Windows ME troubleshooting.

[algae]

Hi all,
My nephew just bought a new Dell 1.3 G PC with Win ME. Tonight he was trying to install a game and the installer wouldn't start. We tried going into the Cd Rom and running the install file...nothing. Finally we got a kernal32.dll error. I suggested he reinstall Win ME. The install hung halfway through and we had to reboot. When we rebooted it hung again. We tried safe mode but the Cd Rom doesn't show it safe mode (I thought it would.) He also doesn't have a boot disk but the tech support guy at Dell said that any boot disk for Win 9x would work so I e-mailed him the files from mine.
My question is.....before we make this worse, where would you go from here? I am tempted just to reformat (when he gets the boot disk going).
Also I understand that Win ME doesn't have Dos...so what command would format the drive, etc.
Thanks for any help and wisdom
Gary

 

[AndyHui]

WinME's boot disk still contains the Format command, although it's usually best to use a fully functional Win98/SE boot disk.

Doesn't the Dell system come with a bootable Restore CDROM that dumps an entire image onto the partition? Have you tried that?

 

[algae]

Yes but the darned thing won't start the restore process.

 

[Shalmanese]

Windows ME cannot be formatted by a win98 bootdisk AFAIK

have you tried the CD on another computer? (look for the most obvious thing)
are there any visible scratches on the CD?

a kernal32 is not neccesarily windows fault, it could just be dodgy software

to make a bootdisk in ME, go into control panel- Add/Remove programs - setup disk tab - make disk

also If it is a dell, just get the latest drivers and do a reformat, get rid of all that dell "value added stuff" that just slows the computer down

 

[Kappo]

um yes windowsME CAN be formatted from a win98 boot disk.
I have NEVER created a winME boot disk because I have my trusty 98se that I have customized...I even install Win2k with it as well...(at least to start the install anyhow)

 

[Shalmanese]

Oh sorry then, just that I remember some big fiaso a couple of months back with Me not recognising the 98 format.com and saying it is out of date or something. must be my crappy memory

 

[Shalmanese]

Oh sorry then, just that I remember some big fiaso a couple of months back with Me not recognising the 98 format.com and saying it is out of date or something. must be my crappy memory

 

[Miraluka]

I would just like to declare here and now that ME sucks. Stick with either Win98se or upgrade to Win2K.

 

[algae]

I agree....thx all

 

[SillyMan]

Winmag has a good article on installing an troubleshooting windows me
see link below
Link

 

[algae]

thx...I'll pass it on.

 

[nickdakick]

<< I would just like to declare here and now that ME sucks >>


I second that and like to add that Dull recovery CD's svck even more. :|