No drive C -- Can't unzip

[John Cole]

My daughter's old drive C crashed and would not recover.
She had a new hard drive installed and upgraded to
Windows XP. The new drive was automatically assigned as
drive F. The old drive C was left on for a while because
she was able to recover most of her data files, then it
was physically removed. When the technician removed it,
I tried to get him to change F to C, but he said he could
not do it (he said XP controlled it all). He convinced
us we would not have any trouble. It has worked fine for
several months, including adding new applications, etc.
But now what I was afraid of has happened. We tried to
install an old digital camera that is no longer
supported. We did find the original installation
software on-line, so we downloaded it and tried to
execute it. It is a single file self-extractor. After a
couple of screens OK, we get a small window with a
title "WinZip Self-Extractor." The message is a big red
X followed by "Drive C is not a valid drive, unzip
operation cancelled". Two questions: 1: Is there some
way we can create a C as an "alias" of F or some other
way to make the self-extractor go ahead and use F so we
can install the software??? -- And 2: I would like to
change F to C just so things are the normal way and we
won't have future similar problems. Is there an easy way
to do this -- without fouling up the Registry and other
things already established, and without having to "start
all over from scratch"?

 

[Michael Solomon \(MS-MVP Windows Shell/User\)]

Generally, this is not an issue except with some older software. Changing
the drive is not a simple matter because everything is installed on what XP
has designated "F." If you change the drive letter, this may play havoc
with your current setup as all references, everything in the registry shows
applications, drivers, etc. on the "F" drive. Change the drive letter and
the OS may not find it.

It would be better if you were able to find the software in a standard zip
file as opposed to a self-extractor because you could open that zip file and
extract it to wherever you want with most zip applications and they won't
force you to extract to C.

 

[John Cole]

Thanks Michael. Unfortunately, I don't think I can find
the file in a standard zip format that I can unzip. It
originally came from "DSC Pro" which was actually
Xirlink.com which became evo.com. The software is no
longer supported. I was directed to an old site where I
could download the original software. Do you have any
idea where I might be able to get it in a standard zip
format?

Here's a thought I had. The software supposedly works on
both Windows XP and 98. I have Windows 98. I was able to
install it OK on my PC since I have a drive C. Could I
copy the unzipped program files to a floppy, then copy
them over to my daughters XP drive F, and run the
application from her drive F? I imagine I would also
need some other things like registry entries, ".ini"
files, etc. Is there any way I could find these on my PC
and add them to hers? Or is trying to copy from 98 to XP
a bad idea?

Or how about this: On her XP system, could I change her
floppy drive A to C, then execute the downloaded self-
extractor program, then copy the unzipped program files
from her drive C into a new folder on her drive F, then
change her C back to A, then excute the application from
her drive F? The entire unzipped files will fit on one
floppy.

 

[Michael Solomon \(MS-MVP Windows Shell/User\)]

No, I don't know where you might get it in that form but some Unzipping
software has the capability of converting a self-extracting file to one that
requires it be done manually so you might look into that.

And no, usually unless an application is fully contained in a single folder,
meaning it doesn't require special registry entries or dlls, etc, it can't
be done as you describe. An application has an install routine, part of
which makes the operating system aware of the application, part of which
establishes the settings and a part of which integrates the application into
the environment. The two PCs are different and the operation you describe
is extremely risky especially in regard to the registry.

It's not a simple matter of copying keys, some entries are made based on how
the application interacts with the rest of the setup. You run the risk of
blowing out her setup entirely by such a gambit, especially with an
application that is not supported and only marginally compatible if at all
with XP.

 

[John Cole]

Thanks again, Michael. I figured my first idea about
copying over from 98 to XP was a bad idea. You confirmed
it.

But you didn't answer this one:
According to the instructions on the web-site, the self-
extracting file I downloaded is useable for both Windows
98 and XP. I have printed instructions on how to use it
for either 98 or XP -- they are a little bit different for
each one -- primarily about the Add New Hardware wizard
for the camera and the driver that would be used to
download pictures. So is my idea above possible? It
would be entirely within the XP system, just trying to
get by the message I got that said there was no drive C.
After installing and moving the application programs to F,
it seems like I could do a Text Search on anything that
said "C:\Program Files\DSC Pro" and change the C to F.

 

[Michael Solomon \(MS-MVP Windows Shell/User\)]

I don't believe the system will allow you to change the floppy drive to C
and even if you can do it using Administrative Tools disk management, the
extractor may not see it as it would be a "name only" change and I believe
it is looking for the "System Drive." In other words, it would likely give
you the same message. Further, changing drive letters, even temporarily is
risky business.

 

[John Cole]

Michael -- An update on my problem: PROBLEM SOLVED,
thanks to you. I tried the regular WinZip program on
the ".exe" self-extractor, and it did unzip all files. I
extracted them to a folder, then ran the setup program.
It automatically selected the F drive to install to -- now
everything works fine. Thanks again for your great help.
John Cole.