# Windows XP Service Pack 2 comments thread



## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

Has anyone installed SP2 yet? 

My installation went off without a hitch. The pop-up blocker seems to work well.


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## Geronimo (Mar 23, 2002)

I installed. It is working well. I still cant use Windows Update but SP2 is fine.


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## Nick (Apr 23, 2002)

Not yet. Are you kidding me? On a 40-50kbs wireless connection? I may not live long enough to dl at that speed. I already have a firewall, popup blocker up-to-date anti-virus, and all that stuff so why do I need SP2? Maybe when you SP2 beta-testers find all the bugs and they are patched & I have a BB connection, and Jesus comes back - maybe, but not a micro-second before.


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## MikeSoltis (Aug 1, 2003)

Well, it does do my wireless better now, I changed my key life on the router (using WPA).

SP2's wireless management works better than the Netgear software did, it connects faster and reliably renews the IP faster as well. And it tells you while it's doing it what it's doing (i.e., connecting, renewing IP address, etc).

So I am pleasantly surprised at SP2.


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## JBKing (Mar 23, 2002)

How do you get it? Windows Update still isn't picking it up for me.

Presently, I'm downloading the version for multiple computers. Any harm in running that instead of the single user version that is 'coming soon'? I don't really want to add an extra (unnecessary) 100 MB to my Windows installation.


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## CoriBright (May 30, 2002)

JBKing said:


> How do you get it? Windows Update still isn't picking it up for me.


Try the Express Installer, linked from:
http://www.activewin.com/awin/default.asp

I'm now running it on all my XP PCs bar one which was running it happily. However I changed the motherboard and CPU, dumping ECS for Albatron and a 2ghz P4 for a 3ghz P4 with HT (Prescott). Didn't find out until I'd tried, that Albatron motherboards with i865 chipset can't work with SP2 which resulted in the format of a hard drive. Repair Install fails, clean slipstreamed install fails, clean install with slipstream SP1a works but upgrade to SP2 fails. Apparently they didn't bother to join the rest of the world in testing. They'll start working on a BIOS update Monday, a little late in the day IMHO.

That's the reason my Amazing Race contest entry was a little late this week. Formatting a 200gb drive takes a while - reinstalling the rest of the software takes even longer.

Lost no files or folders - just had to find other hard drive space around my network for some 130gb of files!


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## Steve Mehs (Mar 21, 2002)

Are CD-ROM copies available yet? I looked around and there's no mention of it.


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## Mike123abc (Jul 19, 2002)

Steve Mehs said:


> Are CD-ROM copies available yet? I looked around and there's no mention of it.


I downloaded the IT patch and burned it to CD. http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...BE-3B8E-4F30-8245-9E368D3CDB5A&displaylang=en


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## Steve Mehs (Mar 21, 2002)

I'm on dial up, thats why I want the CD


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## cdru (Dec 4, 2003)

Steve Mehs said:


> I'm on dial up, thats why I want the CD


I'll be happy to burn you a copy and mail it if you want it.

I've installed it on 3 personal computers as well as my work computer without issue. Wireless networking works noticably better the the old Wireless Zero Configuration or whatever it's called ever did. The firewall I don't use and I use norton's AV which hasn't been integrated into the security control panel yet.


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## HappyGoLucky (Jan 11, 2004)

Steve Mehs said:


> I'm on dial up, thats why I want the CD


There is a link from the Microsoft site (I had it but can't find it now) where you can order the CD of SP2 for free, they even pay the shipping! Not sure what the timeframe on receiving it is, though.


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## DJ Rob (Jul 24, 2003)

I installed it and I'm finding that it doesn't like multiple IE windows open - IE crashes if I have more than 5 open at various times (not everytime).
Other than that, I don't notice any other problems or big changes.


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## Guest (Aug 15, 2004)

That link is only for IT pros with more than one computer. I only have one computer. I need SP2!!!!


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## kwajr (Apr 7, 2004)

HappyGoLucky said:


> There is a link from the Microsoft site (I had it but can't find it now) where you can order the CD of SP2 for free, they even pay the shipping! Not sure what the timeframe on receiving it is, though.


7 days top


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## kwajr (Apr 7, 2004)

DJ Rob said:


> I installed it and I'm finding that it doesn't like multiple IE windows open - IE crashes if I have more than 5 open at various times (not everytime).
> Other than that, I don't notice any other problems or big changes.


dump ie use firefox


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## mre_2001 (Oct 5, 2003)

Here's the link to order the sp on CD:

hxxp://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/updates/sp2/cdorder/en_us/default810.mspx

I heard you should be able to order it on August 25th.


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## invaliduser88 (Apr 23, 2002)

Install went without any problems. My system is definitely more responsive running sp2.


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## Steve Mehs (Mar 21, 2002)

Thanks for the offer cdru, but I can wait to order it, now that I have the link (thank you mre), I don’t want to trouble you or anything.


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## Geronimo (Mar 23, 2002)

kwajr said:


> dump ie use firefox


Firefox loads pretty slow with XP2


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## cdru (Dec 4, 2003)

Geronimo said:


> Firefox loads pretty slow with XP2


Your experience is different then what I've found on all the machines I've installed it on. Firefox and IE both take about the same amount of time to start up from a cold boot. Using my highly scientific counting, I get about one-one-thous-and-two and both are loaded. This even includes the "cheating" IE does by preloading components at boot time.

I highly recommend Firefox, but just due to the better security, extensions, theams, but also for tab browsing and pop up blocking done right.


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## kwajr (Apr 7, 2004)

Geronimo said:


> Firefox loads pretty slow with XP2


i havent noticed that but i do like myie2 now maxathon


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## Geronimo (Mar 23, 2002)

I like Firefox as well. But it does seem to be loading slower and others are talking about this at their site. Perhaps it is noot universal but I am not alone.


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## MikeSoltis (Aug 1, 2003)

I've not noticed that Firefox is any slower with SP2...
Try flushing your pre-fetch and rebooting (twice).


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## Mike123abc (Jul 19, 2002)

I have updated 6 machines so far with it. One machine had problems with it and was unable to be installed. I put the original XP Pro CDROM back in and told it to resinstall with the repair option. Then when it came back up I did the XPSP2 upgrade without problem.


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## Chris Blount (Jun 22, 2001)

invaliduser88 said:


> Install went without any problems. My system is definitely more responsive running sp2.


I have also noticed this. I.E seems a little faster.



kwajr said:


> dump ie use firefox


I also like firefox but find myself still using I.E. at times. Firefox has a few bugs that get on my nerves but overall, it's a good browser.


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## Guest (Aug 16, 2004)

SP2 does not install. I get invalid key.


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## Redster (Jan 14, 2004)

SP2 loaded and running. Kinda pisses me off that of the 2 most popular antivirus companines,, MS couldnt work out patches with Norton's, not recognized as an antivirus program with SP2. Other than that,, I am running Firefox and it runs just fine. No problems so far. I am using Zone Alarm Pro for popup blocker and firewall. I have the windows one turned off, I trust ZAP more than I do MS.


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## Geronimo (Mar 23, 2002)

MikeSoltis said:


> I've not noticed that Firefox is any slower with SP2...
> Try flushing your pre-fetch and rebooting (twice).


Given the large number of people saying it is loading slower. and the folks saying it is not---I wonder what variable is.


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## Orcatek (May 1, 2003)

Anybody try Opera with SP2 yet? It's my browser of choice.


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## HappyGoLucky (Jan 11, 2004)

Geronimo said:


> I like Firefox as well. But it does seem to be loading slower and others are talking about this at their site. Perhaps it is noot universal but I am not alone.


I'm not seeing that, but then I don't run the "official" Firefox releases but instead run highly optimized nightly releases that run circles around the "official" releases anyway.

Note, too, that some programs are going to load slower on SP2 due to the DEP (Data Execution Prevention) checking going on in SP2. If your computer doesn't support hardware DEP (only the very newest P4s and AMD processors do), it will use software DEP, which will make loading programs intially slower. If you have a slow processor it will be even more noticeable. You can turn off the DEP (it is on by default in SP2), though. Right-click on My Computer, choose Properties, click the Advanced tab and choose the Data Execution Prevention tab. Note, you can also add certain programs that are allowed to bypass DEP but still leave it on for everything else.


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## invaliduser88 (Apr 23, 2002)

Redster said:


> SP2 loaded and running. Kinda pisses me off that of the 2 most popular antivirus companines,, MS couldnt work out patches with Norton's, not recognized as an antivirus program with SP2. Other than that,, I am running Firefox and it runs just fine. No problems so far. I am using Zone Alarm Pro for popup blocker and firewall. I have the windows one turned off, I trust ZAP more than I do MS.


 What version of Norton are you running? I'm running 2004 and after the updates released by Norton around 8/11 Norton antivirus and MS Security Center can communicate just fine.


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## Geronimo (Mar 23, 2002)

HappyGoLucky said:


> I'm not seeing that, but then I don't run the "official" Firefox releases but instead run highly optimized nightly releases that run circles around the "official" releases anyway.
> 
> Note, too, that some programs are going to load slower on SP2 due to the DEP (Data Execution Prevention) checking going on in SP2. If your computer doesn't support hardware DEP (only the very newest P4s and AMD processors do), it will use software DEP, which will make loading programs intially slower. If you have a slow processor it will be even more noticeable. You can turn off the DEP (it is on by default in SP2), though. Right-click on My Computer, choose Properties, click the Advanced tab and choose the Data Execution Prevention tab. Note, you can also add certain programs that are allowed to bypass DEP but still leave it on for everything else.


I am not sure that the "optimized" releases are all that faster. The speed tests I have seen are pretty mixed. But, at least in theory there may be something aboutt hem that makes them less susceptible to this slowdown. DEP may well be the answer. I will check into that. I will also try an optimized build. I miss aebrahim's builds.

Here is just one thread that discusses the effect of optimization. In this case it focuses on laoding and page rendering. There are many such threads.

http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewt...start=15&sid=e45caf48acc0a0dad8ec09bc84b4571d


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## HappyGoLucky (Jan 11, 2004)

Geronimo said:


> I am not sure that the "optimized" releases are all that faster. The speed tests I have seen are pretty mixed. But, at least in theory there may be something aboutt hem that makes them less susceptible to this slowdown. DEP may well be the answer. I will check into that. I will also try an optimized build. I miss aebrahim's builds.
> 
> Here is just one thread that discusses the effect of optimization. In this case it focuses on laoding and page rendering. There are many such threads.
> 
> http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewt...start=15&sid=e45caf48acc0a0dad8ec09bc84b4571d


There are a number of releases that are supposedly "optimized" that simply rely upon certain compiler switches. Those are decidedly less effective than a true code-based optimization. People who use some benchmark and show a fraction of a second improvement because of some compiler switch are just fooling themselves, that is not a "real world" noticeable improvement. However, Michael Moy (MMOY) digs into the actual code and rewrites sections to make them more efficient and to utilize new processor functions, such as MMX, SSE, and SSE2 instructions where they will provide a benefit. In some places he has been able to take what was written using hundreds of lines of code and reduce it down to just a few lines. This is especially true for image rendering for JPEG, GIF, etc. This does far more than the compiler switches could hope for. In initial loading, little can be done to optimize that as it is more dependant upon the individual computer and operating system. But in working performance, the releases using the code from MMOY are significantly faster than the "official" releases.

I would say your slowdown is more DEP related.


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## Geronimo (Mar 23, 2002)

Well I will try it and see what happens. It is worth a try. But I remain skeptical on the issue of optimized builds. Lots of threads questioning them and very little hard evidene. But if you like it more power to you my friens.


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## CoriBright (May 30, 2002)

Need SP2 said:


> SP2 does not install. I get invalid key.


Try buying a legal copy of XP then! It's been stated many times that the few well known pirated keys will NOT allow either SP1 or SP2 installs.


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## Guest (Aug 16, 2004)

I have a legal copy *******. Shut the hell up before you piss off more people.


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## CoriBright (May 30, 2002)

Need SP2 said:


> I have a legal copy *******. Shut the hell up before you piss off more people.


Then your solution is easy and should take no more than about an hour... a Repair Installation with the original CD and then a quick upgrade to SP2.


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## Neil Derryberry (Mar 23, 2002)

Need SP2... tone it down, please.


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## HappyGoLucky (Jan 11, 2004)

CoriBright said:


> Try buying a legal copy of XP then! It's been stated many times that the few well known pirated keys will NOT allow either SP1 or SP2 installs.


The released version of SP2 does not do a key check. That was the reason for the last-minute delay from Microsoft. As the betas and Release Candidates DID do a valid key check, Microsoft initially was going to make SP2 available only to legal installations. But at the last minute they decided overall internet security was more important so they removed the checks, so even illegal keys will now work for upgrading to SP2.

Now, anyone using an illegally obtained key should be ashamed and go out and buy a valid copy, but that is beside the point and we should not be accusing others of something without further knowledge of what is going on. That is reckless and rude.

There are some known instances of perfectly legal copies of XP that will not upgrade to SP2 for various reasons. Microsoft even has some KnowledgeBase articles with some solutions available.


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## Mike123abc (Jul 19, 2002)

There are counterfeit versions of WIN XP out there that people sell as legitimate. It is quite possible to think you have a legal copy because you paid good $$ for it but you were ripped off.


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## CoriBright (May 30, 2002)

What to do if you get the Illegal Product Key message:
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/invalpk.htm

Check List for pre-SP2 install:
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/spackins.htm

FAQ for SP2:
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/xpsp2.htm


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## kwajr (Apr 7, 2004)

Need SP2 said:


> SP2 does not install. I get invalid key.


well we know why but google is your best friend


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## kwajr (Apr 7, 2004)

Redster said:


> SP2 loaded and running. Kinda pisses me off that of the 2 most popular antivirus companines,, MS couldnt work out patches with Norton's, not recognized as an antivirus program with SP2. Other than that,, I am running Firefox and it runs just fine. No problems so far. I am using Zone Alarm Pro for popup blocker and firewall. I have the windows one turned off, I trust ZAP more than I do MS.


by the way norton is awful people try www.grisoft.com free avg its free works freat with sp2 and updates nightly it also catches more in the wild than norton in every test i have seen


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## kwajr (Apr 7, 2004)

CoriBright said:


> Try buying a legal copy of XP then! It's been stated many times that the few well known pirated keys will NOT allow either SP1 or SP2 installs.


by the way keys that worked under sp1 dont sem to work now


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## Guest (Aug 17, 2004)

Neil Derryberry said:


> Need SP2... tone it down, please.


Go to hell Neil. I do not like being accused of theft when I paid for my copy.


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## HappyGoLucky (Jan 11, 2004)

kwajr said:


> by the way norton is awful people try www.grisoft.com free avg its free works freat with sp2 and updates nightly it also catches more in the wild than norton in every test i have seen


Norton AV was updated the very day that SP2 was released, it is now fully compatible with SP2's Security Center. There is NO problem with how Norton operates under SP2, it works just fine. The issue is that Norton AV's processes are protected from tampering by other applications, for security reasons. That protection prevents even SP2's Security Center from making inquiries on the status. The update to Norton has now allowed the Security Center to make inquiries on the AV processes, so it is now fully compatible.

Every AV test I've seen shows Grisoft's product to not be anywhere near as thorough as Norton or McAfee. You get what you pay for.


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## redfishhunter (Aug 5, 2004)

Help....
May sound funny....but our home computer is affected by some kind of a virus our son has downloaded music or something and now it is eating away at it....tons of pop-up and we can't get on-line with it...Help...What should be done with it?


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## kwajr (Apr 7, 2004)

HappyGoLucky said:


> Norton AV was updated the very day that SP2 was released, it is now fully compatible with SP2's Security Center. There is NO problem with how Norton operates under SP2, it works just fine. The issue is that Norton AV's processes are protected from tampering by other applications, for security reasons. That protection prevents even SP2's Security Center from making inquiries on the status. The update to Norton has now allowed the Security Center to make inquiries on the AV processes, so it is now fully compatible.
> 
> Every AV test I've seen shows Grisoft's product to not be anywhere near as thorough as Norton or McAfee. You get what you pay for.


by the way before avg was not good but since 2003 04 they have been coming out great and some magizine i read showed that while they all detexcted known viruses avg got more in the wild http://www.virusbtn.com/vb100/archives/tests.xml?200406


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## cdru (Dec 4, 2003)

redfishhunter said:


> Help....
> May sound funny....but our home computer is affected by some kind of a virus our son has downloaded music or something and now it is eating away at it....tons of pop-up and we can't get on-line with it...Help...What should be done with it?


This should go into another thread. But a quick few things to start you out:

1. Download Ad-Aware, Spybot Search and Destroy, and Spysweeper. All three have commercial versions and free versions (Spysweeper is free initially).
2. Install all 3.
3. Pick one and run it, remove anything it finds, reboot, run it again. Keep doing it until it doesn't find anything more.
4. Pick one of the other two and do the same thing. Keep running until it doesn't find anything. Strangley enough, it will still find stuff.
5. Pick the last one and repeat the process again with it.
6. After you've done it with all three, run all 3 one more time to make sure things haven't mysteriously reappeared.
7. Run Windows Update until you have no more updates. Install XP SP2 if applicable.
8. Get yourself a firewall
9. Get yourself a real browser other then swiss cheese IE.
10. Make sure your Anti-virus program is up to date. You do have one right?


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

Well, I did a "test install" of the Streamlined XP SP2 on a older hard drive. Slight problem... the CD software that came with my drive wouldn't install. (Two years old.)

I also have to convince XP that I know what I'm doing since the router has NAT and provides it's own firewall.


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## Redster (Jan 14, 2004)

Mark Holtz said:


> Well, I did a "test install" of the Streamlined XP SP2 on a older hard drive. Slight problem... the CD software that came with my drive wouldn't install. (Two years old.)
> 
> I also have to convince XP that I know what I'm doing since the router has NAT and provides it's own firewall.


You mean you arent trusting the MS programmers to know more about security than you ??


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## toomuchtv (May 17, 2002)

Any conflicts w/ SP2 & McAfee ?


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## Dish 500 (Aug 15, 2004)

Not ready for Service Pack 2. Hopefully next month; it'll be great.

Dish Network 500

Microsoft - Protect Your PC Web Site


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## Shappyss (Jun 26, 2004)

I got SP2 yesterday. I have a 800mghz Athlon Processor and have noticed an increase in speed. I have also noticed so weird things. First the Windows XP splash screen was changed, it no longer says Home Edition and the little status bar used to be green on home and blue on Pro but now it is only blue. Pop-up blocker works too much I had to shut it off. It wouldn't allow links from webpages


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## BuckeyeChris (Apr 20, 2004)

toomuchtv said:


> Any conflicts w/ SP2 & McAfee ?


No conflicts here with SP2 and McAfee. I downloaded the full network 266MB SP2 version yesterday from MS. The only thing that happened was that after I rebooted my PC upon installing SP2, McAfee downloaded an update that changed the skin (color) of the McAfee Security Center to an auburn color (see attachment). Then, McAfee asked me to select it as the default security center for my PC instead of the Windows Security Center. McAfee said that if I didn't make it the default center, I might get duplicate warning messages. I clicked "Yes" and made McAfee the default center.

I have noticed that my wireless connection with my laptop's PC card is more stable, and the couple of times the connection dropped, the Windows Wireless Network Connection corrected the problem, giving me a status of what appeared to be a sort of re-acquirement of the signal from my wireless router and perhaps restarting the Windows Zero Configuration utility, nice.

Also, I find IE's built in pop-up blocker to be excellent. I have it at the medium setting. It blocked every pop-up from Drudge.com, by contrast, the AOL toolbar with pop-up blocker plug-in for IE missed many pop-ups from Drudge's site


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## DonLandis (Dec 17, 2003)

So what's the deal with SP2?

Is it out yet for the non-geeks? I went to the MS SP2 website and followed their instructions to turn on auto update but didn't find where the actual download link was. I got the impression you need to just wait and they will decide when to download it to you. Are you all who have it now using some beta version or non-MS mirror site to get the upgrade?

I'm in no rush but was just curious.


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## Shappyss (Jun 26, 2004)

I went to microsoft update site and then clicked scan for updates and it asked me if i wanted to install SP2


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## Nick (Apr 23, 2002)

Redster said:


> You mean you arent trusting the MS programmers to know more about security than you ??


I wouldn't trust MS programmers to wash my laundry.

After all the *****ing and moaning around here about the shortcomings of Dish hardware/software, people line up to be screwed by MS without a whimper. How long has XP been out, and they're just now getting around to fixing it? I am not a fan of MS, but flawed as it is, it's the only game in town and it's you people that made it so. Uncle Bill says if you want to keep your job, get in line, look down at your feet, shut up and don't rock the boat.

Remember, _"one size fits all"_ is marketing hype that really means it fits _no one_.


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## DonLandis (Dec 17, 2003)

_"I went to microsoft update site and then clicked scan for updates and it asked me if i wanted to install SP2"_

Thanks. Funny I didn't see that before. I went back there and saw the Express setup scan. Did that and in 30 minutes the entire process was done. I'm back and everything appears normal, so far.

I have 6 XP machines to do. The download took about 90 seconds so that wasn't so bad.


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## kwajr (Apr 7, 2004)

Shappyss said:


> I got SP2 yesterday. I have a 800mghz Athlon Processor and have noticed an increase in speed. I have also noticed so weird things. First the Windows XP splash screen was changed, it no longer says Home Edition and the little status bar used to be green on home and blue on Pro but now it is only blue. Pop-up blocker works too much I had to shut it off. It wouldn't allow links from webpages


dont use ie


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## MarkA (Mar 23, 2002)

"First the Windows XP splash screen was changed, it no longer says Home Edition and the little status bar used to be green on home and blue on Pro but now it is only blue."

Correct, the splash screens aren't different anymore.


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## Lee L (Aug 15, 2002)

Don, if you have 6 machines to do, you should just download the whole package, the one that says "for IT Pros or system admins" or somesuch. There is no reason anyone can;t use it, the only reason it says what it does is that it is a large package for every possibly combination of hardware and is a bigger download (260 MB IIRC) that would be a waste of time for someone with one PC but a real timesaver for someone like you with 6.


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## DonLandis (Dec 17, 2003)

Lee- What's the advantage to using the 260Mb version? The download was not a problem with my fast connect speed. Does this 260Mb version seek out all winXP machines on my LAN and perform the upgrade to all of them at the same time. I have 5 left to do.

Anyway- I'm off on a 10 city road trip for the next week so nothing will get done until I get back anyway.


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## Lee L (Aug 15, 2002)

The only advantage is that you do not have to go to each machine and do the whole auto update thing. You can download the big file, then just double click on it to update each machine. Really easy if you are networked but you could burn it to a CD if not. For 6 PC's, it might not be much of an advantage either way really and the end result is the same.


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## DonLandis (Dec 17, 2003)

Thanks, Lee. It is probably easier to just do each machine separately. I'll let you all know if I try it when I get back into town.


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## dfergie (Feb 28, 2003)

Lee L said:


> The only advantage is that you do not have to go to each machine and do the whole auto update thing. You can download the big file, then just double click on it to update each machine. Really easy if you are networked but you could burn it to a CD if not. For 6 PC's, it might not be much of an advantage either way really and the end result is the same.


I did this yesterday(sat) it worked a whole lot faster. And as I installed a new hd in one(I had a slipstream sp1 that sped that up) the sp2 site was unavailable at that time anyway. Still have one to go and will get it today  .


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## JohnGfun (Jan 16, 2004)

XP SERVICE PACK 2 SUCKS!

*SERVICE PACK 2 TOTALY SCREWED UP MY COMPUTER!* 
MY INTERNET WAS NOT WORKING, MY COMPUTER WAS GOD AWFUL SLOW.
I TRIED RESTORING IT TWICE A COUPLE WEEKS BACK IN THE FUTURE AND REMOVING SP2 AND IT STILL DID NOT WORK.

I called my ISP and he said tons of people had called in with problems with sp2 . He told me i had to take my computer somewhere to get it fixed. So I Called And Chewed out Microsoft's ass (and paid $35 for It). So it Took It Somewhere To Get It Fixed. He didn't tell me what was wrong BUT IT WAS $299 TO GET IT FIXED!

***WARNING***
IF I WAS EVERYBODY I WOULD WAIT A WHILE!


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## kwajr (Apr 7, 2004)

JohnGfun said:


> XP SERVICE PACK 2 SUCKS!
> 
> *SERVICE PACK 2 TOTALY SCREWED UP MY COMPUTER!*
> MY INTERNET WAS NOT WORKING, MY COMPUTER WAS GOD AWFUL SLOW.
> ...


so you paid someone 300 bucks to uninstall sp2? hell give me a cal next ill do it for 250.By the way what isp


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## Jacob S (Apr 14, 2002)

I downloaded SP2 last night on a dialup connection (thats all I have) and I could not get browse webpages, use the messeners, or check my email, nothing. The computer even locked up and would not respond at times. CTRL ALT DEL wouldnt even work at times and I would have to hold in on the power button to shut it down. Finally after contacting the ISP which told me to contact Microsoft, I finally spoke to someone that knew what he was talking about. He said he knew a lot of people have issues with SP1 when using dialup because it would lose packets and would really mess things up and not work right. He told me to order it off the website and it would take about 3-4 weeks to get it and that it is free. He also said that there is a free cd that has the security updates as well. When I uninstalled SP2 like he told me I was able to surf the web again and had no more problems. He said that you should have a high speed internet connection so that you do not lose packets when downloading it and that you should not download any software that is over 5MB on a dialup connection.


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## CoriBright (May 30, 2002)

FREE CDs with SP2 are available OfficeMax, Staples, CompUSA - CompUSA will even install it for you.

Just ensure your PC is free of nasties BEFORE installing:
http://forum.aumha.org/viewtopic.php?t=7260

But running antivirus, firewall and antispyware software should be standard practice for ANY PC that goes on the internet!


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## Maniacal1 (Apr 9, 2002)

I've updated to XP2 on both my desktop and my tablet, and everything went well. There's just one aggravation: Does anyone know how I can get rid of the constant nagging that "my computer may be at risk"? I've turned off the Windows firewall because I run Zone Alarm, and I've checked the box that says I'll monitor the firewall myself, thank you very much. But every single day on both machines, I get the warning and the check box I checked the day before is unchecked. 

Do any of you know how to get rid of this nuisance warning?


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## Ron Barry (Dec 10, 2002)

Jacob S said:


> I downloaded SP2 last night on a dialup connection (thats all I have) and I could not get browse webpages, use the messeners, or check my email, nothing. The computer even locked up and would not respond at times. CTRL ALT DEL wouldnt even work at times and I would have to hold in on the power button to shut it down. Finally after contacting the ISP which told me to contact Microsoft, I finally spoke to someone that knew what he was talking about. He said he knew a lot of people have issues with SP1 when using dialup because it would lose packets and would really mess things up and not work right. He told me to order it off the website and it would take about 3-4 weeks to get it and that it is free. He also said that there is a free cd that has the security updates as well. When I uninstalled SP2 like he told me I was able to surf the web again and had no more problems. He said that you should have a high speed internet connection so that you do not lose packets when downloading it and that you should not download any software that is over 5MB on a dialup connection.


If this is correct, this is just plain scary. Have they not heard of a thing called checksum? Personally I think this information is incorrect. From what I saw from updating SP2 last night was that there is a verification process that occurs after SP2 is uploaded to your system. IF packets were lost, they should have be re-transmitted.

However, I don't buy the story the Tech gave you, but if I had dialup I would wait and get the CD also.


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## CoriBright (May 30, 2002)

Maniacal1 said:


> I've updated to XP2 on both my desktop and my tablet, and everything went well. There's just one aggravation: Does anyone know how I can get rid of the constant nagging that "my computer may be at risk"? I've turned off the Windows firewall because I run Zone Alarm, and I've checked the box that says I'll monitor the firewall myself, thank you very much. But every single day on both machines, I get the warning and the check box I checked the day before is unchecked.
> 
> Do any of you know how to get rid of this nuisance warning?


Control Panel, Security Center, on the left hand side, click on "Change the way the Security Center alerts me"


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## Maniacal1 (Apr 9, 2002)

Thanks Cari! I'll look for the setting as soon as I get home.


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## Jacob S (Apr 14, 2002)

I didnt have any trouble when downloading it on my dialup connection to my Dell laptop but did with my Toshiba and it even failed to download/install on a friend's DSL connection (1.5 MB). He decided to just order the cd as well.


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## dfergie (Feb 28, 2003)

I've noticed that when checking email on Outlook Express that any graphics are gone...


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## DonLandis (Dec 17, 2003)

I have a strange bug with SP2 that has surfaced. Otherwise everything else is fine.

Background- I have an extensive collection of Names and addresses I started collecting back in the 80's with the first windows 3.0 using "cardfile" It is quite large and is in several *.crd files and opens with cardfile.exe. In the past, All I needed to do was include the exe file, the help file, and a cardfile.grd file in the same folder and this worked fine in windows 2000 and xp. After installing windows SP2 the cardfile *.crd can nolonger open froma shortcut because it can't locate what file to open with. 
The strange part is I can still open cardfile.exe and then open the actual file *.crd and use it. In the window where you specify what program this files opens with, it ignors your instructions to open with cardfile.exe so that doesn't work either. 

I'm not sure how Microsoft allows users to report this bug but I just wonder if MS is now just planning to ignor older 16 bit windows programs? 

Any ideas?


Because of this bug I have put all plans on hold to upgrading my other computers to SP2.


Update- I found a place in the Help and support section to report bugs in Windows XP so I submitted a report. More of a cry for help on how to resolve the auto open feature with SP2. I will advise here is MS answers with a fix.


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## cclement (Mar 22, 2004)

I've updated 5 PC's to SP2, and I've had a problem with the last 2. Which is why I have delayed in updating my last 3.

On one PC, everytime I restart- the "My Documents" folder window opens. Not a huge deal, but annoying. I contacted MS, they pointed me to a couple support articles, neither helped.

Second, I can't right click on a link in IE 6 and open in a new window. Nothing happens when I do this. Again, this isn't a huge deal, as I usually use Firefox and tabbed browsing. But just wonding if anyone else seen this?


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## kwajr (Apr 7, 2004)

dfergie said:


> I've noticed that when checking email on Outlook Express that any graphics are gone...


thats because when you view an email it must pull the graphic from the server therfore it tells them that its a real email addy doesnt mean much but if your a spammer thats you would only have to view it for them to know your real


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## JohnGfun (Jan 16, 2004)

kwajr said:


> so you paid someone 300 bucks to uninstall sp2? hell give me a cal next ill do it for 250.By the way what isp


Well.....I Uninstalled it myself and it didn't work. I restarted and it was back.

My ISP Is Charter Communications.


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## Steve Mehs (Mar 21, 2002)

Just installed SP2 now on this computer and the XP Media Center partition of my other computer. Everything seems all right on the other computer, but on my main PC its now faster when shutting down and slower booting up. Booting up now takes 5-6 go arounds on the status bar, before it was 3 1/4. Maybe it will speed up in a day or two though. Whenever I do a factory restore, it always takes a few reboots to get it back to 3 1/4. Not a big deal though.


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## CoriBright (May 30, 2002)

Don't forget to defrag the drive(s)!


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## Mark Lamutt (Mar 24, 2002)

I'm running into an interesting Powerstrip problem and getting SP2 to keep my custom video resolutions. But, I think I'll be able to get it worked out with a little more tweaking.


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## Steve Mehs (Mar 21, 2002)

Already defraged, no change in boot up time.


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## Mark Holtz (Mar 23, 2002)

This non-security critical update helps resolve an issue where a limited number of systems running a BIOS without production support for Intel Pentium 4 and Intel Celeron D processors based on Prescott C-0 stepping can potentially hang on Windows XP Service Pack 2 installation.


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## IndyMichael (Jan 25, 2003)

Sorry if this has been asked already... I'm on dial up and can be online for 10 hours, not always at the computer, but I leave it connected and still the download is at 0% after all that time. Is there a way to cancel the download? Nothing happens when I right or left click on it.


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## IndyMichael (Jan 25, 2003)

Anyone?


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## cclement (Mar 22, 2004)

IndyMichael said:


> Sorry if this has been asked already... I'm on dial up and can be online for 10 hours, not always at the computer, but I leave it connected and still the download is at 0% after all that time. Is there a way to cancel the download? Nothing happens when I right or left click on it.


Do you want to cancel it completely and just order the SP2 CD? If so, just turn off Automatic Updates and install SP2 off the CD. AU will be turned back on after you intall SP2.


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## cdru (Dec 4, 2003)

Steve Mehs said:


> Just installed SP2 now on this computer and the XP Media Center partition of my other computer. Everything seems all right on the other computer, but on my main PC its now faster when shutting down and slower booting up. Booting up now takes 5-6 go arounds on the status bar, before it was 3 1/4. Maybe it will speed up in a day or two though. Whenever I do a factory restore, it always takes a few reboots to get it back to 3 1/4. Not a big deal though.


I beleive XP originally had some feature to help reduce boot time by pre-initializing some things at shutdown. It was kind of a trade off. For people who were doing a reboot, it really made no difference as total time was about the same, but for those who were turning off the computer to do other things, they could just hit shutdown and walk away. When they returned, they had less wait time.

Maybe that has changed or been removed with XP...or maybe it's purely psycological. Who knows...


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## Brian Rector (Mar 25, 2002)

Just installed SP 2 (along with a fresh installation of XP). One thing I noticed is that when you boot up, it doesnt say "Windows XP Home Edition", just "Windows XP". 

No problems as of yet, but some annoyances from the Security Center about antivirus and firewall protection. Those have been taken care of.


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## IndyMichael (Jan 25, 2003)

Only took it two weeks or so, but it finally finished downloading today and I then installed it. Everything seems to work as well as it did before I installed it.


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## toomuchtv (May 17, 2002)

I finally screwed up my courage and got it yesterday. After answering a few questions, I was on my way, as good as ever. Considering the pop-up blocker, I am better than before.


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