One unfortunately common problem is data corruption on a hard drive and the dreaded “Unmountable Boot Volume” error. While the easiest thing to do may seem to be to format the drive and start from scratch, there is a better way of doing it, as long as you have a Windows XP installation disk handy. Read on to learn more.

Computer hardware wears out over time, it’s a fact. Your hard drive works constantly reading and writing data, and this (among other factors) may cause errors on certain parts of your system.

If you receive the “unmountable boot volume” error and have an installation disk, you still have a chance to save your system.

1. Insert your XP installation disk into an optical drive and boot up your computer.
2. When you see a welcome screen, hit the R key on your keyboard. This will enter you into recovery mode with a DOS prompt.
3. Now type chkdsk /p and hit Enter. This will launch a utility which will check for errors on your hard drive.
4. After the process is done, type fixboot and hit Enter to repair any damaged boot files which may have become corrupted. When asked to say yes or no, type the Y key on your keyboard.
5. Type exit and press the Enter key to reboot your computer.

If all went well, you should now be able to boot back into Windows without a problem!

Good luck!

You want to create a chart that shows the last twelve months of data. But how do you create a chart from the latest data in a range that grows, without having to manually update the source data range every month? Here is an example showing how to construct a dynamic chart to update automatically.

The Data

Start with the following sample data in the worksheet named Sheet1:

        A          B          C          D 
 1    Month     Value A    Value B    Length
 2    Jan-02      4.00       4.45       12
 3    Feb-02      5.45       6.00
 4    Mar-02      6.83       7.46
 5    Apr-02      8.16       8.87
 6    May-02      9.46      10.24
 7    Jun-02     10.74      11.58
 8    Jul-02     12.00      12.90
 9    Aug-02     13.24      14.20
10    Sep-02     14.47      15.48
11    Oct-02     15.69      16.74
12    Nov-02     16.90      18.00
13    Dec-02     18.10      19.24

Define the Dynamic Names

To make a dynamic chart, you first have to define some dynamic range names. Press Ctrl-F3 (or go to the Insert menu, choose Names…, then Define) to open the Define Names dialog. In the Name box type chtLen, and in the Refers To box enter =Sheet1!$D$2. The range name chtLen refers to the length of the chart series (the number of months in D2). Click Add.

Type chtCats in the Name box. In the Refers To box, enter the following formula and click Add. Instead of typing this long expression, just copy it from this page and paste it into the Refers To box by using Ctrl-V.

=OFFSET(Sheet1!$A$1,COUNTA(Sheet1!$A:$A)-1,0,-MIN(chtLen,COUNTA(Sheet1!$A:$A)-1),1)

This defines the range in column A that contains the last twelve months (categories). Check Excel’s help for information about OFFSET and other worksheet functions.

Type chtValA in the Name box, then enter (or Copy-Paste) =OFFSET(chtCats,0,1) in the Refers To box, and click Add. Type chtValB in the Name box, then enter =OFFSET(chtCats,0,2) in the Refers To box, and click Add. These are the monthly values we want to track. Finally, click OK to close the Define Name dialog box.

Create the Chart

Now select a blank cell somewhere and start the Chart Wizard. In step 1 choose a chart type(this example uses a clustered column type). In step 2, click on the Series tab, then click Add to add the first series. Click in the Name box, then select cell B1 (it will show =Sheet1!$B$1). Replace the contents of the Values box with =Sheet1!chtValA. Click in the Category Labels box and enter =Sheet1!chtCats.

Now click Add to add the second series. Click in the Name box, then select cell C1. Replace the contents of the Values box with =Sheet1!chtValB. The Category Labels box already contains =Sheet1!chtCats.

The resulting chart looks like any 12-month picture of the data:

Dynamic Behavior

Now fast-forward six months. The following table has been added to the worksheet:

        A          B          C 
14    Jan-03     19.29      20.48
15    Feb-03     20.48      21.71
16    Mar-03     21.66      22.93
17    Apr-03     22.83      24.14
18    May-03     24.00      25.35
19    Jun-03     25.16      26.55

There is a trick in the definition of chtCats which avoids errors when the data range is less than 12 months long. If we were certain that the range would always have at least 12 rows of data (chtLen), we could have used:

=OFFSET(Sheet1!$A$1,COUNTA(Sheet1!$A:$A)-1,0,-chtLen,1)

But if the range is shorter, the OFFSET formula would refer to rows before row 1. The term MIN(chtLen,COUNTA(Sheet1!$A:$A)-1) takes the actual length of the range if it’s less than chtLen:

=OFFSET(Sheet1!$A$1,COUNTA(Sheet1!$A:$A)-1,0,-MIN(chtLen,COUNTA(Sheet1!$A:$A)-1),1)

Delete all but the first nine months of data. The chart captures the shortened range without a snag.

With so many out there with all kinds of different bells and whistles, and everyone is always running a special somewhere on them, I can fully appreciate how difficult it would be to pick out the “perfect one” to suit your needs. So I’ll give you a few pointers but it will come down to what kind of deal you can get at the point in time you go shopping.

Ultimately you need to decide what YOU want/need. Including functionality vs price. Keep in mind I wrote this with the idea that the laptop is not going to be the sole computer in the house and that there is a desktop involved somewhere. Because of the nature of the laptop I would not buy a laptop to be my only computer. I would have a good desktop to run the heavy computing programs like adobe photoshop and such.

If you need a high end laptop for portability and power this is not for you.

So here we go.

Rule number 1. Laptops are disposable. In most cases when they go bad they will cost more to fix then they are worth. It is better to buy a cheap laptop that you don’t mind throwing out when it comes time to upgrade or if you drop it. (Chances are you will drop it, Spill something on it, etc.) Over all Laptops were not designed to be the desktop. They are designed to be portable. Portable = higher risk of damage.

Hardware specs. More is better. But don’t go overboard.

Keep rule 1 in mind.

But if it does last a long time because you took good care of it you don’t want it to be obsolete by the time you cut the tape off the box

RAM – no less then 1Gb. 2 or 3 Gb is preferable. By the time you run out of room with 3gb you might be looking at upgrading the whole computer… 4Gb might be pushing it too much now.

If it is not much more then certainly go higher.

Spending more here is a worth while investment. This will keep the computer ahead of new technology to come, longer.

Hard drive – unless she plans on putting a lot of music and such on it you don’t need to go overboard on a hard drive. 60- 100GB. A lot of notes from school and reports and research and all these ‘text documents’ do NOT take up a lot of room. Do not be fooled by thinking you need a big hard drive…. Most of the time you will be wasting your money.

Invest in an external drive and/or use the DVD burner to back stuff up!!!!

If you do want to put music and movies on it (and I mean save it on the computer not just pop in a dvd or cd in the dvd slot and watch it!!) Music and movies will require a lot of HD space. (250GB would be good.)

Keep in mind you still need to back it all up.

Screen – This is a “Coolness” factor part. Most laptops have decent screens! But the better it looks the longer you will be happy with it.

IMO - remember rule 1- any screen will do.

Sacrifice here to spend more on Ram or Processor if need be.

Processor – no less then dual core! No less then 1.8 Ghz.

This is another area where you should spend more to keep the laptop ahead of the new technology to come and keep you happy with it longer.

DVD Drive – more the better but don’t think you need “Light Scribe” or “Dual Layer”… Look for DVD R +/- /RW+/-.

Light scribe and Dual layer require special DVD discs… you can use normal discs in them but to use the functionality of Light Scribe or dual layer you need to buy those special discs.

Software. This is an important part mainly for this reason…..

If you buy it with a computer it is usually cheaper….If the laptop does not survive long you can always reuse the software in a replacement computer. Without buying it again…

Be careful to know what you want. And make sure you get it. Don’t be fooled by “trial offers” get the programs out right.

 Like MS office. (I would recommend Student / Teacher edition) but depending on what she is taking…she may need a more inclusive program.

There is a free office package out there that you can try…it is www.openoffice.org it works with MS office but I have not worked extensively with it to say one way or another if it is as good, better or worse the MS office.

Get virus protection

Again you can get free stuff….and it’s not bad….but I would never recommend free antivirus over a program you pay for.

Brand Names.

If you see the word “Sony” on a laptop…turn and run.

Acer – not bad. Had a difficult reputation a while ago but has come back quite strong.

Gateway – uh no.

Dell – I have 2 dells.. usually you get more for your buck with Dell but their service dept leaves a lot to be desired

HP – Compaq – good solid computers – but pricier then others unless you can find a good deal.

IBM / Lenovo same company – good solid computers usually the businessman’s special. Nice and portable. Check Dan’s out.

Make sure to shop around…and be vocal about it when you are… make sure the salesmen know you are shopping around. They will make sure you know of any other offers that are out there.

Check out Costco too….they have some decent ones.

Size and weight!!!

Size and weight are a big factor…Trust me after lugging my 15” screen around I’m sorry I went for it. Now if your going off to school or some other reason, you might be more inclined to watch movies on it… then it’s up to you if you want to get the heavier one with the larger screen so you can watch movies in a dorm room or something… rather then the smaller lighter one that will not be as good to watch movies on.

All this to say “know what you want before going to look.” Yes, sometimes you can find something you didn’t know about before but keep in mind what is important to the goal and what is not.

Last- Always remember, Laptops are disposable don’t go overboard because they are not as “upgradeable” as a desktop, and since they are portable they are much more prone to being damaged accidentally.

Play it Loud!!!!

How can I put my favorite artists in a list? I have so many and my tastes are so wide spread I wouldn’t know where to start or why…. So here they are in no particular order.

• Johnny Cash (The only one that is in order)
• The Clash
• Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros
• Metallica
• Frank Sinatra
• Ray Charles (My first RC album I bought 20 years ago, it’s not b/c of the movie)
• Norah Jones
• Beastie Boys
• Oak Ridge Boys (Oom papa mow mow)
• John Lee Hooker
• U2
• Mississippi John Hurt
• Nat King Cole (Mainly the NKC Trio; I’m not as big a fan of the pop stuff)
• Stan Getz
• RobertJohnson
  • Eric Clapton’s tribute albums are EXCELENT!
• Grateful Dead
• Jerry Garcia and David Grisman
• Green Day
• Dave Brubeck
• Nirvana
• Queen
• Joe Walsh
• Alabama
• Roy Orbison
• Red Hot Chili Peppers
• John Hartford
• Bill Monroe
• Bob Wills
• Bob Dylan
• Asleep at the Wheel
• Bob Marley
• Count Basie
• Creedence Clearwater Revival
• Emmylou Harris
• George Thorogood
• The Doors
• Diana Krall
• INXS
• Johnny Lang
• The Killers
• Led Zeppelin!!!
• Mark O’connor
• Nina Simone
• The StanleyBrothers
• Steve Earl
• Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
• Violent Femmes
• Willie Nelson
• Pink Floyd
• Louis Armstrong

Just to name a few….

Hello World. This is my first blog post. I’m not sure how this is going to go, or even what I want this blog to be about really, but I will give it a try. I might try a few areas of computers and general thoughts on Family life and Religion. I am by far not an expert on anyone of these topics but I am trying!!

My Name for those of you who don’t know is Scott Pawling, and I am attempting to start a business in Computer Repair. I have a wonderfull wife, Abby, and 2 of the best kids anyone could have ever wished for, Hannah (5) and Ian (3). (Yes, The “Rich man’s Family”). I never did understand where that saying came from but anyway.

We are recently new Memebers of our Church , Grace Bible Church in Souderton, Pa. I have attended Grace since I was born - or longer - and now 35 years later we decided to become members… These are things you don’t want to rush into you know?

Anyway I guess that is all for now… This will probably end up in the “About” section later…with new stuff to come all the time.