Ask Rick 034, 16/03/09, Houston 121 28/03/09

Spellchecker not Working

I cannot get the spell check to work in Outlook Express on my computer running Windows XP. I have tried to select spell check from the tool bar but it is not highlighted. The spell check works on Microsoft Works documents. Please advise.

P. Tibbs, by email

As I am sure you know the spellchecker in Outlook Express relies on the dictionaries in other Microsoft products, including Office, Word and Works Suite but since you mention that you are using Works I think we can discount that possibility.

Otherwise the problem is usually due to a missing library file called csapi3t1.dll. There’s a copy of it on the XP installation disc or it may be on your hard drive. If you have an XP CD pop it in the drive, cancel any offers to install XP then go to Run on the Start menu and type ‘msconfig’. Press Enter, click the Expand File button and in the ‘Expand one file…’ box type ‘csapi3t1.dll’. In the Restore From box click the Browse button and locate your XP installation disc. Otherwise if you have an i386 folder on your hard drive, you should find a copy of the file in there. In the ‘Save File In’ box enter: C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Proof and click Expand. If you don’t have an XP disc or an i386 folder this file can also be found on the Windows 98 and ME installation discs, some versions of Office or it can be downloaded from sites on the internet, including: http://tinyurl.com/59ye4

Network Printing

We are running a couple of computers through a Netgear wireless router but we do not yet have any printers linked up. If I connected a printer to the router via a cable (it has 4 or 5 sockets at the back) would it be accessible from any computer linked to that router or is it a little more complicated than that?

We have two printers, and older HP inkjet and a newer Canon model and ideally we'd like to connect both of them to the router and have a choice!

Philip Whitehead, by email

If only it were that easy… A few recent printers have built-in network connectivity, either by Wi-Fi or a LAN cable connection, and some modem/routers have what’s known as a ‘Print Server’ facility but the in the vast majority of cases you either have to connect the printer to a PC and ‘share’ it on the network, or plug it into an external print server.

Print sharing is usually the simplest option and in most versions of Windows you can set it up from Printers in Control Panel. The only real drawback is that the PC the printer(s) are connected to has to be left switched on. If that’s a problem then a print server could be the answer. If your modem/router doesn’t have the facility then stand alone devices are widely available; models that plug into your router cost from £30 or so. Wireless models are a little dearer and prices start at around £40 online. However, before you get too excited check with the supplier and make doubly sure that it will work with your printers. This can be an issue and many older or less popular printers are not supported. Also, check that you have the necessary printer drivers for the versions of Windows your PCs are using, as these will normally have to be installed on the network PC using the remote printer.

Remote Possibilities

Since moving to a new house I have switched to digital TV and installed a Sky+ box and Samsung HD ready TV. I find that when I switch on the TV and then the set top box with the Sky remote, the TV shows a blank screen. In order to watch TV I have to manually switch to source ‘EXT 1’ by using the Samsung remote control. Is there any way to overcome this bizarre situation of having to use two remotes? With my old TV I only needed to use the Sky remote.

John Rhodes, by email

For some reason some Samsung TVs can be tricky to control with Sky+ remotes using the recommended 3-digit, model-specific code but I may have a solution. On the handset press TV then Select and the red button together and it will blink twice, now press TV and enter 0060, which is the 4-digit global programming code for Samsung models. The remote should now blink twice to show it is ready. Test the code by pressing the Volume and Standby buttons to see if they work. If they do press Select to save the Setting. If not go to the next code by pressing TV then try again and repeat until the TV responds correctly. Once you have found the right code press Select to save.

Viewing Difficulties

I'm using XP on my computer and I'm sure that in the past if I right clicked on a picture either from the hard drive, memory stick or camera card one of the options from the menu was 'Open with'.  This has disappeared and instead I have to click on the picture and go to 'Preview'.  Is there a way I can return to the previous method?  Also I am so used to viewing with the Windows viewer is there any way that I can transfer the program to my laptop - which being somewhat old only runs on 98SE, or is it an integral part of XP?

Peter Matthew, by email

The root cause of the problem is usually a dynamic link library (.dll) file becoming unregistered, which basically means Windows no longer recognises it. The one involved in this instance, shimgvw.dll, has been implicated in a recently discovered security loophole, so it may have been due to an over-enthusiastic security program, Windows updates, or just a good old-fashioned Gremlin. Either way you should be able restore normality by going to Run on the Start menu and type: ‘regsvr32 /i %windir%\system32\shimgvw.dll’ (without the quotes). And no, you can’t install Windows Fax and Picture Viewer in Windows 98 but there are freeware alternatives, try FastStone Image Viewer, you’ll find a link to the download at: http://tinyurl.com/c8xtqh.

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© R. Maybury 2009 2302