A few niggling errors

[jc_150]

Hi all in the forum, this is my first post so be gentle with me, lol.
My computer is old but still serves my purpose, its running windows xp serv. pack 3 with all updates, and for most purposes runs fine. However lately I have the following issues and would like them solved if possible. I have run the tweaking software but did not clear these issues. They may or not be related:
1. Volume control will not show in the notification area even thogh it is selected to do so, it will appear if I uncheck the check box in sounds then check and apply again, next switch on its gone again until above is done again.
2. Only in IE8 opening google receives done but with errors on page, and think last time there was a google doodle, there was no animation, OK on Chrome and Firefox
3. Cannot open hotmail log on screen only in IE8, ok on Chrome and Firefox.
4. Lost the symbol in notification area to disconnect safely external drive, when plugged in via USB
Any help with any of the issues would be most welcome
Regards
John

[Shane]

1. Volume control will not show in the notification area even thogh it is selected to do so, it will appear if I uncheck the check box in sounds then check and apply again, next switch on its gone again until above is done again.

Next time it happens I want you to kill explorer.exe and then start it again in the task manager. When explorer.exe restarts does the icon show up?

2. Only in IE8 opening google receives done but with errors on page, and think last time there was a google doodle, there was no animation, OK on Chrome and Firefox

3. Cannot open hotmail log on screen only in IE8, ok on Chrome and Firefox.

Go to internet options int he control panel and then click on the advanced tab. There you will see a reset button. Click it, this will put all IE settings back to default. Lets see how that doe s:-)

4. Lost the symbol in notification area to disconnect safely external drive, when plugged in via USB

See if this helps
http://forums.techguy.org/windows-xp/518621-safely-remove-hardware-icon-missing.html

Let me know how it goes

Shane

[jc_150]

Hi Shane,
Thanks for the speedy and informative reply, here are the results of what you asked me to do. Using the numbers indicated by your reply to avoid duplicate typing.
1.   Restarting windows by the method you stated brings back both the volume icon and the safely disconnect  icons, until the next start up then need to repeat the process to get them back again.
2.   and 3 Reset IE8 via advanced tab has fixed the Google issue but not the hotmail issue, still shows error on page and blank
3.   Tried doing the things discussed in the thread, but still same. At least when I reset windows both missing icons are there till the next shut down, would like to have them at switch on automatically, but not a disaster if this becomes too tedious o solve.
Thanks for your interest, hope the information leads you to the next stage of the solution.
Kind Regards
John

[jc_150]

Woops.
Sorry shane, did not follow your instructions to the letter on the advanced IE reset properly, so this is where we are now.
1. Resetting explorer at each switch on brings back both volume and safely disconnect icons till next shut down.
2. By following the instructions properly this time both Google and Hotmail issues are solved.
3. Would like both volume and safely remove to be on the notification bar at swich on but the workaround you advise works fine if this becomes a pain to solve permanently
apologies for any confusion.
Kind Regards
John

[Shane]

OK so far so good

The fact that the icons show up if you restart explorer tells me they are working but that something is causing explorer to hang at startup. I have had this happen to me on a few machines and it is a Windows service that is doing it.

Try setting the SSDP Discovery service to disabled and reboot and let me know how the icons work

Shane

[jc_150]

Hi Shane
Thanks again for the reply, I am not at home until Wednesday evening so will try what you suggest and report back.
Regards
John

[Shane]

I will be here when you need me

Shane

[jc_150]

Hi Shane
I disabled the service via the manage serices from my computer, and indeed the icons came back on the next boot up. Does this mean all is well and can stay that way, or is this hiding the real issue, and more investigation needed. Thank you so much for the suggestions you have provided, please let me know what else to try if you feel the service should be turned back to manual as that was the state before I disabled it.
Kind Regards
John

[Shane]

That is used to find upnp devices on the network. It is a known bug in Windows.

Most people dont need it, it is safe to leave disabled

Shane

[rovingcowboy]

jc i found zone alarm to be the program that was messing with my system tray icons.
i removed it and got private firewall.  got the icons back in the tray each boot up.  i got soluto to set up a delay time for all the programs that start in boot now its very rarely the icons don't show up but when they don't i too have to use task manager and close explorer and restart it to get them back.

 

[jc_150]

Hi Rovingcowboy
Thanks for the extra information, and I have stored it in case I lose th icons again. I do not have zone alarm, and only use windows firewall and whatever avast needs to do to protect my machine. I have not had a single issue with the icons since I disabled ssdp service as advised by Shane, and cannot notice any diference in the performance or the work that I do on the machine that warrents enabling it again.
Kind Regards
John