Solve software update problems

In this column I’m revisiting the topics of patching software and achieving audiophile sound, although this time with further warnings. That sound you can hear is the gnashing of my teeth.

Troublesome updates
Regular readers of the Hardware, Performance and Inside Information columns will know I’ve had a number of issues with various software updates recently. Most notably, a failed Windows XP Service Pack 3 update rendered my otherwise happy Media Center Edition PC unusable without a complete reinstallation ­ suffice it to say I wasn’t a happy bunny.

Indeed, it made me question the need for constant updates on a machine that may be at a much lower risk of viruses than a typical office system. Since I have two media PCs in different locations (one for recording, the other for playback only), I could take the step of not only disabling updates on the latter, but also disconnecting it from the internet altogether as it had no need to download the updated TV schedules.

This extreme proposition came one step closer to becoming a full-time reality when a PowerDVD update significantly reduced the usability of my recently reinstalled media PC.

I’ve long used PowerDVD for Mpeg-2 decoding on DVDs and Media Center recordings, and recently its ability to decode Blu-ray and HD DVD titles.

Most people who use PowerDVD to play HD DVD movies on their PC already know Cyberlink made the unpopular, albeit unsurprising, move of abandoning the defeated format in favour of Blu-ray exclusivity with version 8. So if you’re currently using version 7.3 for HD DVD playback, resist all temptations to ‘upgrade’ to version 8 as you’ll lose the ability to play your old discs. You have to be particularly careful since Cyberlink promotes an upgrade to PowerDVD 8 in some of version 7.3’s setup menus.

After rebuilding my operating system following the botched SP3 update, I installed my original version of PowerDVD 7.3, after which I could once again play DVDs along with Blu-ray and HD DVD titles using my dual-format LG drive. But then PowerDVD informed me a patch was available that should be installed. After verifying it was a genuine 7.x patch, I thought it was safe to proceed.

Do I ever learn? The patch may not have disabled HD DVD playback, and it didn’t even change the main version number on the splash-screen from 7.3, but it did result in two undesirable side-effects. First, when fast-forwarding or rewinding Media Center recordings, the picture froze in place, forcing you to stop, then resume playback before it would reveal where you were. Skipping adverts or even just forwarding through padding subsequently became impossible.

Frustrated, I decided to watch a nice high-definition film and popped a Blu-ray disc into the LG drive. Strangely though, the HD picture which previously filled my 1,920x1,080 pixel desktop had now fallen to a much lower resolution window framed with thick black bars. PowerDVD had detected that I wasn’t using an HDCP connection to my display and was now down-converting the output.