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(Some previous months still online.) This month's PC Tips: 1 Summer Safeguards
Back up Windows 95 Registry Although Windows 95 continues the Windows "tradition" of using System.Ini and Win.Ini files to store configuration information, the main configuration file in Windows 95 is called the Registry. If the Registry were to become corrupt, you could spend hours re-working Windows 95 settings to match your needs. Fortunately, a handy backup tool is at hand on your Windows 95 CD-ROM. In the Other\Misc\CfgBack directory are two files, CFGBACK.EXE and CFGBACK.HLP. Copy them to the Windows directory on your hard drive and run CFGBACK.EXE on a regular basis. Thanks to Chuck Steenburgh of Tay-Jee Software for this tip. Read about Chuck's PictureXchange program on our Download page. Software Upgrades In the early days of personal computing, when the user base was much, much smaller, software was more expensive, relatively speaking, and didn't change very often. When WordPerfect announced version 5.0, for example, very few private individuals could rationalize the purchase, and those that did expected their investment would be current for many years to come. Today, when nearly 40% of Americans have use of a personal computer, software is not only affordable, but changes with nearly bewildering rapidity. With so many changes in the air, it's tempting to play ostrich and let them all fly by. I mean, if I acquired a program just last month, and it's working just fine, why would I want to "upgrade" it, as it's manufacturer is urging me to do? To know whether or not to upgrade, you need to know something about hierarchy of upgrades: most software houses distinguish between versions or releases, revisions, and patches or fixes. Versions. Although the terminology is not standardized industry-wide, most software manufacturers make integer changes in the version or release number when they make major changes in their software. You can pretty well expect that version 6.0 of WordPerfect looks and operates differently than version 5.0 or 5.1, and that there might not be full backward compatibility. Most makers try to make the new version or release (Lotus likes "release"; Microsoft likes "version") work with materials created by the old, but sometimes a major change means incompatibility. Version changes are usually made as a way of announcing a major overhaul of the product with new functions, features and capabilities. You'll have to make an additional investment to get a new version, but it's usually worthwhile. Revisions2. Revision changes are usually marked by changes in the decade value of the version number. CompuServe 2.6 is a revision of 2.5, not a new version. Revisions sometimes introduce new features, but usually they're made to increase speed, provide improved functionality, and eliminate known bugs or shortcomings. Many manufacturers will provide revised software at nominal or no cost to the user. Often revised software can be downloaded from a manufacturer's Internet web or ftp site just minutes after the revision is authorized. The availability of revisions for download is a great boon to maker and user alike. No piece of software is ever complete; unlike a painting or a book, a piece of software is always a "work in progress" with fixes being made to resolve problems, and new features or flexibilities being added as designers and users think of them. By providing revisions via the Internet, the manufacturer can provide his best without the expense of notifying users by mail and without having to staff a shipping department to send out disks or CD-ROMs. The user in turn can continually update the software he's using to incorporate the suggestions and experiences of others, perhaps even the changes he's suggested! Patches, bug fixes, and workarounds. This class of change -- which we'll call patches -- is made to cure a known ill3. The nomenclature for identifying patches varies widely from one software maker to another. Some patches don't change the version number at all. Some are reflected in a new "build" number, as in "version 3.02, build 6545"; some are shown in the hundred's position of the decimal number, so that versions 3.02 and 3.03 are the same functionally with 3.03 upgraded to fix a particular problem; some are reflected by appending another set of decimal numbers (what system is this?) as in "version 3.02.05", where the ".05" means there have been 5 patches applied to the 2nd revision of the 3rd version! Whereas version changes almost always result in the distribution of a complete installation package, and revisions sometimes do, patches almost always are distributed as small stand-alone programs, which when run, upgrade the main, already-installed program. Patches are almost never available at the retail counter, but are frequently offered via the Internet or by mail on diskettes. To upgrade or not? For patches the decision is easy. If the patch fixes a problem you have or are likely to encounter, get it. But if the patch fixes a glitch users have reported while running MS Word macros on text downloaded by FTP and you don't download by FTP and don't have MS Word in your arsenal of software weapons, why then, igonore it! For revisions your decision should almost always be to upgrade. Software is revised, rather than fixed or patched, because the maker believes the revision will benefit everyone who uses it. In our experience, software revisions often incorporate new and useful features -- which the maker announces -- but also incorporate hard to explain technical improvements which often go unannounced but do materially improve functionality. Unless the cost seems exorbitant, we recommend upgrading your existing software whenever a new revision is made available. For versions, we suggest the following rules of thumb.
In summary, we recommend that you upgrade your existing software whenever a new revision comes along, since revisions generally increase performance at little or no cost with few or no drawbacks. We suggest upgrading via patches only when they solve a problem you're experiencing or likely to. And we suggest most version upgrades, but recommend a little informed caution. Finally, a quick tip on how to keep track of all the changes. Subscribe to the notification service offered by Versions, which will email you with particulars whenever the manufacturer of software you own issues a new version. 1. PC Tips is a monthly column produced by Installations Plus+ for those of its clients who don't pretend to power user status.
2. Microsoft uses another terminology, Service Pack, to denote important revisions to a version of its software. MS' Service Packs sometimes often a bit more functionality, but always fix major bugs. If one is made available for your software, get it. No thinking required on this one, especially since Service Packs, so far, have all been offered at no cost. 3. Software makers call a known problem an issue. I suppose this usage reflects an unintended pun on the more ordinary use of the word issue to mean the person or creation resulting from a union, as Harry was the issue of Charles and Diana. Perhaps the now common phrase "known issue", referring to a software bug, really means bastard offshoot! 4. Windows Magazine is to be commended for their recent pan of the current version of Microsoft's Office Suite. We don't know whether the negative review is warranted, but we applaud Windows Magazine for taking a potentially costly stand against a rather major manufacturer and advertiser. Also available online:
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If you haven't already done so, please read our June, 1997 column on 