Reformatting/starting over

[Arkroyal]

This thing has slowed to snail pace, and is obviously full of junk.

I'm considering getting XP to replace 98 and starting over again with a partitioned drive.

Anyone done it and what are the pitfalls. (large ones I presume!)

I'm just glad my heart pacemeker is supported by windows ninety ei............................

[FLEX42]

Lots of tips and advice on formatting at this site
http://www.cyberwalker.net/

[Arkroyal]

Thanks Flex.

I'm starting to feel brave....if you nevre see the name Arkroyal again, you'll know why.... :D

[Superpilot]

The XP CD is bootable, use this to your advantage. As long as you follow the screen prompts precisely you won't have any difficulty. 2000, NT and XP have always provided the ability to delete, create and reformat partitions from within setup itself making things a breeze. Safe XP-ing....

[Feline]

Arkroyal - I can understand your perceived need to reformat and re-install the software you need (a Good Idea every 12 - 18 months anyway). But I don't understand why you want to partition.
Once upon a time, I too thought it would be a Good Idea to partition my hard disk, but it turned out to be a king sized pain in the ass - I was constantly fiddling with the partitions to squeeze something more in to one partition, and then a little bit more in another partition ... And although the thinking was to have the O/S in one partition, App S/W in another, and data in a third, and the fourth was exactly the same size as a CD-ROM, it never quite worked out that way (for example, some apps insisted on having their associated data in their own directory)...
So for what it's worth, unless you have a very good reason indeed for partitioning, I would strongly recommend that you don't ...

[ 11 November 2001: Message edited by: Feline ]

[Brit Abroad]

Don't forget to backup your data before you re-format. By data, I mean anything important for which you longer have the cd to re-install.

Don't forget your outlook express data (mails and address book) - I did once and it was a real pain !! Use this link to help you:
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q27 0/6/70.ASP (http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q270/6/70.ASP)

Also, don't forget to take a backup of any software that you have downloaded via the internet.

As far as upgrading to XP is concerned, try to establish why your PC has been slowing down. I mean, if your processor isn't up to the job, then I would strongly advise against upgrading to XP, bearing in mind that it is based on NT technology.

Good luck and let us know if you take the leap ;)

[MikeSamuel]

I agree with the Feline...Partitions are a bit of a pain. Although one good use for them is this...If you have say, a 20Gb Hard Disk, you could have a 19.5Gb main partition, with 500Mb (I know the numbers would be slightly different) as the secondary partition. You could then use the 500Mb to backup to should you need to format the main partition again.
I find it can save a lot of time....

Good Luck,
Mikey :)

[Brit Abroad]

I myself took the leap yesterday.

I had originally installed Win ME over Win 95. It wasn't a good idea and the result had been a mix of both Operating systems.

So yesterday, I backed up all my data including emails and drivers etc to CD-ROM, printed out the instructions from Flex's link above and also from my link about saving/restoring Outlook Express files.

I then proceeded with the reformat and re-install.

The only problems I had were the following:

1) Windoze didn't seem to recognise my sound card and didn't load the correct driver or let me install the specific driver from disk. - I was later able to 'remove' this driver (via control panel > system) and re-install after a reboot following the install.

2) I forgot to backup my internet favourites (damn)

3) The backup of my Outlook Express address didn't work. Luckily the backup of my emails did work, so I should be able to rebuild it ok.

Conclusion
I now have a clean install of Win ME and clean install of my applics, drivers and data, instead of hybrid Win ME / 95 install and it has made a big difference. - After bootup, I now have 89 % system resources available compared to 83 % before and the system is noticeably quicker and definitely more stable.

It still annoys me though that this procedure is necessary on such a regular basis..... Comments ?

[Arkroyal]

Thanks everyone, some good tips.

Re partitioning, maybe more trouble tha its worth.

The [processor is a P3 / 600, so should have some life left in it. I'll take the plunge next week during a few days off!

Wish me luck as I wave you goodbye..... :D

[Mango3]

Before you go Arkroyal: I've just formatted my trusty laptop, from XP Home Edition back to 98SE. I had good cause, but basically none of my hardware worked with XP (Cam, modem, Nortons...) I didn't bother backing my files up (mostly junk anyhow) and after visiting Windows Update and reinstalling the things I like, my computer runs fine. Like you, my unit was cluttered up as well. My XP disc remains in storage now until drivers become available via the internet. XP just didn't like what I was running. Shame, as I liked it, albeit for a few weeks!

[Narada]

Since you are ready to take the plunge...try out Regvac before you do it and see if it makes much of a difference in the speed (after backing up the important things). It is supposed to clean the registry and I have used it with some success.
http://regvac.com/fregvac.htm

[FLEX42]

Hope you make it back from the dark side Arkroyal, it's been 2 days and no sightings, good luck. ;)

[Ausatco]

Thanks for the tip Narada. I took RegVAC and also a companion prog, Win Rescue which has a few registry tools. 30 days free trial, then US$29.95 and US$24.95. That's nearly OZ$110.00. Ouch!! But they are good.

AA

[Ausatco]

Arkroyal, you've probably already done the deed so this may be too late. But did you consider cleaning out the registry and then a registry compaction and then a defrag.

My machine had slowed to a crawl, I did the above and it made a BIG difference, especially the defrag. (My system disk was not so much fragmented, more like shattered :p )

Probabl not as good as a reformat and reinstall, but A LOT less hassle.

AA

[Friendly Pelican]

Don't you just hate it when you look and find a whole lot of useful stuff after the fact...

Took the plunge last weekend and it went well enough, but I'll be a fixture at the WinUp site for a while. Speed has improved outa sight but still a couple of niggles if anyone can help.

First is I have a gumby 'Logoff Pelican' on the bottom of the start menu which I can't see how to get rid of, as I'm the only one using the box.

The second is that I'm using Norton 2000 to scan incoming emails but had turned off the tray icon which said it was doing its thing. ******ed if I know how to do that one again.

All my previous questions have been answered well, so here's hoping once again!

[Arkroyal]

Well, I'm back, sort of.

Re formatted with XP professional and no partition.

The machine is lightning quick now, and I've got most stuff up and running. Problems:

Crappy soft internal modem refused to work, so replaced with a proper external one.

It uses the one and only serial port, so I'm stuck with disconnecting it to use my camera for now. (is it possible to connect two items to one port?)

Don't seem to have any software to run the scanner!

Been at it for hpurs, so I'll attack it again toomorrow (note new spelling as ordained by the president!) :D

Thanks one and all for the help.

[Arkroyal]

Now quite happy with XP!

One snag: Saved all my important emails by using OE6's File/Folder/Compact route.

How do I import them into OE6 in the new set up? The help options are (as usual) no help.