Hardware/Third Party FAQ

FAQ# 114:
How do I make Windows NT automatically reboot after getting the "Blue Screen of Death"??

Only a system administrator or experienced user should attempt this fix. WireReady NSI is not responsible for anything that happens to your system after you edit your NT registry. You can force NT to automatically reboot after a crash by Setting the value of: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\CrashControl\AutoReboot to 1. Once you've changed this value, NT will reboot after writing the crash log file.

FAQ# 207:
How do I configure Three (3) Lynx cards on one computer??
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To configure NewsReady32 to play on 3 audio Lynx cards you go to
the player screen:
1) Click setup, under wave decks, when you select each card for a
deck, there
should be 6 choices. (Each card has an analog and a digital, so
card 1 is actually 1 and 2, card 2 is 3 and 4 etc. assuming you
are analog, then you'd pick numbers 1 for wave deck 1, 3 for wave
deck 2, and 5 for wave deck 3.
2) Then you need to exit the program, and go back in (using the
same user name) When you restart the program (restarting Windows
isn't nessesary). If you load a script on the screen, you should
be able to hit F! to play out card 1, F3 to play out of card 2
and F3 to play out card 3.
Note: To support 3 Lynx cards, you must have Lynx driver 19 or
better. Lynx drivers may be downloaded at www.Lynxstudio.com
=================================================================

Computers
FAQ# 223:
How do I speed up my computer??
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This document contains a number of configuration changes that can be made to Windows 95 and 98 to ensure that it runs efficiently, and that no system settings are preventing Windows from using its resources effectively. It is not intended to resolve any specific problems, although in some cases it will resolve problems caused by improper settings.

NOTE: When making any changes, always make a note of the original settings. If the changes you make have any adverse effects, return the settings to their original values. Wireready NSI does not provide support for Microsoft products. This information is provided simply as suggestions for improving performance.

How to check the hard drive for problems:
Problems with the hard drive, such as bad sectors, can cause problems when running any software. In addition, a badly fragmented hard drive can cause programs to run slower than
expected. Please follow, in turn, the instructions in each section.

ScanDisk
ScanDisk is a Windows utility that examines hard drives for errors, damage, or defects, either to data or to the physical drive. We recommend that you check for such problems before you make any of the system changes that are described in this document.
Please follow these steps to run ScanDisk:
1. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and then click ScanDisk.
2. Select the drives that you want to scan. You can select more than one drive by holding down Ctrl while you click a drive.
3. Select the type of test that you want to run. A Standard test examines only the data on the hard drive, while a Thorough test also examines the physical surface of the drive. We recommend that you perform a Thorough test. (This should be done monthly.)
4. Click Start to begin the scanning process. Depending on the size of the hard drive, and the speed of the computer, a Thorough scan can take several hours.

Disk Defragmenter
Disk Defragmenter is a Windows utility that organizes the way
files are stored on the hard drive. A hard drive is composed of
may sections, known as sectors. Frequently, as files are written
to the hard drive, they are broken up into noncontiguous parts.
This slows down the system because the file must be retrieved
from different locations. It also wastes space, and increases the
chances of files becoming damaged. Disk Defragmenter
systematically goes through these files, and, free drive space
permitting, puts them back together so that each file is in only

one location.

Please follow these steps to run Disk Defragmenter:
1. Click Start, point to Programs, point to Accessories, point to
System Tools, and then click Disk Defragmenter.
2. Select the drives that you want to scan. You can select either
a single drive or All hard drives.
3. Click OK to begin the defragmentation process. Depending on
the size of the hard drive, the amount of fragmentation, and the
speed of the computer, this process may take several hours. In
some cases, you may want to run Disk Defragmenter overnight.

How to check for programs that load at startup
When you install software, as part of the installation, the
program may change a Windows setting so that it starts each time
that Windows starts. Other programs have a program option that
does the same thing. Because some programs run in the background,
you may not even know that this is happening. This can become a
problem, because the more programs that start automatically, the
fewer resources that the computer has available for other uses.

Within the program
If you know that the program is running, open it. In many cases,
there will be a setting, for example in an Options or Preferences
menu, that allows the program to start when Windows starts. In
this case, disable it, and then restart Windows.

From the StartUp folder
Many programs start when Windows starts by placing a shortcut in
the StartUp folder. Follow these steps to move shortcuts to a
different folder to see whether this resolves the problem or
helps programs run faster:
1. Right-click Start, and then click Explore. An Explorer window
opens with the \Windows\Start Menu folder selected.
2. In the left pane, double-click the Programs folder.
3. Click the File menu, point to New, and then click Folder.
4. Type Backup of Startup and then press Enter.
5. In the left pane, click the StartUp folder. The shortcuts that
are displayed in the left pane are programs that start when
Windows starts.
6. Drag and drop each shortcut to the Backup of Startup that you
created previously.
7. Exit Windows Explorer, and then restart Windows to test.

From the Windows registry
Many programs are loaded from the Windows registry. You can
temporarily prevent these from loading for testing purposes.
Because changing the registry can cause serious problems if done
incorrectly, we do not recommend you edit your registry unless
you are a computer expert.

System settings in the Config.sys file

Settings in the Config.sys file can sometimes be configured
improperly when programs--particularly older Windows or DOS
programs--are installed. If they are not set correctly, they may
be limited by Windows default settings. Follow these steps to
ensure that the Config.sys file is optimized:
1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. Type sysedit and then click OK. The System Configuration
Editor opens.
3. Click the Window menu, and then click C:\CONFIG.SYS.
4. Scroll down, if necessary, and look for a line that starts
with FILES=. If one does not exist, enter it according to these
guidelines:
If the computer is not on a network, or if it is on a network
with less than nine other computers, type the following and then
press Enter:

FILES=200

If the computer is on a network with more than ten other
computers, type the following and then press Enter:

FILES=250

5. Look for a line that starts with BUFFERS=. Change it, or if it
does not exist, add it, so that it matches the following, and
then press Enter:

BUFFERS=40,0

6. Look for a line that starts with STACKS=. Change it, or if it
does not exist, add it, so that it matches the following, and
then press Enter:

STACKS=12,256

7. Close the Config.sys file and save the changes.

System settings in the System.ini file
Another area in which Windows can have limits imposed upon it is
the System.ini file. Please follow, in turn, the instructions in
each section to ensure that the System.ini file is optimized.

Real Mode (16-bit) drivers
This is most frequently seen on computers that have been upgraded
from older operating systems. In this case, the System.ini file
may contain references to old 16-bit drivers that can cause
problems with newer, 32-bit programs. Follow these steps to
remove these 16-bit drivers:

NOTE: Skip steps 1 and 2 if the System Configuration Editor is
already open.

1. Click Start, and then click Run.

2. Type sysedit and then click OK. The System Configuration
Editor opens.
3. Click the Window menu, and then click C:\SYSTEM.INI.
4. Click the Search menu, and then click Find.
5. Type 386enh in the Find box, and then click Next.
6. You should see [386enh] selected. (You may have to scroll down
to see it.) On the lines following this, look for text that
begins with device=. If any line that begins with device= does
not have an asterisk (*) directly following the equals (=) sign,
type a semicolon (; ) and a space at the beginning of the line.
This is called "commenting out" the line, and it will prevent
Windows from loading that driver. (It also enables you to
reenable them in the future by simply reversing the steps.)
Please see the following example:

In this sample System.ini file, the second line of the [386Enh]
section, device=mydriver, does not have an * as does
device=*dynapage.

[386Enh]
device=*dynapage
device=mydriver

Comment out the device=mydriver line by typing a semicolon and
then a space to the left of the line, so that it looks like:

[386Enh]
device=*dynapage
; device=mydriver

7. Click the File menu, and then click Save to save your changes.
Close the System.ini file, or, (recommended), go on to the next
section.

Hard drive caching
In general, Windows 95/98 takes care of the hard drive cache on
its own. However, if a program has made changes to this setting,
or if you simply want to be sure it is being handled correctly,
please follow these steps to check, and if necessary, changed
these settings:
1. With the System.ini file open,
2. Click the Search menu, and then click Find.
3. Type vcache in the Find box, and then click Next. You should
see [vcache] selected. (You may have to scroll down to see it.)
4. In the [vcache] section, look for the following:

[vcache]
Minfilecache=512
Maxfilecache=6144
Chunksize=512

If these lines do not exist, add them exactly as shown.
If they do exist but the numbers are not the same values as
shown, change the numbers so that they do.

5. Close the System.ini file and save the changes.

System settings in the Win.ini file
In some cases, 16-bit programs can also be loaded from the
Win.ini file. Follow these steps to check this:

NOTE: Skip steps 1 and 2 if the System Configuration Editor is
already open.

1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. Type sysedit and then click OK. The System Configuration
Editor opens.
3. Click the Window menu and then click C:\WIN.INI.
4. In the [Windows] section, look for lines that start with load=
and run=.
5. If there is anything following load= or run=, comment out
these lines with semicolons. Please see the instructions in the
previous section for how to do this. For example:

If the Win.ini file now has:

[Windows]
load=c:\cctrol.exe
run=c:\wizard\wiz.exe

Type a semicolon and a space before each line so it is:

[Windows]
; load=c:\cctrol.exe
; run=c:\wizard\wiz.exe

Temporary files
Windows programs often need to temporarily store information on
the hard drive. This is almost always done when installing
software, but occurs at other times as well, for example when
reindexing a database, extracting compressed files, or when using
some programs such as Microsoft Word. This information is saved
in a designated \Temp folder. In some, but not all, cases these
files will have the .tmp extension. Windows--or the program that
has created them--is supposed to delete these files when they are
no longer needed. Because this does not always happen, large
numbers of temp files can accumulate in the \Temp folder. This
can slow computer operation and cause other problems. In
addition, corrupted temp files can cause installation failures,
and, in some cases, can cause programs, or the computer, to stop
responding.

To prevent this, you should, on a regular basis, clean out
files--or subfolders--that have accumulated in the Windows \Temp
folder. In some cases, you should change the location of the
\Temp folder. Please follow, in turn, the instructions in each

section.
Enable show all files
Follow these steps to make sure that Windows is set to show all
files:
1. Start Windows Explorer.
2. Click the View menu, and then click Options or Folder options.
3. Click the View tab, and then uncheck, if necessary, Hide file
extensions for known file types.
4. Click Show all files, and then click OK.

Locate the \Temp folder
1. Click Start, point to Programs, and then click MS-DOS Prompt.
A DOS window opens.
2. At the prompt, type set and then press Enter.
3. Look for lines that start with TEMP= and TMP=. By default both
will--and should--point to the same location, for example,
C:\Windows\Temp. Write down the path and file name that is shown.
(If they point to different locations, you will need to clear out
both folder when following the instructions in the next section.)
4. Type exit and then press Enter.

Clear temporary files

WARNING: If, in the previous section, you found TEMP= or TMP=
pointed directly to one of the following, without the path ending
in \Temp:
A program folder such as C:\DOS or C:\Windows (For example, it
showed TEMP=C:\Windows instead of the expected
TEMP=C:\Windows\Temp).
The root of the C: drive (For example, it showed TEMP=C:\ ).
do not , in this case, follow the instructions in this section.
Instead, skip to the section Problems with Temp locations and
reset the path to the \Temp folder by follow the instructions in
that section. After doing so, you will need to use Windows
Explore to delete any .tmp files that were left in what
previously was the location of the \Temp folder. In this case,
because it is beyond the scope of this document to determine,
what, for example, are \Windows files, and what were left there
as temp files, we suggest that you delete only files with the
.tmp extension.

1. Exit all programs, and then restart the computer.
2. Start Windows Explorer, and then navigate to and select the
folder whose location you wrote down in the previous section, for
example, C:\Windows\Temp.
3. Making sure that you are looking in the \Temp folder, examine
the contents of the right pane and do one of the following:
Delete any files and subfolders within this folder. In most
cases, this is the recommended action. Files and folders that
were placed there by Windows or Windows-based programs were not
meant to be permanent and can be safely deleted.
Move the files to a different location. If you are not sure that
the files or folders were placed there by Windows or
Windows-based programs, move them to a different folder, or,

(recommended) external media such as a floppy disk. (In most
cases, this is not necessary. However, because some unzip
programs offer to unzip files to the \Temp folder by default, and
in some cases, files may have been download or stored there, if
you are not sure of the contents, we suggest that you move them
instead of deleting them.)
4. Repeat the process for the \Tmp folder, if it is different
from the \Temp folder.

Problems with Temp locations
By default, Windows places the \Temp folder in C:\Windows\Temp.
Other locations, such as C:\Temp, or even another drive, are
perfectly acceptable as long as there is room on the drive. There
are, however, several locations--most often seen on older,
upgraded computers--that can cause serious problems. They are:
C:\DOS (In this case, files are actually being placed directly in
the \DOS folder). This is a poor location, as it becomes
difficult to remove leftover files when they are mixed with files
that should remain there.
C:\ (That is, there is no \Temp folder; all temp files are being
placed in the root of the C:\ drive.) Because the root of the
hard drive, by design, can only hold a limited number (512) of
files, placing temp files in this location can cause programs to
stop working.

To change the location of the Temp folder, please follow these
steps:
1. Click Start, and then click Run.
2. Type sysedit and then click OK. The System Configuration
Editor appears.
3. Click the Window menu, and then click C:\AUTOEXEC.BAT.
4. Look for the lines that start with SET TEMP= and SET TMP=.
5. Change them to read:

SET TEMP=C:\Windows\Temp
SET TMP=C:\Windows\Temp

NOTE: If Windows is installed to a different location, change
this accordingly, so that both point to the \Temp folder that is
located in the folder where you have Windows installed.

6. Exit the System Configuration Editor and save the changes when
prompted.
7. Restart the computer.

Virtual memory
Even computers with large amounts of RAM (memory) do not always
have enough memory for every function. To work around this
problem, Windows uses a portion of the hard drive for temporary
memory storage. This is called virtual memory, or a swap file.
This file is use to hold data for which there is not currently
room in memory, as well as data that Windows is not currently
using, but may need again soon. Because of this, you need a

virtual memory allocation even if you have large amounts of RAM
in the computer. The swap file can be placed on any local drive;
we recommend that you have at least 100 MB of free space on this
drive.

How to create a permanent swap file
By default, Windows will use whatever free space is available for
its swap file. This is inefficient, and can slow down the
computer, especially if the hard drive is highly fragmented. (See
first section for information on defragmenting the hard drive.)
It can also be misleading; when it is not in use, it does not
take up space, so you may be led to believe you have more space
than you will have when programs are running. To avoid this, you
can create a permanent swap file with a fixed size. The
recommended size of a swap file is 1.5 times the size of the
physical RAM, so if you have 64 MB of RAM, a good swap file size
might be 100 MB.

NOTES:
There is a limit to this, however. Computers are being
manufactured with ever increasing amounts of RAM. If you have 512
MB of RAM, for example, you do not need 1.25 GB of virtual
memory. In most cases, setting the virtual memory to a maximum of
200 MB will prove sufficient in most cases.
If you are going to be performing operations that will use far
more RAM than you actually have, such as computer-aided design or
heavy graphical rendering such as creating computer animation,
you may want to let Windows manage the virtual memory, so that
the swap file can grow as large as needed.

To create a permanent swap file, please follow these steps:
1. Run ScanDisk and Disk Defragmenter before changing virtual
memory settings.
2. Click Start, point to Settings, and then click Control Panel.
3. Double-click System, and then click the Performance tab.
4. Click Virtual Memory.
5. Click "Let me specify my own virtual memory settings."
6. Select the hard drive that you want to contain the swap file.
Make sure that you select a drive with enough free space. If you
have more than one physical hard drive, we recommend that you
select the fastest drive if possible.
7. Set the Minimum and Maximum to the same size.

8. Click OK. You will see a warning about changing your virtual
memory settings. As long as you have followed the previous
instructions, this can be disregarded. Click Yes.

9. Allow Windows to restart the computer.
=================================================================

CartReady
FAQ# 209:
How to use audio from the internet/web sites with
CartReady/ControlReady/MusicReady?
-----------------------------------------------------------------
You have to get it to an uncompressed WAV file. If it is, you're
done. If it's not, there are many Windows based editors. We
recommend you buy Syntrilliums' Cooledit 2000 program, the basic
editor ($69) from syntrillium.com, although any audio editor that
can handle the type of file you download off the internet should
work fine. CoolEdit is an awesome production tool/editor that
can run on your win95/98 computer. It lets you save anything to
a windows "PCM" *.WAV file, which is techno jargon for an
uncompressed wav file, which is what we are compatible with.
The "cool" part is it can read just about ANY file type,
including MP3, MPG, you name it.
Note: The reverse also works in case you ever need to export a
file from CartReady and bring it to the internet.
=================================================================

3rd Party Software
FAQ# 224:
I installed Norton anti-virus. Now the computer is running slow.?
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The following are suggestions from Symantec for correcting
problems with performance after installing Norton anti-virus
software.

System performance can be adversely affected by a number of
things including, but not limited to, insufficient memory (RAM)
or hard disk space, 16-bit conflicts, and, in the case of Norton
AntiVirus (NAV), the way that SymEvent is interfacing with your
programs (SymEvent is a low-level driver that NAV uses to
intercept processor and file-access requests). To troubleshoot a
system performance problem that has occurred after installing
NAV, please read the instructions in each of the following
sections.

Download the NAV 2000 program update: run LiveUpdate and select
the program update from the list.

Update the SymEvent files
Download the Sevinst.exe file from
ftp://ftp.symantec.com/public/english_us_canada/symevnt/. After
the download is complete, double-click the Sevinst.exe file to
update the files known collectively as SymEvent.

For NAV 5.0 or NAV 2000 only
On some computers, it may be necessary to change the Auto-Protect
Fast Cache Reset Timeout value. Please follow these steps to do
this:
1. Click Start, point to Find, and then click Files or Folders.
2. Type ap9xpon.reg and then press Enter. Once the file is found,
double-click Ap9xpon.reg.
3. Click Yes to add the information to the registry. You will see
a message that Ap9xpon.reg has been successfully entered into the
registry.

Apxpon.reg is used to enhance the performance of Auto-Protect by
changing the value of FastCacheResetTimeout in the registry. This
table provides more specific information.

Value: FastCacheResetTimeout
Windows 9x Key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Symantec\Norton
AntiVirus\Auto-Protect\InternalSettings
Windows NT Key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Symantec\Norton
AntiVirus NT\Auto-Protect\InternalSettings
Type: DWORD
Settings: 0 = No caching [DEFAULT]
x = Number of milliseconds to cache file name
Windows 9x File: Ap9xpon.reg sets value to 500 (NAV 5.0) or 5000
(NAV 2000)
Ap9xpoff.reg sets value to 0
Windows NT File: Apntpon.reg sets value to 500

Apntpoff.reg sets value to 0

NOTES: NAV Auto-Protect (AP) can cache file names of recently
accessed files. If an accessed file's name is in the NAVAP cache,
then NAVAP will not scan the file. This value sets the number of
milliseconds that the NAVAP will cache a file name. Setting or
increasing this value can improve performance when a file is
repeatedly accessed. This repeated access occurs often when a
program opens and accesses some file such as a .dll or other file
numerous times while it opens. This typically occurs more than
once per second. If NAVAP is attempting to scan this every time
the opening application accesses it, the application will open
very slowly from a user's perspective.

The FastCacheResetTimeout value for NAV 2000 can be manually
configured to a value even higher than 5000 if necessary. This
change has been beneficial in speeding up some applications that
run slowly with Auto-Protect enabled with the default setting.
=================================================================

3rd Party Software
FAQ# 222:
When Norton anti-virus auto-protection is running, audio skips or
is choppy.?
-----------------------------------------------------------------
There may be more than one cause and solution to this problem.
Please see, in turn, the instructions in each section.

Download the NAV 2000 program update: run LiveUpdate and select
the program update from the list.

Decrease hardware acceleration
Hardware acceleration set to the maximum can cause this problem
on some computers. Follow these steps to decrease the hardware
acceleration.

1. Right-click the My Computer icon on the Desktop, then click
Properties. The System Properties dialog box appears.
2. Click the Performance tab.
3. Under Advanced Settings, click Graphics. The Advanced Graphics
Settings dialog box appears.
4. Move the Hardware Acceleration slider to the left one or two
positions.
5. Click OK, then restart the computer when prompted.

Increase DMA buffer size
This has worked for some customers where the previous solution
did not. Please follow these steps:
1. Right-click the My Computer icon on the Desktop, then click
Properties. The System Properties dialog box appears.
2. Click the Device Manager tab.
3. Click View devices by type.
4. Expand the System devices tree.
5. Double-click Direct memory access controller.
6. Click the Settings tab.
7. Check "Reserve DMA buffer"
8. In the "Kbytes reserved" box, enter 64
9. Click OK and then OK again.
10. Restart the computer.
=================================================================