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I still think the OPs system has a fundamental problem. She had IE7 and IE8 both installed at the same time.
I would install Firefox or Chrome so she had a working browser. Then uninstall IE7. Then reinstall IE8. The browser should be unrelated to the printing problems.
Not to get us too far off topic, but I don't understand why some are so quick to recommend a reformat and reinstallation of the OS. You see people recommend this for registry errors and slowdowns, and also for new machines to get rid of the bloatware installed by the manufacturer. I've seen people recommend a reformat and reinstall every 2 or 3 months.
I'm not saying this won't solve problems, but for most people it's not a possibility. Of the 5 Windows computers I've purchased over the last decade, none of them came with an actual Windows CD, which means that the best I could do is to restore the OS to the original settings, and in the process reinstall all the bloatware that was on the machine when I bought it. Not to mention the 50 or more gigabytes worth of other programs and data that I want to keep. It may only take a few hours to reinstall an OS, but backing up and reinstalling all the other data would take much, much longer than that. Anyway, rant over.
Not to get us too far off topic, but I don't understand why some are so quick to recommend a reformat and reinstallation of the OS. You see people recommend this for registry errors and slowdowns, and also for new machines to get rid of the bloatware installed by the manufacturer. I've seen people recommend a reformat and reinstall every 2 or 3 months.
I'm not saying this won't solve problems, but for most people it's not a possibility. Of the 5 Windows computers I've purchased over the last decade, none of them came with an actual Windows CD, which means that the best I could do is to restore the OS to the original settings, and in the process reinstall all the bloatware that was on the machine when I bought it. Not to mention the 50 or more gigabytes worth of other programs and data that I want to keep. It may only take a few hours to reinstall an OS, but backing up and reinstalling all the other data would take much, much longer than that. Anyway, rant over.
While I certainly don't reformat someone's computer at the first hint of a problem, it is often the quickest solution. I've done it so many times that I know exactly what I'm doing and can do it much quicker than someone with less experience. I have to weigh the fact that I know I can fix it in a couple of hours with a reload or I can spend an unknown amount of time chasing gremlins. I've gotten pretty good at quickly figuring out the difference because the last thing I want to do is spend 2 hours chasing my tail, then another 2 reloading after giving up on finding a less destructive solution.
Not to get us too far off topic, but I don't understand why some are so quick to recommend a reformat and reinstallation of the OS. You see people recommend this for registry errors and slowdowns, and also for new machines to get rid of the bloatware installed by the manufacturer. I've seen people recommend a reformat and reinstall every 2 or 3 months.
I'm not saying this won't solve problems, but for most people it's not a possibility. Of the 5 Windows computers I've purchased over the last decade, none of them came with an actual Windows CD, which means that the best I could do is to restore the OS to the original settings, and in the process reinstall all the bloatware that was on the machine when I bought it. Not to mention the 50 or more gigabytes worth of other programs and data that I want to keep. It may only take a few hours to reinstall an OS, but backing up and reinstalling all the other data would take much, much longer than that. Anyway, rant over.
I agree with you. My main PC - lasted over six years on an installation of XP Pro without a clean install except for a failed hard drive. I have never had to to do a clean install for a software problem. The system had two motherboard replacements and numerous upgrades over its life. Now it is running Win 7 64 bit (which of course required a clean install).
For a mature system (one running for some time with lots of software installed) I think it takes way longer to do a clean install followed by a reinstall of all applications than it takes to fix the (damn) problem.
Format+reinstall is fast. But what happens after takes a long time. Most people can't find their original software CDs.
I've got to disagree. You may be able to install Windows in 2 hours, but you can't get a computer to a good, useful state in that amount of time. I've also done this enough to know what it involves. Install Windows, install all updates, install office suite, acrobat reader, java, flash, antivirus, etc., along with all their updates and restarts, usually takes around 6 hours. Then you have a computer the way it should have come out of the box, ready for the additional tasks to set up email, restore documents, make user accounts, etc. For an experienced tech, it usually takes over a day to get one done this way.
It's a lot easier to fix the problem that brought the machine in, in most cases.
I've got to disagree. You may be able to install Windows in 2 hours, but you can't get a computer to a good, useful state in that amount of time. I've also done this enough to know what it involves. Install Windows, install all updates, install office suite, acrobat reader, java, flash, antivirus, etc., along with all their updates and restarts, usually takes around 6 hours. Then you have a computer the way it should have come out of the box, ready for the additional tasks to set up email, restore documents, make user accounts, etc. For an experienced tech, it usually takes over a day to get one done this way.
It's a lot easier to fix the problem that brought the machine in, in most cases.
I've got to disagree. You may be able to install Windows in 2 hours, but you can't get a computer to a good, useful state in that amount of time. I've also done this enough to know what it involves. Install Windows, install all updates, install office suite, acrobat reader, java, flash, antivirus, etc., along with all their updates and restarts, usually takes around 6 hours. Then you have a computer the way it should have come out of the box, ready for the additional tasks to set up email, restore documents, make user accounts, etc. For an experienced tech, it usually takes over a day to get one done this way.
It's a lot easier to fix the problem that brought the machine in, in most cases.
6 hours if you've got a heavily configured system. But most people don't have too many programs or data. Everything is in My Docs, email, desktop, favorites. If they have Windows, Office, email/web, and a printer, they're happy.
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