Dear CNET members,
Happy Friday! I hope this newsletter find you all well. Before we get started, I would like to point out a mistake I made in last week's newsletter. I wrote that data recorded onto CDs and DVDs that we use at home is burned onto the disk and that there is no protective layer, so that the data is exposed. Well this is untrue, as they do, in fact, have two protective layers and I apologize for misinforming you. Thanks to the couple of members who e-mailed me to point out my error, which included one of our CNET Blog Network authors, Peter Glaskowsky, who blogs the Speed and Feeds blog on CNET. On that note, I give you Peter's explanation of the facts below, thanks Peter!
"Recordable CD and DVD discs do not use a "burning" process. Heat causes a chemical change, but there isn't nearly enough heat to burn anything. It's much more like thermal printers, but instead of using the heat of the laser to cause a white material to turn black, it causes a change in the reflectivity of the surface, especially at the specific wavelength of the drive (infrared, red, and blue for CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray Discs).
There is a protective layer--in fact, two of them. The dye is sealed by a thin layer of metal such as aluminum or gold, and then that layer is protected by a layer of lacquer. The writing and reading steps take place right through these layers."
Now, let's move on to this week's topic on how Gary can make his PC that he bought used with an illegitimate version of Windows XP, legit again. Well, Gary, sorry to hear that you were swindled, but, hey, it happens. The key is that we all can learn from it and move forward. The good news is that there are many options to make your XP system legit and I'm glad to hear that you want to make things right! As you read the through the discussion, there are many recommendations from our members. The answer that surfaced most is to call Microsoft directly as they do have a program in place for just these type of cases. However, there are many folks who also recommended that you just buy an official copy of XP, which can be found with a little bit of effort, and restart from scratch. While there are other options such as upgrading to Windows Vista, it's advisable that you make certain that your system can actually run the newer operating system. However, if XP is what you desire, stick with it. There are many great options offered, and even many people who had similar cases to yours, who eventually found a solution to get their systems back up and running legitimately. So for starters, check out some of the selected answers from our members in the Q&A section and from there read on and you'll realize just how many of your fellow members put in their time to help you out! Best of luck to you, Gary. If you have a moment, please let us know what route you took and how it worked out. Have a great weekend everyone and thank you all for your contributions to the discussion!
Cheers!
- Lee
Got suggestions? Send me an e-mail: messageboards@cnet.com
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I purchased a PC about 1 year ago from a guy off of
Craigslist, and he did not tell me that the Windows XP
version he loaded on the computer was not legal. Currently I
cannot receive plug-ins, updates, and many other things do
not work properly now.
Featured member solutions
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