weird problem

[stickyfingers]

i hope sum1 here can help me...i've recently been having problems playing dvds when last week i had no problem playing the same dvds...the prob exists with all dvds that i try to play on my pc at the mo. when i try to play a dvd in powerdvd i get a 'windows has encountered an error with powerdvd and will need to close the program' error every time & when i try to play it using zoom player (which also previously worked) i get sound but not picture...i have tried reinstalling powerdvd and zoom player but problem continues...im using xp and just installed sp2 but uninstalled that when i started getting these errors and still the prob continues...

[setarip]

Have you tried performing a "System Restore" back to the last time things were working properly?


(By the way - Is your screenname a reference to the Stones or "something else"?)

[LT. Columbo]

funny. when i installed sp2 for the first time, i too, had those error messages with power dvd. in fact several applications on my pc had to be "tweaked". i did some reasearch and found that some applications worked after adding them to windows DEP list.
(even nero express). sp2 i swear is the stinkiest thing to emerge from microsoft---it hasn't pleased me in the slightest.

setarip's suggestion is a great place to start...

[stickyfingers]

yeah i thought about doing a sys restore but it turned out that i hadnt got any restore points to go back to :S even tho i had switched sysrestore back on after getting rid of some spyware a few wks ago - i wonder if this was because of installing sp2?? does that wipe ur restore points cos i was under the impression that windows creates automatic restore points regularly...i was also under the impression that MS had sorted all the issues with SP2 by now..
anyway now sp2 is uninstalled again so i guess that rules out doing anything with DEP or am i wrong...:S
can any1 save me from a complete clean/reinstall?

btw yep stones rule OK!!

[setarip]

"i wonder if this was because of installing sp2?? does that wipe ur restore points"

It shouldn't - since part of the Microsoft-prescribed procedure for REMOVING SP2 (one of the final steps in the procedure) is to perform a System Restore...

The procedure can be found at:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/875350/

[LT. Columbo]

to stickyfingers

"sp2 is uninstalled again so i guess that rules out doing anything with DEP or am i wrong"

DEP is a feature only found in sp2. and your restore points definetly are not wiped out by the initial install.

also to get rid of spyware/adware you need to get it right off the pc. i HIGHLY recommend ad-aware se by lavasoft. it's free and you will find it on microsoft's website. update it everytime you use it and wipe all that crap of your machine. it has worked wonders for me anyway...

good luck

[stickyfingers]

i managed to clean all the spyware from my pc a while ago... that wasn't the problem, altho one of the things you should do while cleaning malware/viruses etc. is switch off sys restore (for obvious reasons)...
anyway thanx setarip for pointing that out to me - about uninstalling sp2 - i got around having to run the sys restore thing as the final step by running SFC instead and that seems to have done the trick cos my dvds work again now

thnx all

[setarip]

"anyway thanx setarip for pointing that out to me - about uninstalling sp2 - i got around having to run the sys restore thing as the final step by running SFC instead and that seems to have done the trick cos my dvds work again now"

My pleasure ;>}