Firmware Update

Greetings fellow Outlaws!

I purchased my 990 in January, I believe and assumed it already came with the latest firmware upgrade. However, is there a way to test for this, or is there some indicator that provides the info, within the display screen?

thanks,

John

Check out my firmware update notes from my 990 review for a run-down on the firmware update procedure and now to see what your current firmware version is. Pressing "SELECT" and "INPUT" on the front panel at the same time while the unit is in standby displays the version number, but be careful because "SELECT" and "MENU" will reset the unit to factory defaults.

Thank you, Gonk!

John

Hello everyone.

I've just had another look at the firmware upgrade for the 990. The instructions say it requires either ME, 2,000 or XP, for installation. I have Win 98 and may soon have Windows Vista. Does this mean I'm SOL?

thanks,

John

Dr JB,
You still have Win 98..... wow....
That's impressive not to give in to the world of consumerism.

i think you would be okay w/ vista. Gonks note say anything?
somebody should know or just give outlaw a call.

...he still has Win 98....

Vista vs. XP has been an issue/question. I'm not an IT guy. WE have one on this forum. However, that stated, I will tell you that having just bought two new computers, DELL Desktop T7400 with 3.0 GHz microprocessor and M6300 laptop with 2.5 gHz microprocessor) one reason now was that I did NOT want to be forced to accepting VISTA. Nearly everytime Microsoft came out with a new OS there were problems and problems, requiring patches. XP Pro has been "bullet-proof" (stable-stable-stable, though there have been two service packs).

DELL claims MS will stop shipping OEM XP Pro sometime in June (probably later).

Another reason to not get Vista is that one's programs will run if (1) new and Vista compatible: (2) "current-enough" to run.

Sorry Mr. Gates. Not for me.

I don't specifically recall folks trying and failing to do the update from Win98, but that may simply be because nobody tried it. If I were the one trying it, I'd focus on the RS-232 approach. USB under Win98 was always a bit of an adventure, and it's very possible that this is why Outlaw recommended WinME or higher for the 990 firmware update. Outlaw support might be able to confirm one way or another.

Thank you all for your responses!

Gonk, I will try and contact them; thanks!

John

p.s. Nfaguys, those are a couple of sweet computers; wow! There is a new, SP3 for XP, that is supposed to be released, via auto update, before the end of June. It's also available now:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/detai...&displaylang=en

I've been waiting to see when XP SP3 arrived, thanks for the heads-up. Time to go grab the network install update so I can have it sitting on the server for use around the office...

I'm a Mac guy, but I have Parallels virtual machine installed on both of my macs. The update works fine running through virtualization with XP Pro.

Just another avenue if you're wondering.

Just a head's up,

for those of you with business applications, Microsoft recommends the installation of a hotfix before you install SP3.

Here's the explanation and links:

http://www.dailytech.com/article.aspx?newsid=11711

John

Thanks to John for the link re: xp/sp3 info.
Very interesting and perhaps important to we who wish to continue with xp.

Thanks, nfaguys.

However, we should all now read this:

http://www.computerworld.com:80/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&articleId=9084418&intsrc=hm_list

Gee, the second time around and still not right. Way to go, Microsoft!

John

I read through that, and the first problem is because of HP.

But I've had SP3 installed for the past few days and no problems on my AMD/ABIT PC.

To be fair, given the near infinite variety of setups and configurations, it would be near impossible to think of and resolve every potential issue, especially in advance. However, I've just upgraded my computer and because of agp driver issues (or, more precisely, because of a lack of mature ATI AGP drivers), my configuration files got whacked, not once, but twice. If any of you have been through a fresh install, you know what a frustrating experience this can be. So, when I read it, I empathized with those faced with what I've recently gone through, myself.

As I posted the link for SP3, I just wanted everyone to be aware.

John

Thanks for the heads-up on SP3, JOhn.
Though initially tempted, I'd better stay with what works well.

Maybe you saved me countless hours.

You're welcome, Ivan.

Microsoft said they would release SP3, as an auto-install, before the end of June. Hopefully, by then, they will have resolved any major issues.

John

FWIW - I just upgraded my daughter's HP laptop to SP3 (albeit with Intel processors) and it is working fine. The only issue was with ZoneAlarm, which didn't recognize the new MS programs and popped-up a number of alerts. In fact I am writing is from her machine.