I am resurrecting this particular topic as it corrects the earlier impression I had and referred to in aNswering Bru's small talk DVD topic that catman-Ron was sent an NTSC format Reno DVD from the States (perhaps it was that other Melburnian Peter Treloar??)
OK the purpose of this posting will now become clear. I have,I think. previously mentioned that I was struggling to complete a new 21st century desktop.
It is virtually done now,
I have installed Windows XP Media Centre Edition, Roxio Easy Media Creator 8 and a DVD-ROM Drive but I was not best pleased
when I inserted a DVD for the first time to be told (I kid you not):-
"WMP cannot play the DVD because a compatible DVD decoder is not installed on your computer"
which seemed pretty dumb after all just what is the point of a Media Centre Ediion that handles DVD production it can't play DVDs??
Off I went a'googling but I only really found a Microsoft site listing approved DVD decoders that all would cost $$$
As did a google search for a DVD Player program. All that is except:-
http://www.cliprex.com
who offerred a rather confusing choice of not one but four allegedly free DVD Players. I dutifully downloaded them for evaluation and installed two, both of which declared unequivocally that they were free only because you had to accept a bundle of assorted parasitical search engines and extraneous toolbar garbage the friggin losers!! Plus the diabolical when-up that I have had trouble with before.
I then thought lets try a DVD again and was exceedingly surprised to find that I was now offerred the choice of playing it with either Roxio's Cine Player or (as I had wanted all along) Windows Media Player 10.
So of course I fetched my Reno DVD,largely because, ever since my friggin stoopid under enginered Sony Vaio laptop decided unilaterally to pack it in, I have not had a DVD drive equipped PC to play Reno on and capture my favo(u)rite scene in it.
This is right at the beginning, after Gord has sauntered no swaggerred on to the stage. plugged in his axe then looks straight at the camera with a delightfully wry and cheesy grin:-
John Fowles
Now to download some free anti-spyware progammes and try to eradicate the residue of the cliprex nonsense
Oh well you and live and learn