freespace is not free
Dan.
program on my system and it used up all the memory [ram] and then froze. i
could only reset my computer and that did free the ram, but not the free
space it was using as ram. therefore, i now have about 170mb+ 'freespace'
that is in use, and i don't know how to free it. does anyone know of any
[small] utilities that could fix my problem? any links, posts, comments,
suggestions appriciated.
thanks in advance.
:)
Dan.
Robert Baer
Errrrrr...did you uninstall the program, remove all traces of it on
the hard drive, and also from the registry?
Dan.
the temp dir, i've emptied this, and there's no change. i was asking if
there is a [small] utility to FORMAT the FREE SPACE on my HD.
--
:)
Dan.
Todd Vargo
"Dan." <no@ddress> wrote in message news:3e65...@clear.net.nz...
> it didn't get that far. it stopped when it began to unpack the files into
> the temp dir, i've emptied this, and there's no change. i was asking if
> there is a [small] utility to FORMAT the FREE SPACE on my HD.
Your original message appeared to indicate that the Windows swap file is
refusing to resize, thus continuing to take up your free space.
Do you now mean you just wanted to WIPE the free space of your HD?
Can we safely assume your using Windows 98?
--
Todd Vargo (body of message must contain my name to reply by email)
Dan.
i'm still learning - fast. i know that the setup program began reading the
'package' [delphi] and slowed, then when it went to unpack [i assume to a
temp dir] it stopped. i couldn't do anything, so i hit reset. since then,
i've recieved numorus error messages all relating to low memory. things like
windows not starting because of disk errors, registry needing to be restored
for unknown reasons etc.
your message seemed to infer that you can help?
--
:)
Dan.
Zombie Wolf
lengthy. It really does not matter how much memory you have installed in the
computer, unless you have a very large amount , which I doubt, so that is a
moot point here. When your computer runs out of "real world" (hardware) type
memory. it then resorts to using a predefined area on your hard drive for
the purpose, just as if it were actual memory. However, this process can be
hampered by many factors. One of the prime factors in this is the sheer
amount of free space you have left on the C drive, since that is what
windows is going to use for extra memory. If you have anything less than
about 200 megs left on the C drive, then you will have to either delete
files , or move them off onto another drive , until you have at LEAST 200
megs of free space on the main C drive. This is NOT a negotiable issue ! The
next factor that will affect the swap file (which is what this area of the
hard drive that your computer uses for memory is called) is just how
fragmented the drive is. You need a good defragger, not the crappy Windows
defragger, that makes a bigger mess than it is supposed to be curing, and I
recommend either the Norton speed disk or Disk Keeper defragger. Defrag the
drive with one of these. If you never heard of defragmentation or
fragmentation, then it's time to do it, trust me ! The next factor that
will affect the swap is the speed of the drive it is located on. For
instance, if you have an old PIO type of drive (exceedingly slow) as the
primary drive on the system, and there is a newer type of drive on the
system, you may want to simply move the swap onto the much - faster UDMA33
or UDMA 66 drive, since it is many times faster. Now lets get into
real-world swap file settings versus a lot of the bullcrap and lore you hear
on the internet , in news groups, chat groups , etc. This swap file I have
been talking about has more infuence on the way your system runs, behaves,
and crashes (or doesn't crash) than ANY OTHER FACTOR ON YOUR COMPUTER. So,
unless you have about two gigs of memory installed , then sit up here, and
listen to what I am about to tell you. If you are using 95, and you are a
gamer, then set the swap file minimum setting to about 250 megs. If you are
using 98, and you are a gamer, then set it to at least 300 megs. On ME, this
should be set to about 500. Now, way back in windows 3.1, we had a choice of
either having a "temporary" swap file , or a permanent" one. the "temporary"
type never did work very well, and still doesn't. The theory is, that
windows will "resize" the swap file, "on the fly", so to speak, to adapt to
memory needs that crop up during operation. It does not work, since most
hard drives are not fast enough to pull this trick off, and they are also
affected by the bugaboos already mentioned above. In 95 and 98, instead of
calling it a "temporary" swap file, they call it "dynamic". Its still the
same old crap. Set the swap file MINIMUM size to aforementioned numbers, and
you and your computer will get along much better. The crashes will stop,
many of the errors will disappear, you will stop slapping the wife around,
hitting the computer case and monitor, with a hammer, etc. But, whatever you
do , DO NOT SET A MAXIMUM FIGURE. People who are heavy gamers or do stuff
like video or audio editing might want to set the minimum figure a good deal
higher than what i have mentioned here. I have a computer that I do video
editing on, and i run a 2 GIG swap file on that one, under Windows ME. I
have another one, a P4, that I do audio noise reduction on, and i have a
full 1.5 gig swap on that one. This is what it takes to do these jobs
without getting 15 crash-outs, freeze-ups, etc, a day. Now, we understand
here, that we cant set the swap this high, unless the space exists on the
hard drive, so its going to have to be big enough ! And we are going to have
to keep the drive reasonably defragged with a good defragger, also , which
is where Disk Keeper really shines, since it will defrag the drive on a
schedule. Norton Utilities solves this by moving the swap to the start of
the drive , where it wont get fragged as much . This also works and works
well.
You would think that by the time we get to Windows XP, this problem
would have been solved ! GUESS AGAIN. Windows XP users suffer from this
exact same trouble , and for the same reasons ! Now, the other gentlemen
asked you if you were using windows 98. This also matters very little, since
this problem is truly an "Ancient Windows Evil" that has existed since the
dawn of windows, way back in windows 3.1, and still exists today, even on
XP. (And even on NT4 and 2000, as well). here is what I have to say about
setting the swap file up: Use the computer as you normally would , and every
time it crashes under normal everyday use, raise the minimum swap file
setting 200 megs, until the damn thing stops crashing, losing precious data
and hours of work, on you. If you have to get a bigger hard drive , then do
it, because your windows system will never work right until you do. By the
way, dont waste time buying UDMA 100 and 133 drives for ME or below, since
the OS does not support them, and you will be wasting your money. UDMA 66 is
as high as you go with ME and down.
"Dan." <no@ddress> wrote in message news:3e61...@clear.net.nz...
Todd Vargo
"Zombie Wolf" <zm...@acadia.net> wrote in message
news:v6f1a3f...@corp.supernews.com...
> Ok I am going to go thru this for you, although it is going to be rather
> lengthy.
> Now, the other gentlemen
> asked you if you were using windows 98.
Some may have recognized that was just a comment which was related to the 98
in most of the group names of this crosspost. You did not.
Todd Vargo
"Dan." <no@ddress> wrote in message news:3e66ffb9$1...@clear.net.nz...
The problem of disk errors and registry needing restored is normal after a
forced reboot. But since this is a persisting problem, ISTM your HD was
corrupt by the forced reboot.
Since you have not provided enough details to indicate the root problem, it
would be silly to conclude it was due to not enough HD space, and equally
silly to recommend introducing new software to a failing system.
Ignore what others tell you about needing replacement disk scanning and/or
defragmenting programs. The ones furnished with Win98 do work so replacing
them is only the preference of those individuals, not everyone else.
That said, I'll ask some more questions to try to pin point the root of the
problem, rather than just guess at it.
Does scandisk run when you boot the machine?
And if so, do you allow it to run to completion?
Do you see a file in your root directory named FILE0000.CHK?
If so, are there other *.CHK files also.
Will it boot into Windows at all right now?
Before this problem occurred, did it load any programs at every boot.
It's possible that when you rebooted the machine, the Windows swapfile may
have been saved as FILE0000.CHK by scandisk. That would account for one
possible reason you have less freespace than before, but there are many
others too.
FYI, you do not format the freespace of a formatted drive. If you format the
drive, you will loose everything. Is that really what you want to do?
Zombie Wolf
Stupid assed nitpicker.......
"Todd Vargo" <todd...@nccw.net> wrote in message
news:b48n81$1tke74$1...@ID-25025.news.dfncis.de...
Dan.
properly about one third of the time. if that happens, scandisk [dos
version] runs [to completion] and windows continues to load. when windows
has shown me it's little logo thing with the changing bar at the bottom,
about half the time, the desktop shows, and windows loads. the other half, a
blue screen appears with one of those driver errors. it says press any key
to continue, so i do. the screen blanks and that's about all. no keys work
at this stage, nor does the computer do any thing if left for extended
times. [i press reset]. when i'm in windows [98] i [now] have a memory thing
from analogx so it's usually ok. [i'd recomend it for low hard disk users
who lack ram. http://www.analogx.com check it out [it's called maxmem]] i
tried to run 'disk cleanup' the other day, it seemed to work and i think it
deleted those files that [dos] scandisk saves lost fragments. so there's
nothing to do now? ok then, thanks for your help
laters
:)
Dan.