XP Help&Support Center

[Guest]

I have XP Home with SP2. Have looked thro' all the threads but cannot get
the "Did You Know" section to load up even when connected to Internet. It
was previously stuck with a DEC 2004 date. I have re-installed XP and SP2
and it now states I have to connect to Internet which I already am!

Please, please does anyone have a definitive solution? (Usually find
Kelly's solutions work fine but not this time as I don't have the file that
Kelly says to delete).

 

[Alias]

Before openinng Help and Support, open IE.

Don't ask my why, it just works.

Alias

 

[Guest]

Thanks for response Alias but afraid it doesn't work for me.
--
Thanks

Sim

Before openinng Help and Support, open IE.

Don't ask my why, it just works.

Alias

 

[R. McCarty]

What Firewall, if any are you using. There are a couple of Microsoft
Help Center components that need Internet Access. HelpCtr.Exe &
HelpHost.Exe if blocked may stop the updating of the XML updates.

Thanks for response Alias but afraid it doesn't work for me.

 

[Guest]

Just the XP Firewall. Can you advise what if any steps i need to take please.

 

[frodo]

Before openinng Help and Support, open IE.
Don't ask my why, it just works.
Alias

Damn, you be "da man!". That DID work for me (sorry Simon). It had been
stuck on Aug 30th.

Hummmm, Ramesh, what do you make of this solution????

Very Interesting.......

Thanks, I'll keep trying that to see if it always works.

 

[Ramesh, MS-MVP]

Interesting one, frodo and Alias.

frodo: Are you able to achieve the result consistently ?

It did not work for me (using broadband) with or without IE window open.
Same old 0 byte newsblock02[1].xml in TIF

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

 

[ÐïÅßö¥ø§©]

I have XP Home with SP2. Have looked thro' all the threads but cannot get
the "Did You Know" section to load up even when connected to Internet. It
was previously stuck with a DEC 2004 date. I have re-installed XP and SP2
and it now states I have to connect to Internet which I already am!

Please, please does anyone have a definitive solution? (Usually find
Kelly's solutions work fine but not this time as I don't have the file
that
Kelly says to delete).
--

Help and Support very rarely helps anyway. You would get better answers
by posting any questions here.

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Most of my answers come right out of Help and Support.

People look for answers here because they are too lazy or have no idea how
to use Help and Support.

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Hi Ramesh,

When was the last time you synchronized your clock?

See this thread
Windows Help and Support
microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support

http://groups.google.com/group/micr...:and+insubject:Support&hl=en#9ea657df7717ff40

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

Interesting one, frodo and Alias.

frodo: Are you able to achieve the result consistently ?

It did not work for me (using broadband) with or without IE window open.
Same old 0 byte newsblock02[1].xml in TIF

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

Damn, you be "da man!". That DID work for me (sorry Simon). It had been
stuck on Aug 30th.

Hummmm, Ramesh, what do you make of this solution????

Very Interesting.......

Thanks, I'll keep trying that to see if it always works.

 

[Guest]

The debate is interesting but any more thoughts on how to solve my problem
please? How do I get "Do You Know" to start working?

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Try synchronizing your clock.

Double click the clock.
Click the Internet Time tab.
Click the Update Now button.

If the Update Now button is not available, select: Automatically synchronize
with an Internet time server.
Click the Apply button.
Click the Update Now button.

[[Click to synchronize your computer clock with the selected Internet Time
Server. You must be connected to the Internet, and the Automatically
synchronize with an Internet time server check box must be selected.

If synchronization fails, a message will display below explaining the
reason. Most corporate firewalls will block time synchronization, as will
some personal firewalls. If the network is too busy or not available for
some reason, try again later.]]

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

 

[Ramesh, MS-MVP]

Wes,

I've intentionally removed those XML files earlier (few months back) to test
it. Haven't got a solution for this problem yet.

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

Hi Ramesh,

When was the last time you synchronized your clock?

See this thread
Windows Help and Support
microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support

http://groups.google.com/group/micr...:and+insubject:Support&hl=en#9ea657df7717ff40

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

Interesting one, frodo and Alias.

frodo: Are you able to achieve the result consistently ?

It did not work for me (using broadband) with or without IE window open.
Same old 0 byte newsblock02[1].xml in TIF

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

Before openinng Help and Support, open IE.
Don't ask my why, it just works.
Alias

Damn, you be "da man!". That DID work for me (sorry Simon). It had
been
stuck on Aug 30th.

Hummmm, Ramesh, what do you make of this solution????

Very Interesting.......

Thanks, I'll keep trying that to see if it always works.

 

[Guest]

Sorry, this doesn't help with getting "Did You Know" to work in XP Help &
Support Center.
--
Thanks

Sim

Try synchronizing your clock.

Double click the clock.
Click the Internet Time tab.
Click the Update Now button.

If the Update Now button is not available, select: Automatically synchronize
with an Internet time server.
Click the Apply button.
Click the Update Now button.

[[Click to synchronize your computer clock with the selected Internet Time
Server. You must be connected to the Internet, and the Automatically
synchronize with an Internet time server check box must be selected.

If synchronization fails, a message will display below explaining the
reason. Most corporate firewalls will block time synchronization, as will
some personal firewalls. If the network is too busy or not available for
some reason, try again later.]]

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

The debate is interesting but any more thoughts on how to solve my problem
please? How do I get "Do You Know" to start working?

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Simon,

Sorry, I misread your problem.

See if one of these helps...

Windows XP Internet Programs Cannot Connect to the Internet Through
Broadband Connection
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;307164

Help and Support Center Does Not Automatically Connect to the Internet
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;315955

Also, if you do not have one of these files
NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml (For XP Pro)
or
NewsHeadlines_1033_Personal.xml (For XP Home)
in this folder
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News
you will get the When you are connected to the Internet message instead of
the Updated: date.

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

Sorry, this doesn't help with getting "Did You Know" to work in XP Help &
Support Center.
--
Thanks

Sim

Try synchronizing your clock.

Double click the clock.
Click the Internet Time tab.
Click the Update Now button.

If the Update Now button is not available, select: Automatically
synchronize with an Internet time server.
Click the Apply button.
Click the Update Now button.

[[Click to synchronize your computer clock with the selected Internet
Time Server. You must be connected to the Internet, and the
Automatically synchronize with an Internet time server check box must be
selected.

If synchronization fails, a message will display below explaining the
reason. Most corporate firewalls will block time synchronization, as will
some personal firewalls. If the network is too busy or not available for
some reason, try again later.]]

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

The debate is interesting but any more thoughts on how to solve my
problem please? How do I get "Do You Know" to start working?
--
Thanks

Sim


:

Most of my answers come right out of Help and Support.

People look for answers here because they are too lazy or have no idea
how to use Help and Support.

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In ÃÂïÅßö¥ø§© <[email protected]> hunted and
pecked:
I have XP Home with SP2. Have looked thro' all the threads but
cannot get the "Did You Know" section to load up even when connected
to Internet. It was previously stuck with a DEC 2004 date. I have
re-installed XP and SP2 and it now states I have to connect to
Internet which I already am!

Please, please does anyone have a definitive solution? (Usually find
Kelly's solutions work fine but not this time as I don't have the
file that
Kelly says to delete).

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Hi Ramesh,

Here are some things for you to consider. I tried to pay careful attention
to listing each thing that I did and the result.

I have Windows XP Professional SP1.

In my experiments, nothing looks 100% consistent. But synchronizing the
clock is definitely related. Synchronizing the clock before opening H & S
with NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml missing and then opening H & S
creates a new NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml. But not every time.

Seems like a lot of screwing around to get a feature that I don't even use
to update correctly. ;-)

This message is seen in Help and Support, under Did you know...

[[When you are connected to the Internet, this area will display links to
timely help and support information. If you want to connect to the Internet
now, start the New Connection Wizard and see how to establish a Web
connection through an Internet service provider. ]]

if
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News\NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml
is missing. But not every time.

I can drag NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml to the Desktop, open Help and
Support and I see the When you are connected to the Internet message. Close
H & S, drag NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml back, open H&S and Did you
know works, whether the Updated: date is current or not.

I can remove newsver.xml or leave it in
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News and I see no difference in Help and
Support, under Did you know.

Also from David Candy...

Windows XP Internet Programs Cannot Connect to the Internet Through
Broadband Connection
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;307164

Help and Support Center Does Not Automatically Connect to the Internet
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;315955

-----

As near as I can tell, the Updated date seems to be related to the Modified
date of these files
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News\NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml
and
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News\newsver.xml

Or maybe I have that backwards and the Modified date of those files is
related to Updated date of Did you know.
-----

I synchronized my clock yesterday, opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Saturday, 15 October, 2005

I opened H & S today and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Saturday, 15 October, 2005

I closed H & S, synchronized my clock. I dragged
NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml to the Desktop, opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Sunday, 16 October, 2005

Wow! Two days in a row the Updated: date actually updated.

I opened C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News and there was a new
NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml that had been created.

Both NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml files were 6,310 bytes, the new one
Created today and the one Modified yesterday.

I changed the name of
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News\NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml
to
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News\NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml1

I opened H & S and got the When you are connected to the Internet message,
closed H & S.

Synchronized my clock, opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Sunday, 16 October, 2005

And a new NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml had been created.

I closed H & S, deleted both NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml and
NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml1. I dragged the 15 Oct
NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml from the Desktop to
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News. I opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Saturday, 15 October, 2005

Closed H & S, Synchronized my clock, opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Saturday, 15 October, 2005

Closed H & S, dragged NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml to the Desktop,
opened H & S and saw the When you are connected to the Internet message.

Closed H & S, Synchronized my clock, opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Sunday, 16 October, 2005

And a new NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml had been created.

Latest NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml
Created: Today, 16 October, 2005, 10:02:53 AM
Modified: Today, 16 October, 2005, 10:02:53 AM

Latest newsver.xml
Created: Thursday, 05 August, 2004, 9:29:14 PM
Modified: Yesterday, 15 October, 2005, 9:10:11 AM

Some added info about my Help and Support.
1. My Help and Support Search the Microsoft Knowledge Base feature works.
2. My Help and Support Center Index is messed up, but different than your
articles...

Help and Support Center Index is blank with a red X mark
And, "Related Topics" link does not work
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/helpctrindex.htm

Error "Cannot locate merged.hhk" when clicking the Help and Support Center
Index
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/merged.htm

I have some info on that, if you're interested.

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User


--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

Wes,

I've intentionally removed those XML files earlier (few months back) to
test it. Haven't got a solution for this problem yet.

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

Hi Ramesh,

When was the last time you synchronized your clock?

See this thread
Windows Help and Support
microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support

http://groups.google.com/group/micr...:and+insubject:Support&hl=en#9ea657df7717ff40

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

Interesting one, frodo and Alias.

frodo: Are you able to achieve the result consistently ?

It did not work for me (using broadband) with or without IE window open.
Same old 0 byte newsblock02[1].xml in TIF

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com


Before openinng Help and Support, open IE.
Don't ask my why, it just works.
Alias

Damn, you be "da man!". That DID work for me (sorry Simon). It had
been
stuck on Aug 30th.

Hummmm, Ramesh, what do you make of this solution????

Very Interesting.......

Thanks, I'll keep trying that to see if it always works.

 

[Ramesh, MS-MVP]

Could not read your previous message, Wes. As soon as I clicked, I got:

"Message is no longer available on the server"

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

Wes,

I've intentionally removed those XML files earlier (few months back) to
test it. Haven't got a solution for this problem yet.

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

Hi Ramesh,

When was the last time you synchronized your clock?

See this thread
Windows Help and Support
microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support

http://groups.google.com/group/micr...:and+insubject:Support&hl=en#9ea657df7717ff40

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

Interesting one, frodo and Alias.

frodo: Are you able to achieve the result consistently ?

It did not work for me (using broadband) with or without IE window open.
Same old 0 byte newsblock02[1].xml in TIF

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com


Before openinng Help and Support, open IE.
Don't ask my why, it just works.
Alias

Damn, you be "da man!". That DID work for me (sorry Simon). It had
been
stuck on Aug 30th.

Hummmm, Ramesh, what do you make of this solution????

Very Interesting.......

Thanks, I'll keep trying that to see if it always works.

 

[Ramesh, MS-MVP]

Got it:
http://groups.google.co.uk/group/microsoft.public.windowsxp.general/msg/7bbaccbd6ed5c538?hl=en&

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

Could not read your previous message, Wes. As soon as I clicked, I got:

"Message is no longer available on the server"

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

Wes,

I've intentionally removed those XML files earlier (few months back) to
test it. Haven't got a solution for this problem yet.

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

Hi Ramesh,

When was the last time you synchronized your clock?

See this thread
Windows Help and Support
microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support

http://groups.google.com/group/micr...:and+insubject:Support&hl=en#9ea657df7717ff40

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In Ramesh, MS-MVP <[email protected]> hunted and pecked:
Interesting one, frodo and Alias.

frodo: Are you able to achieve the result consistently ?

It did not work for me (using broadband) with or without IE window
open.
Same old 0 byte newsblock02[1].xml in TIF

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com


Before openinng Help and Support, open IE.
Don't ask my why, it just works.
Alias

Damn, you be "da man!". That DID work for me (sorry Simon). It had
been
stuck on Aug 30th.

Hummmm, Ramesh, what do you make of this solution????

Very Interesting.......

Thanks, I'll keep trying that to see if it always works.

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Hi Ramesh,

Here it is again.

Here are some things for you to consider. I tried to pay careful attention
to listing each thing that I did and the result.

I have Windows XP Professional SP1.

In my experiments, nothing looks 100% consistent. But synchronizing the
clock is definitely related. Synchronizing the clock before opening H & S
with NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml missing and then opening H & S
creates a new NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml. But not every time.

Seems like a lot of screwing around to get a feature that I don't even use
to update correctly.

This message is seen in Help and Support, under Did you know...

[[When you are connected to the Internet, this area will display links to
timely help and support information. If you want to connect to the Internet
now, start the New Connection Wizard and see how to establish a Web
connection through an Internet service provider. ]]

if
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News\NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml
is missing. But not every time.

I can drag NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml to the Desktop, open Help and
Support and I see the When you are connected to the Internet message. Close
H & S, drag NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml back, open H&S and Did you
know works, whether the Updated: date is current or not.

I can remove newsver.xml or leave it in
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News and I see no difference in Help and
Support, under Did you know.

Also from David Candy...

Windows XP Internet Programs Cannot Connect to the Internet Through
Broadband Connection
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;307164

Help and Support Center Does Not Automatically Connect to the Internet
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;315955

-----

As near as I can tell, the Updated date seems to be related to the Modified
date of these files
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News\NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml
and
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News\newsver.xml

Or maybe I have that backwards and the Modified date of those files is
related to Updated date of Did you know.
-----

I synchronized my clock yesterday, opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Saturday, 15 October, 2005

I opened H & S today and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Saturday, 15 October, 2005

I closed H & S, synchronized my clock. I dragged
NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml to the Desktop, opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Sunday, 16 October, 2005

Wow! Two days in a row the Updated: date actually updated.

I opened C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News and there was a new
NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml that had been created.

Both NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml files were 6,310 bytes, the new one
Created today and the one Modified yesterday.

I changed the name of
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News\NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml
to
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News\NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml1

I opened H & S and got the When you are connected to the Internet message,
closed H & S.

Synchronized my clock, opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Sunday, 16 October, 2005

And a new NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml had been created.

I closed H & S, deleted both NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml and
NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml1. I dragged the 15 Oct
NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml from the Desktop to
C:\WINDOWS\PCHEALTH\HELPCTR\Config\News. I opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Saturday, 15 October, 2005

Closed H & S, Synchronized my clock, opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Saturday, 15 October, 2005

Closed H & S, dragged NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml to the Desktop,
opened H & S and saw the When you are connected to the Internet message.

Closed H & S, Synchronized my clock, opened H & S and saw...

Did you know? Updated: Sunday, 16 October, 2005

And a new NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml had been created.

Latest NewsHeadlines_1033_Professional.xml
Created: Today, 16 October, 2005, 10:02:53 AM
Modified: Today, 16 October, 2005, 10:02:53 AM

Latest newsver.xml
Created: Thursday, 05 August, 2004, 9:29:14 PM
Modified: Yesterday, 15 October, 2005, 9:10:11 AM

Some added info about my Help and Support.
1. My Help and Support Search the Microsoft Knowledge Base feature works.
2. My Help and Support Center Index is messed up, but different than your
articles...

Help and Support Center Index is blank with a red X mark
And, "Related Topics" link does not work
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/helpctrindex.htm

Error "Cannot locate merged.hhk" when clicking the Help and Support Center
Index
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/merged.htm

I have some info on that, if you're interested.


--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In

Could not read your previous message, Wes. As soon as I clicked, I got:

"Message is no longer available on the server"

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

Wes,

I've intentionally removed those XML files earlier (few months back) to
test it. Haven't got a solution for this problem yet.

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com

http://groups.google.com/group/micr...5c/9ea657df7717ff40?tvc=1&q=group:microsoft.p
ublic.windowsxp.help_and_support+insubject:Windows+insubject:Help+insubject:
and+insubject:Support&hl=en#9ea657df7717ff40

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In Ramesh, MS-MVP <[email protected]> hunted and pecked:
Interesting one, frodo and Alias.

frodo: Are you able to achieve the result consistently ?

It did not work for me (using broadband) with or without IE window
open. Same old 0 byte newsblock02[1].xml in TIF

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com


Before openinng Help and Support, open IE.
Don't ask my why, it just works.
Alias

Damn, you be "da man!". That DID work for me (sorry Simon). It had
been
stuck on Aug 30th.

Hummmm, Ramesh, what do you make of this solution????

Very Interesting.......

Thanks, I'll keep trying that to see if it always works.

 

[Ramesh, MS-MVP]

Thanks for the details Wes.

Same here

Regarding the Help index, yes, I'm interested.

--
Ramesh, Microsoft MVP
Windows XP Shell/User

Windows XP Troubleshooting
http://www.winhelponline.com