Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Computing/2014 May 27

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May 27

How do I archive this PDF file?

I want to use http://webcitation.org to archive the PDF file http://escholarship.org/uc/item/86r2j122.pdf but going there on a web browser redirects me to http://escholarship.org/uc/item/86r2j122. The source code of http://escholarship.org/uc/item/86r2j122 indicates that the file is at http://escholarship.org/uc/item/86r2j122.pdf

Thanks WhisperToMe (talk) 00:18, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

That's happening because the site checks the HTTP referer, and redirects direct requests for the PDF (without a referer from the page) back to the page. That effectively prevents the webcitation.org robot from archiving the page; I can't see a way (including webcitation's "comb" function) to get it to archive that page. Although it may not be their intention, this means escholarship.org has effectively taken active steps to block archiving. -- Finlay McWalterᚠTalk 08:28, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

Thanks for the feedback! Is it possible to get an archive on http://wayback.archive.org ? I wonder if you can get an archive on wayback.archive.org and then try to have webcitation archive what is on wayback.archive.org WhisperToMe (talk) 14:48, 28 May 2014 (UTC)

Errors while installing FSX

I have an almost-new Dell XPS 8700 with Windows 8 installed, and until fairly recently I was able to play Microsoft Flight Simulator X with no problems; however, after I installed ChemDoodle (a chemical drawing program) and the Java SDK associated with it, the game ran once and then stopped responding completely -- I had to use Task Manager to shut it down. After that, the game refused to start again, to reinstall, or even to uninstall properly (even AFTER I uninstalled both ChemDoodle and the JDK) -- I had to refresh my system for the uninstall to take effect. But even after that, the game still doesn't reinstall -- the installer seemingly runs just fine until near the very end of the installation, but then right after it registers the fonts, it crashes with a 1722 ("There's a problem with this installation package: A program setup did not run as expected..."), followed by a 1603 ("Fatal error during installation"). I've tried resetting the computer completely, but I'm still getting the EXACT SAME problem! What's going on here? Is this a problem with the installation DVD? Or is this some kind of DirectX conflict -- or maybe something else entirely? How can I solve this? Thanks in advance! 24.5.122.13 (talk) 00:45, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

Anyone? I'm planning to go shopping tonight, and I'd like to know if I should replace the FSX installation DVD (or indeed, if replacing the DVD will even help with the problem). 24.5.122.13 (talk) 21:54, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

C drive not seen under Computer

A few days ago my wife got a new Windows 7 computer at work. Someone set it up for her. It has a 500GB SSD as C plus a 2TB HD. Under Computer, the C drive doesn't show up. It is there because it shows up with Speccy.

Is the only reason it wouldn't show up is that they hid it somehow (on purpose)? Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 02:57, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

They may have hidden the C drive using Group Policy. -- BenRG (talk) 05:43, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

If it's not in Group Policy, I've seen some other ways to lose drive letters like that: one is quite old (95ish) and was either a registry switch or INI setting that kept Explorer from listing certain drives (but you could access the drive using a command.com window)... this one is probably moot by Windows 7.

The other I could think of is via My Computer (or Computer since Vista) --> right click --> Management --> Disk Management --> right-click the partition (it should be 400-something in size) --> Assign drive letter. It could be slightly different on 7; I only remember the XP way right now.

OTOH, if the system partition is hidden, that would be unusual, in that Drive Management doesn't let the user do that. So, my money would be on Group Policy, too.

OTOH^2, the boot partition can be hidden without breaking the OS.

No real "legal" advice, but the C: partition could be hidden on purpose, to keep employees from changing OS components (either on purpose or accidentally), and it could be seen as tampering with the OS if she tried to reveal the C: drive. My advice would be to ask someone from IT (who set it up for her) before trying anything on her own. - ¡Ouch! (^{hurt me} / _{more pain}) 15:03, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

What do you see in Disk Management? --  Gadget850 ^talk 15:32, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

I don't know - it is at my wife's work. She was doubting if the C: SSD was really there. I was by there and ran Speccy and it is there. I think they probably hid it, since it contains only Windows and installed programs. If it is hidden, can a program be installed to it? Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 16:29, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

I think the purpose of the "Group Policy" mentioned above is to prevent users from installing additional programmes (including malware), as well as to prevent accidental alteration of the programmes already there. Dbfirs 11:15, 28 May 2014 (UTC)

Corrected details

I had the details wrong. The computer was ordered with a 500GB SSD and a 2TB HD. Windows and the installed programs were supposed to go on the SSD. The SSD doesn't show under Computer, but it does show up in Speccy. That much was correct. But (1) the SSD does not have a drive letter, and (2) the HD is drive C, and it has Windows and the installed programs. A dell guy set it up, so what could be wrong? Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 22:48, 28 May 2014 (UTC)

If the computer was ordered from Dell with specific setup instructions that Dell didn't honor, your best bet is probably to get them to fix it. If you just want the SSD to have a drive letter, you can do that from Disk Manager (which might include formatting the SSD, if Dell didn't do that). If you want to move Windows and the installed programs to the SSD yourself, it may be a hassle, but maybe something in List of disk cloning software would work. -- BenRG (talk) 21:13, 29 May 2014 (UTC)

They have a contract with Dell and a Dell representative installed it and supports it. My wife has reported it but it has to go through about six levels of bureaucracy and will take weeks. Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 22:51, 29 May 2014 (UTC)

PS, she got one with two six-core Xeons and 32GB of RAM. I am reminded of the like in American Grafitti: "What a waste of machinery", but she says that her software needs it. Bubba73 ^{You talkin' to me?} 03:07, 30 May 2014 (UTC)

Creating a specialised map

I'm editing a book (about the theatre in Victorian times) and I would like to include a map of central London showing the location of the theatres mentioned. I'm thinking of using a publicly available map resource such as Wikimapia or Open Street Map to provide the basic street map data on which I would superimpose the theatre locations. Has anyone any experience of doing this sort of thing, or any suggestions as to how to go about it? --rossb (talk) 08:01, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

Wikimapia is a skin over Google Maps, so its maps are copyright Google and their mapping partners; OSM's licence is much more forgiving. OSM will let you export a map section as an SVG file, which you can then tweak with an editor like Inkscape. You'll have to contend with the problem of what has changed between the current OSM and the era you're after - it's not so bad for cities like London which cling like limpets to their streetplan, but even then OSM will show large junctions in their current configuration (these days often as roundabouts) rather than how they were a century ago. It may turn out to be more efficient (and easier to avoid dropping clangers like your Victorian map inadvertently containing a modern shopping centre or the like) by using the OSM map as a guide, but drawing a new, rather schematic map, on top of it - in a new Inkscape layer (and then zapping the OSM layer once you're done). -- Finlay McWalterᚠTalk 08:13, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

You might find additional useful information at http://mappinglondon.co.uk/2013/victorian-london-in-incredible-detail/. Looie496 (talk) 13:40, 27 May 2014 (UTC)

That's a really excellent resource. I'd imagine, for Ross' purpose, that it's probably too detailed in itself (once zoomed out to encompass all of the theatre district, it's hopelessly busy) - so for a general map I'd probably trace it and simplify the buildings and solid-colour them (all in Inkscape). -- Finlay McWalterᚠTalk 16:36, 27 May 2014 (UTC)