USB Drive not recognized - Driving me crazy!!!

Thank you both for your help, I will keep trying with the floppy, on a quick
look on the SeaGate web site it just states you do not need any drivers, I
will have a good look round and see what I can dig up,
Thanks for taking the time to try and help
Bob


"Jim Cladingboel" wrote:

Bob, as I said in my original message it can take days of trying before the
damned Wizard suddenly seems to give in.
XP has had a serious problem with USB 2.0 devices since day one and _nothing
at all_ has been done about it.
A lady named Anna on this NG stated some time ago that MS/others were
investigating the problem, and she had a tutorial on things to do to get a
USB 2.00 device working, although her advices didn't help me.
MS, of course, would prefer you upgraded (?) to Vista. But that has its own
problems!
It's boring and frustrating, but getting the wizard to look at Drive A seems
to be the only way to go. Sorry.
PS: You could try putting the files on a CDRW and try for a result that way,

Jim.

"bob" wrote in message
...
I did update the chip set drivers for my Intel motherboard, will this cover
it or will I need to download any other files ?, on another note, I tried
copying the usb files to a floppy, but I keep getting an error message
that
this location does not contain any device information files, should I keep
trying, or is there something else I need to do, Bob

" wrote:


You may need updated drivers .




On Sun, 11 Nov 2007 12:35:01 -0800, bob
wrote:

I have been having the same problem, I can use my usb mouse, keyboard,
printer, scanner, pen drive, freecom 80Gb external drive, camera etc
with no
problems. I have just bought a Seagate FreeAgent desktop 500GB drive,
when
connected, the found new hardware wizard pops up, and asks for a driver.
It
is not listed in my computer, but is in device manager under other
devices
with a yellow question mark, and the code 28, I tried the drive on an XP
Pro
machine and it worked ok. Has anyone looked at MS article 925196, not
being
that up on computers, I wonder if this would help, or mess up my other
devices, also I am not sure what bits to delete in the registry. In
registry
editor under the string
{4D36E980-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318} in the right panel it lists
{default}, Class, EnumPropPages32, Icon, NoInstallClass, SilentInstall,
TroubleShooter-0
String {4D36E967-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318} right panel lists
{Default}, Class, Icon, Installer32, LowerFilters, NoInstallClass,
SilentInstall, TroubleShooter-0, UpperFilters

Not sure what any of this means, or which bits you are supposed to
delete,
Thanks for any help you can give,
Bob


"nesredep egrob" wrote:

On Mon, 18 Jun 2007 09:39:00 -0700, Uncly Milty Uncly
wrote:

I have been fighting the same problem for over a year. What I have
learned so
far is that my Intel USB controller 82801DB will not recognize any
USB2
device, I have a scanner and a printer running on USB ports but they
are USB1
devices. I have a friend with a computer simliar to mine with an Itel
82801EB
usb controller, his driver date is 2002, mine is 2001. Very obviously
the
service pack 2 that microsoft has admitted to has not been fixed.
I finally gave up and purchased a five port USB PCI card and guess
what
these ports will recognive any usb 2 device but will not run at the
higher
transfer speed. I bought this pci card from TigarDirect for $15, it
is a
Masscool 5-port USB 2.0 PCI card (S457-1080)
I hope this helps because we sure are not going to get help from
Microsoft.

"John Slattery" wrote:

I really hope someone out there can give me some substantive help
with this.
I have just purchased a Dell 512mb Flash Drive and my system at
home will not
recognize the device. I have also had the same problem with a
SanDisk 512 mb
flash drive. Both of these drives have worked fine on numerous
other
computers. My system is running Windows XP Pro with SP2 loaded. The
USB Host
Controller drivers (Intel) have all been updated, uninstalled,
reinstalled,
and updated again. I have checked everything I can think of in
Device
Manager. I even went into BIOS out of desperation.

That is interesting - why desparation. I would have thought you would
be on the
right track there as you below refer to another symptom, trying to
boot the
machine with the Flash Drive inserted - surely that shows you that the
boot
order is not in the correct 'order' - reset the boot order to be C:,
CD drive
and then A: - make absolutely sure that the USB is not mentioned in
the boot
order.

Borge in sunny Perth, Australia

Nothing I have tried works.
Another symptom I have noticed is that if I try to boot the machine
with the
Flash Drive inserted, the machine will not boot and tells me it
cannot find
the OS.
Please help, I've been everything from a software engineer to a
network
administrator, to a programming teacherfor 17 years and I've never
had a
computer problem that frustrated me this much. I've googled this to
death and
it seems like i see the problem posted a lot, but no useful
solutions.
HELP!!!!!

just a quick update, did not have much luck with the drivers on the floppy,
or finding any drivers on the SeaGate web site, but I did find a link in
these discussions to a site offering tips for this problem, sorry you have to
read through the posts to find it, I could not see it when I tried to find it
again, it was to do with usb drives, anyway one of the tips was to check if
Crytographic Services was running, in my case it was, but the next tip to
check the registry key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\Curr entVersion the item
DevicePath must point to %SystemRoot%\inf additional items seperated by a
semikolon are ok, the "inf" was missing from my string, so i added it and
Wow, the drive is now working. Hope this might help someone,
Bob

"bob" wrote:

Thank you both for your help, I will keep trying with the floppy, on a quick
look on the SeaGate web site it just states you do not need any drivers, I
will have a good look round and see what I can dig up,
Thanks for taking the time to try and help
Bob


"Jim Cladingboel" wrote:

Bob, as I said in my original message it can take days of trying before the
damned Wizard suddenly seems to give in.
XP has had a serious problem with USB 2.0 devices since day one and _nothing
at all_ has been done about it.
A lady named Anna on this NG stated some time ago that MS/others were
investigating the problem, and she had a tutorial on things to do to get a
USB 2.00 device working, although her advices didn't help me.
MS, of course, would prefer you upgraded (?) to Vista. But that has its own
problems!
It's boring and frustrating, but getting the wizard to look at Drive A seems
to be the only way to go. Sorry.
PS: You could try putting the files on a CDRW and try for a result that way,

Jim.

"bob" wrote in message
...
I did update the chip set drivers for my Intel motherboard, will this cover
it or will I need to download any other files ?, on another note, I tried
copying the usb files to a floppy, but I keep getting an error message
that
this location does not contain any device information files, should I keep
trying, or is there something else I need to do, Bob

" wrote:


You may need updated drivers .




On Sun, 11 Nov 2007 12:35:01 -0800, bob
wrote:

I have been having the same problem, I can use my usb mouse, keyboard,
printer, scanner, pen drive, freecom 80Gb external drive, camera etc
with no
problems. I have just bought a Seagate FreeAgent desktop 500GB drive,
when
connected, the found new hardware wizard pops up, and asks for a driver.
It
is not listed in my computer, but is in device manager under other
devices
with a yellow question mark, and the code 28, I tried the drive on an XP
Pro
machine and it worked ok. Has anyone looked at MS article 925196, not
being
that up on computers, I wonder if this would help, or mess up my other
devices, also I am not sure what bits to delete in the registry. In
registry
editor under the string
{4D36E980-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318} in the right panel it lists
{default}, Class, EnumPropPages32, Icon, NoInstallClass, SilentInstall,
TroubleShooter-0
String {4D36E967-E325-11CE-BFC1-08002BE10318} right panel lists
{Default}, Class, Icon, Installer32, LowerFilters, NoInstallClass,
SilentInstall, TroubleShooter-0, UpperFilters

Not sure what any of this means, or which bits you are supposed to
delete,
Thanks for any help you can give,
Bob


"nesredep egrob" wrote:

On Mon, 18 Jun 2007 09:39:00 -0700, Uncly Milty Uncly
wrote:

I have been fighting the same problem for over a year. What I have
learned so
far is that my Intel USB controller 82801DB will not recognize any
USB2
device, I have a scanner and a printer running on USB ports but they
are USB1
devices. I have a friend with a computer simliar to mine with an Itel
82801EB
usb controller, his driver date is 2002, mine is 2001. Very obviously
the
service pack 2 that microsoft has admitted to has not been fixed.
I finally gave up and purchased a five port USB PCI card and guess
what
these ports will recognive any usb 2 device but will not run at the
higher
transfer speed. I bought this pci card from TigarDirect for $15, it
is a
Masscool 5-port USB 2.0 PCI card (S457-1080)
I hope this helps because we sure are not going to get help from
Microsoft.

"John Slattery" wrote:

I really hope someone out there can give me some substantive help
with this.
I have just purchased a Dell 512mb Flash Drive and my system at
home will not
recognize the device. I have also had the same problem with a
SanDisk 512 mb
flash drive. Both of these drives have worked fine on numerous
other
computers. My system is running Windows XP Pro with SP2 loaded. The
USB Host
Controller drivers (Intel) have all been updated, uninstalled,
reinstalled,
and updated again. I have checked everything I can think of in
Device
Manager. I even went into BIOS out of desperation.

That is interesting - why desparation. I would have thought you would
be on the
right track there as you below refer to another symptom, trying to
boot the
machine with the Flash Drive inserted - surely that shows you that the
boot
order is not in the correct 'order' - reset the boot order to be C:,
CD drive
and then A: - make absolutely sure that the USB is not mentioned in
the boot
order.

Borge in sunny Perth, Australia

Nothing I have tried works.
Another symptom I have noticed is that if I try to boot the machine
with the
Flash Drive inserted, the machine will not boot and tells me it
cannot find
the OS.
Please help, I've been everything from a software engineer to a
network
administrator, to a programming teacherfor 17 years and I've never
had a
computer problem that frustrated me this much. I've googled this to
death and
it seems like i see the problem posted a lot, but no useful
solutions.
HELP!!!!!

I've been going nuts over this, too, but Bob pointed me into an easy
fix. When I checked DevicePath, I found that not only was
%SystemRoot%\inf present, there was some added stuff that included a
temp entry for my ActionTec modem. I deleted the temp stuff, plugged
the drive in and it was instantly recognized. Thanks to you all and
Bob! :-)


--
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Hi,
I also had a problem with usb 2.0 devices not working in windows xp
sp2.
I decided to try Bob's registry fix.
when I went into the registry I could not find %SystemRoot%\inf listed
under DevicePath.
I edited the DevicePath entry by adding ; %SystemRoot%\inf after the
only other entry there.
I rebooted my machine, inserted the flash drive, nothing!
In device Manager I found the drive listed with a yellow exclamation
mark as always. I right clicked on it, and clicked on reinstall driver
and voila the new hardware wizard found and installed the driver and
gave my flash drive a drive letter. All is well.
Thanks Bob, you're a lifesaver
bobhwll


--
bobhwll
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My daughter got an iPod for Christmas and my computer is not recognizing the
USB drive when she tries to download songs. I contacted the maker of my
computer (Gateway) and they walked me through some steps but none worked. Is
there something easy that I can try.....I am not a computer guru. My
daughter is driving me crazy!!

"bobhwll" wrote:


Hi,
I also had a problem with usb 2.0 devices not working in windows xp
sp2.
I decided to try Bob's registry fix.
when I went into the registry I could not find %SystemRoot%\inf listed
under DevicePath.
I edited the DevicePath entry by adding ; %SystemRoot%\inf after the
only other entry there.
I rebooted my machine, inserted the flash drive, nothing!
In device Manager I found the drive listed with a yellow exclamation
mark as always. I right clicked on it, and clicked on reinstall driver
and voila the new hardware wizard found and installed the driver and
gave my flash drive a drive letter. All is well.
Thanks Bob, you're a lifesaver
bobhwll


--
bobhwll
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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"John Slattery" wrote:

I really hope someone out there can give me some substantive help with this.
I have just purchased a Dell 512mb Flash Drive and my system at home will not
recognize the device. I have also had the same problem with a SanDisk 512 mb
flash drive. Both of these drives have worked fine on numerous other
computers. My system is running Windows XP Pro with SP2 loaded. The USB Host
Controller drivers (Intel) have all been updated, uninstalled, reinstalled,
and updated again. I have checked everything I can think of in Device
Manager. I even went into BIOS out of desperation. Nothing I have tried works.
Another symptom I have noticed is that if I try to boot the machine with the
Flash Drive inserted, the machine will not boot and tells me it cannot find
the OS.
Please help, I've been everything from a software engineer to a network
administrator, to a programming teacherfor 17 years and I've never had a
computer problem that frustrated me this much. I've googled this to death and
it seems like i see the problem posted a lot, but no useful solutions.
HELP!!!!!

"John Slattery" wrote:

I really hope someone out there can give me some substantive help with this.
I have just purchased a Dell 512mb Flash Drive and my system at home will not
recognize the device. I have also had the same problem with a SanDisk 512 mb
flash drive. Both of these drives have worked fine on numerous other
computers. My system is running Windows XP Pro with SP2 loaded. The USB Host
Controller drivers (Intel) have all been updated, uninstalled, reinstalled,
and updated again. I have checked everything I can think of in Device
Manager. I even went into BIOS out of desperation. Nothing I have tried works.
Another symptom I have noticed is that if I try to boot the machine with the
Flash Drive inserted, the machine will not boot and tells me it cannot find
the OS.
Please help, I've been everything from a software engineer to a network
administrator, to a programming teacherfor 17 years and I've never had a
computer problem that frustrated me this much. I've googled this to death and
it seems like i see the problem posted a lot, but no useful solutions.
HELP!!!!!

Igraepel and John Slattery
I am no computer boffin but the registry fix I mentioned in my previous
post worked for me: Try HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion See if 'DevicePath' points to
'%SystemRoot%\inf. If it doesn't, then try modifying Device Path by
right clicking on it and in the modify box enter %SystemRoot%. If
there are other items in DevicePath then after the last item add a
semicolon and enter %SystemRoot%
Plug in your device and reboot your machine. If Windows does not
immediately recognize it automatically, go into Device Manager and
check if there is a yellow exclamation mark against "other devices" If
there is then right click on it and click update driver. Hopefully
Windows will then install the driver for the device and you will be in
business.
I hope this works for you. It is very frustrating to have a device
which does not work correctly and no apparent solution is forthcoming.
regards
Bob Howell


--
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I have finally found the answer to my problem. An on-line tech with
Microsoft advised me to purchase a PCI - USB adapter. I went to Best Buy and
purchased the adapter that has 4 additional USB ports included. It is a card
that has to be installed inside your computer. The Best Buy employee advised
me to get the Geek Squad to install it. It took about 20 minutes for them to
fix it. The adapter cost $38 and the installation was $40. It was worth it
to me to be done with this problem. I got home and tried it out and it
worked great! Give this a try.

"Fluff" wrote:



"John Slattery" wrote:

I really hope someone out there can give me some substantive help with this.
I have just purchased a Dell 512mb Flash Drive and my system at home will not
recognize the device. I have also had the same problem with a SanDisk 512 mb
flash drive. Both of these drives have worked fine on numerous other
computers. My system is running Windows XP Pro with SP2 loaded. The USB Host
Controller drivers (Intel) have all been updated, uninstalled, reinstalled,
and updated again. I have checked everything I can think of in Device
Manager. I even went into BIOS out of desperation. Nothing I have tried works.
Another symptom I have noticed is that if I try to boot the machine with the
Flash Drive inserted, the machine will not boot and tells me it cannot find
the OS.
Please help, I've been everything from a software engineer to a network
administrator, to a programming teacherfor 17 years and I've never had a
computer problem that frustrated me this much. I've googled this to death and
it seems like i see the problem posted a lot, but no useful solutions.
HELP!!!!!

A Windows on-line tech advised me to purchase a PCI-USB adapter. I went to
Best Buy and purchased the adapter that included 4 additional USB ports.
Their Geek Squad installed the card into my computer and now it works great!!
Thanks for your advice but if you ever have this problem again, this is a
great fix. The card cost $38 and installation was $40. Worth it to me!

"bobhwll" wrote:


Igraepel and John Slattery
I am no computer boffin but the registry fix I mentioned in my previous
post worked for me: Try HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\
Windows\CurrentVersion See if 'DevicePath' points to
'%SystemRoot%\inf. If it doesn't, then try modifying Device Path by
right clicking on it and in the modify box enter %SystemRoot%. If
there are other items in DevicePath then after the last item add a
semicolon and enter %SystemRoot%
Plug in your device and reboot your machine. If Windows does not
immediately recognize it automatically, go into Device Manager and
check if there is a yellow exclamation mark against "other devices" If
there is then right click on it and click update driver. Hopefully
Windows will then install the driver for the device and you will be in
business.
I hope this works for you. It is very frustrating to have a device
which does not work correctly and no apparent solution is forthcoming.
regards
Bob Howell


--
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On top of all other suggestions here, take a look at:

KB Article Number(s): 297694
HotFix196406

I have an older laptop with USB1.1 and had difficulty seeing USB flash
drives. This hotfix patches a problem where Explorer won't see the drive if
the drive letters aren't consecutively assigned.

It's a special request hotfix -- not in SP2.

"John Slattery" wrote:

I really hope someone out there can give me some substantive help with this.
I have just purchased a Dell 512mb Flash Drive and my system at home will not
recognize the device. I have also had the same problem with a SanDisk 512 mb
flash drive. Both of these drives have worked fine on numerous other
computers. My system is running Windows XP Pro with SP2 loaded. The USB Host
Controller drivers (Intel) have all been updated, uninstalled, reinstalled,
and updated again. I have checked everything I can think of in Device
Manager. I even went into BIOS out of desperation. Nothing I have tried works.
Another symptom I have noticed is that if I try to boot the machine with the
Flash Drive inserted, the machine will not boot and tells me it cannot find
the OS.
Please help, I've been everything from a software engineer to a network
administrator, to a programming teacherfor 17 years and I've never had a
computer problem that frustrated me this much. I've googled this to death and
it seems like i see the problem posted a lot, but no useful solutions.
HELP!!!!!

"Phil Davis" wrote:

Hi Jim,

To answer your questions, yes indeed I have always uninstalled the Canon
drivers before trying another solution. I have also always exited ALL
application software running on my computer including the windows firewall
and AV program (Trend Micro Internet Security 2007). The only thing I
haven't disabled is my Internet connection and that goes through a Router to
my DSL connection. There could be a hardware firewall on the Router that I
haven't taken into consideration though. Hum ... maybe I should think about
that.

I was told (or read in a forum) if the system accepts the Enhanced USB
Controller when drivers are loaded for the PCI to USB Controller Card
(4-external USB Ports) then there is no problem with the MB communicating
with the USB 2.0 controller. My Device Manager shows me that the Enhanced
USB Controller driver is present and reports that it is running without
problems. Ha !!

This freeware that you mentioned, is the name of it "IIRC" ? If so, then
I'll use Google to find a download for me.

Yesterday I downloaded 5 flash BIOS updates from Dell and have performed all
5 updates. My BIOS was at version A03 (never updated since I bought the
computer in 2002) and I saw that the latest version offered by Dell was A09.
They warned me not to try to update from 03 directly to 09 because it can
cause some serious problems. I went through each flash update one step at a
time. Haven't had a chance to see if these updates make any difference in
being able to access my printer but will try to get to this in a few days. I
really doubt seriously that the BIOS updates will make any difference.

As far as the Scanner working and the Printer not, this doesn't strike me as
strange at all. The scanner has it's own device driver and is not using the
same driver as the printer installs. Besides that, the two problem printer
driver files that MS admits is causing the problems due to "Enhanced USB
Controller specification violations" (described in MS Knowledge Base article:
KB892050), have nothing to do with the scanner drivers (or at least I think
not).

Jim, unfortunately I don't think that MS is going to be coming up with a fix
for this WinXP-SP2 problem anytime in the near future. They suggested that I
wait until Service Pack 3 is released but that can be a long, long wait. In
the meantime this Canon device is just sitting on my desktop occupying space.
At least I can use it as a copy machine and a scanner. I haven't even tried
the Fax capabilities yet.

I can understand your frustrations with MicroSoft because I share your
opinion; however, having said that all of the reviews from beta testers as
well as computer resellers and journalists have been very positive for the
Vista product. Sure, there will be a few bugs that have to be patched
however I've read that Vista protects it's kernel much better than any of
it's previous operating systems. It's safe to say that WinXP (Home Edition
anyway) had little or no protection of the kernel and that's why we all got
hundreds of "critical security updates" from MS since it's inception. Hell,
I still get two or three per week and I doubt if it's going to get any better.

As far a Vista goes, I'm really not interested one bit in the new bells and
whistles, 3-D user interfaces and/or the media enhancements. I watch media
programs on my TV, not on my computer. All I want is an O/S that is stable,
has "graceful degradation" error handling built in and is capable of handling
"new" products and devices being introduced to the public as we speak.

Regarding the price of Vista, I will attempt to get it in the Update version
(some $ less expensive than the full, blown - standalone version) and also
I'll try to get it at the "Student/Teacher Discount" (many more $ cheaper).
Honestly, I don't understand why anyone would pay the full price for this
product. Sooner or later (not in the near future but it'll come) MS will
stop supporting the WinXP platforms and one will have to update their O/S.
Come to think of it, it would appear that they're not putting a great amount
of effort into supporting WinXP right now !!! Wouldn't you agree ??

I'll let you know if my BIOS updates fix the USB printer problem but I'm not
holding my breath. Also, I'll keep watching this thread to see if you get
any satisfaction from your PC gurus !! Have a nice day, Jim and try to smile
even if it hurts a bit.

P.S. Pardon my ignorance but you mentioned "Oz" in your post. Where
exactly in the world is this ? I moved over here to Munich, Germany from
California almost 23 years ago so I'm a bit out-of-it when it comes to
abbreviations for world-wide locations.

Best regards,
--
Phil Davis


"Jim Cladingboel" wrote:

Hi Phil,

Due to the Christmas break, I missed the current magazine issue and will
have to wait for the next, due abt 1st February. I had hoped for an email
response - but perhaps those experts are having a problem too!

I have a Canon MP800 and it works perfectly on any of my USB ports, altho
only at USB 1.0 level, which isn't really a problem for printing.
Have you tried _ fully_ deleting the printer software and reloading the
Canon Drivers? I would guess that's more likely to be your problem,
especially as the scanner section is working. It mught be a good idea to
switch off AV and firewall software when you do that.
IIRC, there's a bit of freeware which checks that your USB ports are
working. You should find it on Google and it might reassure you about the
motherboard handling your PCI to USB controller card

As to Vista I wouldn't touch it with a bargepole. (A) It will be full of
bugs and (B) Why give in and at the same time add to Bill's billions?
Good luck, I'll keep you informed of any developments.

Jim.

Hi Phil, I can't believe you're still having this problem. Sorry.
I haven't been able to locate the USB checker I used, but if you Google for
"USB check utility", there's a range of items listed there which might help.
However, you might only find out they are working, but not at what speed.
By the way, Oz is Australia, where I am.
Meantime, I've checked my Standard Enhanced PCI to USB Host Controller,
which has the following Driver :
MS Driver Version 5.1.2600.2180 [xpsp_sp2_rtm.040803-2158].
Driver details, all contained in C:\Windows\System32\Drivers a
usbehci.sys
usbhub.sys
usbport.sys
Plus the following DLLs :
hccoin.dll
usbui.dll

All three of those .sys files should be in that Drivers folder.
The 'standard' drivers, 5.1.2600 are only USB 1.0 and have to be updated
/changed to the version above. Hope this is enough for you to locate it.

Good luck, Jim.

"Roland" wrote in message
...


"Phil Davis" wrote:

Hi Jim,

To answer your questions, yes indeed I have always uninstalled the Canon
drivers before trying another solution. I have also always exited ALL
application software running on my computer including the windows
firewall
and AV program (Trend Micro Internet Security 2007). The only thing I
haven't disabled is my Internet connection and that goes through a Router
to
my DSL connection. There could be a hardware firewall on the Router that
I
haven't taken into consideration though. Hum ... maybe I should think
about
that.

I was told (or read in a forum) if the system accepts the Enhanced USB
Controller when drivers are loaded for the PCI to USB Controller Card
(4-external USB Ports) then there is no problem with the MB communicating
with the USB 2.0 controller. My Device Manager shows me that the
Enhanced
USB Controller driver is present and reports that it is running without
problems. Ha !!

This freeware that you mentioned, is the name of it "IIRC" ? If so, then
I'll use Google to find a download for me.

Yesterday I downloaded 5 flash BIOS updates from Dell and have performed
all
5 updates. My BIOS was at version A03 (never updated since I bought the
computer in 2002) and I saw that the latest version offered by Dell was
A09.
They warned me not to try to update from 03 directly to 09 because it can
cause some serious problems. I went through each flash update one step
at a
time. Haven't had a chance to see if these updates make any difference
in
being able to access my printer but will try to get to this in a few
days. I
really doubt seriously that the BIOS updates will make any difference.

As far as the Scanner working and the Printer not, this doesn't strike me
as
strange at all. The scanner has it's own device driver and is not using
the
same driver as the printer installs. Besides that, the two problem
printer
driver files that MS admits is causing the problems due to "Enhanced USB
Controller specification violations" (described in MS Knowledge Base
article:
KB892050), have nothing to do with the scanner drivers (or at least I
think
not).

Jim, unfortunately I don't think that MS is going to be coming up with a
fix
for this WinXP-SP2 problem anytime in the near future. They suggested
that I
wait until Service Pack 3 is released but that can be a long, long wait.
In
the meantime this Canon device is just sitting on my desktop occupying
space.
At least I can use it as a copy machine and a scanner. I haven't even
tried
the Fax capabilities yet.

I can understand your frustrations with MicroSoft because I share your
opinion; however, having said that all of the reviews from beta testers
as
well as computer resellers and journalists have been very positive for
the
Vista product. Sure, there will be a few bugs that have to be patched
however I've read that Vista protects it's kernel much better than any of
it's previous operating systems. It's safe to say that WinXP (Home
Edition
anyway) had little or no protection of the kernel and that's why we all
got
hundreds of "critical security updates" from MS since it's inception.
Hell,
I still get two or three per week and I doubt if it's going to get any
better.

As far a Vista goes, I'm really not interested one bit in the new bells
and
whistles, 3-D user interfaces and/or the media enhancements. I watch
media
programs on my TV, not on my computer. All I want is an O/S that is
stable,
has "graceful degradation" error handling built in and is capable of
handling
"new" products and devices being introduced to the public as we speak.

Regarding the price of Vista, I will attempt to get it in the Update
version
(some $ less expensive than the full, blown - standalone version) and
also
I'll try to get it at the "Student/Teacher Discount" (many more $
cheaper).
Honestly, I don't understand why anyone would pay the full price for this
product. Sooner or later (not in the near future but it'll come) MS will
stop supporting the WinXP platforms and one will have to update their
O/S.
Come to think of it, it would appear that they're not putting a great
amount
of effort into supporting WinXP right now !!! Wouldn't you agree ??

I'll let you know if my BIOS updates fix the USB printer problem but I'm
not
holding my breath. Also, I'll keep watching this thread to see if you
get
any satisfaction from your PC gurus !! Have a nice day, Jim and try to
smile
even if it hurts a bit.

P.S. Pardon my ignorance but you mentioned "Oz" in your post. Where
exactly in the world is this ? I moved over here to Munich, Germany from
California almost 23 years ago so I'm a bit out-of-it when it comes to
abbreviations for world-wide locations.

Best regards,
--
Phil Davis


"Jim Cladingboel" wrote:

Hi Phil,

Due to the Christmas break, I missed the current magazine issue and
will
have to wait for the next, due abt 1st February. I had hoped for an
email
response - but perhaps those experts are having a problem too!

I have a Canon MP800 and it works perfectly on any of my USB ports,
altho
only at USB 1.0 level, which isn't really a problem for printing.
Have you tried _ fully_ deleting the printer software and reloading the
Canon Drivers? I would guess that's more likely to be your problem,
especially as the scanner section is working. It mught be a good idea
to
switch off AV and firewall software when you do that.
IIRC, there's a bit of freeware which checks that your USB ports are
working. You should find it on Google and it might reassure you about
the
motherboard handling your PCI to USB controller card

As to Vista I wouldn't touch it with a bargepole. (A) It will be full
of
bugs and (B) Why give in and at the same time add to Bill's billions?
Good luck, I'll keep you informed of any developments.

Jim.