Ask A Geek

Q: My computer starts playing commercials and what sounds like a pirate broadcast all on its own. I unplug the cable and it still keeps going. Since this started I now have all kinds of corrupted files, the CD/DVD wont work, and I have tried to download stuff to fix it but everything is instantly corrupted. Do I have a virus or has someone hacked my computer?

Q: When I try to access a specific DVD in my DVD drive I get an I/O error message. How do I go about fixing this?

A: The most likely cause of this is that the disc is damaged or dirty. You will know for sure if this is the case especially if you can access other discs without a problem. You will want to inspect the disc to see if there are any scratches on the shiny side without the logo if it is a CD/DVD you bought from a store. If it is a CD/DVD you burned then you also want to check the top to make sure that there are no scratches up there as well because in a burned CD/DVD the top is actually just as important as the bottom. Read the rest of this entry »

Q: I have Verizon cell phone service and I’m wondering if there is a way for me to have a voice mail that is saved in my voice mail box sent to my computer. I would like to be able to save a voice mail to a cd.

Q: I am trying to install mac os 9.2 on a computer running mac os 9.0. When I am installing it a message comes up that says “problems where encountered reading the source file Installation Tome. Installation cannot continue.” Does this mean that its the disk’s fault or do I have to install something else?

A: That means there is a problem with the CD/DVD. There is a chance that the problem is a scratch that, which cannot be fixed. However, you might get lucky and the problem might just be dirt and finger prints. You should try using a damp cloth to clean the disk to make sure the disk is clean and try again.

Q: I have a Dell PC with a single CD ROM with Adobe Media Player. I have found a site with speeches in MP3 format. Can I burn this onto a CD-R? How do I do it?

Q: How do I turn a USB flash drive into a virtual DVD/CD drive to mount virtual DVD/CD?

Q: I recorded my minutes for a meeting and put it on a audio CD. Is there a program that will convert it to word so that I don’t have to type it?

Q: When I burn an mp3 CD I use deep burner. I click create a data disc then I click on multi session. When I go to play it in my car stereo only 75% of the tracks work. I was wondering if you cold tell me why this is happening?

Q: I have a new HP laptop with Vista. I can not get my media player to burn CD’s or burn a DVD!

Q: I have some text that I want to share with another person, however I don’t want them to be able to “steal” it or save it to their computer. Is there any way to stop someone from saving the contents of a CD to their computer?