1...2...3... I'm out!!!

[hubbabubba]

...for the moment.

Two weeks ago, my monitor started acting-up. I could hear the opening chime but the screen was black and the little blue DEL telling me I was on was flashing in alternance with the yellow one, meaning no-signal.

Twice I was able to restart the screen and, the second time around, decided to leave it on. Astute, don't you think? Well... not really; next day everything was dead, no screen, no PC. I tried again to start it up, but had to give in after an entire day of vain attempts.

I finally hooked a TV screen with a PC inlet to the machine. The start-up routine would show, but no W98 screen. I could still hear the chime though and perform, by memory, an orderly shut-down.

So, as far as I can tell, the video chipset is fried but the main motherboard, on which the chipset is soldered, still work. As for the monitor, who knows? It may be dead (bio routine was showing on the TV screen, but not on the monitor), or may simply be skipping the bio.

The XP machine will come handy... when I can get to it; it is under a pile of furniture that should go away pretty soon.

Hours of fun in perspective ...

P.S.- This thread was written on my wife's machine (I positively hate VISTA !!!)

[No Dice]

Damn, That sucks hubba

Hope you get up and running real soon

Dave

[Ivan]

I had something similar happen on a Windows 2000 box a few weeks back. It is the machine I use for testing.
I could see the boot process start but the screen would blank when the windows emblem would normally display.
Turns out that the screen settings got messed up but I still am not quite sure how.
I started the machine successfully at standard VGA mode and then worked from there by setting the monitor device to be a NEC Multisync.
Took a bit of messing around but it finally worked in the end.

If it is the video card, then you might just want to get another inexpensive 3D video card. They are NOT expensive if you can find the right kind of board for your expansion bus. (If you are looking for Vesa Local Bus or EISA, you are out of luck!) Even PCI is hard to find these days. You should be able to disable the onboard video and use an installed card without much difficulty.

If it is the monitor, they are generally not expensive at the local thrift store. (Probably around $20 or $30.) Every once in a while, on trash day, you'll see an older CRT put out. I have picked up several over the years and even given a couple away. Last Wednesday, I actually found a 21 inch flat screen that appears to be in good working condition. It was set on top of a recycle bin full of aluminum cans and some very large very flat boxes which probably contained its replacement. It was pretty overcast that day while I was walking around the neighbourhood and about two hours after I rescued the monitor, it was raining pretty heavily. (Nice timing.)
Hopefully I can bring back a development machine I had to borrow from when the monitor on another machine stopped working.

Good Luck with the diagnosis. Sounds like you at least have a spare computer (XP) to test with. I know from experience that testing and swapping out equipment can be a serious pain.

- Ivan.

[smilo]

if i am not mistaken, a different video card is in order.
if that's the case, it's a quick and easy fix.

for years, i've been collecting old computers,
monitors and all the associated parts.
this place looks like a junk yard
i can't seem to be able to throw anything away.

unfortunately, we live on opposite ends of the continent.
fact of the matter is, it costs more for shipping
than it does to go out and buy one.

with M$ discontinuing support for XP next month,
i would venture to say, there will shortly be an influx
of old xp machines available for those willing
to look for and provide a home for them.

as for leaving the machine running;
i am experiencing the same thing with my main monitor/tv.
increasing distortion on one side at startup. not good.
i too, thought it a good idea to leave the thing on.
my son pointed out that the problem will increase
with the amount of time the monitor is on.
the monitor crapping out is inevitable.
it's just a matter of time.

so...let me know when you'll be making the cross country tour.
i'll even meet you in vancouver for lunch
with a box full o parts.

[hubbabubba]

I bought a video card years ago for the W98 machine in the hope of being able to run FS 2000 and 2002, and maybe later IL2, at full display. Unfortunately, the card was incompatible with CFS1, so it was removed.
But first, I have to see if the monitor is working or not. That's a job for the XP machine, which I know works. One month you say? geee...

My daughter has left a mountain of furniture at home before moving to the suburb, and guessed which room took most of it. Somewhere under the coffee tables, the laundry baskets and the table hockey games, a XP machine, soon "phased out", is waiting.

I'll keep you posted.

[hubbabubba]

Update...

I finally hooked-up the XP machine to the monitor: nada, niet, no, non.

So; monitor's dead and PC video chipset's dead. Coincidence? I don't think so. I'm starting to believe that the former caused the latter. I was not even aware that such a thing could happen, are you?

Anyway... Tomorrow, I will go and visit a place with a neighbor were, according to him, drop-outs are learning how to re-condition computers. My neighbor has five and got them cheap. I will also inquire if they could salvage my dear W98 PC or, at least, the two HD in it.

Will see...

[No Dice]

We all have our fingers crossed for you Hubba,

Good Luck,

Dave

[smilo]

sounds like it's time to go get a monitor.
just make sure it has an old standard VGA
and a DVI input. shouldn't be a problem.
and spend a few extra dollars to get
the biggest you can afford.
your tired eyes will thank you.

i can't help but wonder about your TV as monitor experiment.
there are so many options.
what type of connector did you use?

my TV has several. i made sure before i bought it.
one of my favorites is HDMI. it's like an over-sized usb.
i run a DVI cable from my computer video card
to the TV using a HDMI to DVI adapter.
the video card also has a VGA port
which i use to connect to a monitor.
using xp display properties/settings,
i then configure the monitor as the secondary display.
i won't go into the possibilities this opens up.

getting the 98 HDs to work on the xp
shouldn't be a problem.
just plug each into the xp power supply
and motherboard as a slave.
it will most likely show as drive E or F
depending on how many disk drives you're running.
when you first fire it up, you will be warned;

the boot devices have changed.
BBS boot priority will be affected.
please enter setup to check
press F1 to continue, DEL to enter SETUP

i would suggest pressing F1
and not using the 98 HD as a boot disk.

i bought an external hard drive enclosure.
(around $50 locally)
it's a very handy item, since i have several old hard drives.
it plugs into the machine via usb.
another nice feature is that it's IDE and SATA HD compatible.
the best feature is that i don't have to shut down the computer
whenever i want to search one of my many hard drives.
yeah, i know i should organize the data on the hard drives.
maybe one of these days.

finally, getting you trusty old 98 back up and running;
sounds like you were using a motherboard video port, yes?
if not, what were you using. specifically, brand and model.
also, what are the specifics of the cfs non-compatible card?
does it work at all?
i guess we won't know until you get a monitor. right?

heck, if it comes down to it,
get a motherboard and video card from you new source
and swap parts in the old 98 box. then, reinstall 98.
many years ago, that's, basically, how i built my first computer.
actually, that's kind of a funny story.

[hubbabubba]

News update...

I went to the place, it's called Insertech, and was agreeably surprised.

I was thinking that their monitor inventory would be mostly made of old CRT but it was, in fact, only flat screens. They don't even bother refurbishing them; no market. My choice was a 20" Samsung SyncMaster 2053BW LCD screen. Sold new at around 250$, I got mine for 69$ (taxes included).

This screen will eventually be hooked to my new/old rig; a Dell Dimension 5150 upgraded to Win 7 Family Edition - 149$. I say "eventually" because, first thing first, I was pressed by time to get the XP in order before the M$ end of services deadline. More on that later.

They were able to "enslave" my W98 HD (60GB) and, apparently, I will be able to recuperate most of my stuff. The second HD, which was the original W98SE HD (15GB), could replace it if I need be. The main HD is 320GB, 4.27 time what I had with the two-HD W98SE. And all that is mine, MINE, MINE! Hooooaaaaa!

They also installed a dial-up modem, to the amusement of the desk clerk who thought it could not be done. They call them "fax-modem" nowadays.

A keyboard and a laser mouse later, I was 273$ lighter in my wallet, but I don't complain.

Then came smilo's head's up; tick, tick, tick... XP is running out of time. From his post, I got the impression that the deadline was April's fool day, so I crawled under the pile of furniture and retrieve that "near the curb" XP machine and plugged it.

I already had plugged that machine before, just out of curiosity. The mention of XP was encouraging, but I did not look much further at the time. This time, my first impression has been... shall we say... tamed.

It is a Compaq Presario 5220 upgraded from W98 to XP. Compared to my dear departed W98SE, it does not shine, to say the least. The CPU is clocking at 379MHz (opposed to 667Mhz for my W98SE), and the RAM memory was standing at 192MB, which I increased to 256MB by adding a 64MB stick out of the 320MB of my old faithful. It can only accept 64 or 128MB sticks, which is a pity since I had a 133 PC stick of 256MB. Installing that stick in the beast was a contortion act worthy of a Cirque du Soleil performance.

That machine had never received any service pack, so getting SP3 was priority one. One problem; this is a hefty 309MB download for a dial-up, compounded by a relic IE6 browser. My first attempt died at 186MB, second attempt was a tad better; 225MB. So I borrowed my wife Vista laptop for a third attempt and got a disappointing 222MB. The false "completed" message letting her to believe that I should try installing it anyway. I knew better...

Last resort; the nearby city park. Our actual district mayor had free wi-fi installed last summer. So, with my wife blessings, I took her Vista to the park. First attempt was a dismal failure; I couldn't see a thing on the screen! So I went back home, thinking something was wrong with the machine. My wife was a bit panicked when she re-opened it at home, but she finally had it up and running. So back to the park, and again nothing!

But while wondering what was going wrong, I suddenly noticed a faint bar where the password should be typed. The thing was open all along, but the glare of the sun on the snow simply obliterated everything! If I had heard something, I would have known, but my wife always mute the sound on her machine.

Last last resort; the men's room at the park's chalet. I went to the farthest stall from the entrance and, after sitting the Vista on the throne, I opened it (Eureka; I see!) and typed-in the password, located the wi-fi connection, and tried connecting to it; signal too weak!

Last last last resort; the sink counter on the closest wall to the wi-fi emitters, a hundred yards outside. And this time, it worked. Fifteen minutes later, I had my SP3.

It was the 28 of March and I was exhausted, you may understand why. The installation of the program was, for once, uneventful. As soon as it was done, the XP machine became more cooperative. I was able to install IE8 (what an ugly browser!) and Firefox 28, much more to my liking. I had Firefox on my W98SE and almost exclusively used that one. I may install Google Chrome on the Win7 machine, but it will be as a backup. IE8 is a goner.

Now, chasing for a good (and free) AV. I tried in succession AntiVir, Avira and Avast, all too bulky for this machine or simply incapable to load or install, so I resorted to my last AV on my W98 machine; ClamWin (HERE). The scanning takes forever, but it works! With the addon Clam Sentinel (HERE) to cover the "on the fly" detection, I had a no bells/no frills AV, which is fine with me.

It took me four days to scan the whole HD, but it was worth it; 100 infected files were found, quarantined and, ultimately, removed. Fortunately, most infected files were on the D drive redundant and useless personal settings of the previous owners. Mom and dad were clean as a whistle, but their teenage boy was a pig! I wonder if he knew what anti-virus are there for and how they works. Remember Kazaa? I do...

During most of that time, I would leave the machine on internet so that M$ automated updater could do the job. The little yellow shield was almost always present. You know that I don't minced my words when M$ goes wrong IMO. Well, this time I will praised them for their updating app; unobtrusive, quiet and flexible program that doesn't eat-up the memory or the bandwidth. In the little time it had, it downloaded more than 120 "critical updates" and the sort, despite all the front door activities. A tip of my hat is in order.

I did had a little mishap when I deleted some registry keys during a buggy update but, with the help of smilo, I was able to patch things up.

So, this puny little W98-wanabee-XP machine is updated and, as far as I can tell, virus free. I have already installed FS95 and FS98 on it, and CFS1 will soon get there too.

Now, it's Win 7 time... to be continued...

[smilo]

EPIC!!!

glad to hear you were successful.

i'm still curious. did you ever figure out
the cause of your w98 downfall?
was it the monitor and/or the video card?
by chance, was the new monitor attached
to the 98 before it was disassembled?

the reason i ask is that, if it's a video card,
i may be able to help.

let me know, when you get around to it.

[hubbabubba]

(...)

i'm still curious. did you ever figure out
the cause of your w98 downfall?
was it the monitor and/or the video card?
by chance, was the new monitor attached
to the 98 before it was disassembled?

the reason i ask is that, if it's a video card,
i may be able to help.

let me know, when you get around to it.

To satisfy your curiosity;

The monitor was out and, after the prolonged "stay on", so was the video chip.
It was not a video card, only a chip integrated to the motherboard.
As I was choosing my monitor, the HD of the W98SE were being removed. So no test.

I will managed smilo, thanks for the offer. I'm already looking for another 20" screen.
I went to Insertech for one, but they were out of stock.
I left my email and they should call me when they got some.

[Ivan]

Hi Hubbabubba,

Glad you are back up and running. Do you still use AF99? Does it work with XP?
I am a bit surprised your motherboard graphics adapter worked for CFS at all.
The ones I have encountered are generally not good quality.

Picked up another 15 inch CRT curbside yesterday. Looks to be in very good shape but I haven't powered it up yet.

- Ivan.

[hubbabubba]

Hi Hubbabubba,

Glad you are back up and running. Do you still use AF99? Does it work with XP?
I am a bit surprised your motherboard graphics adapter worked for CFS at all.
The ones I have encountered are generally not good quality.

Picked up another 15 inch CRT curbside yesterday. Looks to be in very good shape but I haven't powered it up yet.

- Ivan.

Hello Ivan

I'm not out of the wood yet, but getting there.
I've not installed AF99 and was not planning on doing it. I was thinking of using this PC as a guinea pig for creations coming out of the Win 7.
FS95 is fully installed, booster scenery included. No need for the CD.
FS98 is also fully installed and patched.
And, of course, CFS1.
I have also installed A-10 Cuba, but I'm still searching for the patch.
They're all working well.
If I re-install AF99 (and I probably will) it will be on the Win 7 machine. If I have compatibility issues, I may then try to install on the XP machine.

The chipset could reserve up to 11 MB of memory for video rendering and I had it used at the fullest. Never had a problem with CFS1, but it was another story with CFS2, IL2 and even FS2K. The latter would only play on reduced video quality, and the two former not at all...

CRT are fine... when you have the place for them. If I'm to work with two PC, space will be at a premium.

[smilo]

just to let you know, af99 works on my xp machine.
no problem, other than the same old operator error.

there is an alternative to using two monitors.
i have a Trendnet kmv tk-400k switch box
that connects up to 4 machines
to one monitor, keyboard and mouse.
keyboard and mouse use the old 6 pin mini Din plugs
now, i wish i had gotten the usb model.

as always, there are advantages and disadvantages
that i won't go into unless you're interested.

[hubbabubba]

Just to let you know...

Win7 machine is running; I'm typing on it right now!

The first phase was to get it updated. Not as "epic" as the XP old tower, but still an exercise in patience. Updating is more aggressive though; other concurrent downloads do suffer.

Second phase was to get "the essentials"; a good browser and a good free anti-virus. Explorer 8 was already in place, but I got Firefox 28.0 and, while installing Avast, Google Chrome came along. For the moment, Firefox is my "main browser" while Chrome and Explorer are acting as "secondary".

Avast is still "under evaluation"; so far, so good.

Third phase is for non-essential-but-very-useful basic programs. Adobe Reader was already in place, version XI. It is kind of a space hog but, for now, it will do.

Other apps are slowly getting in, and I will spare you the list. They are basically of three types; 1) Programs that I had previously but that I downloaded again to get the latest version compatible with W7 64 bits; 2) "Saved" progs that work well under W7, and 3) New programs that are replacing old ones. All are free (or already paid for).

BTW= Go get a copy of Saint Paint (google it...), the last version is free (abandon-ware I guess...). If you're serious about CFS1 developing, it is a must.

I also had to get a new email server; W7 doesn't have one. I fetch Windows Live Mail this afternoon. The interface is not familiar but, miracle!, I was able to set it up on the first try! Now, if I can retrieve my contact list...

Phase four will be "getting the lay of the land" and fine-tuning what is already in place. I'm almost thankful of having gone through XP before getting to this one. If I had gone directly from W98SE to W7, the learning curve would have been quite steep!

See you later guys...

[Ivan]

Hi Hubbabubba,

I highly recommend you UNINSTALL Google Chrome.

My Daughter installed Chrome on her Windows 7 laptop a few months ago. A couple months ago, she was complaining that her computer was too slow. Considering it has a faster processor and twice the memory of mine, I was wondering what she was running. I went in and removed what I believe to be a bunch of viruses and adware and terminated about 20 Chrome daemon processes. Everything was fine for a day or so. Next time she rebooted, all the Chrome daemons got restarted even though she did not actually run the Chrome browser. Seems like this thing spawns new processes regardless of whether or not you run it. She accidentally reinstalled it last week while installing other software, so we will have to go back and uninstall it again soon.

I don't believe it does anything malicious, but it IS a resource hog even if you don't use it. Recommend you uninstall.

- Ivan.

[smilo]

.................................................. .......
I don't believe it does anything malicious, but it IS a resource hog even if you don't use it.
Recommend you uninstall.

- Ivan.

NO! NO! NO!

you, obviously, don't understand how the system works.

we need these sub programs running to keep an eye
on our personal communications and browsing habits.
"what have you got to hide?"

the proper way to deal with resource hogs is to leave them be.
go out and buy a new, improved, more powerful machine.
it's only money

[hubbabubba]

Hi Hubbabubba,

I highly recommend you UNINSTALL Google Chrome.

My Daughter installed Chrome on her Windows 7 laptop a few months ago. A couple months ago, she was complaining that her computer was too slow. Considering it has a faster processor and twice the memory of mine, I was wondering what she was running. I went in and removed what I believe to be a bunch of viruses and adware and terminated about 20 Chrome daemon processes. Everything was fine for a day or so. Next time she rebooted, all the Chrome daemons got restarted even though she did not actually run the Chrome browser. Seems like this thing spawns new processes regardless of whether or not you run it. She accidentally reinstalled it last week while installing other software, so we will have to go back and uninstall it again soon.

I don't believe it does anything malicious, but it IS a resource hog even if you don't use it. Recommend you uninstall.

- Ivan.

If it (mis)behave, I will hack it without any remorse

P.S.- Just had a look at Task Manager: not a single Chrome running or queuing...

[Ivan]

You looked at processes and not applications, right?

- Ivan.

[hubbabubba]

You looked at processes and not applications, right?

- Ivan.

Applications, processes and services, actually. Maybe your daughter's settings on Chrome were askew...
... but the jury is still hang on that one.

I did keep IE8 because it was already there and, if a major update malfunction develop, I may need it to get the files (M$ keeps as much control as it can without being accused of monopolistic practices).

Chrome came with Avast, it was probably some check-box that I missed and forget to un-check but, anyway, I was planning to get it. It works quite fine on my wife's Vista and is very user-friendly for general browsing. I'm not even sure that I've opened it yet...

But my warhorse is Firefox. I've got version 20 for the W98SE machine and was very impressed by its add-ons possibilities. This W7 machine has version 28 and can find a needle in a pile of needles. The only drawback is that it is a tad slower than Chrome, but only a tad.

Right now, I'm testing my flight simulators... so far, it is a mixed bag... more on that later.

[Ivan]

Perhaps it will work for you. You must remember that I come from a computer security background. The settings on my computer are a bit more cautious than typical. I do not like being tracked regardless of where I am actually visiting. A few places I know of do not allow Chrome installations presumably for security reasons. From what I saw on my daughter's computer, I believe I understand why. Yes, she actually has a commercial antivirus package installed as does my computer.

Of course your mileage may vary.
- Ivan.

[hubbabubba]

I've started installing flight simulators, just to see...

... FS95 first, thinking; if that one goes, anything does! Well... on the plus side, the installation was done from the disc after a few abortive attempts, and I was able to fly from the cockpit. But, on the minus side, the screen turns black if I try to get the tower view and all efforts to return to a normal view have, so far, failed.

Logically, it should be FS98 in second, but CFS1 was already on the "slave" HD, so "why not"?...
Not too bad, all things considered. A few messages telling me that resolution and colors are not kosher but, after a bit of churning, the game started. My CH Fighterstick USB was working - even if the cryptic message would pop-up and settings do not show any flight controllers! - and, apart from some brief flickering from time to time, the QC against two P-47D was fine. No stuttering at all and a FPS > 50 all the time.

Time to get my whole CH controllers mapped. This is still a work in progress...

This is going to be looooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooong...

[No Dice]

Hubba,
I noticed you mentioned Avast, Can I assume that it has your OK and is something I can use on my XP machine ?

I use Malwarebytes already.

Being the guru, your input is much appreciated.

Dave

[hubbabubba]

Hubba,
I noticed you mentioned Avast, Can I assume that it has your OK and is something I can use on my XP machine ?

I use Malwarebytes already.

Being the guru, your input is much appreciated.

Dave

Ivan would be a better counsel in these matters. Over the years, I have used free antivirus of all sorts. I choose Avast simply because my wife has Avira and I wanted to try something else for comparison. Time will tell...

On my W98SE machine, I had an antivirus, a pop-up blocker, a stealth firewall, a heuristic program sniffer and, most of all, a head on my shoulders. These are all pretty much integrated into W7 and, to a lesser degree, into XP.

But again, ask Ivan

[Ivan]

Hubbabubba,
You are actually much more current than I am. For the most part my computers at home are not connected to the Internet and have no great need for antivirus. There are typically only about 5 devices connected to the Internet at most in my house. The Chrome issue was one that we encountered at my former workplace and Anna's workplace AND on Carolyn's computer.

My suggestion if you are looking for an inexpensive solution is to check with your ISP. It is likely they will have something for not much money.

- Ivan.