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5/29/2009 R eading the CBC News website this evening resulted in my chancing upon a story concerning a landmark Supreme Court (of Canada) ruling. The case involved a woman who was facing having her house confiscated as a “proceed of crime”, having been previously convicted of running a “ grow-op” in her home. The “grow-op” was relatively small scale and not operated for the purposes of trafficking, so the court ruled in her favour – to wails of “shame” from those who argue for more aggressive (and unfair) drug laws in Canada. Although most of the comments I read were members of this pro-police-state crowd, there were overwhelming votes of disapproval on each of the comments indicating a silent majority agreed with the Supreme Court ruling. I couldn’t resist adding my own reaction to the comments – risking having my name being associated with a view that might elicit vigorous disagreement. Admittedly, I do sometimes worry that a colleague, employer or potential client might disagree with my libertarian perspective or draw conclusions about me from them which could well be untrue. (In a fashion similar to a proponent of free-speech being mistaken for a sexual deviant after being caught defending a pornography vendor across the street from a high school.) But sometimes it’s important one announce their beliefs lest we, as a society (and democracy), mistakenly conclude that voices are silent because nobody agrees with us, or those who disagree with us feel justified in stifling our civil rights because our seemingly low numbers make our beliefs insignificant. The following is my response to the story linked above… “LOL - the "just say no" crowd again feigns its shock at how unpopular their views are when exposed to the public. Presumptuously, they contend it must mean that because those of us who disagree must just not know any better. Some even cite their rehab experience (where they're ritually indoctrinated with "just say no" dogma in tandem with other treatment) as being ironclad evidence that all drugs are all bad all the time and in every case. Of course, it doesn't ever occur to this sanctimonious bunch that there might be some of us who’ve used drugs - have used for many years, and didn't have that same experience. We must be either lying or a statistical anomaly - because drugs are always harmful, and there's no such thing as moderation. And don't cite alcohol or tobacco - they're not drugs. Not really, anyway - they're much "weaker" than real drugs. Okay, an overdose of sarcasm there. Sorry about that, but it's hard to understand how people can be so rigidly wed to ideas that can't withstand the test of evidence staring ya right in the face almost daily. It's particularly hard when the consequences of a more enlightened attitude toward recreational drug use could so richly benefit our society and improve the lives of those who've had their lives destroyed not by drugs, but ignorant, unfair laws around drugs. Laws that, unlike any other, ignore individual liberty under the guise of protecting society from being overrun by potheads or other supposed "addicts". Unfortunately, my rant here will do little good. All I can do is urge any readers to treat drugs as any other topic about which they are unlearned: if empirical evidence isn't an option, then read, chat, ask questions and above all think critically. DON'T JUST SAY NO!” — Story comments, “B.C pot grower won’t forfeit house,” (CBC News, 29/05/2009), by Ross Holder writing as ross613. Not much has happened in the past several months in the “war on drugs” file. Well, Canada doesn’t really have a “war on drugs” (thank God), but every so often the Conservative government makes noises about strengthening already hefty police powers or increasing jail time so that there’s less room for real criminals like murderers, rapists, thieves and child pornographers. For some reason, those crimes don’t offer as many opportunities to attract the glare of television cameras. Anyway, this case will stir things up a bit and we’ll follow with updates to this story as they arise. 5/27/2009 M y intro Philosophy Professor – one Dr. Arthur Schafer – challenged me following one of his lectures when I was enrolled as a Philosophy major at the University of Manitoba. I’d just finished remarking how I couldn’t find any logic in the arguments of those who claimed carnivores (meat-eaters) were guilty of anything morally objectionable. With very little skill he made mincemeat of my novice questioning of vegetarian doctrine by establishing doubt about what kinds of life are sentient, like human beings, and therefore one could quite conceivably be committing murder by raising animals for mere consumption. Of course, it didn’t negate any of his arguments that I pointed out other examples of how all life feeds off death in one form another; because sentient life (like humans) can make a moral choice.  | | Canadian Governor-General Michaëlle Jean samples her way into the sights of the international animal-rights movement by taking a bite of seal meat during a visit to Rankin Inlet, NU today. | In the end, I decided to cut down my meat consumption (“minimizing harm” like a good little utilitarian) and completely avoid consumption of animal products that exhibited signs of self-awareness or intelligence. Admittedly, this is sentience as I judge it and one could ask: who am I to judge? But there’s the price of having a moral choice, I suppose. I have argued (with some success, I think) and continue to believe that arguing that all animal life is automatically deserving or even collectively better off being given the same right to life awarded human beings. Certainly, I believe most animals are to some extent self-aware, and many have evolved nervous systems capable of performing tasks that are interesting – even remarkable. Some few, including whales, dolphins, most species of primate and certain domesticated species are even, I would argue, conscious – and deserve both legal protections rivalling human beings and being spared cullings for mass human consumption. But these species are more the exception rather than the rule. Under no circumstances does this mean that my view justifies (in my mind) just any treatment for animals that don’t quite reach the same bar as dolphins or the like. Take seals for example; cute, cuddly creatures – certainly possessing a talent for tugging on the heartstrings of carnivores and vegetarians alike. But they aren’t necessarily sentient and there are people who survive on seal products for their own sustenance. We would all agree that seals deserve humane termination and over the years much has been done to ensure that seal hunts meet with certain standards, although one obviously can’t claim every kill is humane – for a variety of reasons. Yet despite such measures, undertaken to specifically address the concerns of those who might shy away from products obtained “inhumanely” otherwise, groups ideologically opposed to the consumption of animals have turned seals into their poster-child. The objection of these groups is not grounded in concern for the seals specifically – rather in a more general objection about humans consuming animal products. But you won’t see any cute, cuddly cows in the literature these folks can often be found handing out on street-corners in cities around the world. What bugs me most about such so-called animal advocacy groups isn’t the massive hypocrisy inherent in a decades-old campaign that leverages the pleasing aesthetics of one creature to disguise a much larger agenda they know the majority of human beings would never agree with. It’s the dogma upon which their membership seems to thrive lacking not only an even cursory examination of the moral questions involved, but the more practical realities of the wonton economic damage and repeated tales of hardship caused by their manipulation of the public using images of furry creatures, spare cash donated by rich celebrity do-gooders seeking to maintain a youthful, positive image, and virtually unchecked disinformation. So you can imagine my reaction to the news today about Canada’s Governor General being embroiled in a supposed scandal over eating seal heart meat! Their latest attack as a result of this innocent indulgence on her part: Canada’s Maple Syrup industry. Because, as we all know, those who harvest maple syrup from trees are launching fleets of ships to hunt every seal on Earth to extinction… These animaniacs ought to be ashamed of themselves, not that the typically sanctimonious lot that leads this rabble could spare a collective clue what the word ‘shame’ means! And just to clarify this point – I’m talking here about a movement that is unrepentantly intolerant of the rights of individuals to decide what they consume and any notions of national sovereignty, international law, and last – but far from least – aboriginal culture. (In the above-cited story, the spokesperson for the Human Society International Canada cited the decision of Europeans to ban seal products as somehow binding on Canadians. The EU is certainly at liberty to take such action – and Canada is equally at liberty not to, last I checked.) The proverbial icing on the cake where the Governor-General is concerned came from across the pond. It seems her Majesty, the Queen’s agents are concerned about how her Canadian representative is behaving. And here I’d thought the confusion about Canada’s status as an independent nation (versus a British colony) was resolved some time ago. Maybe news about that hasn’t yet circulated through the British education system (renowned for its efficiency) to all her Majesty’s subjects – or at least to her personal staff. But ya know, I think all that need be said here is that if the Queen can sport objectionable clothing in support of Britain’s tenuous grasp of fashion, Canada’s Governor-General can eat seal meat in support of Canada’s legitimate, legal and quite ethical seal hunt. And I defy the animal rights movement to produce a coherent argument showing how the Governor-General, maple syrup or I have got it all wrong. I don’t invite comment ignorant of what those arguments might be — quite the contrary. But I’ll wager their membership - even those who’ve had the fortitude to read my rant through to the end - are.
P.S. A special note here about Dr. Schafer. As his bio on Wikipedia indicates, he’s an extremely accomplished scholar with few peers and it was a genuine privilege and highlight in my college experience to be counted among his students. As the man singularly responsible for sparking my interest in Philosophy (studies in logic and legal philosophy in particular), I’ll be ever-grateful. That said, the views I’ve expressed herein are entirely my own and should not be assumed to be those of Dr. Schafer or anyone else. Admittedly, there are a number of places where I’m confident he’d disagree with me vigorously. And that too would do credit to the debate at hand since little has been offered by those who are otherwise ready to damage livelihoods, economies and even the cause of animal rights without apparent, rational principle to stand upon. 5/20/2009  | | Author Walter Kirn, chatting on with Steve Colbert on Comedy Central’s “The Colbert Report”, May 19, 2009. Kirn believes that “higher education” is overrated and that society places too much emphasis on the brand name colleges rather than more useful soft skills that would ground the nation’s leadership alongside the every-day American. | M uch like utopia, the word meritocracy derives a meaning from an inherently unachievable concept – or at least one immeasurable in absolute terms. Yet the guest on last night’s Colbert Report, an author named Walter Kirn (who’s just finished writing “Lost in the Meritocracy”), judges the leadership of his country – the United States of America – as having deviated from some collective notion of meritocracy. His is a commentary that expresses apparent shock that graduates of America’s noted institutions of higher learning (like Princeton, Harvard and even MIT) aren’t always the over-achieving elite that most Americans assume them to be. He goes on to cite specific examples from the Bush administration – including ex-President Bush, himself – as lacking the mettle to govern even a mediocre National League baseball team properly, much less the most powerful nation on Earth. Speaking as an alumnus of a Canadian institute of higher learning, I can sympathize with some of Kirn is saying. But in Kirn we have another example of what I don’t like about the Colbert Report; the occasional mediocrity of Colbert’s guests. Kirn isn’t saying anything radical or new here, of course. That Universities (or Colleges as they’re known in the U.S.) don’t include world geography, or internal combustion engine repair in every curriculum is hardly breaking news. That such institutions often judge students by metrics that are entirely subjective and that society, in turn, pays the degrees and the system of academic awards too much respect too often scarcely qualifies as an epiphany to anyone in the audience. While it might well speak to certain deficiencies in the American education system that there’s barely an American alive who could correctly answer that Ottawa is the capital city of Canada or that Iran is adjacent to Iraq on a map when asked, it doesn’t suddenly mean that graduates of MIT are no more technically savvy in their chosen disciplines than Mr. Kirn or other average Americans off the street. Nor does it mean that the knowledge acquired by economics majors at these or other ivy-league schools is entirely worthless, simply because the decision-makers failed to prevent this past year’s economic meltdown. Kirn is only doing what his fellow armchair economists and pundits on Fox are doing: generalizing and over-simplifying a complex problem using incomplete data brokered largely by television in a vain effort to first believe and then express understanding they simply don’t have. Conversely, it should surprise anyone that I can truthfully say I personally know a major of political economy who wrote a thesis a few years back wherein she correctly predicted much of the calamity confronting us in the markets today. And she wasn’t entirely alone in her analysis either, I might add. The key element missing from Kirn’s invective on The Colbert Report (and, I’ll wager, is also missing from his book) is what, exactly, ought to be done about his complaint. Again, speaking from first-hand experience, I can tell you it would be rather difficult to eliminate all of the subjective metrics from the grading systems used in judging your average paper in Legal Philosophy. Indeed, it would be hard to eliminate subjective grading from the average examination in Object-Oriented Programming theory – a technical discipline, most would agree. For that matter, what exactly is the merit in the meritocracy Kirn is vacillating about? Because, in the end, it’s going to be very difficult to measure success here, given that meritocracy itself is as achievable as it is different for everyone. Kirn’s book might be entertaining. It might even give some kind of insight into the Homeresque perspective of the average middle-aged American; or at least those in the demographic who are alike disgruntled about their Princeton experience. Beyond this, I’m at a total loss not only to understand what Mr. Kirn might contribute to the discussion concerning contemporary U.S. economic and political leadership, but also of the 9½ minutes I spent watching Colbert’s interview with him. And I desperately wish I could get it back. Maybe I should simply stick to Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show and quit while I’m ahead from now on… 5/11/2009 I don’t know about the rest of you, but I get irked when Microsoft does stuff like this: QnA.live.com was Microsoft’s answer to Yahoo’s Answers service – a sort of generic questions-and-answers forum site where users could get answers on questions on any topic that comes to mind, although in cases where other forums were more devoted to the purpose of answering questions on specific issues (e.g.. technology questions) the asker would be referred to those specific forums by topic moderators.  In any event, Microsoft has decided the beta is over. And, in this case, has decided to simply shut down the service without apparent cause. Several possibilities occur:
- Microsoft is worried about QnA distracting focus on support issues from the aforementioned devoted technical forums (e.g.. MSDN and TechNet forums)
- Another as-yet unannounced product release will address demand for this type of service (unlikely)
- Microsoft’s talks with Yahoo may be bearing additional fruit in the near future – perhaps procurement of certain web properties, like Yahoo! Answers
There may be other scenarios which didn’t occur to me, of course. But I could scarcely imagine one that would make QnA’s closure a sensible act. At minimum, QnA didn’t seem to be drawing fewer visitors than say, I dunno, the msn.com homepage. Maybe this is one of the reasons Microsoft’s Internet division has consistently underperformed all the others year after year. Whatever views Microsoft’s most ardent critics espouse, most will concede the company is results-oriented. And, sooner or later, MSN and the Internet division need to join the rest of the company posting results in the black. At the very least, it doesn’t seem likely there’d be too much damage disclosing any intention to continue the QnA service in another form notwithstanding the absence of such a plan. Left with taking the QnA closure notice at face value, one can only draw the conclusion that MSN is some ways away from figuring out how to convert red ink to black. That’s unfortunate; both for QnA and its growing user base. 5/9/2009 T he title isn’t just an overture to sarcasm; it’s an intentional warning too. Don’t read what follows if you don’t want to know what happens in the newly-released movie Star Trek – because details of the ending are included in this article. When rumours of the new movie possibly compromising the Star Trek franchise first surface, I’d thought it might be due to the cast acting out-of-character, or maybe the film being some cheesy cliché. Rumours about a changed ship had surfaced to; would the Enterprise look too different from the original to be believed? But the franchise has been damaged in ways far more fundamental by this new film: the destruction of Vulcan effectively eliminates all that has gone before and become known as history in the Star Trek universe. The intention here seems to be to renew the franchise by replacing it with something different. And while it may well be that the franchise needed renewal, I can’t agree that such a fundamental alteration of the underlying plot is the best way to go about it. Without Vulcan, Federation history will be altered considerably. With Vulcan civilization reduced to a colony of 10,000 survivors, scientific contributions of the species are effectively eliminated. Vulcan diplomacy won’t play a role in the Federation for at least several centuries – well beyond the time of any of the past Star Trek series. And then there’s the issue of why the future Federation introduced in Star Trek: Enterprise didn’t intervene to protect the timeline. Vulcan isn’t supposed to be gone! Where was the temporal prime directive when Vulcan needed it? The only hope for the franchise that remains is that in some future movie the disaster that was launched this past weekend is somehow corrected. It is sci-fi, after all. Spock’s been dead before – and if you can resurrect a dead character, why not a dead civilization too? Oh there was one cheesy bit that did leave an impalatable after-taste: “red matter”? Please! Did imagination die with Vulcan? J. J. Abrahms did achieve the goal he laid out in one interview: he left the audience for wanting more; if only to fix this tragic mistake. 5/2/2009 I ’m not always proud of the decisions courts make in Canada. It’s not like we’re above making mistakes in this country to a point that somehow justifies us in thinking our society is somehow automatically better than that of the Americans. But then you read a story like this: …and you realize that there is a reason that, as Canadians, we sometimes feel a touch paternalistic – maybe even sanctimonious - toward our American cousins. Outraged indeed!  | Hewlett-Packard support agents claim that they sell 64-bit PCs, but will only support 32-bit Windows….
”Correct me if I’m wrong, but as this is a 64-bit machine, how is it that HP would sell me such hardware without offering software to support it – particularly given the fact that both the support site and sales literature indicate that Windows Vista 64-bit is supported for this machine? The fact I originally purchased the machine with the 32-bit OS installed shouldn’t be relevant as to whether 64-bit Vista ought to work – again – especially since support is clearly offered for Vista x64!!!” | I admit, I can be a little terse with people sometimes. I’d like to think before my anxiety becomes too apparent, that there has to be a fair bit of provocation though – nobody’s perfect, after all. But I couldn’t take it this time – and so I’ve decided to share an experience I might otherwise keep to myself with the rest of the world online. So what provoked me this time? Well, it has been my observation that when I do a job people almost universally expect it done well. They have a right to – I’m paid good money to provide programming services, and if I make a mistake, usually there are consequences that can disrupt business pretty dramatically, which ultimately cost more money. So, in fairness, I expect people I pay for products or services to live up to the standards they set for themselves too; i.e. if a computer is advertised as being a 64-bit machine, I expect Windows Vista x64 editions to work fine. And if they don’t, that the vendor will ensure someone will help me out until the problem is solved. Hewlett-Packard (HP) Inc. didn’t do that today. And they haven’t been doing it now for over a week. Below is a transcript of an effort I made to acquire drivers for my HP Pavilion a6318f desktop PC. It was sold with Windows Vista x86 (32-bit) edition, but last week I started trying to upgrade it to the x64 (64-bit) edition of the same operating system. Would love to see some comments (obviously, I’m hunting for sympathy here, but I’ll take it all, so long as it’s constructive) following a read of the transcript: From: Ross Holder [ross.holder@gmail.com]
Sent: Saturday, May 02, 2009 12:19 AM
To: 'PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.COM'
Subject: RE: RE: Re: RE: HP Pavilion a6318f Desktop PC e-mail support Please see my comments in-line and highlighted below. I am extremely puzzled by the difficulty in getting support for this, so please make an attempt at offering a thorough explanation in response to my specific questions. (The detail I’m looking for has been lacking in prior responses.) Gratefully, ross holder | 
home: xxx.xxx.xxxx | cell: xxx.xxx.xxxx| office: xxx.xxx.xxxx
ross.holder@gmail.com | http://ross613.spaces.live.com
xxx-345 Clarence St. | Ottawa, ON (Canada) | K1N 5R5 P Before printing this, think about the environment|Avant d'imprimer ceci, pensez à l'environnement From: PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.COM [mailto:PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.COM]
Sent: Friday, May 01, 2009 11:13 PM
To: ross.holder@gmail.com
Subject: RE: RE: Re: RE: HP Pavilion a6318f Desktop PC e-mail support Hello Ross, Thank you for writing back to HP Total Care. Ross, I understand from your email that you are unable to find the drivers for your DVD RW drive after upgrading from Windows Vista 32 bit to Windows Vista 64 bit. [*** Ross inline:] Correct me if I’m wrong, but as this is a 64-bit machine, how is it that HP would sell me such hardware without offering software to support it – particularly given the fact that both the support site and sales literature indicate that Windows Vista 64-bit is supported for this machine? The fact I originally purchased the machine with the 32-bit OS installed shouldn’t be relevant as to whether 64-bit Vista ought to work – again – especially since support is clearly offered for Vista x64!!! I appreciate you searching for the drivers separately, but I insist that you must have drivers available if you offer Vista x64 as a possible configuration for this machine. Do you not have drivers available at HP to support your own hardware? At the very least, could you not simply take cdrom.sys, cdrom.inf and any other necessary files from an installed instance of Windows Vista x64 to help me resolve this issue??? I greatly appreciate that you have forwarded your concerns and given me a chance to assist you with this issue. Please be assured that we are here to assist you and resolving your issue is of primary importance to us. HP does not recommend changing or upgrading the Operating System (OS) to a retail version, as it might lead to missing device drivers which need to be downloaded separately from third party websites, and our support will be limited after such a change. HP and Compaq's warranty and support cover only the original pre-installed operating system and software. [*** Ross inline:] I understand this concern – which is what is prompting my inquiry to you now. The missing drivers are obviously a legitimate concern, since I’m missing a set of drivers for the CD/DVD-ROM at the moment; and asking you to provide them. Clearly, you do have a set of compatible drivers in your software library since the OEM Vista x64 edition ships with them. In my view, it would be really, really silly – to the point of being dishonest – to offer 64-bit hardware and claim that your OEM version of Vista, and ONLY your OEM version of Vista will work with your hardware. Surely HP can do better than that! I searched for the specified driver in the HP Website and found no drivers for the device listed under the 64-bit Vista Operating System. The drive has the drivers only meant for the 32-bit Vista Operating System the computer was shipped in with. If you need further assistance, please reply to this message and we will be happy to assist you further. For information on keeping your HP and Compaq products up and running, please visit our Web site
at:
http://www.hp.com/go/totalcare Sincerely, Shane J HP Total Care ***Do Not Delete Service Ticket Number*** {ticketno:[8024557696]} ***Do Not Delete Service Ticket Number*** Our advice is strictly limited to the question(s) asked and is based on the information provided to us. HP does not assume any responsibility or liability for the advice given and shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages in connection with the use of this information. Always back up your data.
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Original Text | From: | ross.holder@gmail.com | | To: | PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.COM | | CC: | | | Sent: | 05/02/09 02:32:08 | | Subject: | RE: Re: RE: HP Pavilion a6318f Desktop PC e-mail support | Okay, we need to try this once again..... I am aware of the existence of Windows Update, HP Support and other pertinent websites. As the previous discourse on this trouble ticket indicates, I am having trouble finding drivers for the TSSTCorp H653N CD/DVD-ROM which will allow Windows Vista x64 setup to operate correctly. There is a prompt asking specifically for these drivers, which are not on Windows Update, not on HP Support’s website nor anywhere else I’ve tried. I am not interested in the firmware upgrade – I simply want the 64-bit drivers for the TSSTCorp H653N CD/DVD-ROM, which you should have. Please read the above carefully, and understand that I am not looking for anything else – no URLs to other websites nor other information which can’t help me in this situation. (I am sure you’ll agree if you think carefully, you’ll realize that telling me to goto Windows Update to get 64-bit drivers while using a 32-bit version of Windows Vista is not going to help since Windows Update automatically detects the system you are currently using, and as I am in the process of setting up the x64 version of Vista, Windows Update would only detect the 32-bit Vista edition...which I’m using. Not to mention, using the URL you provided while using Windows Vista will only result in you being given a message to use Vista’s Windows Update utility from Control Panel – thus making visiting Windows Update via the URL a totally unproductive exercise.) The best, most direct way to assist me is to simply provide me with the requested drivers or direct me to a website known to have a copy of compatible, 64-bit drivers available. Thank-you for careful attention to my request and the background to this issue. ross holder |
home: xxx.xxx.xxxx| cell: xxx.xxx.xxxx| office: xxx.xxx.xxxx
ross.holder@gmail.com | http://ross613.spaces.live.com
xxx-345 Clarence St. | Ottawa, ON (Canada) | K1N 5R5 P Before printing this, think about the environment|Avant d'imprimer ceci, pensez à l'environnement From: PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.COM [mailto:PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.COM]
Sent: Friday, May 01, 2009 7:40 PM
To: ross.holder@gmail.com
Subject: RE: Re: RE: HP Pavilion a6318f Desktop PC e-mail support Hello Ross, Thank you for writing back to HP Total Care. Ross, I understand from your email that you are unable to find the drivers for your DVD RW drive after upgrading from Windows Vista 32 bit to Windows Vista 64 bit. Please note that if the DVD RW was shipped with the computer, you can go to the web link provided below and get the updated driver for the same. www.windowsupdate.com Note: The above-mentioned URL will take you to a non-HP Web site. HP does not control and is not responsible for information outside of the HP Web site. Orelse you need to contact Samsung for further assistance. We appreciate your valuable time in troubleshooting this issue. If you need further assistance, please reply to this message and we will be happy to assist you further. For information on keeping your HP and Compaq products up and running, please visit our Web site
at:
http://www.hp.com/go/totalcare Sincerely, Morgan T. HP Total Care ***Do Not Delete Service Ticket Number*** {ticketno:[8024557696]} ***Do Not Delete Service Ticket Number*** Our advice is strictly limited to the question(s) asked and is based on the information provided to us. HP does not assume any responsibility or liability for the advice given and shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages in connection withthe use of this information. Always back up your data.
For more information, including technical information updates, please visit our Web site at http://www.hp.com/support.
HP does not require you to send any financial data in your reply to this email. As a prudent reminder, do not insert credit card details or other financial information in any e-mail replies.
Original Text | From: | ross.holder@gmail.com | | To: | PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@mail.support.hp.com | | CC: | | | Sent: | 05/01/09 23:15:36 | | Subject: | Re: RE: HP Pavilion a6318f Desktop PC e-mail support | Patrick:
Thank you. Further research has revealed that I need to get the TSSTCorp
H653N CD/DVD-ROM (RW) driver as well. In fact, it is actually this driver
which apparently lets setup detect the CD-ROM correctly - and it is required
for setup to work properly also. It seems that the drivers were either
included with the original HP image for 32-bit Vista, but drivers are not
included for 64-bit Vista. Rumour has it that they do exist, so I'm hoping
you folks can point me in the right direction by providing a link to
TSSTCopr H653N drivers that will prove compatible with Vista Ultimate x64
edition.
Thanks again for your prompt assistance!
Sincerely,
ross holder | [The Ross Report]
home: xxx.xxx.xxxx | cell:xxx.xxx.xxxx | office:xxx.xxx.xxxx
ross.holder@gmail.com | http://ross613.spaces.live.com
xxx-345 Clarence St. | Ottawa, ON (Canada) | K1N 5R5
P Before printing this, think about the environment|Avant d'imprimer ceci,
pensez à l'environnement
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2009/4/30 <PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@mail.support.hp.com>
> Top of Form
>
> Hello Ross,
>
> Thank you for contacting HP Total Care.
>
> By reading your Email I understand you want to install Windows Vista 64 BIT
> on to your HP Pavilion a6318f Desktop PC and you need 64 BIT Drivers to
> complete the setup.
>
> Ross, I am giving a link to download the 64 BIT Drivers for your System.
>
> http://driverscollection.com/?file_cid=40909790922c329b052a52ee364
>
> *Note:* The above-mentioned URL will take you to a non-HP Web site. HP
> does not control and is not responsible for information outside of the HP
> Web site.
>
> *Note:* Clicking on the URL may display an error. If the error occurs
> please copy and paste the URL in the address bar of the browser.
>
> Ross, the drivers are for the GeForce 6150SE nForce 430which is the Chipset
> on your motherboard .
>
> This should resolve the issue. If you need further assistance, please
> reply to this message and we will be happy to assist you further.
>
> For information on keeping your HP and Compaq products up and running,
> please visit our Web site
> at:
> http://www.hp.com/go/totalcare
>
>
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Patrick R
>
> HP Total Care
>
>
>
> ***Do Not Delete Service Ticket Number***
>
> {ticketno:[8024557696]}
>
> ***Do Not Delete Service Ticket Number***
>
> Bottom of Form
>
> Our advice is strictly limited to the question(s) asked and is based on the
> information provided to us. HP does not assume any responsibility or
> liability for the advice given and shall not be liable for any direct,
> indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages in connection with
> the use of this information. Always back up your data.
> For more information, including technical information updates, please visit
> our Web site at http://www.hp.com/support.
> HP does not require you to sendany financial data in your reply to this
> email. As a prudent reminder, do not insert credit card details or other
> financial information in any e-mail replies.
>
>
> Original Text
>
> *From:*
>
> ross.holder@gmail.com
>
> *To:*
>
> PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.COM
>
> *CC:*
>
>
>
> *Sent:*
>
> 04/30/09 23:53:09
>
> *Subject:*
>
> RE: HP Pavilion a6318f Desktop PC e-mail support
>
>
>
> I very much appreciate your prompt reply. I have just a few more questions
> related to this issue for you. Please find my questions in-line below
> (marked by highlighted text, to make understanding the context of my
> remaining questions clearer).
>
>
>
>
>
> *ross holder | * <http://ross613.spaces.live.com/>
>
> home: xxx.xxx.xxxx | cell: xxx.xxx.xxxx | office: xxx.xxx.xxxxx
>
> ross.holder@gmail.com | http://ross613.spaces.live.com
>
> xxx-345 Clarence St. | Ottawa, ON (Canada) | K1N 5R5
>
> *P **Before printing this, think about the environment|Avant d'imprimer
> ceci, pensez à l'environnement*
>
>
>
> *From:* PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.COM [mailto:
> PAVILION_SUPPORT_EN@MAIL.SUPPORT.HP.COM]
> *Sent:* Wednesday, April 29, 2009 10:42 PM
> *To:* ross.holder@gmail.com
> *Subject:* RE: HP Pavilion a6318f Desktop PC e-mail support
>
>
>
> Hello Ross,
>
> Thank you for contacting HP Total Care.
>
> From your email, I understand that you would like to install Windows Vista
> 64 Bit Operating System in your PC in second Partition, at Setup, Windows
> Vista does not detect the Drivers for Hard Drive (SATA), and Internal
> Components (Chipset, LAN and Modem etc) pre-installed by HP and listed in
> C:\HP\Drivers folder.
>
> *[*** Ross inline:] This is correct. I would only add that regardless of
> where I place the drivers, setup lets you specify their location if it can’t
> find them. And I have tried placing drivers in D:\HP\Drivers (since the
> partition in question is D:, not C:) and in other paths – and specified
> those particular paths using the setup UI when prompted – all to no avail.
> *
>
>
>
> I apologize, but, we are not trained on dealing with installation of Retail
> version of Windows Vista 64 Bit OS.
>
> *[*** Ross inline:] That does strike me as a little odd, given that the
> hardware is clearly 64-bit, and this is – after all – an HP product.
> Fortunately, I don’t think that’s a serious issue. To be sure I’m using the
> correct drivers, it would be helpful if I could obtain the original 64-bit
> motherboard drivers. The download site seems to offer an update – but not
> the original drivers. I understand it may well be that there’s no
> distinction between the 32-bit and 64-bit drivers or that the latter are not
> available. In which case, I would still very much like to get the original
> 32-bit drivers for the motherboard. The update offered by the product
> support web site is insufficient for my needs here.*
>
> * *
>
> *Additionally, I would like to obtain separate drivers (again, 64-bit, if
> possible) for the hard drive which came with my PC. It’s not clear to me
> that the support web site is offering the original drivers – again, it
> appears to be a firmware update for the hard drive rather than merely the
> drivers.*
>
> * *
>
> *Can you provide a download URL for these items? To recap, I’m looking
> for:*
>
> · Original HP Pavilion motherboard driver(s);
>
> o 64-bit edition (if available)
>
> o 32-bit edition
>
> · Original Athlon x64 CPU driver(s) (if applicable):
>
> o 64-bit edition (if available)
>
> o 32-bit edition
>
> · Original hard drive drivers (for the hardware that shipped with
> my PC);
>
> o 64-bit edition (if available)
>
> o 32-bit edition
>
>
>
>
>
> However, you may refer to the URL given below to get complete information
> on installing Windows Vista 64 Bit OS in Dual Boot Configuration.
>
>
>
>
> http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?docname=c00815955&cc=us&lc=en&dlc=en
>
>
>
> *[*** Ross inline:] I appreciate your providing this URL, but it’s of
> little use to me since I’ve already successfully configured the partition
> space I need and am very familiar with the Windows installation process.*
>
> Note : Clicking on the URL may display an error. If the error occurs,
> please copy and paste the URL in the address bar of the browser.
>
> Though it is for Windows XP and Windows Vista, it works in configuring two
> Windows Vista systems in Dual Boot Setup.
>
> This should resolvethe issue. If you need further assistance, please
> reply to this message and we will be happy to assist you further.
>
> *[*** Ross inline:] Respectfully, I don’t think you understood the issue
> if you believe this advice would “resolve” my problem. To be clear; the
> issue is one of Setup not detecting hardware properly – not a failure
> setting up a partition. Again, the partition space has been successfully
> configured and setup runs normally otherwise. Setup simply can’t find the
> drivers when trying to install Windows Vista Ultimate (x64). I believe
> obtaining the missing drivers will resolve the issue, so will you please
> make them available to me today?*
>
> *And by way of further clarification – I understand you folks aren’t
> trained with supporting the 64-bit editions of Windows Vista. Although I
> could certainly use assistance provided by someone with relevant expertise,
> I can manage on my own properly equipped so I’m not specifically asking or
> expecting support with the installation process. I just need drivers –
> unless you feel there is something else I’m doing which could be causing
> setup to not recognize either the hardware or drivers on my system.*
>
> *Thank you!*
>
> For information on keepingyour HP and Compaq products up and running,
> please visit our Web site
> at:
> http://www.hp.com/go/totalcare
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Nathan B
>
> HP Total Care
>
> ***Do Not Delete Service Ticket Number***
>
> {ticketno:[8024557696]}
>
> ***Do Not Delete Service Ticket Number***
>
> Our advice is strictly limited to thequestion(s) asked and is based on the
> information provided to us. HP does not assume any responsibility or
> liability for the advice given and shall not be liable for any direct,
> indirect, special, incidental or consequential damages in connection with
> the use of this information. Always back up your data.
> For more information, including technical information updates, please visit
> our Web site at http://www.hp.com/support.
> HP does not require you to send any financial data in your reply to this
> email. As a prudent reminder, do not insert credit card details or other
> financial information in any e-mail replies.
>
>
> Original Text
>
> *From:*
>
> ross.holder@gmail.com
>
> *To:*
>
> HP Support
>
> *CC:*
>
>
>
> *Sent:*
>
> 04/30/09 01:53:31
>
> *Subject:*
>
> HP Pavilion a6318f Desktop PC e-mail support
>
>
>
> hp e-mail support
> Webform submittal date/time : 30 April 2009 01:52:26 UTC
> language_code : en
> language : English
> Country of Residence : Canada
> product_line : 6J
> product_oid : 3645446
> product_name : HP Pavilion a6318f Desktop PC
> part_number : GX769AAR,GX769AA
> purchase month : 8
> purchase year : 2008
> problem area : installation and setup
> serial number : 3CL80201FN
> operating system : Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate 64
>
> Is your computer unable to work with accessory products? Please select all
> that apply. :
> printer
> scanner
> digital camera
> CD/DVD/floppy disk drive
> multimedia games
> accessories (i.e. Joystick)
>
> What type and brand of CD/DVD media do you use? : TSSTcorp CDDVDW TS-H653N
> SCSI CdRom Device
> Was the CD/DVD writer drive built into the computer when you purchased it?
> : yes
> Can you hear sound from the connected speakers? : yes
> Does the display on the music center appear to be working properly? : yes
> Have you connected the music center to your TV, DVD or music system? : no
> problem description : During execution of 64-bit Vista Ultimate setup (i.e.
> booting into the Windows pre-installation environment, called WinPE), setup
> runs successfully until clicking on the "Install NOW" button, following
> which point a dialogue appears claiming hard disk drivers could not be
> located. Acknowledging the dialogue provides an opportunity to specify a
> location for drivers, but placing the HP drivers in a folder doesn't seem to
> work - setup can't see the drivers in the specifiedfolder.
>
> Additional background concerning this issue was posted in an article I
> wrote to Microsoft TechNet:
>
>
> http://social.technet.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/itprovistasetup/thread/edff2815-173d-4bbc-b0ec-c4accb8700cb
>
> NOTE: I am what you might call an "expert user". I am currently a senior
> software developer with proficiency in programming with the .NET framework.
> Until recently I worked for Microsoft Corp. working on the Commerce Server
> 2009 product. (I've since taken a position with the Government of Canada.)
> troubleshooting : Attempts were made to locate drivers for both the hard
> drives, R/W CD/DVD-ROM and motherboard. These drivers were placed in a
> folder and specified at the setup prompt when the dialogue indicating
> drivers could not be located appeared. None of these efforts had any effect.
>
> setting changes : I have continued to successfully use 32-bit Windows, but
> very much would like to take full advantage of my HP Pavilion desktop system
> by installing 64-bit Windows Vista.
> tech skill : Advanced
> first name : Ross
> last name : Holder
> phone : (xxx) xxx-xxxx
> email : ross.holder@gmail.com
> form url : $emailformprotocol://
> h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/email?product=3645446&lc=en&cc=ca&dlc=en&lang=en&cc=ca
> form country : Canada
>
>
> And as is obvious, the messages are ordered in reverse-chronological order. So there has been no additional discourse with HP since Thursday. Again, comments are welcome – but of even greater value to me would be a solution, in the form of drivers or a URL pointing me in the right direction. Whatever solution is eventually arrived at, I will be sure to post it here (as is my habit) – assuming one is found. Additional threads have been started on both HP’s public Desktop PCs support forum and on Microsoft’s TechNet forums, under Windows Vista Setup. Additional background and details concerning this issue can be found there. Thanks!
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