Phuket

r3aps · #1 18-10-2004, 06:16

i have a new pc and successfully transferred everything from my old one onto this,pictures of trips etc.i have since sold my old system after removing everything.
today i have just encountered a major problem.i have lost every single foto i had from all my trips to thailand.i havent deleted them,the folder has just vanished,no1 else uses my pc.any ideas????
ther fotos have sentimental value so i am a bit gutted,i no i have many posted on the forum but i also had a shedload more that werent.
any1 ever encountered a problem like this before.
the only thing i have done is gone to windows update and installed service pack 2....
any help appreciated.
steve

djaust · #2 18-10-2004, 09:41

Shit mate you are in a bit of trouble. Service pack two is the cause there are problems with it and they have been known for a while I thought that most people were aware of it but there are still some downloading and installing it. It can cause all sorts of problems but usually only if you have virus software installed. Anyway try seeing if you have any restore points, Usually they are created when you install new software or hardware or if you create yourself. Go to control panel then select system and then system restore. This is of course if you have already done a search for your photo files using the normal search feature you may just have a hidden folder. Anyway I am sure if this doesnt work then there will be someone else out there with a better tip hope you have some success.

Jaws · #3 18-10-2004, 15:16

I know just how you feel Steve my computer ended up with a corrupted hard drive and had to be replaced and I lost three years of photos !

stevem · #4 18-10-2004, 15:21

Yes, everyone DO NOT install SP2. Unless your very familiar with whats going on. I've heard far too many bad luck stories.

Nicke · #5 18-10-2004, 15:56

I understand how you feel Steve, it is sad.

Just reminds me it is time to make a new backup to DVD discs.

Allybabba22 · #6 18-10-2004, 16:15

Quote:

Originally Posted by r3aps

i have a new pc and successfully transferred everything from my old one onto this,pictures of trips etc.i have since sold my old system after removing everything.
today i have just encountered a major problem.i have lost every single foto i had from all my trips to thailand.i havent deleted them,the folder has just vanished,no1 else uses my pc.any ideas????
ther fotos have sentimental value so i am a bit gutted,i no i have many posted on the forum but i also had a shedload more that werent.
any1 ever encountered a problem like this before.
the only thing i have done is gone to windows update and installed service pack 2....
any help appreciated.
steve

Same thing happened to me lost a load of files after i uploaded a few diferent files on windows update, But i just done a system restore like djaust said and they all came back.

Paddy · #7 18-10-2004, 16:46

bloody bad luck r3aps. That Bill Gates, eh? What a tosser. Microsoft are always doing that, launching stuff that hasn't been properly tested and developed. It turns out that the testers and developers are us!

Hope your pix turn up mate.

Jaysen · #8 18-10-2004, 17:54

Quote:

Originally Posted by r3aps

i have a new pc and successfully transferred everything from my old one onto this,pictures of trips etc.i have since sold my old system after removing everything.
today i have just encountered a major problem.i have lost every single foto i had from all my trips to thailand.i havent deleted them,the folder has just vanished,no1 else uses my pc.any ideas????
ther fotos have sentimental value so i am a bit gutted,i no i have many posted on the forum but i also had a shedload more that werent.
any1 ever encountered a problem like this before.
the only thing i have done is gone to windows update and installed service pack 2....
any help appreciated.
steve

Hey r3aps,
If your using XP try this, XP should be automatically configured to run System Restore.. this can be checked by going to controll panel then system and checking system restore, if this had been running and it should have been unless specifically turned off, this might save your pics.

Now all you need to do is go to start menue then to show all programs, then to accessories tab, this should bring up some more options, look for system tools tab peer over this until new menus slides out the at the bottom end of this should be system restore, double click on this.....
Follow this restore wizard, and it take you through the options, XP was designed to periodically save your system confige at regular intervals.
Pick at date prior to losing all your pics when it asks for this.
The system should then restore the old windows config from this date, meaning all pics and data saved at this point in time should be returned.
After running through wizard, system will automatically reboot, and once it has fully restarted, (fingures crossed) all shoud be good.

If you haven't tried this give it ago, can't promise it will work for you, but it has saved my ass in the past....
Good Luck

Just realised that djaust has said the same thing... sorry for the double up

Heywood · #9 18-10-2004, 20:00

Steve,

Either you didn't say, or I over looked it...was the folder there before sp2?? You really need to do a full search of your system before worrying too much, I have not seen any case of loosing a folder after the sp2 upgrade...seeing how you said you had just switched over...this isn't likely to be the case. I do this stuff for a living so I've seen my share of the update issues...this isn't one of them.

If you recently upgraded your system..did you possibly go from something other than xp? The file transfer xp has sends folders to different locations than the original so sometimes users think there stuff is gone, when it is just missplaced.

Hopefully that is the case, I would not sugest doing a rollback as this is not likely to fix a missing folder issue...not likely anyway....but as all things dealing with systems anything is possible...but this would be my very last choice as things can get ugly doing this as well.

By all means guys invest in a burner and backup those precious photos...that is the best advice I have heard and will remind everyone that every computer will fail at some point...your hard drives are all but temporary storage....backup and do so often.

Chok Dee steve.

tintin · #10 18-10-2004, 23:40

Good luck! As long nobody has erased it, it would come back!

Now here in France, you have computer-magazines, who have a "help"-line! Must excist where you live! Or post in specialised forums about your problem!

I hear stories, about data being recovered that was deleted by accident fom the adminastrator!

It is not because, you cannot solve the problem immeadetely, that it is not possible!

Keep your head cool, that is the most important now!!

r3aps · #11 19-10-2004, 00:27

everything is sorted
thanks for the replies but i have sorted it.
and for those that have a similar problem,when you install sp2 it backsup all your old files and leaves them in the windows folder in a your documents backup folder.
thank good for that i was getting rather upset.
steve

tintin · #12 19-10-2004, 00:34

I am very happy for you, handsome man!

dawsey · #13 19-10-2004, 01:21

Steve
I would do what has been suggested and burn all your pics onto CDs.Its amazing the amount of pics you can get onto one 700mb disc. You never know if your hard disc is going to go t*ts up

butterflyblonde · #14 19-10-2004, 02:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by dawsey

Steve
I would do what has been suggested and burn all your pics onto CDs.Its amazing the amount of pics you can get onto one 700mb disc. You never know if your hard disc is going to go t*ts up

Another idea is to set up your own pic website , plenty of sites you can use like Yahoo or Msn groups , you can also set these sites so that only you can use them and protect them with passwords , this way you can upload all your pics and have somewhere they are stored safe in the event of a crash.

Heywood · #15 19-10-2004, 02:41

Quote:

Originally Posted by butterflyblonde

Another idea is to set up your own pic website , plenty of sites you can use like Yahoo or Msn groups , you can also set these sites so that only you can use them and protect them with passwords , this way you can upload all your pics and have somewhere they are stored safe in the event of a crash.

Not a bad idea bb, but remember guys that while we out here in the world of 1's and 0's try our best to make sure your data is secure, online storage is not guaranteed by the groups that offer free service, yes it is not everyday that a sight is lost, but it does happen. Do yourself the favor of keeping your fate in your own hands...no regrets later on.

Personally guys I keep data in two places, we keep online storage as well as offline, if the outside service goes we have the offline optical storage to go to..on the business side we keep a third for quick access...still on tape.

I have been in IT management for a long time and have seen more than one person screaming about there data being dumped by an online service, for data that can not be replaced treat it as you would any other valuable...keep it safe. Ok..now that's my two bits from the working side of things...So Steve can we expect to see a little of what you thought you lost??

Sorry but I usually charge for such advice

butterflyblonde · #16 19-10-2004, 02:47

Yes a fair point and i know what you mean that nothing is safe or guaranteed when in comes to I.T.
What i mean to say is that it's better to spread your eggs into many baskets , Burn to CD like Dawsey said , Copies on you HD and upload to a few of those sites too.