use the power switch. Although this isn't a major problem it is annoying at times.

Tony Baum, Chorley

A: This sort of problem can be caused by a number of factors, most of which are actually very minor. Your first step to resolving it should be to run one of the Troubleshooting Wizards in Windows Help. Go to Start/Help, click on Troubleshooting/Windows 98 Troubleshooters and pick Startup and Shutdown. As you step through this, it will attempt to resolve a number of issues related to, among other things, any Shutdown sound and your Startup files.

If this doesn't succeed, your best chance is to start a lengthy process of elimination. Check to see which programs are running before you try a manual restart, and shut each of them down individually - one of them may be preventing your system from restarting cleanly.

As you have a lot of devices installed in your PC, it's also possible that there is some sort of conflict here. Removing each device in turn from your system should enable you to track down if this is the cause of your problems. However, this is likely to be a lot of effort to resolve a fairly minor problem.

The PC doctor regrets that he cannot provide readers with individual replies or answer queries over the telephone, but if you have a question or problem you want to share with other readers, write to PC doctor, What PC? Editorial, VNU House, 32-34 Broadwick Street, London W1A 2HG or e-mail whatpc@vnu.co.uk.

The writer of EVERY letter published will receive a FREE Microsoft IntelliMouse and a choice of Microsoft Bookshelf, Publisher 97 or Money 97. Please state which you would prefer.

Like this story? Spread the news by clicking below:

 del.icio.us     Digg this     reddit!