Vista Problem

[tomg]

I've made PTE 5 AV's on my Laptop with Win XP. When I play them on my Camera Club's laptop , with Vista Home, they play OK but stay on the screen at the end, when they should disappear ( as they do on my own Laptop). Pressing the ESC key doesn't help. Is there a fix for this?

[Igor]

Try to pack EXE files with slideshows to a ZIP archive, move ZIP file to USB flash drive and unpack on a laptop with Vista. Will it work correctly now?

[fh1805]

This sounds like the same problem that was being discussed in a thread a month or so ago. Brain Conflow made several contributions to the discussion. The reason for the perceived problem lies in the presence/absence of some Windows Registry entries. Hopefully Brian will see this post in due course and either supply the info again or point us all to the original thread discussion. I've tried Search in the Forum but couldn't find the thread I wanted.

I have experienced the same problem when moving PTE exe files from XP to Vista. I can breakout of the "hang" on Vista by doing Ctrl+Alt+Del, invoking the Task Manager and Ending the Not Responding task.

I've also experienced the same problem symptoms moving exe files from one Vista machine to another. At one point I had a Menu exe file that drove nine other exe files. Of the nine target exe files two refused to react to the Esc key at any point but would play through to their correct endings.

[fh1805]

Found what I was looking for!

Try following this link. Hopefully it will take you to the right topic. If not use Search option and keywords "Problem with Vista"

http://www.picturestoexe.com/forums/index....blem+with+Vista

[Igor]

tcg,

Try to create windowed slideshow (not fullscreen). See Project options | Screen tab.

Will this slideshow play fine on Windows Vista?

[tomg]

Thank you all for the references to previous posts on this issue. I had no idea it was such a widespread issue. I have dragged and dropped a couple of PTE 5 AV's to a USB pendrive and then copied and pasted the AV's to the desktop of the problem Vista laptop. The smaller AV ( 7mb) closes OK but the second AV ( 25mb) fails to close at the end. When I press Ctrl,Alt, Delete I get a message "program not responding". There is a tab that says "view problem details" and when I click that I get a description : "A problem caused this program to stop interacting with windows". Then there is a list of "Problem Signatures" : Problem Event name - "AppHang B1". Hang Signature - "fb8f". Hang Type - "515". there follows more "additional hang signatures".

Only a technician would understand the above but as a layman it is simply that Vista does not work with PTE. There was a suggestion that the Laptop should be taken back to the retailer - in my case PC World - and I may have to do that. But I will try your last suggestion,Igor, before I resort to such drastic action.

Tom

[Davidh12]

tcg wrote 'it is simply that Vista does not work with PTE'

I have been running Vista in a laptop for about six months now and ran a number of shows with no problems of the sort you mention. I realise that is not much help to you but just thought I would say it works for me. Then I do have a fairly high spec machine Intel Centrino, 2 gig ram, Nvida 7950 GTX 512MB. I'm no expert and there are others who could advise better but I wonder if the fact that some Vista systems have only 1Gb Ram could be a problem? (you don't mention what yours has).

Just a thought for what it's worth.

David

[nobeefstu]

David,

You make a valid point ... users of Vista having this problem should post more details of their pc which may help to localize the issue or find some common denominators. Im sure it would help Igor.

Just to begin :

-Vista version ?

-32 or 64 bit ?

-DX-10 or DX-9 drivers ?

-Video Card ?

-Processor type

-Memory size

[Conflow]

Hi Guys,

I had not forgotten that problem with Vista and PTE ~ I have been chasing the problem

because other Graphic Programs are having similar problems despite being Vista compatible.

Here is what I have found out:-

* I call the problem "Vista Graphics Hanging" (VGH)

* It effects "Vista Home" on certain PC's makes.

* I can not replicate it with Vista Business nor Vista Premium.

* It effects Dell 530's both PC and Laptops running 'Vista Home'.

* It also occurs with Acer Laptops running 'Vista Home'

* Its common to Intel DC.Processors and AMD Duron Processors.

* Concerning PTE it happens with V4.8 and with V.5xxx (any version).

* Its also happening with Graphic Functions in Excel and others.

This is my personal opinion:- ~ Its nothing to do with the Programs but it is generic

in 'Vista Home' solely. It does not hit "Hi-End" PC's and because of that and because

PTE has its own Graphics Engine then it comes back down to the Win.Graphics Adaptor"

(GPU Management) in the Vista Home Op.System.

Here below is a "Quite Paper" on the subject from Microsoft which confirms my suspicions

and I would challange their 93% success with 'Vista Home.

Brian.Conflow.

Igor:-

As I said before, 'Vista Home' runs PTE but it never seems to register on the System and

this seems to evoke the timeout in the Vista Home GPU, but this timeout doesn't happen

with Vista Business nor Vista Premium ~ it also happens with other Graphic Programs.

Link:-

http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/device/displ...ng_Det-Rec.mspx

[tomg]

Brian's comments are revealing. My Laptop is a Toshiba L40 with Vista Home premium. I bought it for my Camera Club, with a Benq projector. It is planned that a few members will take the laptop/projector combination on the road - mostly to other Camera Clubs - to give PTE presentations. About ten AV's at a time would be copied and pasted to the Laptop Desktop and shown in succession through an evening. The "hanging" business is a nuisance but what can we do about it? I could take the Laptop back to PC World and show them Brian's info. But I hate the prospect of having to argue with them about it.

Tom

[tomg]

I forgot to mention that I did try Igor's suggestion of creating the AV in windowed mode. This overcomes the hanging problem but it results in the picture having a visible frame around it and of course it is not full screen - which is desirable.

Tom

[fh1805]

...users of Vista having this problem should post more details of their pc which may help to localize the issue or find some common denominators...

I'm all for supplying info that will help Igor and his team get to the bottom of this problem. Having just completed three sequences that had never existed anywhere other than my Desktop PC I thought I would carry out a little test.

All three were built using PTE v5.04 on a Compaq Presario desktop system running Windows Vista Home Premium. The processors are Intel Core2 Duos running at 2.33GHz. There is 2GB of RAM. The graphics is NVIDIA GeForce 8400 GS. All three were created into exe files.

All three exe files were then copied to my USB Flash Memory device using Windows Explorer to Cut them from their home folder on the hard drive and Paste them into the root folder of the Memory device.

The Memory device was then taken to my laptop computer: an Acer TravelMate 5514WLMi running Windows Vista Home Premium. The processor is (are?) AMD Turion 64 X2 Mobile Technology TL-56 running at 1.80Ghz. There is 1GB of RAM. The graphics is ATI Mobility Radeon X1300.

The first sequence was run straight off the Memory device. It ran with no problems and ended normally.

The second sequence was copied to the desktop of the laptop and run from there. It too, ran successfully and ended normally.

The third sequence was run straight off the Memory device but the Esacpe key (Esc) was pressed after the first image had displayed. The execution was properly terminated and control was returned to the desktop display - all as expected.

I have totally failed to recreate a problem which I have experienced in the past.

Thinking back to the sequences that did cause me problems, all of them had been created on a Windows XP Home Edition SP2 machine using PTEv4.47. Of course, having now completed the replacement of my old system and having upgraded to PTEv5 I no longer have the relevant items with which to try and recreate that scenario.

[Conflow]

Tom - Peter - Igor,

My last Post and Report and Attachments -concern- "Vista Home Basic" solely.

As I said the problem does not occur in Vista(Home)Premium nor Vista Business.

Vista Home Basic is supplied on 'Packaged PC Systems' such as Dell and others.

Thats the vast majority of the retail market in Packaged Computer Systems.

The Vista-Hang problem in 'Home-Basic' is intermittent thats why its so infuriating !

One day it happens the next day you can't make it happen and it seems to effect

Files over 10/15mB in size... but it also effects other Graphic Programs.

_________________________________________________________________________

The 'problem' is recognised by Microsoft thats why I 'linked' you to their Tech.Paper which

clearly shows that it is a factual problem which never occured with 2000 nor XP using the

same VGA Cards. The only thing thats different is the 'Windows GPU Management System'

but if you read the Tech.Paper ~ Microsoft are blaming the GPU Hardware (The Ic's)

Whats new ???

In my business situation I advised 9 Vista Owners to return their PCs to the Manufacturers

and after some weeks delay the PCs were returned working perfectly....

As they say "the proof is in the repair" so I expect we will have to wait for a delayed SP-1

Service Pak to rectify the problem.

In the meanwhile run in 'Windows Mode' as Igor advised only should the problem occur.

Cheers,

Brian.Conflow.

[tomg]

Brian and Peter + ,

Peter's comments made me think. Could it be that if you create a PTE show in Vista then it will run in Vista? That is certainly what Peter seems to have found. One of my AV's - I'll call it the "big one" ( 28mb) - always hung on the Vista laptop ( and I tried it several times). But it had been created on my Regular XP Pro Desktop PC. A test was needed here.

I installed PTE 5 on the Vista Laptop and transferred all the files associated with the "big one" to the Vista Laptop. This wasn't difficult because the image files, project files and sound files were all in the same "big one" folder. It was then a simple matter to create a "big one" PTE.exe file on the Vista Laptop. I played it and it didn't hang !

So it seems to be true that if you make an AV in Vista it will run in Vista, without hanging.

For me this is a partial success. Sure it seems that I can re-run all my AV's through the Vista Laptop and they will work. But it is a Club Laptop and various members from time to time will want to copy and paste their AV's to the Laptop desktop and take the package ( Laptop and Projector) on the road. And just about all the members will have created their AV's on a Computer with XP . So it is a fair bet that many of the AV's will hang.

But we have made some progress here. Thank you Peter and Brian.

Tom

[Conflow]

Tom,

Note:- My comments below concern Tests with 'Vista Home Basic' solely.

Tom, I would take your point, that Shows created with PTE 5xx on the 'Vista Op.System'

should work perfectly on ALL versions of Vista, this raise a few questions:-

* Will Pte.5xxx Creations work properly on "Vista Home Basic".....I have not Tested that ?

* Pte.Members have Shows created in Pte.4.48 which should work on 'Vista Home Basic'

like they did on all previous Windows Operating Systems...thats the problem, they don't,

but they seem to work OK with Premium and Business versions...why ?

This is absolutely nothing to do with the Pte.Program because other Graphic Programs are

having the same problem with 'Vista Home Basic' and we cant ignore the Microsofts Paper

on the problem...it exists.

We cant expect Pte.Users and millions of other Graphic Users to "duplicate" their Programs

and their Shows in Microsoft Vista when the origionals were created on another Microsoft

Windows System....otherwise there is no such thing as cross-compatibility with Windows.

Fairly or unfairly ~ no wonder so many PC Users are moving over to MAC's.

Brian.Conflow.

[cjdnzl]

I am glad that I ordered my new Dell 1520 with XP instead of Vista, likewise the same laptop I bought for my camera club. My advice to persons buying a new machine is to insist on getting Vista Home Premium or better, or XP, or no deal. Microsoft have recognised problems with Vista by recanting on their hasty removal of XP from sale, and allowing XP sales to continue till June 2008.

As I see the problem with Vista and PTE, Brian has said more than once that it appears to be related to Vista Home Basic only, and also the problem happens to other graphics programs as well, which points the finger to Vista Basic. Therefore, the solution for those afflicted is to either upgrade to Vista Home Premium, which will allow their programs and data to remain intact, or reinstall their drive with XP, which will necessitate a clean install, backing up all data and reinstalling all programs.

I would take the machine back to the supplier, with a copy of Microsoft's paper on the subject (see Brians's link above), and request an upgrade to Home Premium or better. This should cure your problems with your club machine.

Colin

[Conflow]

Colin,

You are absolutely correct....bring it back and get 'Vista Home Premium' or 'XP-Pro'

Thank god you didn't fall into the 'Vista Home Basic' trap.

It's about time Suppliers realised that Consumers are not going to accept a "dodgy"

Operating System and 're-accept' the debacle of the '98 and '98se fiasco.

It's not as if they don't know that Microsoft have a Vista problem, and in fairness to

Microsoft they acknowledged their problem and have tried to ameliorate the situation

but Suppliers are still being less than honest in their dealings with the Public.

Brian.Conflow.

[tomg]

Colin,Brian,Peter +

The problem isn't confined to Vista Home Basic. The Laptop I have been having trouble with has Vista Home premium. I'm going to live with it by recreating the AV's on the laptop that I've initially made on my XP Desktop. No doubt Microsoft will issue a fix eventually.

Tom

[fh1805]

Tom,

Are you sure you really need to rebuild them all? I, too, use Vista Home Premium and have not yet found a need to rebuild any of the old sequences (i.e. ones built using PTEv4 or PTE v5 on Windows XP Home Edition).

Have you tried my circumvention (see post #3 above) when one of your shows "hangs". The actions I describe there have always cleared the "hang" and returned me to normal desktop. Moreover, and this is the important bit for me, each sequence on which the circumvention has been applied then runs correctly every time thereafter (and each sequence also responds once more to the Esc key to break out of it - something it refused to do when trying to breakout of the "hang" condition).

[Igor]

Tom,

So windowed mode completely solves the problem with quitting from a slideshow?

If yes, I'll solve this problem in the future version 5.2

Brian,

Thank you for your researchs of this problem! I agree that it's a bug of Windows Vista. But I still hope help users of current version of Windows Vista.

Tom said that windowed mode doesn't cause this problem, it means that current build of Windows Vista doesn't work correctly with fullscreen mode of DirectX in addition to another problem with flashing of desktop when slideshow exits. The most likely this problem occurs because Windows Vista can't correctly switches between own "Aero Glass" user interface (which uses exclusive fullscreen mode) and slideshow which uses exclusive fullscreen mode.

I decided stop using own fullscreen mode in Vista in the future version 5.2. We will initialize windowed fullscreen mode which will work as a part of Aero glass's exclusive fullscreen mode. In fact it will be true fullscreen mode with all hardware acceleration. I performed several tests and it worked well.

No changes are schedulled for Windows XP/2000 because fullscreen mode work without problem under these OS.

p.s. I shouldn't say this and maybe it will sound incorrectly, but Windows Vista contains too many problems, unfortunately. This one problem with PicturesToExe is only a drop in a ocean of other problems with other programs. Personally I can't use it at my home and work PCs because of various problems and very slow work. Windows Vista has a very good potential and ideas, but they changed too much in short time without enough beta-testing.

[Conflow]

Igor,

As you said..."I shouldn't say this and maybe it will sound incorrectly, but Windows Vista contains too many problems, unfortunately, this one problem with PicturesToExe is only a drop in a ocean of other problems with other programs. Windows Vista has a very good potential and ideas, but they changed too much in short time without enough beta-testing..."unquote.

Igor I agree with you, we at Conflow Services are involved with complex Data Electronics

for Irish Railways. Our other family Company 'Micronetwks' writes Software Applications for

(Hi-Tech) Pharmaceutical Corporations. Both family companies were forced to drops Vista

because it proved unreliable in "real-world" business applications. This situation was made

worse by the premature introduction of 'so-called' Vista compatible Computers and various

new generation 'Plug-an-Play' devices. Then Vistas "OTT" (interlocked) Security System which

blocks 'specially-written' Solutions Software from operating which previously had ran on XP-Pro.

This was too much for our Clients, the rest is history.

Yes, too quick, too soon, not enough "Beta Testing", and ignoring the Computer Industry

has brought a potentially wonderful Operating System to its knees...hopefully in time they

will listen to their Corporate Clients and Industry and replace 'Vista 95' with 'Vista XP'.

Then we will really see something....time will tell.

Igor,I really do appreciate the problems you are having with this OP.System ~ so did we in

our field of 'Application Engineering' with Data Acquisition Systems and Control Software.

Brian.Conflow.

[nobeefstu]

Brian,

... replace 'Vista 95' with 'Vista XP'

I lke your reference/classifcation of the current Vista OS

You may be too kind though ... I was thinking of it as Vista ME myself.

[Conflow]

AAAhh Shucks Stu,

I had to be diplomatic..

Brian.

[mbskels]

Tom,

So windowed mode completely solves the problem with quitting from a slideshow?

If yes, I'll solve this problem in the future version 5.2

No changes are schedulled for Windows XP/2000 because fullscreen mode work without problem under these OS.

If this change was also implemented in XP/2000 would it not fix the problem for those with ATI Radeon cards?

malcolm

[Igor]

Malcolm,

I suppose you had in view problem with adjusted desktop gamma on ATI cards under Windows XP? Yes, we can also use windowed fullscreen mode under XP, but Pan effect will not look so ideally smooth as in true exclusive fullscreen mode.

Under Vista windowed mode in fact works as exclusive fullscreen mode due to Aero user interface. But in XP we have to continue use exclusive fullscreen mode.