MaximumPC 2004 12

A CASE OF THE FUZZIES

I recently purchased a GeForce FX

5200 videocard, and I’m currently

using an RF adapter to output the

S-video to my 25-inch TV so I can

watch DVDs from my PC. I can

get CyberDVD to output to my

TV but it looks fuzzy. Is there a

way to get a clearer picture?

—JOSHUA SCHLATTER

Picture quality with an S-video

output is poor as a general rule. And

we can only imagine how craptacu-

lar it must be if you’re using an RF

adapter. The Doctor recommends

lowering the resolution as much as

possible—think 640x480 maximum,

which is the optimal resolution for

a standard TV anyway. Beyond that,

there’s really not much you can do

to improve the picture.

DOUBLE YOUR FUN

Alienware has proved you can

put two videocards into one rig,

but what about soundcards? I

have several rooms wired for

sound and would like to have a

central server playing different

audio files in each room without

the need for multiple PCs either

on the server end or in the

rooms. Is there a way to have

multiple soundcards (or even

just sound streams) coming

from one PC?

—ANONYMOUS

You can indeed run multiple sound-

cards in the same system; however,

Windows only lets you stream audio

to one of them. We know of a couple

hardware solutions that circumvent

the OS. For instance, the Platinum

version of the Audigy 2 ZS allows you

to run the headphone as a separate

output, and most motherboards that

feature Intel’s “HD Audio” let you run

two separate audio streams. But in

these cases, you’re not only limited to

just two streams, but analog signals

sent over long cable runs (which

you’d likely need to reach other

rooms) tend to degrade significantly.

Instead, we recommend setting up

separate streaming boxes in each of

the rooms you want music in.

With the audio piped over a net-

work, the sound quality will be much

better. Plus, a streaming box gives you

the ability to change tracks, adjust

volume, and even switch to a different

playlist without needing to be at your

PC. Our current favorite audio stream-

ing box is the Squeezebox (www

.slimdevices.com). It’s available for

$200 in a wired version, or $280 for a

version that accepts both wired and

wireless connections.

CHECKSUM ERROR

My computer (Biostar

motherboard M6VLQ, 1.3GB

Intel processor, and 256MB of

memory) shows me a message,

“CMOS checksum error- default

loaded,” when I boot. What can

I do to correct this error? Please

help me.

—MIGUEL ACEVEDO

Your PC’s CMOS, which stores set-

tings for the BIOS, such as boot order,

has been corrupted. This can occur

from a little static electricity, a failing

CMOS battery, or even a bad mobo.

First try replacing the small coin cell

battery that saves all the settings. If

that doesn’t work, you should reset

the BIOS. Do this by unplugging the

power that goes into the power sup-

ply and either waiting 10 seconds or

hitting the power button to discharge

the remaining energy in the power

supply. Then look for the jumper on

the motherboard that’s used to reset

the BIOS—it’s usually near the coin

cell (look in your motherboard manual

if you can’t find this jumper).

Change this jumper to the reset

position and leave it for four or five

seconds, then put it back in its origi-

nal location. Plug your PC back in and

power up the system. Hit either F1,

F2, or the Delete key while booting

to go into the BIOS. From there, load

the default settings, make sure the

system time and date are set and

the boot order is correct. Save your

settings, exit the BIOS, and reboot. If

you are still getting error messages

after these steps, than you may want

to consider flashing the BIOS with

the latest ROM available from the

motherboard maker. If that fails, it may

indicate that the board itself is failing.

YOU BETTER RECOGNIZE

I recently purchased a used

Maxtor hard drive and installed

it as a secondary drive in my

UNINSTALL IT ALL

Ask the Doctor Symptom Diagnosis Cure

66 MA XIMUMPC DECEMBER 2004

I have a 2-year-old Dell computer.

Over the years there have been

many installs and uninstalls of

programs. Sometimes files are

left over from an uninstall, and

when I try to delete them I get

an error message. It says “Cannot

Delete temp: Access is denied,

make sure the disc is not full or

write protected,” and the file is not

in use.

—MAC KAUFMAN

Ever hear of the “tread lightly” ethos? You know,

making sure to clean up your campsite on departure

and never leaving empty beer bottles on the beach.

Unfortunately, many software programmers don’t

live by such a code. Even after being uninstalled,

programs often leave a load of code crap in their

wake. This leftover detritus can make hard drives

more fragmented, take up precious drive space, and

lead to system instability along the lines of what

you’re experiencing. Luckily, you have two options.

First, reboot your PC, and with nothing running, try

to delete the unwanted files again. If they’re still

not accessible, boot into Safe mode by pressing F8

during start up. This mode runs Windows with the

minimum amount of drivers and doesn’t load any

applications, so whatever errant app was claiming

your files won’t be running, making it possible for

you to delete them.

If neither of those approaches work, download

WhoLockMe (perform a Google search to find it). It’s

a cool utility that integrates into the Windows shell,

allowing you to right-click any in-use file and select

“wholockme?” to show which process has locked

the file in question. You can then shut down the pro-

cess and delete the file.

WhoLockMe? It might not be the paragon of proper

grammar, but the utility makes it a lot easier to discov-

er which app “locked” your files.

EVEN AFTER BEING UNINSTALLED,

PROGRAMS OFTEN LEAVE A LOAD OF

CRAP IN THEIR WAKE.

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