I just want to start over... is it even possible???

pisces7378

pisces7378

New member
Hey guys...

I have been at digital home recording for around 5 years now and have leared a SHIT TON about how everything works. And I have become leaps more computer literate than I was. However... I am at my whits end these days.

I bought a Dell PC around a year and a half ago. At the time it was bad ass (2.4 gHz, 512 MB-DDR-RAM, 60GB 7200rpm HDD) But now it is all loaded down with garbage. It has more ad/pop-up/piss-me-off programs, Kazaa, BellSouth DSL FastAccess, Photo-programs, Instant Messengers, Quick-time this and that, and just so much bullshit. And on top of everything it has all kinds of DELL proprietary shit that came with it.
When I had just a store bought basic PC back when I lived in Germany it had NO bullshit like that. When I went to CTRL+ALT+DELETE there was only the "Systray" and "explorer" there. Now I have literally 50 (I counted them) items under "Processes".

I just updated my XP to Windows XP "service pack 2" because it said I should, and because it said that it makes viruses etc. harded to get. Well it has completely shut down my music making too. Now I get an error message that my MOTU 828mkII has a driver problem. (I posted a whole post about this problem... http://www.homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=132097)

I just want to wipe the slate clean... I want to start over as if the computer were brand new; back up all important files (songs etc.) and just wipe everythign else out and re-install fresh. Is this even possible? I have never tried anything like this. I want to do away with all of Dell's bullshit. I don't want MS Instant Messenger. I don't want Kazaa or Kazaa lite or anything like that. I will still have to be on the internet with this machine... but I want to be able to just switch on the DSL for e-mail and homerecord.com and be able to completely disable it when I want to record. Right now, my DSL is ALWAYS on. I can't afford another machine just for the internet at the moment. Does anyone know if what I am talking about doing is even possible?

I know nothing about "registries" or hidden cache, or anything like that. I always thought that you could just like wipe everything away and start from scratch. This might not be the case. It seems that some files cannot ever be deleted. It seems that there are so many safty features to keep folks from doing this by accident. I might just fuck everything up.

What do you guys think?

If I un-install my OS (somehow) and re-format/wipe-out my HDD and do a complete re-install from scratch... will I be able to work fine without all that DELL shit? I do not know if I have the drivers for the CD-RW drive and the CDR-DVD drive. to be honest... I don't know shit about any of this. What do you guys think?

I just want to start fresh with a machine that ONLY has Logic Audio Platinum, MOTU 828mkII software, and the ocassional e-mail (DSL) which I already pay for through my phone company. Is this possible?
 
I suggest a reformat and clean install on the Dell.....use for personal.
Build a new box stripped of all the garbage and dedicated to recording.
 
It's a known fact that installing SP2 can cause incompatibilities. MS chose to risk that, so they wouldn't have to compromise added security features in the service pack.

I suspect you also have spyware running on your PC. There is software like Ad-Aware, Spybot Search and Destroy, CWShredder etc etc etc that can trace and delete spyware and viruses and it works great if there are just a few 'extras' running on your PC but in your case, just do yourself a favour, backup and start all over. In a lot of cases that's quicker than trying to salvage what you have now.
When you're done, install Spybot Search and Destroy (freeware), update and run that every now and then to keep your PC clean.
 
Stealthtech said:
I suggest a reformat and clean install on the Dell.....use for personal.
Build a new box stripped of all the garbage and dedicated to recording.
Click to expand...
He clearly said that he can't afford another computer at this moment. :rolleyes:
 
christiaan said:
He clearly said that he can't afford another computer at this moment. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...
I did'nt say tomorrow morning bro
Im suggesting the logical and best solution
If you wanna keep your DAW problem free, its the best way to go
no games, no internet, no office crap, no graphics programs, etc...and tweeked for audio.
 
It is called a 'System Restore'. You can do it for any date you want and it will restore the hard drive, start menu, etc. to what the computer had installed (including software) on that date. If you want to wipe it completely clean, and reinstall your OS and software, that can be done to. Check Dell's website or call their cust. service and they'll walk you through it. I work in AutoCAD for my job and know computers can be frustrating (probably why I still record on analog), but hang in there. :)
 
Well I un-installed the "Service Pack 2" bit, and my MOTU started working back fine.

However, I am still no where near satisfied with the way this machine performs. I always get random ASIO overloads. I am not getting anywhere near the track count and plug-in count that I would expect from this machine.

Part of it might be my lack of experience with recording. I am just now starting to bus tracks down to save on plug-in instances. But still...

And my 60GB HDD is half way full. And I have no idea why. I went through in Kazaa Lite and in the "My Kazaa" tab, I deleted well over half the songs, and MPEGs that I have had. But it made almost NO dent in the little free space pie graph for my C: drive. But I did notice something. When I you delete something directly from "My Shared Folder" in explor, then it first goes to your recycle bin, then you can delete that. But when you delete straight from Kazaa, it just disapears. But I am wondering if it has really dissappeared or if just the ability to play it has, and it is still there like a big hunk of Hard Drive junk. Is this true?
 
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