seapagan

Hmm. Well the original rar file is ok, and I cant get in to download the one from rapidshare cos apparently too many users are downloading. I'll check it when I can and let you know.Anyone else who has downloaded the rar version have it corrupt? Edit : is the file size definately the same as noted in my original post? SP

Here you go : iTunes.no.quicktime (Norge) (6675058 Bytes)Let me know if you have any problems SP

Sorry, should have specified that - this is the standard english install, all I have done is removed QT and tweaked the msi a bit. What language do you need? - I could knock one up quickly enough in any language. Gimme a few days to relax from work, and I'll write up the procedure to modify it, and post. SP

Glad I could help I've played with a few others since, using the same method, and it's worked in all cases. SP

[ Updated : I have written out the procedure to create this installer - find it [ Here ]. If there are any errors or unclear parts please let me know. I also include a link to the latest (Windows 2003 Platform SDK) versions of Orca and other tools you will need. ] There have been some requests previously for a version of iTunes that does not include quicktime - some people (myself included) prefer the 'Quicktime Alternative' and dont like being forced to install the official bloated version. To redress this, I have 'modified' the original installer and msi to remove QT. Here is a silent version of the latest iTunes software, which does not contain nor will try to install QT. It is also preconfigured to install desktop shortcuts, and does not make iTunes or QT the default media players. Remember that you must install some version of QuickTime (the official or alternative) before running iTunes. It will install without QT but not run Download : iTunesInstaller.v4.9.0.17.exe (6354592 Bytes) If you wish to make your own silent versions, the rar file below contains the modified setup files, which run as a usual install does, except the lack of QT: Download : iTunes Setup files (6028771 Bytes) Alternative : iTunes Setup Files (6028771 Bytes) - Non Rapidshare. Both are the same files, a modified version of the original installer package, so they support uninstall, repair etc. It will also properly install the ipod drivers and CD drivers. It is also some 15 Meg smaller! Tested on a clean machine that has never had iTunes or QT installed, and worked perfectly. If anyone finds any problems or bugs, please let me know! [ Edit : Added a mirror, and changed the rar version of the setup files to make it more obvious that QT is not included. If you have already downloaded, you do not need to redownload, it is only cosmetic ] SP.

I came across the same problem today, when repackaging MSN Messenger. I had extracted the cab file from the msi, added some patched files and tried to recab and install - same error. Turns out that the files need to be put in the cab file in exactly the same order that they were in originally, or the msi cannot find them. To find this order, use the 'list' function of cabarc (from CAB SDK) and redirect this to a text file : cabarc L data1.cab > file-list.txt The file file-list.txt will now contain the filenames in the correct order. Just edit this removing all the extra header data and file sizes etc, so it only contains the filenames, without any extra spaces etc, then put this at the end of your ddf file, after the last '.set' command. Recreate the cab file as usual, then try to install. This worked for me, but I have only tried on the one msi so far, so ymmv... SP.

Trend PC-Cillin Internet Security 2005. I've tried just about every other on the market, and this is the one I keep coming back to. As has been stated before, it is 'lighter' than Norton/Symantec or similar, and has very frequent updates - sometimes several times a day infact. We use the corprate version at work (officescan / serverscan) and have never had anything slip through. The Internet Security version also includes firewall, anti-spam, mail (incl webmail) A/V integration, spyware scanning and vulnerability checking (tells you if you are missing critical windows updates, for those of us who dont use windows auto-update). There is also a wifi 'protection' util. It was pretty easy to make a custom silent installer too, with every update included. However, the bottom line is - use one you are comfortable with, and always practice sensible internet / mail security. **** good piece of software SP.

Have a look at the letters page on the same site Here. Seems all it is really doing is corrupting your partition table, ie the new partition is really on the old one. Write to the new and you corrupt your old. nothing is for free, especially from HD manufacturers! SP

Last time I checked, firefox was a free program - better not use it then, probably contains a virus Get a good virus checker (I prefer Trend) and use any program you feel comfortable with. I use plenty of 'free' programs and with a bit of common sense, a good AV and anti-spyware prog, you will generally be safe. IE, with all the patches, and something like SpywareGuard and SpywareBlaster is quite as safe as Firefox. Personally I prefer Firefox now, but am not so blinkered to believe that if it had the same share of users (and time in service) as IE that it would be any more secure. This sounds a bit like you are offering illegal copies? As does your post in another message offering 'Contact for more info and a license'. Be aware that it not accepted here. My apologies if I understood you wrong. could you go a bit easy on the bright colours and large fonts too pls - my old eyes are not what they used to be, lol SP

I would use the program Partition Table Doctor 3 in this case - saved my life before, lol. There is a demo version from their website, and while it will not fix the problem, you can see if the full version would do it. Can recover a completely deleted partition table, MBR, etc, etc. I paid for the full version on the spot after the demo found my lost partitions, and it worked like a charm. however, you may have problems if other utilities have written to the drive already. It also comes with a bootable ISO image you can burn to a cd if your OS wont start. SP

Just add a 'pause' command at the end of the batch file, this will allow you to see any errors before the window closes. without seeing the batch file, your problem may be to do with directories that have spaces in them, or not picking up the full path properly. SP

Then, like gogol says, 'pathman' is the tool for you. Current link is Here This works on XP even though it is in the 2K resource kit. Check the documentation or use 'pathman /?' to get usage info. Note that this program is installed by default into the 'C:\Program Files\Resource Kit' directory, move it somewhere in the path to get easier usage from batch files. My previous reply was based on your first post : SP

If you want to add a path to your unnatended XP install CD, this is what I do : Be aware that this will edit the registry files for your installation - test it in Virtual pc or similar first! You have to edit the file 'HIVESYS.INF' which is located in your \i386 folder. Search for the following keys in this (ascii text) file : HKLM,"SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Environment" There is a variable here called "Path" that contains the default system path, simply add your own to the end, remembering to precede it with a semicolon ( ; ) as below : "Path",0x00020002,"...<data cut for brevity>;%SystemRoot%\System32\Wbem;c:\gnupg" Dont change any of the values already there, just add yours to the end. I do this always to add the path to my collected command-line tools, to avoid cluttering up the system32 folder. EDIT: To make it better compatible, I suppose you could replace the 'C:' in your path with '%systemdrive%' instead, making it like ';%systemdrive%\gnupg'. This will be replaced by the letter of the drive containing windows. Hope that helps, SP

Again, I will have to disagree over this point - size of boot disk should make no difference to boot speed (mine is 20 gig, with none of the optimisations talked about here except using nlite to cut the OS down, and boots in less time than yours, ok that's on a P4 3GHz laptop, and an AMD64 3400+, but you never specified your system ) Hard drive speed, system speed, and the general state of the filesystem will make the difference. I'm a tall guy, and cramming me into the front seat of a Mini wont make me drive faster than if I was sitting comfortably in a BMW Keep your drive clean and optimised by all means, but you will not gain a major increase by shoe-horning it into the smallest space possible. my 2p SP.

As a non-exhaustive list : page file (preferrably on a different physical drive, for performance reasons) 'my documents' Infact the whole user profile from documents and settings can be moved I believe (search for it). temp files (go to System Properties -> advanced -> environment variables, and change the 'TEMP' and 'TMP' variables in both the user and system areas to point to another drive. Note you will probably have to change the user setting for each individual user you have) Once you have done this and rebooted you can clean out the original directories (in windows\temp and in C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\Local Settings\Temp) Temporary Internet Files (IE) IE -> tools -> Internet Options -> Settings. Change the path here to somewhere else. Of course, use nlite to cut down the size in the first place! Other Points : remove all the *.pnf files (NOT .INF!) from the windows\inf directory - these mount up after a while, they are recreated as required. I am sure there are more that others can add to this. Personally, I would like to find a way to change the default uninstall location for Windows Update (when using the website I mean) to something other than the windows directory. Hope that helps SP.

Sort of offtopic, but anyone interested in trying *nix could also try FreeBSD. This is a completely free and open source Unix (not linux) based on the original BSD unix source tree. Development is constant with a huge team of contributors, all passionate about their OS . Support is avaliable through newsgroups and mailing lists - from the people who actually develop the OS. Agreed, installation and use is (slightly) more complicated than windows, but there is pretty much a 'click to install' default system for first time users, and configuration is quite straight forward once installed. I have talked some 'average windows users' through an install over the phone or in chat, and while it is confusing at first for them most are still running it now and loving it. It can also run Linux binaries without any recompile, and comes with the same x-windows and windows managers as a linux distro would. You can get versions for most processor types, and there has been an AMD64 version for ages. I believe that M$ used to (or maybe still do) use it as the backend for hotmail .. says a lot for their confidence in their own server software , and pretty sure that google / yahoo etc use various BSD versions. I have personally used FreeBSD for years, as a web, irc, ftp etc server, internet gateway and firewall - on of my systems has a current uptime of over 2 years ... beat that windows! Worth noting is the 'ports' collection - a set of scripts that allow you to download, patch, get dependencies and install any *nix program simply by typing 'make install' at a command prompt. Just for anyone seeking an alternative to RedHat or Linux in general. <steps off soapbox and puts Windows hat back on, lol> SP

Personally, I dont agree with keeping the windows partition so small, especially with the insane size of hard drives these days. True, you can move profiles, swap, internet cache, (some) temp files etc etc to another drive, but what benefit does it trully give you? You will still end up pruning files at times. I have done all this in the past, but got bored very quickly with the hassle. What real benefit do you get from saving a couple of Gig on your system drive when most systems these days come with 160+ gig drives? Windows still seems to run better (in my opinion and experience) if you give it a bit of slack space. As stated before also, some program installations WILL use the system drive to store their images, including uninstall stuff, and windows update just fills your windows dir with backups of the files it replaces. And while System Restore may not be as fully featured as acronis true image, it does have the benefit of being installed by default, does what it is supposed to do with no setup, and is free. Just my opinion SP

Yes, you can move the swap file - in the Advanced tab on system properties, performance settings then advanced, change virtual memory. Set C: to 'no paging file' then select one of your other drives and enter a custom size or system managed swap file. Remember to press 'set' on C after removing the old and again after adding the new. I have my swap generally set to a same min / max, and on a partition of it's own that no other files go on. Will stop the page file getting fragmented also. SP.

Internet Cache (have you cleaned it recently?) Uninstall Information (every windows update file will also store some) Temporary Files Installed file leaving the package behind (in C:\WINDOWS\Downloaded Installations and C:\WINDOWS\Installer for example) lots more! All these can mount up. Not all temp files are removed after use, and some installers copy the full install package to the system folders too. Have you moved your profiles path from the system drive to elsewhere? otherwise all files in 'my documents' etc are stored here also. 4Gb seems a little restrictive - windows really needs some free space on the system drive to function best. Certainly some defrag programs (diskeeper for example) will complain if you have too little free space on a drive). If you have the swap file here too, and set to auto manage, it will grow at times too, maybe hibernation support files (huge)? That's just off the top of my head, there are probably more. SP

Sounds like you may have a faulty XP install disk - is it a 'recovery' type CD provided by the manufacturer, or a plain vanilla XP CD? As suggested, try another XP CD from a friend. Looking at the error message, that looks like it should be 'SP1.cab' not 'SPI' .. guess that is a typo? Be aware that some modern PC's need extra drivers and software provided by the manufacturer to function fully. For the 8GB size discrepancy, I have noticed that XP leaves about 8 gig at the end unpartitioned on my systems sometimes, depending on what partition layout I use. Also, manufacturers quote drive sizes as unformatted capacity, it is slightly less once formatted, and they generally use 1GB = 1000 Meg while winders uses 1024 Meg. For the Windows 98 SE, I am not sure if that OS can support hard drives of 160 Gb, maybe that is the problem. Try making a smaller partition for the OS - only partitition say the first 40 gig as a primary partition and leave the rest blank , see if that helps 98. Otherwise, the problem could be that 98SE does not have drivers to support your hardware (especially if your computer is so new). When you are in safe mode, look at the device manager in control panel, see if any are giving errors and try to get new drivers for 98 if so. SP

I have never used it myself, but what about the ICMP tab in windows firewall? It has various ICMP types that you can allow / block (ie the first option is 'allow incoming echo request'). Personally, I used a FreeBSD Unix machine as a gateway, with a [ software ] firewall to block all incoming pings until I got my router. to get there - start -> control panel ->network connections -> right-click on your network connection -> properties -> advanced -> select ICF -> settings -> ICMP. It is true that blocking the ping response will not stop hackers getting into your system if you have open ports or vulnerabilities, but many tools used by 'casual' scanners use the ping to quickly detect an active computer when they are scanning large ip ranges, and any responses can be later fully investigated - i tend to get a couple of dozen every day just from my own subnet. Personally, if I am roaming on my laptop, I never bother to block ICMP anymore, only on my permanent connection. Note however, that some internet programs may not work properly or connect slower if you block the ping response. As war59312 said though, best defense is a hardware-based firewall. Anyone else with more experience with the Windows ICF can correct me if I'm wrong SP

You would be surprised how fragmented a newly installed Windows OS is. Imagine how many temp files get created and deleted during the process... Try running a defrag on it, it may actually help a little. Also, I usually install the User Profile Hive Cleanup Service from Microsoft - it really does make a difference in shutdown time for me. Check if you have set any options like 'clear page file at shutdown' or similar, cant remember if nlite has that tweak of the top of my head. SP

2x160 Gb on Primary Desktop 2x80, 60, 40 on Secondary Desktop 60 Gb on Primary Laptop 40 Gb on Secondary Laptop (2K PDC) 20 Gb on tertiary laptop (FreeBSD, used as Webserver, IRC server, DMZ, test machine, etc etc Over 200 Gb on FreeBSD 'Dump' Server, shared both with Samba and NFS, running on an old 386/266 40 Gig on Ipod 4G Photo 1 Gb, 2x512 Meg USB Sticks and dozens of assorted Memory Sticks Total of a shade over 950 Gb for all home machines. Looking to buy a couple of 200 Gb drives in a few weeks to add to primary PC. Work : IBM SP3 with 16 Terrabyte RAID, SGI Server with 512 Gb Raid and assorted PC Workstations / Servers with way too much storage to count SP

Gah, seems your cmdlines.txt is not being run. Check your winnt.sif for the line : [unattended] OemPreinstall=Yes UnattendSwitch="yes" Not sure if the second one is required for this problem, but the first one tells windows you have an $OEM$ directory. Otherwise, errr. hmmm. dunno. Still got 6hrs of a 12hr shift to run, headache and complete lack of motivation to my job due to lack of sleep. 2 weeks left before I see a beer SP

Did the pauses you put in the CMDLINES.TXT show up? I dont know exactly what commands are available at this point in the installation, if they are not showing up, maybe that is crashing the CMDLINES.TXT? Did the regtweaks work from unattended install? If yes to both, try stepping through the runonce cmd using pauses between the reg comands and without hiding the window, see if you see any errors. Make sure the cmd file is in the same directory as the CMDLINES.TXT (C:\XPCD\$OEM$\ for example), and filename correct. I'm on shift atm, so can't check my own CD's for a bit, this is from my (slightly dodgy) memory ... And yer switches for the REG lines are a bit wrong - maybe it works ok from a full install, but not when the OS is not totally installed? When you run the cmd file from an installed windows and then reboot, do the progs get installed correctly? SP