"Lost" MS Word.....

[Adela]

Hi Daave, I can't find the contact for the techy, but tomorrow I'll call MS
first about changing the key # of my home window and then I'll see what can
be done with the disk I lost. The techy sold it to me but I didn't look if
it had a Proof of License or not, I'm eager to find it to see if he game a
licnese or not. At that time I didn't know this was so important. When I
bought the home window I understood the importance and so I kept it
carefully...but it's of no use now since the key is open for the world to
see and use...

I will let you know what happens after I talk with MS and if no
satisfafiton, I'll read all the links you and others so kindly sent me and
will think on what's the best thing to do. I can see it will cost me a
fortune to replace now both CDs.... I had started with the forum because I
can't afford the techys anymore, but I may have to call one after all,
especially because I can't take so much time of you kind people!

Thanks so much!!! Adela

P.S. What could exactly happen if others use my key?

 

[WaIIy]

I don't think that should matter. Just make sure your post is
highlighted. Then "Cancel Message" should no longer be grayed out.

Make sure you're cancelling the right post!

It won't matter. Few cancels are recognized anymore.

 

[Tom [Pepper] Willett]

Canceling a post in the MS newsgroups doesn't work. Besides, your post has
already propogated to other usenet servers other than MS, and will be there
for eternity.

: OMG I'm afraid to tell you - when I saw the greyed out 'cancel" I opened
my
: post and deleted it. I know it won't help except within the MS forum here.
: It went to my "Draft" fodler, so should I send it back to the forum and
then
: try to cancel again? A.
:
: : > Adela wrote:
: >> I just went to cancel but it was greyed out,
: >> probalby because I answered a post just before yours?
: >
: > I don't think that should matter. Just make sure your post is
: > highlighted. Then "Cancel Message" should no longer be grayed out.
: >
: > Make sure you're cancelling the right post!
: >
: >
:
:

 

[Mrosen7542]

Re: "Lost" MS Word

Is MS Word included in the WinXP??? If so I do have the CD for this!

Hi, Adela. Windows XP Home Edition comes bundled with "Word Perfect". I don't Know if this application is available on the Windows XP Home Edition disc since my pc didn't come with the disc. Good luck!
Note: The full name of the applicaton is "Word Perfect Productivity Pack" which includes Word Perfect 10.

 

[Adela]

Hello to all the kind subscribers who tried so hard to help me with such a
weird problem as I have. I kept trying EVERY ONE of your good
suggestions...without success. Just wanted to report that I wrote about my
problem to the Microsoft Headquarters. I did in the past about some matter
and they helped. I just snail-mailed them and it may take sometime - don't
expect to hear from them until January or February. I'll report to you the
end result - if any - for those who may be interested to know.

Again, thanks so very much to you all for your most valuable help as I've
learned, thanks to you all, how to get aorund the problems in case of a
computer mess! LOL! (I managed to retrieve a few important pages from Word
and put them in my OE for now. Just bought an inexpensive Kingston Flash
Drive and intend to save as much as I can (soon as I learn how to use it)
before the problem multiplies and kills my computer. ;o)

I wish you all a Merry Christmas and other Happy Holidays, and a Healthy,
Peaceful, Safe and Happy New Year! ) Adela

 

[Adela]

Hi again Daave, I realize I didn't answer all the
questions you needed to know and I made it too messy to complete my answers
below, but before answering, I'm explaining here for you and the other good
forum friends
who've been trying to help me so wonderfully, the story behind my problem:

I called a techi last year (2006) to fix my computer. He said, instead of
fixing, better I'll upgrade to WinXP. I didn't know what he did but he
charged me a lot so I thought I was getting a great new stuff! Then I saw
all
those popup "non genuine" msgs by MS so I called him about it and he denied
it and said he sold me the best, THE professional version, but didn't want
to come
and see the popups for himself. So I wrote to the CEO of MS complaing about
their popup msgs. They said it IS non genuine and if I send them the disk
AND the name
and contact of the techi they'd send me a free CD for home use. I didn't
want to report him but I couldn't afford bying it all over again so I sent
them the disk and that's
how I got the proper Home Ed. However...I didn't know he also had sold me
the Word Office Professionl ....until I accidentally deleted it and you
know the rest when I was so perplexed and started asking for
help,.but it's more than weird that I can't find the CD in my apt. after I
looked all over several times. I never missed it because since he installed
it I never needed to use it...in fact I thought the Windows CD was all I
needed. I called this techi a couple of days ago to lend me his disk but he
got angry and hung up on me.

But about the Office Word, I never got "non genuine" popup msgs from MS so I
never mentioned this one to MS when I wrote them as above annd so they
didn't replace this one.. I didn't want to take more time from you and the
oithers that's why I didn't write this before.

I wrote again to the CEO of MS a couple of days ago to tell them about how
he ALSO sold me the
Office Professional and wonder whether they migtht offer, as in the past
with Windows, a home ed. of this as well. I may not hear from them (IF they
answer) until February or later...However, I put more emphasis on requesting
them a different Code Key
for the WindowsXP after I disclosed it by error on the public forum, so I
hope this won't cloud my Office CD request.

I've been pumping small fortunes into various techis and because I don't
know what in the world they do, I almost always get problems because of
them; that's why I decided to try to fix things myself with the help of good
forums like yours.

I've managed to copy into my OE 3 or 4 files I need, so I won't do anything
else about the Office for the time being. But, at the risk of making this
msg painfully long, I'd like to answer now the questions that aren't
answered above. I'll put 3 asterisks at the beginning of your questions so
it's easier to find:

***Now, you said there was no entry for Office in your Add/Remove programs.
Is there evidence of it in your Belarc report? And if there is, please don't
post the ID or key!!!

Add/Remove, has been showing: in Add/Remove "Microsoft Office XP
Professional with
Front Page". It also says: "170,000 MB"; "Last used: 5-25-07". "Version
10.0.6626.0." And a "Readme" link which won't open.

Belarc, is showing it 2 times: under Installed MS Hotfixes: "Microsoft
Office XP Professional with Front Page", and under Software Licenses:
"Microsoft Office XP Professional with Front Page" (and the long key
numbers).

IF I deleted the Office, I don't know why it's sitll in the Add/Remove
program, in Belarc and also the Word icon is on the desktop though it won't
open?

***What is the make and model of your PC? Where did you get it from? Was it
new or used? Do you have any Certificate of Authenticity stickers either on
the PC case or elsewhere? (Don't broadcast IDs or product keys!!!)

Dell Dimension XPS T450 bought directly from the Dell Co. new, came with
Win98. No CD. Only a floppy square disk 3.5" but hard that I never had to
use, and with Word97. It never came with Office that I know. It came with
manuals and other floppies which I never had to use either. Yes, my PC has
a Certif. of Authentication...(No, I'm not identifying anything any more,
thanks!) )

***What did you think you deleted from Add/Remove? My guess is that you
deleted Office XP Pro.
What exactly is the entry? Is it "Microsoft Office XP Professional" by any
chance?

My intention was to delete WindowsXP Professional after I got the new
WindowsXP HOME ED. but the Windows Professional still shows in Belarc(?)
though NOT in Add/Remove. It's ok, I won't bother with things that are
still there but I no longer use. I also thought that I might've
erroneously deleted the entry: Microsoft Office XP Professional...but this
too still shows up in Add/Remove AND in tons of security and other updates
for this Office XP Pro...I still confuse these 2 - I'm going bananas! LOL!

***Why were you trying to delete it [Microsoft Office XP Professional] in
the first place? Have you tried repairing it?

I explained it right above.

I hope the above clarifies everything and I'm terribly sorry to have made
this so long, but I thought everyone involved would want a clear closure of
this problem and that's why I wrote all of this. I've taken the liberty of
deleting everything below to shorten the msg being that I answered
everything above.

Thank you so much for all your precious help and time you devoted to me!
I'll just wait to hear from the CEO at MS as in the meantime I can sort of
continue using my computer. ) If MS won't replace the Office for me,
I'll buy the stand alone Word since I don't think I ever used any of the
Office functions. Adela

P.S. In the remote possibility that you may want to consult what I deleted
from this msg, I've kept it in my OE and all you have to do is let me know
and I'll forward it to you.

 

[Daave]

Good grief, Adela, this thread is getting harder to follow because of
information overload! I will do my best, and forgive me if I ask
questions you already answered in other posts. My feedback will be
inline.

I called a techi last year (2006) to fix my computer. He said,
instead of fixing, better I'll upgrade to WinXP. I didn't know what
he did but he charged me a lot so I thought I was getting a great new
stuff! Then I saw all
those popup "non genuine" msgs by MS so I called him about it and he
denied it and said he sold me the best, THE professional version, but
didn't want to come
and see the popups for himself. So I wrote to the CEO of MS
complaing about their popup msgs. They said it IS non genuine and if
I send them the disk AND the name
and contact of the techi they'd send me a free CD for home use. I
didn't want to report him but I couldn't afford bying it all over
again so I sent them the disk and that's
how I got the proper Home Ed. However...I didn't know he also had
sold me the Word Office Professionl ....until I accidentally deleted
it and you know the rest when I was so perplexed and started asking
for
help,.but it's more than weird that I can't find the CD in my apt.
after I looked all over several times. I never missed it because
since he installed it I never needed to use it...in fact I thought
the Windows CD was all I needed. I called this techi a couple of
days ago to lend me his disk but he got angry and hung up on me.

A Tech installed a pirated version of the Windows XP Pro operating
system on your PC. You gave him a chance to make things right, but he
declined. You reported this to Microsoft, so it's no surprise he's angry
at you! (But that's just too bad for him; it's all his doing.) They sent
you a Windows XP Home installation disk. More questions:

1. What kind of disk is this: full or upgrade? Retail or generic OEM?
2. Did you perform a clean install of Windows XP Home?

Is it possible you have *two* operating systems on your PC? One XP Home
and one XP Pro?

***Now, you said there was no entry for Office in your Add/Remove
programs. Is there evidence of it in your Belarc report? And if there
is, please don't post the ID or key!!!

Add/Remove, has been showing: in Add/Remove "Microsoft Office XP
Professional with
Front Page". It also says: "170,000 MB"; "Last used: 5-25-07".
"Version
10.0.6626.0." And a "Readme" link which won't open.

Belarc, is showing it 2 times: under Installed MS Hotfixes: "Microsoft
Office XP Professional with Front Page", and under Software Licenses:
"Microsoft Office XP Professional with Front Page" (and the long key
numbers).

IF I deleted the Office, I don't know why it's sitll in the Add/Remove
program, in Belarc and also the Word icon is on the desktop though it
won't open?

Did this tech install Office? Did he give you the disk? It's possible
you never got the disk, correct? That is, I need to know if your
installation of Office is genuine or not.

You said you were trying to "delete" Office. What exactly did you do?
Deleting and uninstalling are two different things.

***What is the make and model of your PC? Where did you get it from?
Was it new or used? Do you have any Certificate of Authenticity
stickers either on the PC case or elsewhere? (Don't broadcast IDs or
product keys!!!)

Dell Dimension XPS T450 bought directly from the Dell Co. new, came
with Win98. No CD. Only a floppy square disk 3.5" but hard that I
never had to use, and with Word97. It never came with Office that I
know. It came with manuals and other floppies which I never had to
use either. Yes, my PC has a Certif. of Authentication...(No, I'm
not identifying anything any more, thanks!) )

Wow! That's an old PC. I believe these were the original specs:

450-MHz Pentium III
64 MB RAM
6.4 GB hard drive

I'm sure you have upgraded memory at the very least (and hopefully the
hard drive as well). What are the current specs?

***What did you think you deleted from Add/Remove? My guess is that
you deleted Office XP Pro.
What exactly is the entry? Is it "Microsoft Office XP Professional"
by any chance?

My intention was to delete WindowsXP Professional after I got the new
WindowsXP HOME ED. but the Windows Professional still shows in
Belarc(?) though NOT in Add/Remove. It's ok, I won't bother with
things that are still there but I no longer use. I also thought
that I might've erroneously deleted the entry: Microsoft Office XP
Professional...but this too still shows up in Add/Remove AND in tons
of security and other updates for this Office XP Pro...I still
confuse these 2 - I'm going bananas! LOL!

I hope you now understand that Microsoft Windows is the name of the
operating system and Microsoft Office is the name of the suite of office
applications. Operating systems can't be deleted. What exactly did you
do with the Windows XP Home disk? You must not have installed it since
you're still running the non-genuine Windows XP Pro.

<edit>
I'm really confused!

In the paragraph above, you said that Belarc is showing that you are
running "Windows (XP)Professional." But in another post (the one where
you included your Product Key!), you said Belarc reported you were
running Windows XP Home. Which is it? Both, perhaps?
</edit>

And since it's impossible to perform an in-place (that is, keeping all
your files, settings, and programs intact) downgrade from Pro to Home,
in order for you to be legit, you need to perform what is known as a
Clean Install -- directly from the Windows XP Home disk. If you wish to
be legit, you will wind up losing your Office installation. *If* you own
a legit license to use Office (I'm not sure we have established this),
then you can always reinstall it. You need the disk and the Product Key
from your Belarc report.

I wonder if you *do* have two operating systems. When you boot, are you
given a choice?

Why don't you open up boot.ini and copy the text and post it here? For
more info:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/289022

To view hidden files:

Control Panel-->Folder Options-->View-->Show Hidden files.


Another question you had asked:

What could exactly happen if others use my key?

It just takes one person to use it and claim to have the license during
a phone call. Once this happens, the next time your PC phones home to
Microsoft, you'll start getting the non-genuine messages again. If you
can prove you have the license, then hopefully Microsoft will issue you
another key.

 

[Alias]

I don't think that should matter. Just make sure your post is
highlighted. Then "Cancel Message" should no longer be grayed out.

Make sure you're cancelling the right post!

It's too late. Her post has spread to all the Usenet servers.

Alias

 

[Adela]

I'm sorry for the awfully long thread! Would it help to start a new one,
calling it: "Lost" MS Word(2)? However, Daave, I feel you're one of the
kindest persons to try so hard to help in this infernally complicated
matter, but it's not fair for you that I should take that much more of your
time,
and I won't mind it at all if you decide to end this thread. I figure I'll
wait until I hear from MS and then
I'll take it up from there - perhaps it will be easier all around.
Meantime I'll answer marking with *** for your texts or questions and: *
for my answers, but feel free to quit anytime
you feel like it please:

***1. What kind of disk is this: full or upgrade? Retail or generic OEM?
* The home ed. I got from MS must be an "upgrade" from the Pro. I don't
know whether retail or generic; it came directly from MS headquarters (I
couldn't believe it!). I know WinXP Pro was an upgrade from Win98 by that
cheater....

***2. Did you perform a clean install of Windows XP Home?
* Another techi came to install it so I dont' know, but I think he probably
left in the WinXP Pro because it's still in the Add/Remove and also in
Belarc... I can call and ask him.

***Is it possible you have *two* operating systems on your PC? One XP Home
and one XP Pro?
* Both the XP Home and the XP Pro are in Belarc, but neither is in
Add/Remove...In A/R I only see Office XP Pro.

***Did this tech install Office? *Yes, he did, that's why it appears in
A/R and in Belarc.
***Did he give you the disk? *He handed me a large envelope with, as he
said, "all I need."
***It's possible you never got the disk, correct? That is, I need to know if
your installation of Office is genuine or not.
* I'm not sure whether I actually saw it or not, but I'll bet that if the
main CD, the WinXP Pro was false, the Office has got to also be false; no
doubt!

***You said you were trying to "delete" Office. What exactly did you do?
Deleting and uninstalling are two different things.
* No, I was trying to delete XP Pro. If I deleted instead the Office that
explains why I can't open Word...however, if I deleted Office instead of my
intended XP Pro, why is Office still showing in A/R and in Belarc??? We
need Sherlock Holmes!

***Wow! That's an old PC. I believe these were the original specs:
450-MHz Pentium III
64 MB RAM
6.4 GB hard drive
* Yes, I bought it around 7 years ago with 128MB RAM.

***I'm sure you have upgraded memory at the very least (and hopefully the
hard drive as well). What are the current specs?
* A few months ago I got another 250MB RAM. It came with a 13.6GB hard
drive, and about a year ago I replaced it with one around 40GB. Amazingly
my computer still works perfectly, even Belarc commented under my hd: "SMART
status: healthy" ;o) Motherboard: Intel SE440BX-3.

***Operating systems can't be deleted. What exactly did you do with the
Windows XP Home disk? You must not have installed it since you're still
running the non-genuine Windows XP Pro.
* I have it in a secure place so I won't lose it and it has been
installed.. I don't think I'm not running the WinXP Pro.

***In the paragraph above, you said that Belarc is showing that you are
running "Windows (XP)Professional." But in another post (the one where you
included your Product Key!), you said Belarc reported you were running
Windows XP Home. Which is it? Both, perhaps?

* Let me resume what I have exactly:
In ADD/REMOVE I have : Microsoft Office XP Professional with Front Page.
ONLY, that's all.
In BELARC I have all of these:
Under "Operating System": Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition Service Pack 2
(Build 2600).
Under "Software Licenses": Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition (with key
code).
Under "Software Version": Microsoft® Windows® Operating System Version.
(version #)

* Still in BELARC I have:
Under "Installed Microsoft HotFixes": Microsoft Office XP Pro with Front
Page
Under "software Licenses": Microsoft Office XP Pro with Front Page
Under "Software Version": Microsoft Office XP Version (version #)

***And since it's impossible to perform an in-place (that is, keeping all
your files, settings, and programs intact) downgrade from Pro to Home, in
order for you to be legit, you need to perform what is known as a Clean
Install -- directly from the Windows XP Home disk. If you wish to be legit,
you will wind up losing your Office installation. *If* you own a legit
license to use Office (I'm not sure we have established this), then you can
always reinstall it. You need the disk and the Product Key from your Belarc
report.
* As mentioned above, I'm going to ask the techi who installed my XP Home
whether he did a clean install or not, but I do have a legit XP Home CD that
MS headquarters sent me, and he's got to have ins;talled it from my XP Home
CD.
* Since Office was also installed by the cheater techi, I'm sure is not
legit. And I'm waiting to hear from MS about the Office CD I talked tothem
about a couple of days ago. I have the product key that the cheater techi
gave me (somewhere in my computer), but I couldn't get his disk so I'll wait
for MS.

***I wonder if you *do* have two operating systems. When you boot, are you
given a choice?
* No, I'm not given any choice of OS.

***Why don't you open up boot.ini and copy the text and post it here? For
more info: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/289022
* Oh Daave, this is too difficult and I'm afraid I may make a worse mess,
so I'll pass for now.

***Another question you had asked: What could exactly happen if others use
my key?
It just takes one person to use it and claim to have the license during a
phone call. Once this happens, the next time your PC phones home to
Microsoft, you'll start getting the non-genuine messages again. If you can
prove you have the license, then hopefully Microsoft will issue you another
key.

* Oh dear, this is bad. That's why when I wrote last MS I asked them to
cancel my key code and give me a new one. Also asked to replace my Office.
They probably won't but I tried. If not, I'll buy an inexpensive stand
alone Word. )

Thanks so very much, but we better stop here as it seems to get more and
more complicated. I cna't do this to you. I'm sure you agree that the best
course to take is wait for MS answer.

I wish you and yours a Merry Christmas and a Healthy, Safe, Peaceful and
Happy New Year!! Adela

 

[Daave]

I agree we should be wrapping this up soon. But we could go on just a
bit more to clear up some confusion you still have.

***1. What kind of disk is this: full or upgrade? Retail or generic
OEM?
* The home ed. I got from MS must be an "upgrade" from the Pro. I
don't know whether retail or generic; it came directly from MS
headquarters (I couldn't believe it!). I know WinXP Pro was an
upgrade from Win98 by that cheater....

You didn't answer my question!

I am presuming this is a full, retail version of Windows XP Home. What
is printed on the disk?

FYI, it's impossible to upgrade from Pro to Home. But it is possible to
upgrade from 98 to XP Home (that's why I asked the question).

But from the rest of the post, I'm reasonably sure you have the full,
retail version. If you can verify that, it would be good.

***2. Did you perform a clean install of Windows XP Home?
* Another techi came to install it so I dont' know, but I think he
probably left in the WinXP Pro because it's still in the Add/Remove
and also in Belarc... I can call and ask him.

A clean install involves erasing everything and starting from scratch.
Since Belarc is showing you also have Windows XP Pro (as you mentioned
below), the tech must have done it wrong.

<edit>
But later, you indicated Windows XP Pro is *NOT* showing up in your
Belarc report!!!
</edit>

That is, he was supposed have done a clean install! (Since Windows XP
Pro was not legit, it needs to be removed!)

But you are still confusing Windows with Office! Your operating system
(Windows) will never show up in Add/Remove (but you will see it listed
in a Belarc report).

***Is it possible you have *two* operating systems on your PC? One XP
Home and one XP Pro?
* Both the XP Home and the XP Pro are in Belarc, but neither is in
Add/Remove...In A/R I only see Office XP Pro.

Correct. You will not see your operating system (Windows) in Add/Remove.

***Did this tech install Office? *Yes, he did, that's why it
appears in A/R and in Belarc.
***Did he give you the disk? *He handed me a large envelope with,
as he said, "all I need."
***It's possible you never got the disk, correct? That is, I need to
know if your installation of Office is genuine or not.
* I'm not sure whether I actually saw it or not, but I'll bet that
if the main CD, the WinXP Pro was false, the Office has got to also
be false; no doubt!

If your Office is not legit, you will either need to purchase a new one
(I doubt MS will give you one... but you never know...) or perhaps use
Open Office, which is free:

http://www.openoffice.org/product/

You could also opt to just install a standalone version of Word. Your
choice.

***You said you were trying to "delete" Office. What exactly did you
do? Deleting and uninstalling are two different things.
* No, I was trying to delete XP Pro. If I deleted instead the
Office that explains why I can't open Word...however, if I deleted
Office instead of my intended XP Pro, why is Office still showing in
A/R and in Belarc??? We need Sherlock Holmes!

(a clarification of terms

Operating systems can't be deleted. And in your case, they can't be
uninstalled, either. The only way to remove an operating system is to
format your hard drive and perform a clean install of another operating
system.

Programs (for the most part) can't be deleted. You may uninstall
programs, and this is usually done from Add/Remove. As I said before,
deleting and uninstalling are different things. Deleting involves
sending files to the Recycle Bin. That's why I asked what you did
exactly. If you were literally trying to "delete" Office, this would
cause problems.

You must not have totally uninstalled Office if it's still showing up in
Add/Remove. If you had a legit version, I'd suggest that you repair the
installation (which very well might require using the missing Office
installation disk).

***Wow! That's an old PC. I believe these were the original specs:
450-MHz Pentium III
64 MB RAM
6.4 GB hard drive
* Yes, I bought it around 7 years ago with 128MB RAM.

***I'm sure you have upgraded memory at the very least (and hopefully
the hard drive as well). What are the current specs?
* A few months ago I got another 250MB RAM. It came with a 13.6GB
hard drive, and about a year ago I replaced it with one around 40GB.
Amazingly my computer still works perfectly, even Belarc commented
under my hd: "SMART status: healthy" ;o) Motherboard: Intel
SE440BX-3.

Although it's good you upgraded the RAM and hard drive, your PC's specs
are far from ideal in order to run XP (but configured properly, it's
doable). In fact, rather than spending money on tech services, you can
find a blisteringly fast new PC that comes with XP Home for less than
$400. Example:

http://www.dell.com/content/product...d&cs=04&a=26748~0~249730&navla=26748~0~249730

***Operating systems can't be deleted. What exactly did you do with
the Windows XP Home disk? You must not have installed it since you're
still running the non-genuine Windows XP Pro.
* I have it in a secure place so I won't lose it and it has been
installed.. I don't think I'm not running the WinXP Pro.

The reason I had asked earlier what type of disk you had is that
different licenses permit different levels of use. For instance, a
generic OEM disk is tied to the PC on which it is installed and cannot
be used on any other PC. A retail license/disk can be transferred to
another PC (provided that it's removed from the first PC).

The easiest way to tell which OS you're running is to right-click My
Computer.

***In the paragraph above, you said that Belarc is showing that you
are running "Windows (XP)Professional." But in another post (the one
where you included your Product Key!), you said Belarc reported you
were running Windows XP Home. Which is it? Both, perhaps?

* Let me resume what I have exactly:
In ADD/REMOVE I have : Microsoft Office XP Professional with Front
Page. ONLY, that's all.
In BELARC I have all of these:
Under "Operating System": Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition Service
Pack 2 (Build 2600).
Under "Software Licenses": Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition (with
key code).
Under "Software Version": Microsoft® Windows® Operating System
Version. (version #)

* Still in BELARC I have:
Under "Installed Microsoft HotFixes": Microsoft Office XP Pro with
Front Page
Under "software Licenses": Microsoft Office XP Pro with Front Page
Under "Software Version": Microsoft Office XP Version (version #)

You changed it again!!!

I don't see Windows XP Pro listed anywhere! (In a previous post you said
you saw it listed in your Belarc report, but all I see is Office!)

If this is the case, you are legit with regard to your operating system.
However, Office may very well not be legit, as we already covered.

***I wonder if you *do* have two operating systems. When you boot,
are you given a choice?
* No, I'm not given any choice of OS.

With the new info you posted above, it looks like you only have Windows
XP Home. I hope *that* much has been resolved.

***Why don't you open up boot.ini and copy the text and post it here?
For more info: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/289022
* Oh Daave, this is too difficult and I'm afraid I may make a worse
mess, so I'll pass for now.

Good idea. Not necessary now.

Thanks so very much, but we better stop here as it seems to get more
and more complicated. I cna't do this to you. I'm sure you agree
that the best course to take is wait for MS answer.

I doubt MS will give you a free copy of Office, but I guess it's
possible since you reported the "cheater tech." If not, either install a
stand-alone Word or the free Open Office. If you only want to install a
word processor, I've had good experience with AbiWord (also free):

http://www.abisource.com/information/about/

I wish you and yours a Merry Christmas and a Healthy, Safe, Peaceful
and Happy New Year!! Adela

And a very happy Christmas and prosperous new year to you, too, Adela!

 

[Adela]

Thank you Daave! I already answered the questions, but before I send them
to you, is it possible to do the few last emails we may have, privately, so
as not to disturb the group? I tried sending you this msg by clicking on
the "Reply" button instead of "Reply All" thinking this would go to you
only, but it bounced instead. Is there a way to do it privately? I don't
know whether I should put my email addy here for you? Adela

 

[Daave]

No need to send an e-mail, Adela. And don't worry, no one will be
disturbed.

Whether or not you realize it, you already posted your e-mail address!
It's easily seen when one views your message's headers. Although it's
probably too late, you should really munge your e-mail address when
using Usenet. For example:

(e-mail address removed)

 

[Adela]

Oh thank you again for this new idea! Now it's too late but when I
register in another forum I can add a little disguise? But then, my server
won't recognize it? Not sure how I can do it...I'm afraid, Daave, you've
opened a pandora box with this new "thread..." LOL! Ok I'm sending you
the answers. Adela

 

[Adela]

Hi Daave, may I answer under each question all in caps so you can find
quickly, otherwise without HTML, it makes reading difficult:
Here it goes:

You didn't answer my question! I DON'T KNOW, DAAVE....THAT'S WHY I
EXPLAINED ABOVE WHAT I DO KNOW.

I am presuming this is a full, retail version of Windows XP Home. What
is printed on the disk? "INCLUDES PACK 2.VERSION 2002. DO NOT MAKE
ILLEGAL COPIES OF THIS DISK. MICROSOFT WINDOWS XP HOME EDITION."

FYI, it's impossible to upgrade from Pro to Home. But it is possible to
upgrade from 98 to XP Home (that's why I asked the question). I
UNDERSTAND, BUT I DON'T KNOW HOW THE TECHI DID IT. THOUGH I TRY TO FOLLOW
WHAT THEY DO WHEN THEY COME AND SIT AT THE COMPUTER...THEY GO ABOUT SO
QUICKLY THAT THEY LOSE ME SO I JUST LEAVE THEM ALONE... )

But from the rest of the post, I'm reasonably sure you have the full,
retail version. If you can verify that, it would be good. YES, I'LL ASK
THE TECHI WHO INSTALLED THE HOME ED. WHEN HE RETURNS TO TOWN PROBABLY
TOMORROW.



A clean install involves erasing everything and starting from scratch.
Since Belarc is showing you also have Windows XP Pro (as you mentioned
below), the tech must have done it wrong. MY MISTAKE. SEE THE NEXT
PARAGRAPH BELOW.

But later, you indicated Windows XP Pro is *NOT* showing up in your
Belarc report!!! YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT! BELARC ONLY SHOWS WINDOWS XP
HOME AND OFFICE XP PRO. IN MY MIND, I MIXED UP THE "OFFICE" WITH THE
"WINDOWS". BUT ADD/REMOVE IS STILL SHOWING THIS WINDOWS XP PRO THOUGH....

</edit>

That is, he was supposed have done a clean install! (Since Windows XP Pro
was not legit, it needs to be removed!) YOU'RE RIGHT AGAIN! THERE'S
SOMETHING WRONG AS IT IS STILL IN THE ADD/REMOVE.

But you are still confusing Windows with Office! Your operating system
(Windows) will never show up in Add/Remove (but you will see it listed
in a Belarc report). I CONFESS I DO CONFUSE THESE 2! BUT THEN WHY THE
WINXP PRO STILL APPEARS IN ADD/REMOVE? PROBABLY THE TECHI DIDN'T MAKE A
CLEAN SWITCH THEN?



Correct. You will not see your operating system (Windows) in Add/Remove.
AGAIN, I SEE THE WINXP PRO STILL IN ADD/REMOVE...I'M SURE THE TECHI WILL
COME TO FIX IT WHEN I TELL HIM. (this isn't the cheating techi)



If your Office is not legit, you will either need to purchase a new one
(I doubt MS will give you one... but you never know...) or perhaps use
Open Office, which is free: WELL, THEY GAVE ME THE WINXP HOME ...I PREFER
TO STICK WITH MS SO AS NOT TO HAVE TO START LEARNING NEW WAYS OF USING IT
AS IT'S DRIVING ME CRAZY. LOL!

http://www.openoffice.org/product/

You could also opt to just install a standalone version of Word. Your
choice... .I FIGURE AN OLDER VERSION OF STAND ALONE WORD SHOULD BE VERY
LOW PRICED SO I'LL DO THAT. OR THIS TECHI IF HE HAS TO COME TO UNINSTALL
THE WINXP PRO, MIGHT REINSTALL THE OFFICE WITH HIS OWN DISK.

(a clarification of terms

Operating systems can't be deleted. And in your case, they can't be
uninstalled, either. The only way to remove an operating system is to
format your hard drive and perform a clean install of another operating
system. OH NO!!!! REINSTALLING THE HARD DRIVE MEANS I HAVE TO FIRST
BACKUP EVERYTHING, ETC. I HOPE I DON'T HAVE TO...

Programs (for the most part) can't be deleted. You may uninstall
programs, and this is usually done from Add/Remove. OH THEN I'LL TRY TO
UNINSTALL THE WINXP PRO WHICH IS SITLLL IN THE ADD/REMOVE. I HOPE I CAN
DO THAT.

As I said before,

deleting and uninstalling are different things. Deleting involves
sending files to the Recycle Bin. That's why I asked what you did
exactly. If you were literally trying to "delete" Office, this would
cause problems. I THINK WHAT I DID WAS TO TRY TO DELETE IT, MAYBE THAT'S
WHY IT'S SITLL IN ADD/REMOVE? I WILL TRY TO UNINSTALL IT MYSELF. MAYBE I
DON'T HAVE TO CALL THE TECHI TO DO IT, ALTHOUGH I DON'T KNOW WHY HE
HIMSELF DIDN'T DO IT WHEN HE INSTALLED THE WINXP HOME. I'LL ASK HIM
ANYWAY.

You must not have totally uninstalled Office if it's still showing up in
Add/Remove. If you had a legit version, I'd suggest that you repair the
installation (which very well might require using the missing Office
installation disk). NO, OFFICE IS NOT IN ADD/REMOVE. IT IS IN BELARC
ONLY. IN ADD/REMOVE IS WINXP PRO...



Although it's good you upgraded the RAM and hard drive, your PC's specs
are far from ideal in order to run XP (but configured properly, it's
doable). In fact, rather than spending money on tech services, you can
find a blisteringly fast new PC that comes with XP Home for less than
$400. Example:

http://www.dell.com/content/product...d&cs=04&a=26748~0~249730&navla=26748~0~249730

I'LL LOOK INTO IT SLOWLY, BUT I'VE PUT SO MUCH MONEY ALREADY IN THIS
COMPUTER, THAT I IF I CAN SOLVE THESE LITTLE THINGS, I'D LIKE TO WAIT UNTIL
THE COMPUTER DIES ON ME. LOL! OTHERWISE IT'S WORKING VERY WELL. WHEN I
BOUGHT IT 7 OR SO YEARS AGO $1700 FOR IT + TAX + SHIPPING (+ 3 YEAR-
WARRANTY WHICH I DIDN'T HAVE TO USE AFTER ALL) WAS A LOT OF MONEY AND I
THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO LAST ME FOREVER! ) THE ONLY REASON I HAVE A
COMPUTER IS TO HELP A FEW SMALL CHARITIES - I DON'T DO ANY FOR-PROFIT
BUSINESS, NOT EVEN NON-PROFIT BUSINES, I'D SAY I DO LESS-THAN-NON-PROFIT
SINCE I HAVE TO PUT MONEY OF MY OWN TO HELP, SO NATURALLY I TRY TO AVOID
BUYING THE LATEST HI TECH STUFF FOR AN ARM AND A LEG... ) WHEN IT DIES
ON ME, THEN I HAVE THE LINK YOU SO KINDLY GAVE TO LOOK FOR A NEW COMPUTER.

The reason I had asked earlier what type of disk you had is that
different licenses permit different levels of use. For instance, a
generic OEM disk is tied to the PC on which it is installed and cannot
be used on any other PC. A retail license/disk can be transferred to
another PC (provided that it's removed from the first PC). OH THANKS FOR
THIS EXPLANATION TOO. THERE'S SO MUCH TO LEARN AND THINGS CHANGE SO
QUICKLY...

The easiest way to tell which OS you're running is to right-click My
Computer. I JUST DID AND IT SHOWS ONLY WINXP HOME, SO I GUESS IT'S OK?



You changed it again!!! >
I don't see Windows XP Pro listed anywhere! (In a previous post you said
you saw it listed in your Belarc report, but all I see is Office!)
I'M SO SORRY DAAVE! THIS CONFUSION IS SO TERRIBLE. BUT BY NOW AND THANKS
TO YOUR KIND PATIENCE I THINK I GOT IT NOW ONCE AND FOR ALL. THE ABOVE
LIST OF WHAT I HAVE IN ADD/REMOVE AND IN BELARC IS CORRECT.

If this is the case, you are legit with regard to your operating system.
However, Office may very well not be legit, as we already covered. I'M
SURE THAT IF HE CHEATED ME WITH THE WINXP HE ALSO CHEATED ME WITH THE
OTHER THINGS HE INSTALLED...



With the new info you posted above, it looks like you only have Windows
XP Home. I hope *that* much has been resolved. YES, I THINK THIS PART
HAS BEEN RESOLVED. ALL I'LL DO NOW IS TRY TO UNINSTALL THE WINXP PRO FROM
ADD/REMOVE.



Good idea. Not necessary now.



I doubt MS will give you a free copy of Office, but I guess it's
possible since you reported the "cheater tech." If not, either install a
stand-alone Word or the free Open Office. If you only want to install a
word processor, I've had good experience with AbiWord (also free):

http://www.abisource.com/information/about/

THANKSK AGAIN, AS MENTIONED ABOVE, I'LL STICK WITH WORD AS I'M FAMILIAR WITH
IT.

 

[Daave]

Hi Daave, may I answer under each question all in caps so you can find
quickly, otherwise without HTML, it makes reading difficult:
Here it goes:

[snip]

I now pronounce this thread over! (Sorry, but it just got entirely too
unwieldy. You still need to end your confusion between Windows and
Office, Add/Remove and Belarc. Also, please don't use all caps; it's
called shouting, it's considered rude, and it's difficult to read. I
know you didn't intend to be rude; I'm just letting you know for future
posts.)

Summary:

1. Although you once had a non-genuine installation of the Windows XP
Professional operating system on your PC, it is now gone, replaced by a
genuine installation of the Windows XP Home operating system. This is
all above board now. You may or may not need a new product key
eventually since you put it out on the Internet. You already contacted
Microsoft about this issue.

2. You once had a tech install what you now believe to be a non-genuine
version of Office on your PC. You now have remnants of this installation
on your PC. If this is indeed a pirated version of Office, it should
eventually be removed -- either by you or by a qualified technician.

3. Since you would rather not try alternatives to Office or Word, you
plan on eventually installing a stand-alone version of Word.

So, good luck to you, Adela. And best wishes for a happy 2008!

 

[Daave]

Oh thank you again for this new idea! Now it's too late but when I
register in another forum I can add a little disguise? But then, my
server won't recognize it? Not sure how I can do it...

It's not too late to change it. I meant it's too late with regard to the
spam harvesters who now have your e-mail address in their databases.

But it's easy to do in Outlook Express:

Tools | Accounts | News tab

Double-click the account for your news server. On the General tab, place
your cursor in the box for E-mail address. Munge away! Example:

(e-mail address removed)

More info on munging:

http://www.faqs.org/faqs/net-abuse-faq/munging-address/

 

[Adela]

Hi again Dave, and I'm glad we've come to an end as it really was getting
out of hand. I think if we were allowed to use HTML we could've cut the
length of this thread to at least half. I'm aware of what it means to use
caps, but thought I'd make an exception because it was too difficult to wade
through so much without HTML and I did let you know at the beginning. )

Thanks for the summary, and as mentioned earlier, I'll do nothing until I
hear from MS.

Also thanks for the idea of modifying my email addy. I'll do that.

Again, I wish you and yours Joyful Holidays and a Healthy and Happy New
Year! ) Adela

Hi Daave, may I answer under each question all in caps so you can find
quickly, otherwise without HTML, it makes reading difficult:
Here it goes:

[snip]

I now pronounce this thread over! (Sorry, but it just got entirely too
unwieldy. You still need to end your confusion between Windows and
Office, Add/Remove and Belarc. Also, please don't use all caps; it's
called shouting, it's considered rude, and it's difficult to read. I
know you didn't intend to be rude; I'm just letting you know for future
posts.)

Summary:

1. Although you once had a non-genuine installation of the Windows XP
Professional operating system on your PC, it is now gone, replaced by a
genuine installation of the Windows XP Home operating system. This is
all above board now. You may or may not need a new product key
eventually since you put it out on the Internet. You already contacted
Microsoft about this issue.

2. You once had a tech install what you now believe to be a non-genuine
version of Office on your PC. You now have remnants of this installation
on your PC. If this is indeed a pirated version of Office, it should
eventually be removed -- either by you or by a qualified technician.

3. Since you would rather not try alternatives to Office or Word, you
plan on eventually installing a stand-alone version of Word.

So, good luck to you, Adela. And best wishes for a happy 2008!

--
Dave

As I said before, http://www.dell.com/content/product...d&cs=04&a=26748~0~249730&navla=26748~0~249730

I'LL LOOK INTO IT SLOWLY, BUT I'VE PUT SO MUCH MONEY ALREADY IN THIS
COMPUTER, THAT I IF I CAN SOLVE THESE LITTLE THINGS, I'D LIKE TO WAIT
UNTIL
THE COMPUTER DIES ON ME. LOL! OTHERWISE IT'S WORKING VERY WELL.
WHEN I
BOUGHT IT 7 OR SO YEARS AGO $1700 FOR IT + TAX + SHIPPING (+ 3 YEAR-
WARRANTY WHICH I DIDN'T HAVE TO USE AFTER ALL) WAS A LOT OF MONEY AND
I
THOUGHT IT WAS GOING TO LAST ME FOREVER! ) THE ONLY REASON I
HAVE A
COMPUTER IS TO HELP A FEW SMALL CHARITIES - I DON'T DO ANY FOR-PROFIT
BUSINESS, NOT EVEN NON-PROFIT BUSINES, I'D SAY I DO
LESS-THAN-NON-PROFIT
SINCE I HAVE TO PUT MONEY OF MY OWN TO HELP, SO NATURALLY I TRY TO
AVOID
BUYING THE LATEST HI TECH STUFF FOR AN ARM AND A LEG... ) WHEN IT
DIES
ON ME, THEN I HAVE THE LINK YOU SO KINDLY GAVE TO LOOK FOR A NEW
COMPUTER.


THANKSK AGAIN, AS MENTIONED ABOVE, I'LL STICK WITH WORD AS I'M
FAMILIAR WITH
IT.