Toshiba Satellite U305 vs Windows Vista SP1 catch 22

The first time I tried the installation, using the standalone downloadable installer, it went all the way through to step 2. Then crashed upon reboot with a blue screen of death (BSOD), was unable to repair the startup problem, but was finally able to do a system restore.

My two conversations with Toshiba Technical Support were of no help in identifying the problem I experienced, other than that in the mean time I figured it out on my own. Or, I should say, at least figured out one part of the equasion, namely that the display driver on this machine is not Windows Vista SP1 compatible.

The Intel 965 Express driver on the Toshiba Satellite U305-S2804 is v 7.14.10.1329.

This versions fits right into the beginning of the range 7.14.10.1322 and 7.14.10.1403 that is incompatible according to Microsoft (http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=948343).

But, there has to be a newer driver out, right?

Using the “Update driver” feature within the device driver window, Vista kindly alerts me that my driver is up to date. Of course this is not surprising me when in the mean time I already looked up that Intel has released several newer versions and is currently at v 7.14.10.1437 (http://www.intel.com/support/graphics/intelgm965/#anchor1)

A quick download later, the Intel driver installation alerts me that this driver is not certified for my machine and that I should download the latest version from the manufacturer. Mmmm.
Back at Toshiba there is nary a download for the U305. Through a chipset search I find that the latest driver predates my machine’s purchase and matches v 7.14.10.1329.

So, no SP1 love right now for this Toshiba notebook.

And, of course I have to be the first and only one at this point in time who can’t install SP1 on this particular machine. What are the odds?

Update: Toshiba is bumping me to level 3 tech support, advanced engineering since it is a driver/firmware issue and their department will be giving me a call back in the beginning of next week.

Vista SP1 - Installation Issues and Incompatibilities - Check your drivers

Microsoft is giving me, and countless other people headaches with the Vista Service Pack 1 update. Luckily I haven’t had an inoperable operating system yet, and right now, my personal install score is: 2 failures - 1 success.

Since I have a near factory fresh Toshiba laptop on my desk which experienced that BSOD, I gave them a call to see what’s up as their site didn’t tell me anything about Vista issues. I received some bad advice and feel sorry for people that may follow it blindly. No surprise really, and many manufacturer’s may unfortunately say the same thing.

Toshiba’s Level 1 advice:

a) a program you installed is incompatible, do a factory restore then try again. Sorry, this machine only has an additional browser or two and a card game.

b) something you installed caused a driver issue, do a factory install and try again. Sorry, I did not update any drivers and the factory restore for that matter would be useless, it would just set the device drivers back to where they are now.

c) call MS. Oh right, who will say call Toshiba.
Toshiba’s level 2 advice

d) download the standalone installer, don’t go through update. Fair. I prefer to work that way anyhow. Unfortunately that was the method I used the other night.

e) there are no known issues between SP1 and Toshiba notebooks. All are Toshiba notebooks are Vista SP 1 compatible. No upgrades or downgrades of drivers are required.

Red alert! While I was on hold, a little light bulb had flipped on in the back of my head. Clearly my BSOD was some driver issue (didn’t catch the name, it rebooted on me the second I noticed it from the corner of my eye) and the reason of my call to Toshiba. Microsoft didn’t give any install notes about hardware incompatibilities, driver issues and I didn’t find it upon a first quick search. Anyhow.

MS may not give an incompatibility notice before you start nor after a fumbled install, but, I found an incompatibility list in a roundabout way. (he types with a smile) I had wondered why machine A show SP1 as an available update and machine B doesn’t? Bingo.

The key is the hardware and drivers you are using. According to Microsoft, depending on hardware and drivers you use in Windows Vista, the SP1 update will or will not show up.

I quote a small part of: http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=948343 - - Windows Vista Service Pack 1 is not available for installation from Windows Update and is not offered by Automatic Updates

” Cause 5. To help ensure a positive update experience, Windows Update will temporarily not offer Windows Vista SP1 to systems that have the following device drivers. In some cases, these device drivers are problematic on Windows Vista-based computers when you update to Windows Vista SP1. By installing updated device drivers, you will resolve the issue and enable Windows Update to offer Windows Vista SP1. “

I applaud the thought to ensure a positive update experience, but it fails miserably on several fronts.

Anyhow, right below it we find some incompatible device drivers:

” Audio drivers

Realtek AC’97
• For x86-based computers: Alcxwdm.sys - version 6.0.1.6242 or earlier
• For x64-based computers: Alcwdm64.sys - version 6.0.1.6242 or earlier
SigmaTel
• For x86-based computers: Sthda.sys - version 5.10.5762.0 or earlier
• For x64-based computers: Sthda64.sys - version 5.10.5762.0 or earlier
SigmaTel
• For x86-based computers: Stwrt.sys - version 6.10.5511.0 or earlier
• For x64-based computers: Stwrt64.sys - version 6.10.5511.0 or earlier
Creative Audigy
• For x86-based and x64-based computers: Ctaud2k.sys - version 6.0.1.1242 or earlier
• For x86-based computers: P17.sys – all versions (This was originally a Windows XP-based driver.)
Conexant HD Audio
• For x86-based computers: Chdart.sys - version 4.32.0.0 or earlier
• For x64-based computers: Chdart64.sys - version 4.32.0.0 or earlier
Biometric (Fingerprint) Sensors
• AuthenTec Fingerprint Sensor with the Atswpdrv.sys driver file – version 7.7.1.7 or earlier
• UPEK Fingerprint Sensor with the Tcusb.sys driver file – version 1.9.2.99 or earlier
Display drivers

Intel Display
• For x86-based computers: Igdkmd32.sys – versions between and including driver 7.14.10.1322 and 7.14.10.1403
• For x64-based computers: Igdkmd64.sys – versions between and including driver 7.14.10.1322 and 7.14.10.1403
Other drivers

Texas Instruments Smart Card Controller with the GTIPCI21.sys driver file – version 1.0.1.19 or earlier

Sierra Wireless AirCard 580 with the Watcher.exe application – version 3.4.0.9 or earlier (This application is located in the AirCard 580 Program Files folder.)

Symantec software driver for Symantec Endpoint Protection and for Symantec Network Access Control clients
• For x86-based computers: Wgx.sys – versions 11.0.1000.1091 or earlier
• For x64-based computers: Wgx64.sys – versions 11.0.1000.1091 or earlier
Note Symantec is aware of this issue, and it is working on a solution. Symantec provides various update procedures. This includes their LiveUpdate service.

For more information about how to configure your Symantec software to receive the latest Virus definitions and other content updates, visit the following Symantec Support Web site:
http://www.symantec.com/business/support/index.jspAdditional Windows Vista SP1 driver information

Additionally, Windows Update will not offer Windows Vista SP1 to computers with the Logitech QuickCam that uses the Lvuvc.sys device driver (all versions). Microsoft has identified a flaw in the Windows Vista Ks.sys file that may cause a critical stop during Windows Vista SP1 installation if this device driver file is present. An update to Ks.sys is being developed that resolves this issue. When Microsoft has resolved this issue, an update to Ks.sys will be offered to these users through Windows Update. After this update is installed, users will then be offered Windows Vista SP1 by re-checking for updates. “

Any guesses which Intel display driver the little Toshiba has? Bingo.

So, after the level 2 technician repeated that there are no updates required nor incompatibilities; I advised him I just found the contrary in a MS bulletin.

Armed with the knowledge about outdated drivers, I will install some updates and try again.

Some of the things I have not yet figured out (and may never) is why:

- on machine A with an incompatible video & audio driver, it offered the SP1 update, as according to the text above it is not supposed to. Plus it didn’t give a blue screen of death and went all the way to Step 3 100%. A slightly different video driver that is maybe a few % less compatible upon reboot, but causes it to revert after completion?

- on machine B it didn’t show the update, but when I started installing the official 434MB SP 1 download, I received no incompatibility warning. I guess based on A and B we can conclude there is no compatibility check even though one is easy and would certainly help consumers.

- on machine C it did the downloaded install even though the audio driver is incompatible

So, if you are experiencing installation issues without error notifications, there is hope.

Check if your audio & video drivers are on the list and try again after updating them. (Control Panel, Device Manager, click the plus to the left of the device, double click on the device, 2nd tab lists driver details)

If you did get an error message “Installation was not succesful” or “An internal error occurred while installing the service pack”, it most likely points to http://support.microsoft.com/kb/947366  which offers 5 recommendations:

1. Restart and start the update again

2. Check your hard drives for errors

3. Run the system file checker tool

4. Run the windows vista memory diagnostic tool

5. Restart the computer and close any apps that may be running

If any or all of that fails it is probably time to step back and let Microsoft sort some issues out. Send them a message about your problem, who knows they may have the answer.  According to http://www.windowsvistablog.com Microsoft offers free support for Vista SP1 via: http://support.microsoft.com/common/international.aspx?rdpath=1&gprid=11732

Vista Service Pack did not install. Times 2.

One of the two notebooks (dual core, vista home premium pre-installed) I use prompted that Vista SP1 was available as an automatic update. I figured why not, since this is the official release from 2 days ago. Speedy download. Installation goes pretty swiftly. Step 1, step 2 and step 3: 100%. Sweet. Reboot. And then this:

Excuse me? It just did 100% on all three steps, taking its sweet little time overal, and then it says it couldn’t do it? So what exactly happened during all the installation steps? If it checks something that critical at the very end, how about doing that little hardware and software check (or whatever it is) at the very beginning of the update process? And, where can I trace the cause of the problem? I did not see any error information? Nor suggestions?

Fortunately this botched update did not ruin the machine. Everything still looks the same and essential applications work. Small sigh of relief. And, now of course Vista SP1 is ready to be installed again. Funny.

On a second Vista notebook the SP so far refuses to show up. Haven’t tried any other machines yet, but something tells me I will exercise some patience. There are plenty of similar stories on the web already too.

Anyhow, you have to love Microsoft, right?

Update: I am too curious what the failure rate will be so I am already trying it on another machine. This one is a year younger, pretty much ’stock’ (or factory default) and faster. We’ll see.

Update 2: Absolutely fabulous. 25 minutes into the installation. Step 2 is completed. System reboots. A blue screen of death. My system is unable to start. Windows Startup Repair can’t repair the problem. System restore … attempting …

Update 3: Fortunately I landed back on my desktop after some very long 15 minutes.

My conclusion, with two failures and especially after that Blue Screen Of Death, is that this Service Pack 1 for Vista is not ready for prime time. Two solid and fast machines, less than a year old, from mainstream manufacturers and neither can be updated?

I recommend others to just wait. Maybe once you hear on the web from somebody who has the same machine and updated his/her’s fine; you can be confident it will work. To me it is not worth the 40 min hassle nor risking data and possibly having to reinstall the machine. I have read some reports where it took several hours to both install and revert SP1. I can’t imagine sitting through that worrying if the machine will boot.

Google X

Just as quick as it appeared earlier this week, it was gone again.
Something about an OS X feel to Google? Thanks to some caching and clever guys,
you can now see what GoogleX was about. I like it

Supercharged iPod Shuffle clone?

I’m wondering what Apple’s response will be to the “Super Shuffle”.
Playlistmag reports that a Taiwanese company
just announced this clone. It looks exactly like the iPod
Shuffle but also has an FM tuner and voice recording capacity. Nice to have
extra features - an FM tuner would be nice on any iPod. At Engadget there’s even a link to the cloned Apple ads. Where will all this fit
together legally?

Run Jaguar and Panther on a PC

It may be sacrilege to some, but anybody can finally do it with CherryOS from Maui X-Stream

The release had been promised for late 2004, but after some delays
and now amidst some controversy (reportedly it would be a reworked version of
the open-source PearPC project and contain it’s code left &
right! ) it’s now available.

Don’t expect any blazing speed. Just
like with VirtualPC (software to emulate a PC on your Mac)
you are running an Operating System on top of an Operating System, so there is
some drag like when you’ve got weeds clinging to the fin on your
windsurfer. CherryOS is mostly geared to PC users who want quick access to a Mac
for web testing and running light applications that don’t have a Mac OS X
equivalent, …

System requirements are a Pentium / Athlon or later
(the faster the better) with 512MB RAM, 5GB HDD space available, an optical
drive and Windows XP Pro or Home.

It’ll be fun to run the trial in
some spare time. The trial download requires some registration, but should be
publicly available.

FireFox 1.0.1

Mozilla released FireFox 1.0.1, a security update to
v1.

Interestingly the first (Windows) machine I installed it on,
the default browser was reported as being FireFox 1.07.

Canon Digital Rebel XT / 350D 8MegaPixel dSLR

Surprise, surprise! [ MacMinute | Steves Digicams ]

Among
plenty of new & updated digital camera announcements last week; Canon
introduced an 8MP Digital Rebel XT (also known as 350D outside
the U.S.) last Thursday! Who would have thought?

The Digital Rebel
XT is reportedly a bit smaller & lighter and has more creativity options
than the Digital Rebel. With it’s black look instead of silver it looks a lot
better. (note that all reviews & previews show black models, while Canon’s
product page shows a silver model) There are too many updates to mention: custom
functions, selective metering & AutoFocus, improved flash metering, DigicII,
USB2, better battery life, etc. … it really inches close to a 20D, for quite a
bit less money (roughly 2/3rd). I could and likely would have settled for the
Rebel XT, had it existed a few months ago and saved me … Oh well.

Yesterday at Costco, I saw a young guy (early 20’s) ready to buy the
Digital Rebel (6MP) saying “Yes, that’s the camera. They have it.” to his
parents. While they were all looking at it and clearly ready to make a purchase
with parent’s approval; I informed them “You may like to know there is a new
Digital Rebel with 8MP which was announced just 2 days ago, and it’ll be the
same kit and price.” He and his parents thanked me several times. I love
it when you can stay close on technology’s heels and help someone. Granted,
Costco has a good return policy for it’s members; but don’t you hate it when you
buy something and the next week they announce something new? Or as in this case
the newer model is already out but hasn’t hit the shelves yet and you didn’t
know?

Microsoft’s Malicious Software Removal Tool & AntiSpyware

We almost hurt ourselves laughing when I read that Microsoft released
two tools to help fight malicious software and spyware. Sure, it’s a good and
long overdue move in general for the user base; but … is Microsoft really
going to un-install Windows itself? Or at least some components? And, hey,
you’re not supposed to run this particular software application => swipe!

Anyway, for those using Windows XP. You may want to have a look at
the:
- Malicious Software Removal Tool
- Microsoft Windows AntiSpyware (beta)

For the non-XP users and more paranoid XP users among us; I still
stand behind AdAware from LavaSoft.de who’s SE Personal
edition is free for home use. It’s easy to use, gets frequent updates and
performs well.

Hoax: Popular Science’s Home Computer prediction from the 50s

Edit: Thanks to Dan for pointing out in the comments that this is in
fact a hoax .

Received via email. I
don’t know how your “home computer” looks, but mine takes up quite a bit less
space

“Scientists
from the RAND Corporation have created this model to illustrate how a “home
computer” could look like in the year 2004. However the needed technology will
not be economically feasible for the average home. Also the scientists readily
admit that the computer will require not yet invented technology to actually
work, but 50 years from now scientific progress is expected to solve these
problems. With teletype interface and the Fortran language, the computer will be
easy to use. ”

You need a driver’s or boating license to
operate that computer? Or is that the pre-mouse functionality for left &
right?

I guess, in all (not counting Spam, Viri & such) we
did good on the computer front, but how about those robots and personal flying
cars from the Jetsons?

Is that 16:9 TV truly 16:9 or only 15:9?

Is that 16:9 TV truly 16:9 or only 15:9? And other flat screen
observations

Time for a “Buyer Beware”.

Don’t you love
the looks of a big flat screen TVs? Ultra thin yet with a big bold image. After
quite some time on a 14″ home TV and with many advertised specials, it just may
be time to upgrade. While comparing models, I just accidentally discovered that
many advertised Widescreen / 16:9 TV sets are only 15:9.

Yesterday I
saw an 30″ Audiovox 15:9 LCD TV, which made me think (first time seeing 15:9)
“Now why would they make a 15:9 TV while everybody else makes 16:9 sets? It
doesn’t make sense” (apart from a cheaper panel for a cheaper price) The answer
is: “Many larger panels are 15:9, but the companies are not truthful about that
ratio.” And, unless you know about some of the details to pay attention to,
retailers of course will not tell you, because they want to sell that screen
sooner rather than later.

Simple math proves the findings:

TV set X with actual number of pixels shown = 1280 wide x 768 high;
which is the most common flat panel TV resolution.
1280 / 768 =
1.66666667
1.66666667 * 9 = 15
15 <> 16

To get a
16:9 ratio the result should be 16 / 9 = 1.77777778
Which means that
with
(a) 1280 horizontal pixels you need 720 vertical pixels ( 720 *
1.77777778 = 1280 )
(b) 768 vertical pixels you need 1365 or thereabout
(1366) pixels ( 768 * 1.77777778 = 1365.33 and 1366 / 768 = 1.778 )
for
true 16:9 wide-screen.

It seems that TV manufacturers use the 1280 x
768 panels produced for computer screens because of their “cheaper” price,
rather than using more expensive (as they are less common) 16:9 ratio panels;
but always advertise them as 16:9 Widescreen.

So, if you are
shopping for a TV now or in the future, you may want to keep the following in
mind: Make sure you’re aware of the Plasma vs LCD advantages & disadvantages
( plasma screens have serious burn in issues and the screen loses half it’s
original capacity in about 4000-6000 hours ), skip EDTV and other low pixel
panels (640×480, 800×600 and what not) etc. If the pixel resolution is not
advertised, ask for it. If the clerk doesn’t know, doesn’t want to say it or
skips the issue with “oh this is plasma, it doesn’t use pixels”, like we heard
today, step away.

Fact is that every pixel matters, most certainly
when you spend anywhere from $1250 to $8000. 20″, 23″, 30″ or whichever size
flat panel TVs with 1280×768 pixels will NOT show a true 16:9 image. The image
will be cropped (= you lose some), stretched (= distorted heads and
other oddities) or shown with black borders (= isn’t widescreen nice
without the black bord.e..r…s like on a 4:3?! What the? From personal
experience: I don’t like black borders viewing a DVD on a widescreen set)

Are there any true 16:9 sets. Yes, there are a few very expensive
1366×768 sets and Samsung makes 1280×720 panels, I believe, in more reasonable
sizes.

My advice: Wait for the price to come down and let both HDTV
technology mature & 16:9 panels become mainstream before making the
investment in an expensive panel.

Interesting stuff to read so you
can make an informed decision:
* LCD TV
buying guide with How to buy an LCD TV in 8 easy steps
* Plasma TV buying guide with How to buy a Plasma TV in 10 steps ; Plasma TV half-life and Plasma TV burn in
* Plasma vs LCD

Firefox & Thunderbird updated

Firefox 1.0 RC2 and Thunderbird 0.9 were released today. If you
were, like me, bugged with TB 0.8’s filterless global inbox, then 0.9 is the
update you should download right away.

Firefox remains my highest
recommendation for any Windows user. Still using Internet Explorer?? Switch to
Firefox TODAY!

PC Mod: A different kind of drive bay

Just what a computer
needs:

A
cigarette lighter - beer can holder from Thermaltake to mod your PC. Doh!

SPAM keeps rising: Only 11% legitimate email

I’ve said for years that, from my perspective, SPAM accounts for 75% to
95% and in some cases 99.9% of emails received.

Finally, the sad
truth about how big the SPAM problem really is, is starting to come to light.
According to Postini, December last year they found: “81.3
percent of 160,611,437 emails currently processed by Postini per day are spam
(that’s 10 of every 12 messages on average) ” and ” The ratio of spam to
legitimate email increased from 65 to 80 percent during 2003 ” and now “Of the 10.75 billion SMTP connections
received, only 11 percent were legitimate email.”

To me,
their numbers are far more realistic than the common 50-60% SPAM ratio.

What I don’t understand is why the forces that are & the
internet industry have such trouble upgrading to a more spoof-proof email
protocol, can’t shut down SPAM zombies and can’t stop spammers in their tracks.
It’s costing the economy billions of dollars (actually, it does create jobs
& revenue in the anti-spam industry). Make the internet environment tighter,
secure the mail protocol, make SPAM as illegal as it can get, do the same for
SPAM tolerant ISPs & companies and those using SPAM services.

You SPAM? Your mail server is insecure? Bye bye connection. Your PC
is a SPAM Zombie? Sorry, fix it. ISPs have the capability to check how much
email you send, they should use it. You are an ISP that tolerates spammers? Or
actually rents bandwidth to known spammers? You’re locked down and we’ll see you
in court. Same thing for those using SPAM to promote their product(s), store,
service … Of course once that starts, the bad guys will start faking SPAM (!)
to get legitimate companies in trouble. But, that shouldn’t be hard to track
down. It’s pretty clear that those leading the fight against SPAM know who’s who
& where.

Fighting SPAM is not impossible, we just need more
action.

12 GB Compact Flash card

If you’re into serious digital photography you have to pre-order a Pretec 12 GB CF card They’re only $14.900!
Before taxes. All joking aside, it’s nice to see they are squeezing that much
capacity into a compact flash card. Of all camera storage media, compact flash
is my favorite and the most economical.

Canon G5 5MP - Return to Canon

Wanting to grow into a more versatile & better digital camera, we
upgraded to a Canon G5 a short while back, and, I have to give
it a failing grade. With over a 1000 exposures, I’ve taken enough time for (a)
the camera to prove itself and (b) for me to grow into it. I made sure I wasn’t
overlooking anything by checking things with the manual. After all it’s a very
capable camera with lots of settings.

I generally know my way around
electronics, cameras & digital cameras, but getting this camera to take a
picture was often a nightmare, and then still it wouldn’t have the right focus!
Day to day I mainly use P mode -1/3 stop down + manual white balance. On this
camera I also used auto mode to complement trying both continuous vs single and
center vs evaluative focus in P mode, because I simply wasn’t getting the
results a camera of this level should produce. (read more)

More security risks - not.

I can’t help but laugh and shake my head about some of the technology
headlines.

A new Intego
trojan warning. Do they really need to make a fool of themselves,
again?! You’d think they know what is what since they’re in the security
business. Let’s see. There is a small applescript file you can download from P2P
networks related to cracking Office for Mac, which in fact wipes your home
folder. Does that sound like anything virus-, trojan-, whatever-like? Not to me!
It’s nice that they alert against such a file but it has zero to do with the
virus & security realm. They need a computer dictionary.

A new
critical wireless
802.11b flaw has been detected at a university. (Ok, you have my
attention.) You can disrupt a wireless network with a certain adaptor or
transmitter and block communications. Really?! And you need to be at a
university to figure that one out? Throw a metal/lead shield around a
transmitter and it’ll be mute. Put a more powerful emitter near the
infrastructure and it’ll blow the legitimate one out of the air. This has
happened with radio communications since whenever. Nothing new. Oddly enough
this would only affect 802.11b. Wrong. It affects every kind of radio
communication. The only difference is that with 802.11b you can hack the network
easier with cheaper tools and then mask the 3rd party router as the one to
authenticate with, get people’s NICs, the WEP keys, … and go to work with
those later. Old wireless security news in a new jacket.

Just two
comments

More worms & phishing

Things just got a little worse, again. Getting a bogus corporate email
that your Citibank / Ebay / Paypal / … account has expired / been compromised
/ … with the kind request to update them; is one thing.

Enter
SEPUC: You receive a blank email with hidden
code that downloads & installs pieces of code on your system which build a
keylogger Trojan that transmits your sensitive data nicely back out. Nice! Thing
is we had more than a few of those in the past week.

Oh, have you
heard about the new SASSER? It’s a worm that hits a vulnerable
machine, scans the internet for more vulnerable machines, forwards itself
without user intervention onto that machine through a windows security hole and
then it continues from there. No email involved!

Why again do I
like using Mac OS X on my primary machine? No, it’s not for some of the
features it’s lacking With increasing frequency we find ourselves on the
front line, before certain patches and updates have been released. Even with the
right tools the security side is a time consuming stressful side effect of
Windows computing. I’m starting to see Mac OS X running on C’s desk in the near
future (even though her incredimail email client has no Mac
brother/sister).

Virex 7.5 beta

You may have heard that Virex 7.5 beta is available for those who’d like
to test it. So, I gave it a whirl for a few days. It’s under NDA, so I can’t
disclose anything specific. I’ll just say it’s a step in the right direction,
but don’t waste your time & resources. And that you can take very literal.

McAfee, my feedback is ready and I’ll gladly consult on a few things
as well.

Sony: “Why rent DVDs when you can make your own”

I thought the headline on the Sony Style homepage was
funny:

Sony
: ” Why rent DVDs when you can make your own with
the DCR-DVD101 Handycam

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