Tom AZ

You are right, I do use the ERUNT apps. These aren't the actual ERUNT registry backup files that are created when you do a registry backup, are they? I mean the ones that would be used to restore the registry should that be needed? I assume these might be some sort of secondary backup files.

Only problem with Auslogics Defrag (unless they've changed it just recently) is that it only defrags -- it does not optimize.

Is it typically safe to delete all *.bak, *.tmp and *.old files? Normally, I would think so. But when I see large files like the following, I start to wonder a little -- and get a little nervous: c:\windows\system32\config\software.bak c:\windows\system32\config\system.bak c:\documents and Settings\user name\NTUSER.bak c:\1386\shdocvw.bak c:\windows\system32\shdocvw.bak And the list goes on . . . over 175 "unnecessary files." Some of these files are very large, but list contains smaller ones as well. I would love to do some cleanup work, but don't want to make any stupid mistakes along the way.

Thanks. I always appreciate your help so much!

Andavari , I decided to take you advice about updating the backend programs in Burrn. However, I wasn't exactly sure which "Flac" file to download from the site you mentioned. In the Burrn app itself, the "flac" file is simply "flac.exe." However, it appears that on the download site, the flac exe file name also includes the version number. Is it OK to replace the Burrn file with this one, or am I not looking at the right file?

Sorry for all the dumb questions. When it comes to video I'm really illiterate -- I mean REALLY green. . . you might as well be talking with a toddler. I've had very little need for learning the "video" stuff -- so I haven't. Audio, however, is another story -- that's something that I understand and use daily in my business. However, here's the reason for all my video questions. I have roughly 2 hrs 20 minutes worth of video -- currently on 2 DVDRs. This is not a commercial movie -- but it's not home movies either. It's something that was produced for another little company I'm involved with. I'm really need to get these two DVDRs down to a single DVD, and I thought maybe it might be something I could do myself, but I've started to re-think that whole idea a little. I may have way too much to learn in a relatively short period of time. It might be a whole lot easier just to go back to the production company that produced the piece and have them work on it -- or simply farm it out to someone else. Of the ~02:20:00, probably 4-6 minutes could just be edited out (simple deletes) -- but I don't know how to do that either -- so that becomes my first problem. Then, I was hoping the whole thing could possibly be "compressed" a little to get rid of the remaining "excess" minutes and get it down under the 2-hr mark. But, I don't even know if one of the "shrink" apps would work on this type of project. Oh well, I apologize for all the boring details, guess I was just trying to explain myself and justify my ignorance a little . I appreciate all the help from everyone.

I only have one drive. So, can the disc(s) first be copied to the HD, or is this not the way it's done?

In your opinion, which of these two is more straight forward and easier to use? Also, I had posted an earlier reply to rridgely about "movie" burning software, but as yet have not received a reply back. Other than Ashampoo's Burning Studio, do you know of any software that will work for this purpose -- movies -- not video images?

Thanks for the help!

What's the procedure for doing this?

As you might be able to tell, I'm not much of a "video" guy, so this is all rather new to me. Be that as it may, I assume there are quite a few burner apps that will burn "video/images," but which ones will actually burn "movies" (other than the Ashampoo stuff)?

Hazelnut . . . do you also use "Shrink to 5? I've seen another app "DVD Shrink," but don't really know anything about either one.

Andavari . . . I noticed that you've commented a few times about "Burrn." Do you really feel this is a good CD burning software -- what about features? Does it have DAO (disc-at-once) capability? I really need accurate burns and was wondering how you felt this stacked up against some of the more recognizable software in this category?

rridgely . . . you said that you rip movies with dvdfab, then shrink them to fit a single dvd by using shrinkto5. How does the quality hold up once you compress (shrink) them? Just out of curiosity, if I had approx. 2hrs 20min worth of movie material, do you think "shrinkto5" would satisfactorily bring it down to a single DVD?

I've read quite a bit about Yahoo Widgets and know quite a few people who use them, but have stayed away from them altogether. Are they memory and CPU hogs -- or are they fairly small and insignificant?

Anyone had any experience with Adobe Reader 8.1 Lite?

Antivari, how long have you used Dr. Web AV Link Checker? I have looked at this before, but for some reason decided against it? Do you find it at all cumbersome or annoying -- or is it pretty beneign? Once the plugin is installed, is everything checked, or do you have the option?

MajoMo, thanks for the clarification.

Does this mean that even if either of these two readers are set as the default viewer, neither one will open pdf e-mail attachments?

Has anyone tried the Adobe 8.1 Lite?

Thanks for the link, Dennis -- great info.

Have you actually used this? If so, do you like it?

Thanks for the link -- this is helpful. However, I'm still not quite sure how you determine the "connect speed." With my cable company (and most, I'm sure) they have different service packages and tiers. And, I suppose the modem and connection (USB or Ethernet) come into play as well. And, there may even be some other variables -- who knows??

I read a couple of references to TCPOptimizer on this forum. It sounded rather interesting so I downloaded it. For those who use it, do you find it beneficial? Also, I was a bit confused about the "Connection Speed" setting in the "General Settings" tab. When I open the app, has the program actually determined that setting to be my connection speed -- or is that just a default setting position and it's up to me to actually set the speed? If by chance I need to set the speed, how do I determine that?

That's a relief to know-- thanks.