"the_bmac" wrote in message
...
claus wrote:

Denny - I am running XP (SP2) on my laptop used for navigation purposes
onboard the boat.

I just downloaded the fix for the animated cursor flaw yesterday and was
not aware that it allowed MS to install the "Call Home" function... so I
need to get rid of that as my boat is not connected to the internet...
what is the proper technical name for that function - and is there any
way to disable it short of "rolling back" the software to the previous
state???

Unfortunately you cannot rollback. If you were using automatic updates
and this little POS got installed, you can't un-install it. The only
solution is to fdisk-format-reinstall, which of course leads into the same
"upgrade" hell cycle you've just completed. If you're not willing to go
Mac or Linux, you're simply going to have to starts whistling "Always Look
on the Bright Side of Life".

My maiin concern is that the operating system would stop functioning if my
PC is not connected to the internet while I am out cruising...

Or am I misunderstanding Denney's post?

"Denny" wrote in message
oups.com...
And I am building my retirement boat and the OS not being able to
"call home" an issue I will have to address in the near future...
There may be an Apple in my future...

A Mac Mini makes a fine navigation computer...

Meindert

In article l,
"Meindert Sprang" wrote:

"Denny" wrote in message
oups.com...
And I am building my retirement boat and the OS not being able to
"call home" an issue I will have to address in the near future...
There may be an Apple in my future...

A Mac Mini makes a fine navigation computer...

Meindert



As Well as a "Fantastic" DVD and Music Player, and a bunch of
other computing functions......


Bruce in alaska
--
add a 2 before @

"Bruce in Alaska" wrote in message
...
In article l,
"Meindert Sprang" wrote:
A Mac Mini makes a fine navigation computer...

Meindert



As Well as a "Fantastic" DVD and Music Player, and a bunch of
other computing functions......

Precisely. And hardly any viruses around....

Meindert

You have gotten good advice on how to disable the call home function
of XP...

As far as I know at this time that call home function on XP will not
disable XP OS functions if you are not hooked to the internet.. It
will likely generate annoying messages ad infinitum... I have chosen
to leave the call home function installed on the multiple machines at
my office as the OS are all registered and the machines have 24/7
internet access... At this point in time it is easier to go along
with Billy than to fight him...

Vista is a different kettle of fish.. If it is not able to tattle on
you it will selectively disable some of the OS.... I have no personal
experience with Vista, only what my vendors tell me.. Given that my
software vendors are showing little interest in dealing with Vista's
crap I am an XP user for the forseeable future..

I just bought an NIB Pentium yesterday, a really nice 2.9 gig HP with
a gig of ram and lots of bells and whistles... While we did not need
it at the moment the price was right and it has XP Pro on board so I
don't have to go throught the agony of unloading Vista and it will
work with our business software...

My retirement boat is under construction right now so in about 6
months I will be deep into installing the navigation equipment... At
that time I will have to survey the landscape and decide what OS to
have on board...

denny
MV 'Levitation', 50' power cat

This is a pretty good overview of the issue:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Genuine_Advantage.

-- Tom.

wrote:
This is a pretty good overview of the issue:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Genuine_Advantage.


Man! That is an ugly thing!

I was giving some idle thought to moving from W2K to XP sometime in the
future but I'm going to give that some thought and study how to avoid
WGA if I do that.

I'm not using illegal software but that is more than I could handle.


Jack

--
Jack Erbes in Ellsworth, Maine, USA - jackerbes at adelphia dot net
(also receiving email at jacker at midmaine.com)

I'm not using illegal software but that is more than I could handle.

Yeah, tell the auto updater not to load a specific update, and check a box
telling it never to ask again. Yeah, sounds like WAY TOO MUCH work.

Wow. Thanks for that great posting. It sure generated a lot of replies with
even more support and useful insights. Seems evident that MS has shot itself
in the foot with Vista Dog. They sure don't seem to play well with the rest
of the others.
Len

--
Eliminate "ns" for email address.


Or maybe they dumped me? Has anyone else been faced with the problem
that Nobeltec VNS is unusable and downright destructive on a Vista
system-and that Microsoft has forced their vendors to only offer Vista
now on new computers. Nobeltec appears to be unique in the charting
software world by simply refusing to deal with it. Since it finally
bit me, I sent them the email below, although I don't really expect
anything from them. I use charting software for planning and
replanning trips, and had continued to use VNS for many years because
it has most features and I was comfortable with its foibles. Now
forced to go to Plan B. Just a warning to others using VNS.

Why I am dumping Nobeltec "I am a long time user of Nobeltec VNS since
the original Navtrek days. We are currently in Mexico, preparing to go
back to California. Have been using VNS 8 under Windows XP, with only
some minor glitches (like unable to download routes and waypoints from
a Raymarine). Had a computer die, only replacements available run
Vista OS. Nobeltec does not run at all under Vista-most of your
competitors do. Tried installing, got error messages. When I removed
it completely, it took a lot of other (non-Nobeltec) programs with it,
so I had t spend time reconstructing stuff. Ordered a copy of Maptech
Chart Navigator Pro (Vista compatible), which someone will carry from
the states to me. In the interim, using a free program called
SeaClear, which works fine under Vista, processes AIS, but lacks the
planning tools of the majors. Things like OziExplorer, Fugawi, etc.
Also run fine under Vista. Nobeltec abandoned us in Mexico, so time to
find someone else. If you still have your support files, you will find
this is not the first major support issue I have had with Nobeltec.
Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, ... "

I had enough problems with previous versions of Nobletec to make me say
"enough is enough." The show-stopper was, the program would freeze
occasionally, completely freezing the computer. After shutdown and
rebooting, Nobletec would not run unless it was completely removed and
reinstalled. This happened about once a week.

It's a shame, because otherwise it was a pretty nice program. If only
they bothered to work out the bugs...

Matt O.

On Tue, 03 Apr 2007 15:39:40 -0600, sd.sded wrote:

Or maybe they dumped me? Has anyone else been faced with the problem
that Nobeltec VNS is unusable and downright destructive on a Vista
system-and that Microsoft has forced their vendors to only offer Vista
now on new computers. Nobeltec appears to be unique in the charting
software world by simply refusing to deal with it. Since it finally
bit me, I sent them the email below, although I don't really expect
anything from them. I use charting software for planning and
replanning trips, and had continued to use VNS for many years because
it has most features and I was comfortable with its foibles. Now
forced to go to Plan B. Just a warning to others using VNS.

Why I am dumping Nobeltec "I am a long time user of Nobeltec VNS since
the original Navtrek days. We are currently in Mexico, preparing to go
back to California. Have been using VNS 8 under Windows XP, with only
some minor glitches (like unable to download routes and waypoints from
a Raymarine). Had a computer die, only replacements available run
Vista OS. Nobeltec does not run at all under Vista-most of your
competitors do. Tried installing, got error messages. When I removed
it completely, it took a lot of other (non-Nobeltec) programs with it,
so I had t spend time reconstructing stuff. Ordered a copy of Maptech
Chart Navigator Pro (Vista compatible), which someone will carry from
the states to me. In the interim, using a free program called
SeaClear, which works fine under Vista, processes AIS, but lacks the
planning tools of the majors. Things like OziExplorer, Fugawi, etc.
Also run fine under Vista. Nobeltec abandoned us in Mexico, so time to
find someone else. If you still have your support files, you will find
this is not the first major support issue I have had with Nobeltec.
Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, ... "