To Convert a FAT16 partition to FAT32 in Windows 98/ME

To convert a FAT16 partition to FAT32 in Windows 98/ME, you need to reboot with the emergency book floppy created by Windows. To create a boot floppy:

1. Open the Start menu, open the Settings submenu and click the Control Panel.
   
2. Click Add/Remove Programs.
   
3. Select the Boot Disk tab in the pop-up window, and choose Create.
   
4. Insert a blank floppy into your floppy drive and let Windows do the job.
   
5. Then reboot your PC.
   

Once you're in DOS, change to C:\Windows\Command. Run CVT.EXE which will convert your FAT16 drive to FAT32.

C:

CD \WINDOWS\COMMAND

CVT C:

Problem with saving OpenOffice.org documents as PDF

I use OpenOffice 2.4 in Debian Linux 5.0 Lenny, but recently had a problem with exporting OpenOffice.org documents to PDF. Debian Lenny doesn't have OpenOffice.org 3.0 packages yet. I think the problem originates from using obscure Postscript fonts. I used Caslon Book BE in my OpenOffice.org Writer document, but the output of the exported PDF file was unreadable. Actually, the problematic PDF file didn't display any spaces.

Eventually, I fixed this problem. I saved the document as a postscript printout and converted it to PDF using pstopdf13.

ps2pdf13 input.ps output.pdf

Another thing I did to fix the problem was to change Times New Roman fonts in my formulas to Times New Roman PS. I also had to convert all pictures in the document to encapsulated Postscript format and embed them in the document. For EPS conversion of the pictures, I used GIMP.

cdrkit: Ripping CD/DVD ISO in Linux

To copy or rip an ISO image from a CD or a DVD, type the following command in xterm, mlterm or your favorite terminal:

readom dev=/dev/hdc f=mycopy.iso speed=2 retries=8 -noerror -nocorr

The readom command is contained in the wodim package which is commonly found in Debian Linux or Ubuntu systems. The example above rips a CD in the CD-ROM device /dev/hdc and save it as mycopy.iso. To find the device name of your CD-ROM or DVD drive, run wodim --devices.

The f= option specifies the filename to save the ISO image as. I chose the reading speed 2 because the ripping performs better at lower speeds. I also set the retry limit to 8 because the default retries of 128 is too time-consuming in case reading errors occur. For more information on the readom command, refer to the readom manual by running man readom

Taking Screenshots in Linux

It's nice to be able to take pictures of your computer screen. Then, you can show the pictures to your friends or put it on the Web so people can be impressed with your pictures.

In Microsoft Windows, taking pictures of the computer screen is as easy as pressing the Print or Alt+Print key. Pressing the Print key takes a screenshot of the whole screen, whereas pressing the Alt+Print grabs the current focused Windows only.

However, taking screeenshots in Linux is not as simple as in Windows unless you use GNOME or KDE. In this post, I will list many ways of taking screenshots in Linux.

xwd, xwdtopnm and pnmtojpeg combination

In the most primitive way, I use a combination of xwd, xwdtopnm and pnmtojpeg. This method requires you to type commands in xterm. The following example takes the screenshot of the root window — the whole desktop:

xwd -root -screen | xwdtopnm | pnmtojpeg --quality=85 --optimize > ~/screenshot-`date +%F_%T`.jpeg

In case you want to take only the picture of the focused windows, the following example shows how:

xwd -frame -screen | xwdtopnm | pnmtojpeg --quality=85 --optimize > ~/screenshot-`date +%F_%T`.jpeg

It's useful to append a sleep command so that you have the time to select the window or arrange the screen the way you want:

sleep 5 && xwd -frame -screen | xwdtopnm | pnmtojpeg --quality=85 --optimize > ~/screenshot-`date +%F_%T`.jpeg

Vista Installation Annoyances

This post will eventually have a collection of tips for resolving issues when installing Windows Vista. Some of them are based on my own experience with Windows Vista installation, but I'm going to add useful advices I found on the Internet.

Partition your hard drive before booting Vista DVD

I think it's good to partition your hard drive first before going ahead with Vista installation. There are many partitioning tools, for example, GParted, Acronis DiskDirector and the forsaken PartitionMagic. My favorite is GParted. Because Vista leaves a little space at the beginning of the hard disk after installation, this may create a problem when you later move or resize your Vista partition.

Screen goes blank while Vista DVD is booting

This happened to me when I tried to install Windows Vista on my old computer with an LCD monitor. The screen went blank while there was no hard disk activity. However, when I punched the Caps Lock on the keyboard, the LED for Caps Lock switched on and off. So I knew the Vista DVD booted okay but Vista was'nt recognizing the monitor yet.

So I reset the PC. As soon as the Vista DVD began loading, I held down the F8 key until a black-and-white Advanced Boot Options menu appeared. I highlighted the line saying Enable low-resolution video (640x480) and pressed Enter. Then, Vista successfully booted into a nice Installation screen with large characters.

Vista doesn't recognize my hard disk

This happened to me when I tried to install Windows Vista on a hard drive that's connected to a PCI IDE controller — Promise Technology Ultra 100 TX2. Obviously, Vista couldn't recogize the IDE controller. So I had to download the driver and save it on a USB flash. Then, I plugged the flash drive in and told Vista to load the driver. After Vista successfully loaded the driver for my IDE controller, Vista could see my hard drive and install onto it.

Related Posts

• Using GParted To Create Dual-Boot Vista Partitions
  

Multiple Windows Installation

When the Vista Loader — also known as SoftMod or OEM BIOS emulation — is installed in a system with multiple Windows installations, Windows probably won't boot except the one in the first NTFS partition because the Grub4Dos code in the grldr file installed by the Vista Loader by default boots the first NTFS partition. In this case, you should uninstall Vista Loader from every Windows partition and then reinstall Vista Loader into a separate FAT logical partition. GRUB4DOS or pure GRUB will be used to load OEM BIOS emulation code into memory and then execute instructions in the menu.lst file to boot Windows in NTFS primary partitions.

To use multiple Windows installation, Grub4Dos and Vista Loader should be used together. This duo can be installed on a floppy or a bootable USB flash. The following is the contents of a menu.lst file used with Vista Loader.

timeout 0
default 0
fallback 1

title Vista Loader
map --mem (hd0,0)/vstaldr.img (fd0)
map --hook
chainloader (fd0)+1
rootverify (fd0)

title Windows Vista
find --set-root /bootmgr
chainloader /bootmgr

Related Posts

• Downloading Windows Vista ISO
  
• Using GParted To Create Dual-Boot Vista Partitions
  
• Resizing a Windows Vista partition with ntfsresize
  
• Fixing a Vista Boot Problem
  
• Activating Windows Vista with Vista Loader 3.0.0.1
  

Tweaking Windows Vista for Slow PC

Is Windows Vista only for fast and powerful computers? Not really. Technically, Vista can run on old computers with a CPU as slow as 800MHz. But Vista runs sluggish on old computers. For those old and slow computers, there are some ways to improve the speed of Vista, as explained below.

Stop unnecessary programs from running or starting.

Don't use the Windows Sidebar. This program is unnecessary and graphics-intensive program that slows your computer down. You can easily disable it from starting.

Disable UAC

Disabling UAC may dramatically speed up Windows Vista.

Disable Windows Theme

If you don't need fancy Windows themes, you can change your theme to a plain one or disable the Themes service altogether.

Cleaning Up Windows Vista

This post will eventually be a collection of tips on cleaning up and trimming Windows Vista.

Emptying the Recycle Bin

Emptying the recycle bin is the easiest and most common way for people to clean up Windows. Even if you don't, Windows will automatically remove the oldest trash from the recycle bin when it fills up.

Deleting Temporary Files

As you use your computer, Windows and applications save temporary files in the folder dedicated for temporary storage. These temporary folders are given the variable name %TEMP% or %TMP% — in most cases, %TEMP% and %TMP% are identical. Ideally, applications are supposed to remove temporary files after they finish their jobs, but sometimes they forget to remove temporary files. Thus, once in a while, you have to remove temporary files yourself.

To remove temporary files, follow the following steps:

1. Open the Explorer — the default file browser in Windows. You can do so by opening My Computer, My Document, My Pictures or My Music.
   
2. Type in the address bar %TEMP% and press Enter.
   
   
   
3. You'll be taken to the temporary folder, typically C:\Users\YourName\AppData\Local\Temp. Remove any temporary files and folders existing inside that folder.
   
4. If %TEMP% and %TMP% are different, also do the same for %TMP% folder.
   

Cleaning Up VirtualStore

With strict User Access Control (UAC) in effect, Vista places user-generated files in the VirtualStore folder when a program wants to save something in the restricted area of filesystem. Type %APPDATA% in the address bar of the Windows explorer. Then, descend to Local/VirtualStore. Note that not everything there should be deleted as some of them are user settings.

Deleting Windows Updates

Windows updates are necessary to make Windows Vista secure and efficient. However, after updating Windows, some update files are left over and take extra space. The following steps delete these left-over update files.

1. Open the Start menu, right-click Computer and select Manage.
   
2. In the left pane, expand Service and Applications and select Services.
   
3. In the right pane, select Windows update service and stop the serive.
   
4. Open Computer in the explorer and go to C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution
   
5. Go to the DataStore folder and delete all files and folders there.
   
6. Go back and change to the Download folders. Remove all files and folders there.
   
7. Restart the Windows Update service.
   

Using GParted To Create Dual-Boot Vista Partitions

Have you ever wished to have multiple Windows installed on your computer? Having a multi-boot system has many applications, such as:

• Set up one Windows system for your work or school, and set up another Windows system for your family and kids, all in one single computer
  
• Use one Windows installation for your sensitive data, and use another installation for gaming and the Internet
  
• Set up multiple Windows for different languages, for example one for English and another for Spanish
  
• Try different Windows versions, one for Vista, one for XP and another for Windows ME.
  

In order to set up multiple installations of Windows in a single computer, you need to slice your hard drive into several partitions using a partitioning tool such as GParted. Get a GParted live CD and boot your computer with it.

Partitioning Advices

Here's what you need to know about multiple Windows installation:

• One primary partition must be set up with Windows Vista or XP and set active. This partition will be used to boot itself and optionally other Windows partitions, primary or logical.
  
• If multiple primary partitions have Windows installed, then only one of them should be active and the others should be hidden.
  

GParted in Action

Once you booted GParted live CD, launch GParted.

In most case, you'll see a Windows partion (type ntfs) as the first primary partition. If you need to resize it to make space available for the second Windows partition, you can use GParted, but I recommend you to use ntfsresize.

Now hide your existing Windows partition by right-clicking it and choosing Manage Flags.

Clear the boot flag and set the hidden flag. Then click Close.

Click the unallocated area and click New on the toolbar. Create new Partition dialog appears on screen. Set the size in the New Size box, create it as a Primary Partition and make it ntfs. Click Add.

Look at the GParted window and make sure the new hard disk layout is okay. Click Apply on the toolbar.

A confirmation dialog appears. Click Apply.

If everything goes well, a dialog appears saying All operations successfully completed. Click Close.

Right-click the newly created NTFS partition and select Manage Flags from the right-click menu. In the Manage flags window, only set the boot flag and click Close.

Quit GParted. Put your Windows installation DVD into your CD-ROM and reboot.

Setting the Background with xsetbg

This is just my 2 cents on setting the wallpaper on your X Windows desktop. There are many tools for setting the background — technically called the root window. If you use KDE or GNOME, setting up the background is automatic as it is done by the friendly GUI. However, if you are one of those people — including me — who prefer light and minimalist X-Windows environment, you'll put a command in your .xsession file to set your background.

Here, I introduce you to a nice nifty tool called xsetbg. It belongs to a package called xloadimage. I find it attractive just because it doesn't have many dependencies. This is how I use xsetbg in my .xsession file to place my lotus wallpaper on the desktop:

/usr/bin/xsetbg -center -xzoom 115 -yzoom 128 /usr/share/pixmaps/5469_G.jpg

The nice thing about it is that it lets you zoom the width and height separately and center the image at the same time. Pratically, this feature allows you to hide unwanted edges from the screen. For example, the picture below has unnecessary edges around it.

The following command sets this image as the desktop wallpaper without the unwanted edges (assuming your screen is in 800x600 resolution). Change the zoom percentages as necessary for your screen resolution.

xsetbg -center -xzoom 67 -yzoom 85 Sanctuary.jpg

Linux Tip: Retrieving Files From Unbootable Windows partitions

You are a Windows person. You've been using Windows for your daily work, school, or something else. One day, you turn on your PC, and, for whatever reason, you can't boot your Windows. You try every trick you know without success. Your last resort is to recover your precious data from your unbootable Windows partition — if your hard drive is still in good condition and accessible. You could use a Windows Vista installation CD which lets you use the unfriendly Windows repair console.

You can also use Linux to retrieve files from your troublesome Windows partition. If you don't have Linux installed in your computer, you can use a Linux Live CD that's available free from the Internet. A live CD lets you try something without installing it into your computer. Most Linux installation CD's released today are also live CD's. For example, you can try an Ubuntu CD to test-drive Linux and also access data from your broken Windows partition.

Assuming that you booted into Linux, start xterm, konsole or Gnome terminal. Mount your Windows partition with the following command so that you can access and copy files from Windows — specify your Windows partition in place of /dev/sda1:

mount -t ntfs-3g /dev/sda1 /mnt

The command above mounts your Windows partion /dev/sda1 on the directory /mnt. Now, you can change the current directory to /mnt and list its contents like this:

cd /mnt

ls

Plug in your USB flash so you can save your data on it. Then, mount your USB flash onto /media &mdash assuming your flash drive is /dev/sdb1 and the directory /media exists:

mount -t vfat /dev/sdb1 /media

Now you're ready to copy files from your broken Windows partitions to your flash drive using Linux. The following example illustrates copying files in Linux:

cd Users/Kenneth/Documents

cp project7k.doc /media

mv finance9b.xls /media

tar cf - folderX | (cd /media; tar xf -)

The first command in the example above lets you change the current folder to Users/Kenneth/Documents — that's the typical path to user data in Windows Vista. The next commands copy the file project7k.doc and move finance9b.xls and folderX to your flash drive mounted on /media.

Once you retrieve your data files from the broken Windows partition and save them on your USB flash, you can go ahead and wipe your Windows. Then, you may choose to reinstall Windows, or better yet, try and install Linux. My recommendation is Debian Linux.