120 GB HD and decided to partition it to three section

[UrbanXrisis]

I have a major problem. Let me explain everything from the beginning. I got a 120 GB HD and decided to partition it to three section. One section had about 80 GB w/o an OS. The second was 20 GB with XP Home and the third 10 GB with XP Professional. Therefore, while booting, the computer will ask which OS to load. The files on the 10 GBHD is locked and cannot be accessed though the 20 GBHD. Somehow, the 10 GBHD’s OS became corrupted and I could not load it w/o it asking for the network loader. Since I couldn’t access my files form the 20 GBHD, I figured I try to overwrite the OS by installing XP Professional over the existing one. When I went into XP Professional, I tried to open my files but again they were locked. I was just wondering if there was a program out there that could allow me to enter my administrator’s password to gain access to my locked files.

 

[dduardo]

Are these files encrypted or just locked due to permissions?

Btw, why do you need XP Home and XP Pro on the same machine?

 

[UrbanXrisis]

They are locked due to permission.

I like to be organized. I have the 80 for storage, the 20 for all games + software tests, and the 10 for work.

 

[dduardo]

Have you tried logging on as Administrator at the login in screen or did you forget your passoword?

If you forgot your password you have two choices:

1. Reset your Admin password with this utility: http://www.jsiinc.com/SUBD/tip1900/rh1984.htm

2. Download Knoppix (http://www.linuxiso.org/distro.php?distro=44 ) and mount the ntfs partition. Then copy the data over to another partition on the harddrive.

 

[UrbanXrisis]

I can't get into Windows because it is corupted so I can't even log in.

Here's some pictures. I'm on Home Edition and as you can see, I have 3+1 HD's. "Base" is my 10 GB (the one I'm on), "Sotorage" is my 80 GB, and "Resurection" is my 20 GB (that's the one that is corrupted and I can't get in to. When I try, the second picture will show what I see. I'm in my documents and setting and I double click in the file "Eva." It will say accessc denied. I can't log into Resurection and open Eva since I can't even load windows. What should I do?

 

[dduardo]

Can you right click on the folder and see what type of permissions it has, who owns it, etc.

Maybe you can change the owner of the folder if you login in as administrator

You can also use the Knoppix cd as I described above too

 

[UrbanXrisis]

Woah, you must really like Linux. Why do you like it so much? I mean, I know it's less hackable compared to Windows. But what's so good about it? I have used it before and I can't get use to it.

Here's another question off topic.

I have a 2 yrs old computer with a Soyo SY-7VCA motherboard. I want to get an upgrade but I'm not sure which motherboards are similar to the Soyo SY-7VCA, as in dimension wise and also support PC133 SDRAM. Do you know any?

 

[dduardo]

I like Linux because it is much easier to manage than windows from a programmers perspective. Dealing with configuration text files is a lot better than trying to wrestle with a registry that can get corrupt and cause you to reinstall everything from scratch. There is also less hassle from rebooting everytime something is installed. The best part is amount automation and customization that can be done under linux. I can quickly write up a script to parse through many files at a time and pipe the output into other functions I've written to get the results I want. The command prompt really lacks in some of the advanced tools provided by linux. I also got the source right infront of me. If I don't like something I just change it and recompile the program. I don't have to wait for Microsoft to find the bug months later when I need it fixed immediately.

Remember, Unix/Linux was developed by programmers for programmers. Windows on the other hand was developed for everyone else. Things are quickly changing though, and Linux really making headway into the consumer desktop market. I couldn't even imagine a few years ago that I could now pick up a desktop with linux preinstalled from a retail store. It is just amazing how far Linux has come.

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When did you try out Linux and what distro and version did you use? What problems did you have with it?

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What processor is in that computer? That is what really is going to determine what new type of motherboard you want to get.

 

[UrbanXrisis]

I have Linux Red Hat version 9. I installed it and played around with it. It was pretty interesting until I realized that none of the Windows programs could be ran from Linux. I also installed their version of AIM and I couldn't copy/paste the test. (Which was really annoying since I am a 16 yr old and I NEED to use copy+paste). I grew up with Windows and I don't like the setup Linux has, I don't like the mac OS either. I know there is Lindows but still...what a rip. Anyways, about the upgrade, I'm going to get a motherboard + porcessor combo, but I want it to be compatable with the current RAM (pc133) and also fits into the dimensions (Depth-7.88 in. Width-12.02 in). Any suggestions?

 

[dduardo]

The motherboard is a standard ATX size so basically most motherboards will fit. Just look at the description of the motherboard, they almost always tell you. There is also sizes such as micro-atx and mini-atx for more compact form factors.

Again, which processsor your going to pick is a large factor in what type of ram your need. If your going to buy any decent p4 or AMD Athlon your going to want to upgrade to DDR ram. becuase that pc133 is really going to be a bottleneck for your machine if it is even supported. If your just going to upgrade to a faster p3 than you can keep your ram

 

[UrbanXrisis]

Oh okay! Thanks. I already have a p4 and I already upgraded it with some stuff. I was planning to upgrade the p3 for my sister and she really likes to play media + games, so I figured to just push it to a p4 w/ the same ram. But now-a-days, ram is pretty cheap. I didn't even go on-line to order DDR ram and I got 512 for 50$. And this was at CompUSA. The funny thing was, the DDR was less expensive than the SDRAM. I wonder why? Also, I have Windows XP Volume Licence, how is that different from Professional. I tried to look it up but it gave me a lot of asian sites. Also, is Tablet PC Edition a special OS for laptops? Thanks, You're a great help! BTW, what language do you program in?

 

[dduardo]

Windows XP Volume Licence means you have a pirated copy. It is also known as Corp Edition and is exactly the same as Windows XP Professional without needing to activate.

Tablet PC Edition is just a stripped down version of Windows XP to run on Tablets. Laptops can run the regular full version of XP.

My primary programming languages are C/C++, Perl and PHP. C/C++ for applications that require speed, perl for backend data parsing and PHP for front end dynamic web applications.

 

[UrbanXrisis]

My dad does programing too, he knows waaaaay too many languages. I use Java and know some c++.

I found the perfect motherboard+processor combo:
http://www.pcrapids.com/details.php?ItemNum=358

When looking for the motherboard, I needed to find one that could support the older kind of RAM (PC133) as well as support the Pentium 4. I found the BEST one and it has 2 DDR DIMM Sockets & 2 SDRAM DIMM Sockets support (can not be used simultaneously).

I'm buying 512 MB PC133 Ram for $50. (which will give me a total of 640 MB of RAM). There's also a GeForce FX5200 256MB DDR 8x AGP TVO+DVI up for grabs for a little over $70. I want to get a CD burner and DVD reader combo (32X10X40 x/16x) for her too. This will get me to about $350. I think that's good. What do you suggest?

Sorry for turning this into a hardware post

OH! I was reading some of the posts and saw that you have read the book "How to Program C++" by Deitel & Deitel. I have it right next to my computer! My dad read it and passed it on to me.

 

[dduardo]

Sure this motherboard will allow you to use pc133 ram, but your really going take a performance hit. Your better off spending the extra 20 dollars and getting the right RAM.

Let me put it this way:

Say you have a business and you need to visit the train station every thirty mintues to pick up new cargo. Now let's say the train is only at the train station every sixty minutes. Basically every other time is being wasted. This is how the processor and memory sort of work. The processor has a clock speed and the memory has a clock.. The larger the difference in clock speeds the more time the processor waits doing nothing.

 

[UrbanXrisis]

Okay, I understand. When it says: DDR SDRAM (DDR200/266/333) I have never heard of DDR200 or 266 or 333. I only know of Extended data out, Fast page mode, PC100-PC4400, and RamBUS. What is DDR200-333?

 

[dduardo]

200 and 333 are the clock speed of the memory.

You'll want to get PC 2700 DDR runs at 333Mhz and PC 2100 DDR runs at 266 Mhz

You can check ou the prices for these type of memory at pricewatch:

http://www.pricewatch.com/

 

[UrbanXrisis]

Yeah, i know about Price Watch. thx.