Skip to main content
Start a Conversation

Unsolved

This post is more than 5 years old

JeffAHayes

13 Posts

7182

March 23rd, 2007 23:00

Windows Media Center not working right since Vista upgrade

Hi folks. I had my Dell XPS 410 with the dual TV tuner for 3.5 months before the Vista upgrade software arrived, and never a minute's problem with Media Center during that time... I was able to seamlessly record two programs at the same time, to watch one recorded program while recording two more, etc.
 
Well, due to some faults of my own, I've had to do the Vista upgrade more than once, but regardless, each time, prior to me making mistakes that caused a system corruption and need to reinstall, Media Center NEVER worked right on Vista.
 
EVERY TIME I run Windows Media Center for TV (which is really about all I use it for), as soon as I do a second or third command, such as a pause, or rewind, or something, I get the following error message: APPLICATION FAILURE A critical Windows Media Center process has failed. Please restart the computer and try again. If the problem presists, contact your hardware manufacturer for assistance.
 
The first couple of times that happened, I tried stopping Media Center and doing the reboot, but it didn't help. AFTER that message, Media Center will continue to run and APPEAR to function. If I tell it to record a program, for instance, it will begin the recording, but it will refuse to END the recording, and the only way to STOP the recording is to do a REBOOT, and even then, I get a warning message from the system that my reboot will end a recording in progress... one well past the end of the show that was supposed to be recorded, and one I've already tried to stop manually SEVERAL times.
 
Please note I already spent a couple of hours with online tech support earlier today on this problem, most of that time with the tech guy in India in control of my computer, checking this setting and that, downloading and installing more drivers and whatnot... Then he had me download and install Net Framework 3.0, although I'm not sure it installed properly. After a couple of hours, with the problems STILL going on, he told me he was going to have to research this over the weekend and get back to me Monday, so I figured it might not hurt for me to post here and see if anyone had had a similar problem and found a solution to it.
 
I sure hope someone has an answer for me.
 
Between THIS and the fact that Vista has NO driver available for my printer, I'm very close to going back to XP, for the time being.
 
Thanks in advance for any help you may be able to provide,
Jeff

razgriz989

69 Posts

March 24th, 2007 12:00

You may have corrupted media center components. Here is what you do: Find Command Prompt which is in the accessories folder, then right click on it and click run as administrator, then type the following command: regsvr32 wmp.dll Note: there is a space between regsvr32 and wmp.dll. A message will appear saying that it was successful. Restart and check the issue again.

JeffAHayes

13 Posts

March 24th, 2007 17:00

OK, Dude (or is it Dudette???) :smileyvery-happy: I just CAN'T BELIEVE it was THAT FREAKIN' SIMPLE!!!
 
You have NO IDEA how much hair I've pulled out over this issue, and how FLUMMOXED the Dell tech "Gopi" was over this issue, still going to have to call me back Monday with the solution.
 
Bear in mind I just did what you suggested like five minutes ago, and just played with Media Center about three minutes, but in that time I did a half dozen things more than once that previously would have brought up that message immediately. I also started and stopped a recording successfully, and except for the fact that when I tried to stop it from the desktop without re-opening Media Center, it opened Media Center, EVERYTHING worked like a charm (and I can live with THAT, if I have to).
 
I really DON'T have time to play any more right now, as my dad just died this morning (it may seem a bit cold that I'm even doing this now, but he's been on a long, slow road, and it wasn't unexpected, and I had to come online to let folks know, anyway).
 
I'll play with Media Center some more (and use it for real) and see whether or not this solution holds up for the long haul... If it does, my question to YOU, razgriz989 is ARE YOU A DELL TECHNICAL SUPPORT PERSON, and if not, WHY NOT??? :smileywink:
 
Bravo!
Jeff

razgriz989

69 Posts

March 24th, 2007 19:00

No I am not a dell technical support person. But I had problems with media center and typed in that command and everything was fixed. I am glad I could help you, you should have no more problems with Media Center. P.S. If you have any more problems, don't hesitate to PM me or email Microsoft Tech Support, they are great they helped me fix 3 blue screen issues!

Message Edited by razgriz989 on 03-24-2007 03:48 PM

JeffAHayes

13 Posts

March 29th, 2007 02:00

It's BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK, razgriz.
 
That regsvr32 wmp.dll fixed worked... for a while... but now Media Center is giving me the SAME OLD "APPLICATION FAILURE" message and same problems yet again (missed recording "Medium" tonight when I couldn't watch that and "Lost" at once, GRRRRRRRRRR!!!, even with me both telling it to record in the Guide AND trying to manually start the recording when it appeared that wasn't working!) Dell Tech Support got back to me via email with a solution, but it was a direct cut-and-paste of YOUR solution from this thread, lol.
 
In the interim, as I have Adobe Photoshop Elements 4.0 installed from the XP installation (did the upgrade) and it SAYS it has some compatibility issues with Vista, and I DID use it a few times in the past couple days to crop and change backgrounds in some photos of my dad for his memorial service (he passed away this past Saturday), it's entirely possible that the Adobe conflict is coming into play... However, I had gone into the System Configuration and disabled the Adobe Active File Monitor, as I had an idea that part of Elements 4.0 might be the problem, and I had no plans to use the Organizer, anyway (this caused me a fair amount of hassles the past couple days using Elements, as EVERY TIME I opened or saved a file the program warned me SEVERAL times about the Organizer not being available). At any rate, in case disabling that has caused the "fix" to "unfix," I went back into the System Configuration and RE-enabled it, then ran the "fix" again, restarted again, and just ran Media Center AGAIN, and it's STILL giving me the "APPLICATION FAILURE."
 
As for the very helpful techs you're talking about at Microsoft, I was under the impression that if you had an OEM version of Windows, you were obligated to get support from the OEM provider (Dell, in this case), and that the folks at Microsoft wouldn't help you (at least not for free).
 
If I'm WRONG about that, however, please feel free to point me in the right direction.
 
I got my time problem fixed in a different thread by learning how to change the updating time and now have my system clock updating every 15 minutes, so just when I thought I just about had it ALL worked out, now Media Center is back to its "old tricks." (even found a substitute driver for my HP Deskjet 5150 printer that does a decent job).
 
Never ends, does it?
 
Any more thoughts?
 
I'll certainly appreciate 'em!
Jeff


Message Edited by JeffAHayes on 03-28-2007 10:52 PM

JeffAHayes

13 Posts

April 13th, 2007 05:00

Well I see after 111 views (I know that includes every time I've viewed it, so let's say 107 views), nobody DOES have any more thoughts.
 
I'm REALLY just about COMPLETELY FED UP with Microsoft and its lack of support for Media Center. I've been going through problems of this (and similar) natures with Media Center for more than three years now, and now on my THIRD VERSION of Media Center. The ONLY VERSION that actually never gave me trouble (except during one of these upgrade cycles) was XP 2005... I was stuck with XP 2004 for 3 years, and that was a NIGHTMARE... and now it's looking like Microsoft has released a Vista version of Media Center just as bug-prone as the 2004 version.
 
Come on, folks, I CAN'T be the ONLY ONE (besides one lone sole on the Microsoft forum who ALSO reported this problem on Feb. 11 and hasn't had a SINGLE RESPONSE) who's had this issue!
 
I already had a "Dell Tech Support Experience" with this, and he really tried, but the only answer I got came from this thread, and as I posted above, it worked short-term, and no longer works. So I'm holding off trying that again, for now. I DID email the tech support person, telling him the "fix" was no longer working, but got no response. I've run every HARDWARE diagnostic available, and ALL HARDWARE appears to be fine... or at least Device Manager thinks it is. I ran a SCANNOW earlier, and it said all the installed Vista software was fine... But obviously SOMETHING'S NOT FINE!
 
Yaknow, when I buy a computer with a DUAL TV TUNER IN IT, that's just a BIT of a hint I have plans of watching and recording TV with it, huh?!?!?
 
I'm almost ready to "bang on it with a hammer," yaknow???
Jeff

View More

View All

No Events found!

Top