Problems with Nero 6 Ultra Edition and WinXP

Question

Does anyone know if there are any installation issues with Nero6 Ultra Edition and Windows XP Pro running SP2? I have had to install and uninstall Nero a few times and right now it is off my system, though I am sure it left lots of files behind. I tried to delete what I could. Files I wasn't sure of I left alone.  The first time I installed Nero everything went fine. When it was finished it said to restart the computer. That was no problem, but after restarting the computer I was looking at a blank monitor. I saw Windows booting up but after that windows wouldn't start. I just got the black screen of death. I tried everything to access Windows but couldn't, so I had to reboot the computer and it started. Then I deleted Nero off my system.  Now I'm afraid to reinstall Nero 6 which I paid $99 for and can't take back to the store. Any help on how I can use this program and why the screen went black when I was rebooting the system? I did have the CD in the drive when I did the reboot, but I don't know if that would have caused the problem. I don't recall having problems with earlier versions of Nero. Help is appreciated. The booklet also says to use the Nero 6 CD when uninstalling the program, but I had difficulty with it, so I had to use Add/Remove program in the Control Panel. It's off my system for a while.

fireberd · Answer

I am using Nero 6 Ultra on my PC that has Windows XP Professional with SP2. No problems at all. I've had Nero for quite a while and have all the Nero updates.

Do or did you have any other CD burning program on the PC. Although the other program won't cause problems (I also have Roxio installed on mine) there is one issue with the UDF program (Nero InCd, Roxio Direct CD, Sonic DLA, etc). You can only have one UDF program installed. If you have more than one installed and in the startup (running) it can cause conflicts. My Nero has everything installed EXCEPT InCd.

You may want to try the Nero install again but do not install InCd and see what happens. Set a manual System Restore point before you attempt the isntall. Then if you still have problems you can do a System Restore (in safe mode) back to how the PC was before you installed Nero. Actually, I do this with any program or program update I do and it's saved me several times. Some programs will automatically create a restore point but I still do it just as a precaution.

Erronius · Answer

In addition to fireberd's sound advice, regarding removal of Nero 6, you may also want to try Nero's own removal tools that are available on their website. There are free tools for removing Nero files, registry entires, a dedicated tool for removing InCD etc. I just tried them recently for the first time and they seem to work very well.

robinhood42 · Answer

Fireberd,

Yes, I did have other CD burning software on my computer. It was Sonic's Record Now. But, before I tried to install Nero 6 Ultra I went to Add/Remove programs and deleted Sonic and Sonic DLA. Then I searched the hard drive for any leftover files and deleted them, and then rebooted the pc and that is when I installed Nero. It installed okay, but when I rebooted the machine after everything was installed, the pc showed the WinXP splash screen and then I just got a black screen and the DVD drive was lit and the disc in the drive was stuck. I had to shut off the machine and restart it to get the drive to release the disk. When Windows came back it asked me how I wanted to start windows. I picked "Last known good configuration." Then it went into Windows.

I spent most of my time last night reinstalling Nero. I have 2 Optical drives on my pc. One is a DVD RW and the other is a DVD compact disc. I don't know if it makes a difference what drive the program is installed from, but I tried both drives and the one that worked better at installing Nero was the top drive, the DVD RW drive. I did have to install Nero more than once, because there was a certain spot where the install program would just hang. And then I would have to delete the files that were on the system in order to reinstall the program. It was a hassle.

So today Nero is all installed, including the InCd4 program. There is an icon for that on the system tray. If I had read your post earlier I wouldn't have installed the InCd4 program, but I do like the Drag and Drop feature. I did delete the Sonic DLA program, but is there a chance that there are still files on my system and that the two programs will eventually clash?

I also downloaded and installed the 6 major Nero updates. Those updates took a while to install because I had to uninstall some features of Nero before the new updates would download. But now everything is up to date. I also burned a cd to see if the program was working correctly, and it did burn a cd. It wasn't as fast as I thought it would be, but it could be because the speed of the 2 optical drives that I have, or the speed of the discs, which are the average 4x discs.

I didn't save a restore point before I reinstalled Nero because I never thought of it, but it is a good idea. I can't quite think of how that is done. Isn't there a System Restore somewhere in Windows where you can pick a date and save it? Also, do you know of a good program that cleans up files or that cleans up the hard drive of files that were left there when programs get deleted and such?

Sorry this was so long. I appreciate the help.

robinhood42 · Answer

I wish I had known there were removal tools on the Nero site before I reinstalled Nero again. I bet I would have gotten a better install. Would it be worth it to delete Nero and use the clean up tools and then reinstall it again, or to leave it alone since it is already installed and working?

I also noticed that there was an issue with the packet writing program and MicroSoft, causing the Optical drives to run slower when using packet writing programs like InCd. I have already installed InCd4 but haven't used the program yet, so I can't say how much slower it makes the drives run. According to Nero, MicroSoft has a hotfix now for the packet writing program, but you have to contact them, which is a hassle because it takes hours on the phone, plus $ to get in touch with MicroSoft. But the website also says there will be a hotfix out soon that will resolve the problem. I'll just wait for the hotfix.

fireberd · Answer

One other issue you may want to consider since you now have it installed and have InCd, is to turn off the Windows CD burning feature. That has know to cause conflicts with some (not all - but some) systems. Open the Windows Explorer then Right Click on the CD/DVD burner drive the Left Click Properties. Click the Recording Tab and then Uncheck the Enable recording option.

As far as the burn speed, there are many factors that can affect the burning speed. Since you reference the 4X speed, I assume that is a DVD or an RW disc. One issue is with RW media, if (for example) you have a burner that will burn RW discs at 10X, in order to get the 10X speed (or something close) you will need RW discs that are certified for "High Speed". I don't have a problem with any RW media because I do not use RW media.

robinhood42 · Answer

Fireberd, I took your suggestion and I disabled Windows CD burning feature. I never would have thought about it if you didn't tell me. Thanks again.   The optical drives that I have use both DVD +R and DVD +RW discs. However, since it is so easy to erase a DVD that is a RW, I'm starting to use just the +R ones.   Do you happen to know if there is any freeware around that is an unzipping utility? I tried Winzip but you have to pay for it after 30 days. I always thought there was a free version, but can't find it. I'm also looking for a program that can take screen shots of the monitor. That way, when I get an error message I can have a copy of what the message says. I always wondered why the Print Screen key on the monitor never works. Is there a way of saving the error messages that I can do myself?   Again, thanks for the help. Robin

VBdotNet · Answer

I have Nero 6 Ultra Edition on my iXPS (gen1). It caused severe freeze problems until I found the culprit. It was the InCD EasyWrite Reader 4 tool.   I ended up restoring my machine to before Nero was installed (I restored from a Ghost image) and then reinstalled all of the Nero 6 Ultra Edition components  EXCEPT for InCD EasyWrite Reader 4. I don't need it anyway. Now my system works perfectly and Nero is excellent. Message Edited by VBdotNet on 04-16-2005 10:45 AM

Erronius · Answer

Regarding Winzip, I can't say from actual experience with the current version (9.0 SR-1) but as long as I've known it the program always has retained full functionality even after the 30 day trial period - you just have to put up with the nag screen.
Regarding PrntScrn: you say you're pressing a PrntScrn key on your monitor? If this is the case, try the one on your keyboard. Then open your favorite image editor and paste it in there.
Also, and I haven't tried this, when a error message appears try hitting Ctrl and Insert at the same time. See if that does anything.

robinhood42 · Answer

Erronius,   I think I will download Winzip and just disregard the nag screen after the trial period is over. I really don't need to use the program that much that I want to pay for it. There was a time when the program was absolutely free. I guess those days are over.   I don't have a Print Screen key on my monitor. It's on the keyboard. I'll take your hint and copy messages the way you suggested. When I get an error message, sometimes they are too long to write it all down, so it's easier if I can copy it. Thanks for the hints.   Robin

robinhood42 · Answer

The first time I installed Nero 6 Ultra I had also installed the EasyWrite Reader 4 tool. That is what must have caused the pc to hang when I rebooted the computer after installing all of Nero's components. I couldn't even get the cd out of the drive. The drive was lit, but that was all and the monitor was blank. I had to shut off the machine and turn it on and quickly press the eject button on the DVD drive to get the disk out. Then it booted to Windows. It was after that when I unstalled the entire program and got rid of files left behind and reinstalled it again. I had almost the same problem because on the second try I also installed the EasyWriter Reader 4 tool again. This last time I installed Nero I installed the InCd4 program but not the InCd 4 Reader. I didn't know there was a problem with it. I guess I just thought I wouldn't need that part of the program. Nero 6 has been one of the most difficult to install, and I have been around computers for years and installed lots of software. But now that I know the problem, I can avoid it.

I think what I will do since I have no ghosting image program on my computer, is to reformat the hard drive doing a full format, and then install Windows and then my programs and of course Nero without the EasyWrite Reader 4 tool. Did you install just the InCd4 program, and if so, have you had any problems with it? I'm wondering if I should install just the InCd 4.

VBdotNet · Answer

robinhood42 wrote:

I think what I will do since I have no ghosting image program on my computer, is to reformat the hard drive doing a full format, and then install Windows and then my programs and of course Nero without the EasyWrite Reader 4 tool. Did you install just the InCd4 program, and if so, have you had any problems with it? I'm wondering if I should install just the InCd 4.

I installed InCD4. It's used for formatting DVDs and CDs. Here is a part of the InCD4 help:

To format discs in the so-called MRW (Mount Rainier) format using InCD, check the corresponding check box (if InCD detects a recorder that supports MRW, then this option will be enabled by default). The RW disc will then become an MRW disc once formatting is complete. The check box is to be found in the InCD Options dialog box for overall control, and in the drive properties InCD tab for per drive control. In both places, this option is only modifiable if the recorder supports this function. There is more on this in the 'Options' and 'Drive properties' sections.

In contrast to CD-RW, MRW discs can be written to after only about one minute of formatting. This does not mean that the MRW is fully formatted after two minutes, but simply that it is formatted enough for you to be able to write data on it. The remainder of the formatting goes on in the background.

Mount Rainier is also known as 'EasyWrite'. You can find additional information about Mount Rainier at http://www.mt-rainier.org.

You can only write data in MRW format with drives that support the format. You must also ensure that the 'MRW Format on all MRW capable drives' checkbox has been ticked. Drives that do not support Mt. Rainier can only read such discs with a remapper (see the 'Remapper' section).

Since I don't use the Mount Rainier format (or care about the: " can be written to after only about one minute of formatting"), I said goodbye to the EasyWrite Reader tool. When I right-click on the InCD icon on the System Tray and select the Options, the MRW Format is greyed out. I don't need it. I don't use it. It causes my system to lock up. IMO, it is badly designed/written. It is history.

For PrintScrn users, I have a nice Freeware tool on the Tools page of my home page called PrintKey 2000. It takes over the PrintScrn key and the Alt-PrintScrn key, and has a lot of nice editting/save-to-file features.

robinhood42 · Answer

VBdotNet,   I understand about the Mount Rainier Format now, I think. I was reading about it in the manual the other day and it was a little confusing. The main reason I use Nero 6 is to back up my data and also to make memory discs with photographs. Sometimes I will give these discs away to other family members. I'm going to assume that their computers will be able to read them. At least I hope. I checked the Options in my InCd program. MRW is greyed out. There are so many formats that it gets confusing sometimes. I have to remember that the optical drives on my Dell take the +RW discs. I've tried using the CD-RW discs and they won't work. The only ones that work are DVD +R or +RW ones.   Just curious, without the MRW format, are CDs and DVDs still formatted before they are used? I've never noticed my machine formatting them, but when I had the EasyWrite program on the computer I noticed that when I put a disc in the drive it did say something about them being formatted. Years ago when Windows was just starting out I used to format all my floppy discs before I used them. I never format them now. I hope that doesn't make them useless in the future. I thought they all came pre-formatted.   I saw your webpage. It is neat. That is the next thing I want to learn. How to make a webpage. I do have a homepage through my ISP, and I have photos on them, but each page only has one photo. I haven't figured out how to put all the photos on one page. And I don't have any web-building software. The ISP I use have uses FTP, so I just upload pictures, etc. I don't have MS Frontpage on my computer. I considered buying it once, but too pricey for me now.   I am going to download PrintScreen 2000 from your website. Thanks for sharing the program.   Robin

robinhood42 · Answer

VBdotNet,

I downloaded your PrintScreen 2000 program. It's really neat. I like it because it is very user friendly. Just the kind of program I was looking for. Did you write the program yourself using HTML?

Robin

VBdotNet · Answer

PrintKey 2000 was not written in HTML. Launch it and click on 'About' to view the author information.   CDs and DVDs that are to be used like floppy disks need to be formatted - so that you can read / write / delete files on and off of them, just like a floppy. The file format of burned CDs and DVDs is a bit different.   MRW is for impatient people who want to use the disc before it is completely formatted. IMO, the MRW format is the exception and not the rule - as they need MRW compatible drives. You should have no problems living without it. Message Edited by VBdotNet on 04-16-2005 10:01 PM

Jim Hardin · Answer

@VBdotNet wrote:

PrintKey 2000 was not written in HTML. Launch it and click on "About" to view the author information.

CDs and DVDs that are to be used like floppy disks need to be formatted - so that you can read / write / delete files on and off of them, just like a floppy. The file format of burned CDs and DVDs is a bit different.

MRW is for impatient people who want to use the disc before it is completely formatted. IMO, the MRW format is the exception and not the rule - as they need MRW compatible drives. You should have no problems living without it.

Message Edited by VBdotNet on 04-16-2005 10:01 PM

It should be pointed out that packet writing is the least reliable form of burning ever devised!

Use of an authoring program to make a Data project with Sessions is rock solid reliable! You never see anyone having trouble with that!

Windows General

Problems with Nero 6 Ultra Edition and WinXP

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