Not Enough Disk Space to Install XP Service Pack 3 on a Mac

I've been trying to update my Windows XP installation to Service Pack 3 for 2 hours now. It keeps telling me that it needs 4MB more disk space. FOUR MEGS! I have 10 gigs free!

Here's the glitch: it's not about how much free space I have. It's about the fact that I'm running XP on a Mac with BootCamp - specifically, the MacBook Pro laptop. Apparently, this also happens on the Intel based iMac's.

The error message:

There is not enough disk space on C:\WINDOWS\$NtServicePackUninstall$ to install Service Pack 3 Setup requires an additional 4 megabytes of free space or if you also want to archive the files for uninstallation. Setup requires 4 additional megabytes of free space. Free additional space on your hard disk and then try again.

The solution lies in the fact that Intel Mac's use the EFI format, which Windows does not support. (Feel free to Google more about EFI - all I know is, the solution I found on WindowsReference.com solved the problem for me!)

The fix:

1. Click Start - Run - Type regedit and press enter.

2. Navigate to
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup]

3. In the right pane, right-click and choose New - String value

4. Name it BootDir and set its value to C:\

5. Exit regedit.

Re-try your SP3 installation, and all should be right with the world.

I got the Comcast bandwidth cap email today

Comcast will begin capping cable internet bandwidth at 250GB/month starting October 1, 2008. I received notice to that effect today:

Dear Comcast High-Speed Internet Customer,

We appreciate your business and strive to provide you with the best online experience possible. One of the ways we do this is through our Acceptable Use Policy (AUP). The AUP outlines acceptable use of our service as well as steps we take to protect our customers from things that can negatively impact their experience online. This policy has been in place for many years and we update it periodically to keep it current with our customers' use of our service.

On October 1, 2008, we will post an updated AUP that will go into effect at that time.

In the updated AUP, we clarify that monthly data (or bandwidth) usage of more than 250 Gigabytes (GB) is the specific threshold that defines excessive use of our service. We have an excessive use policy because a fraction of one percent of our customers use such a disproportionate amount of bandwidth every month that they may degrade the online experience of other customers.

250 GB/month is an extremely large amount of bandwidth and it's very likely that your monthly data usage doesn't even come close to that amount. In fact, the threshold is approximately 100 times greater than the typical or median residential customer usage, which is 2 to 3 GB/month. To put it in perspective, to reach 250 GB of data usage in one month a customer would have to do any one of the following:

* Send more than 50 million plain text emails (at 5 KB/email);
* Download 62,500 songs (at 4 MB/song); or
* Download 125 standard definition movies (at 2 GB/movie).

And online gamers should know that even the heaviest multi- or single-player gaming activity would not typically come close to this threshold over the course of a month.

In addition to modifying the excessive use policy, the updated AUP contains other clarifications of terms concerning reporting violations, newsgroups, and network management. To read some helpful FAQs, please visit http://help.comcast.net/content/faq/Frequently-Asked-Questions-about-Excessive-Use.

Thank you again for choosing Comcast as your high-speed Internet provider.

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The New Test

If the new Microsoft ads make sense to you, you're a match made in heaven! (You and Microsoft, that is).

If not, get a Mac!!!

(I'm in the "get a Mac" crowd).

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What Will People Think?

A poster I made for my friend and photog professor's upcoming photo exhibit. See the photography of Carol Thorner at her show: "What Will People Think? (and other concerns)" at The Center for Visual & Performing Arts in Munster, Indiana. Sept 12 to Oct 19.

Come out and meet Carol at the artist reception on Sept 19, 6-9pm.

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September 2008 Desktop Calendar

Free September 2008 Desktop Calendar
Download the large size here:
farm4.static.flickr.com/3018/2820256482_95b57447e0_o.jpg

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