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Solutions: Disc-burning software is culprit

Q. I am running Windows XP Professional. I have multiple hard drives, all with more than half of their drive space available. I have a large number of movies and mpeg files in single folders. I have the folder view set for thumbnails so I can see file contents when I open the folders. When I open a folder, the thumbnails start to show, then Windows Explorer freezes and I get the message, "Windows Explorer has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience." When I click on Send Error Report, Explorer closes. I get the following in the error message:

By John Torro, Times Correspondent
Published February 25, 2008

Q. I am running Windows XP Professional. I have multiple hard drives, all with more than half of their drive space available. I have a large number of movies and mpeg files in single folders. I have the folder view set for thumbnails so I can see file contents when I open the folders. When I open a folder, the thumbnails start to show, then Windows Explorer freezes and I get the message, "Windows Explorer has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience." When I click on Send Error Report, Explorer closes. I get the following in the error message:

Appname: explorer

Appver: 6.0.2900.3156

Mod name: nemp4splitter.ax

Modver: 4.9.4.1

Offset: 0002a656

What is shutting down Explorer and how do I fix it?

A. This is an error that initiates from the Nero CD/DVD burning software. Unregister the nemp4splitter.ax file: Click Start, Run, then type:

regsvr32 /u "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Nero\DSFilter\NeMP4Splitter.ax"

Sometimes switching to List View mode and deleting the Thumbnails.db file in the folder will do the trick. Explorer will rebuild it the next time you select Thumbnail View mode.

Q. With the advent of Blu-ray and HD DVDs, will old DVD players be able to play Blu-ray discs, realizing that you will not have the "HD" quality? Will I have to trash my outdated DVD player?

A. No, you can not play Blu-ray or HD DVDs on regular DVD players. With the recent announcement that Blu-ray will be the standard, edging out HD DVD, which will quickly become obsolete, at least we will have a little less confusion about what the standard format will be. But here's my prediction: within five years we will be downloading high-definition movies on demand directly from our cable providers.

Q. When I start up my computer, I know that it is ready to go when I get a popup reading "KBD.EXE has encountered a problem and needs to close. Sorry for the inconvenience." I am told to tell Microsoft or cancel. I cancel and am ready to go. What is this, and how can I get rid of it?

A. KBD.EXE is the Multimedia Keyboard Manager found on HP and Compaq PCs and laptops. It controls the shortcut keys for various functions on the HP keyboard. Different Windows service packs or updates have been know to cause some problems with this. You should be able to visit the technical support section of the HP Web site (www.hp.com/support and download the latest version for your PC. If you don't use the keyboard shortcuts, you can remove this process from startup: click Start, Run, type msconfig and click OK. Click the Startup tab, find and uncheck the line with KBD.EXE. Also, many malware or spyware applications disguise themselves as KBD.EXE, so make sure your antispyware and antvirus applications are up-to-date and have recently run through a full scan.

Send questions to personaltech@sptimes.com or Personal Tech, P.O. Box 1121, St. Petersburg, FL 33731. Questions are answered only in this column.

[Last modified February 22, 2008, 21:02:50]