Hi Sharon and Rick.. if Windows XP is not designed for 16 bit programs..
then I don't need the screensaver..and I appreciate both yours and Rick's
response... but I'm not sure I would like to edit the registry to make
windows xp do something it was not designed to do..
I apologize for not
googling before I posted my problem.. I decided to do this in the wee hours
of the morning.. so I wasn't thinking very coherently...
The screensaver installation did not touch the files of my antivirus
program... like I said the path C Program files Symantec does not exist. I
use AVG for my antivirus and I am very comfortable with it..unlike the way I
feel when Symantec is guarding the door..
Symantec has let a few nasties
come through... However I do have a Norton's product.. Windoc... so maybe
that is why it gave the error from Symantec.
One other thing about Screensavers.. I have gotten a lot of very cool
screensavers from Wincustomize and I trust them.. there have been times I
have gone elsewhere to find a screensaver and it comes bundled in a
transportation program.. the minute I see that.. I cancel it.. I don't want
any junk on my system that I don't invite.
Thanks Sharon and Rick... Rainy
ps. one question I would like answered please, is why the error gave a false
path?
"Sharon F" <sharonfDEL@ETEmvps.org> wrote in message
news:uQ7$IHf5FHA.2192@TK2MSFTNGP14.phx.gbl...
> On Thu, 10 Nov 2005 09:43:10 GMT, Rainy wrote:
>
>> this is the error I've received on a couple of occassions.. This time I
>> was trying to install a screensaver.. The path mentioned in the error
>> does not exist.. If I click ignor the error goes away.. any help
>> appreciated... thanks Rainy
>
> Some thoughts:
> 1. 16 bit Subsystem is for running 16 bit programs: These are usually
> older
> programs. XP is designed for 32 bit programs but provides backwards
> compatibility for 16 bit. XP doesn't use virtual device drivers (*.vxd
> files) but older programs do so it tries to accommodate them. *Most* 16
> bit
> programs do well with the subsystem but some do not. Unless the program is
> mission critical, my inclination is to skip it and use something more
> updated on XP.
>
> NOTE: Sometimes you have a nice 32 bit program you're trying to install
> but
> its installer is 16 bit and causes these silly errors. If the error is
> serious enough and there is no workaround, you may not be able to get that
> program installed on an XP system.
>
> 2. Having an attempted install of a screensaver touch the files of my
> antivirus program would make me nervous. Screensaver files are a common
> mechanism for delivering viruses. Lots of people love screensavers and are
> willing to install them, tuck a bit of devious code inside... the target
> system becomes infected. Many viruses purposefully disable antivirus
> programs to avoid detection. Most antivirus programs have closed off that
> avenue of attack but an old virus (likely to show up in an older
> screensaver that is being passed around) will still try to accomplish
> this.
>
> 3. Symantec..... reminds me of that poem about the little girl with the
> curl in the middle of her forehead: When she was good, she was very very
> good. When she was bad, she was horrid. In other words, when Symantec
> products work, they're wonderful. When they break or have broken parts,
> they can be your worst nightmare.
>
> So anyhow, I went searching around on Google for that error message. I
> found some discussions in various forums where other people had the same
> problem that you described. Their discussions led me to...
>
> An knowledge base article from Symantec with that exact error message:
> http://service1.symantec.com/SUPPORT...= bar_sch_nam
>
> There is a link at the bottom of that article that tells how to update the
> Symevent files.
>
> Apparently this error has been a weakness in this portion of Symantec's
> software for some time. There are references in this trail from Win98 all
> the way up to XP and Symantec's a/v version 9.... In #2 above, I mentioned
> being nervous about an install invoking an error from my antivirus but in
> this case the error event may be "status quo" and characteristic of
> Symantec instead of being a problem with the new software install.
>
> For good measure, an article from the Microsoft Knowledge Base:
> Virtual Device Driver Error Message in 16-Bit MS-DOS Subsystem
> http://support.microsoft.com/kb/254914/EN-US/
>
> --
> Sharon F
> MS-MVP ~ Windows Shell/User