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Déjà Bru · 10-12-2009, 12:08 AM

I'm posting this here because it is a general object lesson that I learned (again) and wish to share for the benefit of other members. That the game is OOTP X is incidental; this is a lesson with many applications.

Lesson: Watch what programs you download and install. Do you really need it? Is it worth the risk? Did you create a System Restore point before you installed it? Because, if the new program creates a conflict in your system, you'll wish you had.

I noticed tonight that I had this problem (I found these threads by advanced search; ironically, I pontificated in the earliest one):

http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...r-reports.html
Open in External Browser not functioning.
Open in External Browser

Ok, what changed about my system? I uninstalled and reinstalled OOTP and IE7; no luck. Then I methodically went backwards in time, uninstalling programs until I found the culprit (stupid Lifehacker - I unsubscribed from that RSS feed):

Copy Path Shell Extension Windows Explorer - Lifehacker

Don't ask, I will instead. Why the heck did I download that piece of garbage? Anyway, that was it; I tested by reinstalling it, encountering the problem again, and uninstalling it, thereby resolving the problem again.

Another lesson: This was MY problem. I created it. I never expected OOTP to fix it for me because it not widespread. Many members do not realize how difficult (impossible?) it is to design a program that will avoid all minor system conflict problems. When I have such a problem and I see that only a few people have posted about it, or none, I know the score.

This is why the poor posters in these threads never received a satisfactory reply; their problem was not common enough for OOTP to devote resources to research and resolve. I hope these members ultimately found their answers like I did; I was lucky.

10-12-2009, 12:08 AM	#1 (permalink)
Déjà Bru All Star Reserve Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Long Island Posts: 524 Thanks: 57 Thanked 79x in 44 posts	Object lesson learned (again) I'm posting this here because it is a general object lesson that I learned (again) and wish to share for the benefit of other members. That the game is OOTP X is incidental; this is a lesson with many applications. Lesson: Watch what programs you download and install. Do you really need it? Is it worth the risk? Did you create a System Restore point before you installed it? Because, if the new program creates a conflict in your system, you'll wish you had. I noticed tonight that I had this problem (I found these threads by advanced search; ironically, I pontificated in the earliest one): http://www.ootpdevelopments.com/boar...r-reports.html Open in External Browser not functioning. Open in External Browser Ok, what changed about my system? I uninstalled and reinstalled OOTP and IE7; no luck. Then I methodically went backwards in time, uninstalling programs until I found the culprit (stupid Lifehacker - I unsubscribed from that RSS feed): Copy Path Shell Extension Windows Explorer - Lifehacker Don't ask, I will instead. Why the heck did I download that piece of garbage? Anyway, that was it; I tested by reinstalling it, encountering the problem again, and uninstalling it, thereby resolving the problem again. Another lesson: This was MY problem. I created it. I never expected OOTP to fix it for me because it not widespread. Many members do not realize how difficult (impossible?) it is to design a program that will avoid all minor system conflict problems. When I have such a problem and I see that only a few people have posted about it, or none, I know the score. This is why the poor posters in these threads never received a satisfactory reply; their problem was not common enough for OOTP to devote resources to research and resolve. I hope these members ultimately found their answers like I did; I was lucky. __________________ . - Bru (also known as 1998 Yankees)