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I’m unable to connect my mobile phone to my laptop. In Control Panel I only have a Bluetooth configuration icon and can’t find a Bluetooth device icon to setup my Bluetooth.

Service Pack and Dongle

You need two things in order for a Bluetooth device to work on your computer - the latest Windows XP Service Pack 3 (if you’re running XP) and a “dongle” that is compatible with your system. The updated Service Packs have many of the drivers that are needed by Bluetooth devices. A dongle is a small piece of hardware that fits into your USB port that will allow your devices to run. One dongle that you can buy for about $30 that has worked for other users in your situation is the D-Link DBT-120. If you have done both of these things, and you still can’t find the Bluetooth device icon on your computer, there are a few other things you can try.

Change in REGEDIT

You can try deleting a registry key that may allow the system to scan for hardware changes and allow the Bluetooth to be recognized. Know that changing things in the registry can be dangerous, so be careful and make sure your system is backed up completely.

Go to Start and then Run. In the dialog box, type in REGEDIT and click Ok. Navigate to HKEY Local Machine\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Class. Find and delete this key: {e0cbf06c-cd8b-4647-bb8a-263b43f0f974}. Now go back to Device Manager. Remove any Bluetooth devices that might be listed here. Now click on Action and choose Scan for hardware changes. This should re-enumerate the Bluetooth adapter.

Scan Now

You can also try to run the sfc \scannow command, which is the system file checker to make sure everything is running properly. You will need the XP disc for this to work properly. Go to Start and then Run. In the box, type in: sfc \scannow. This will guide you into the set up and then it will run. It may take a while to complete, so do this when you have some time.

Hopefully, the proper Bluetooth adapter and the correct Service Pack will have you up and running wirelessly.

Harassing phone calls are annoying. The reasons are numerous. One of the best ways to deal with them is to simply block the phone numbers of these calls. You have several options that you can use to block these phone numbers from completing a call to your phone.

How to Block Unwanted Calls from Telemarketers

Placing your personal home phone number or personal wireless number on the National Do-Not-Call list will effectively cut back on the number of phone calls you receive from telemarketers. You do need to register (sign up) for this service, but it is free. A few exceptions do exist such as any organization that you personally contact has the right to call you at a later date. This would include any applications that you made, purchases, or inquiries to the company. To sign up on the Do-Not-Call list, call this toll free number: 1-888-382-1222. You must make the phone call from the number that you want to place on the list.

Prank and Harassing Phone Calls

In order to deal with prank phone calls or harassing phone calls, you should contact your local police department. It is illegal to make such phone calls and the police department will need you to make a formal complaint so that they can help you with this situation.

Blocking Unwanted Phone Calls through Your Phone Service

Most phone services feature an option that you can get for a small monthly fee to block unwanted phone calls from your phone number. It might be called call block, call screening, or call rejection depending on your phone service provider. Contact your provider and ask about this service.

Blocking Unwanted Phone Calls with Special Software

A number of software applications have been designed to block unwanted phone calls from your personal phone number. I haven’t used any of these applications myself so I cannot vouch for their reliability or usefulness in blocking annoying phone calls. However, you can do a bit of research online to check out the features of the applications that you want to check out. Then, make your decision based upon what you have learned.

Google Voice has a phone spam feature designed into it. This feature is designed to allow users to block specific phone numbers from contacting their phone. It works with multiple phone numbers as well. The user simply tags specific phone numbers as spam and those numbers are blocked from ringing their phone number. It also blocks those phone numbers from leaving emails. The unwanted phone calls must be manually deleted from a designated spam folder.

Caller ID Manager is another application that is designed to block unwanted calls from ringing your phone number. It is put out by Privacy Corps. You can even block unwanted phone callers from ringing your phone with Caller ID Manager.

CallZap is another application that is designed to block unwanted calls from ringing your phone number. It is designed for use with a caller ID compatible modem.

Java 3.0 for Mobile Devices

Java Platform Micro Edition Software Development Kit 3.0 Early Access

I think the program you are referring to is the Java Platform Micro Edition Software Development Kit 3.0 Early Access, which you can get from the Sun Microsystems website through this link. Sun boasts that Java ME is “The most ubiquitous application platform for mobile devices.”

Java ME 3.0 is the latest from Java for developing applications for mobile devices. Java ME 3.0 includes the technologies of its predecessors, Java Toolkit 1.0 and Java Wireless Toolkit 2.5.2 and adds advanced device emulation and other features. For detailed information about this application, check out its page on the Sun Microsystems website.

Software and Hardware Requirements

The Java Micro Edition Software Development Kit (SDK) is available for Windows XP Service Pac 3 and Vista 32 bit Service Pack 1. There is not a release available for 64 bit Vista versions yet. To run this Java SDK you need to have a Java Standard Edition (SE) installed on your system. The Java SE is the desktop version with which you can create and launch Java applications. You also need Apple Quick Time Player in order to play ARM files on Windows. The hardware minimum requirements include 200 MB of available hard disk space, 1 GB of RAM and a 1 GHz Pentium CPU or better.

Install Java ME SDK 3.0

To install the Java ME SDK 3.0, first make sure that your computer meets the required software and hardware expectations. Follow the link offered above to download the Java platform. When the icon appears on your desktop, click it twice to open it and launch the installation. Follow the prompts offered by the installation wizard to install. When the installation is complete, you will see the Device Manager show up in the Windows system tray.

Java Capabilities in Mobile Devices

If you are looking for a download to install a Java program to view applications on your mobile device, you need to check with the manufacturer. The capacity for Java applications is determined when the device is made, and depends on whether or not the device has KVM - the mobile equivalent of Java - installed to play Java applications. Unfortunately, it isn’t possible to download the mobile capacity if it wasn’t installed on your device.

A popular wireless device that has taken hold of the market, the Playstation Portable or PSP has a number of great features. With a PSP, users can listen to music, watch movies and television shows, play games, and more. It can be used to connect to the Internet and download any number of items including games, music, wallpaper, etc.

For some of these activities, you need to have Flash enabled on your PSP. The PSP that includes PSP firmware 2.70 or later comes with Flash capability. There’s no need to download it. If you need to check to see what version you have, you can visit this link:

Unfortunately, if you don’t have the proper firmware, you will not be able to access Flash. Currently, it isn’t possible to download Flash onto a PSP. The only way to get it is through the firmware. If you do not have version 2.70 or later, you need to obtain it by  visiting the website (Playstation Support.)

Enabling Flash on a PSP

In order to use Flash and view Flash content on your PSP, you need to enable it first. The method you use to do so depends upon the model PSP you have. Follow the directions outlined below for the PSP model that you have. Once you enable Flash on your PSP, you will be able to play games or view content that requires Flash to be enabled.

Enabling Flash on a PSP-1001

• 1) Navigate to “Settings.”
• 2) Navigate to “System Settings.”
• 3) Select “Enable Flash Player.”
• 4) Press the “x” button.

Enabling Flash on a PSP-2001 or 3001

• 1) Navigate to “Network.”
• 2) Navigate to “www (the Internet Browser.)”
• 3) Press the “x” button.
• 4) Select the button with the little triangle on it to access the menu for the Internet Browser.
• 5) Navigate to “Tools.”
• 6) Select “Settings.”
• 7) Select “View Settings.”
• 8) Navigate to “Flash.”
• 9) Press the “x” button.
• 10) Use the directional pad to move in the direction that allows you to select “On.”

PSP and Internet Connection

If you need to set up the infrastructure on your PSP so that you can connect to the Internet, visit this link on the Playstation website: Playstation PSP Infrastructure.

PSP and System Updates

It is important that PSP owners keep up with the updates for their system on a regular basis. In order to access these updates, visit the PSP page for Playstation’s website at this link: PSP. You can also access this information on the support page for the website at this link: Playstation Support.

I want to clean the image sensor or my Canon EOS Rebel 300D Digital camera. The manual (p34) refers me to a “Sensor Clean” item in the tools2 menu in the camera’s display. This item, if selected, will command the shutter to open for the duration of cleaning process. Unfortunately, that menu item is missing from my camera’s tools2 menu. Possibly, my camera’s BIOS predates the manual that came with the camera. How can I open and keep open, the shutter to allow the cleaning of the image sensor?

A few options for troubleshooting are available to you. I highly suggest that you try the first suggestion initially as this is probably going to solve your problem. If it doesn’t resolve the issue for you, continue reading my other suggestions.

Switch Modes

For some reason, some of the options that are available in the tools2 menu are only visible when the camera is set to a specific mode. Therefore, the first step you should take is to set your Canon EOS Rebel 300D Digital camera to each available mode, starting with the “Creative Zone” modes. In particular, some settings are not available when the camera is set to “PIC” mode. Before you begin to use this feature, make sure the camera is fully charged to avoid potential harm to your camera.

Option for Opening the Shutter: Clean Manually

If you cannot access “Sensor Clean,” then you can open the shutter manually in order to clean it. Set the camera to the “Clean Manual” setting. Select a 30 second exposure. Thirty seconds allows you to know exactly how much time you have before the shutter closes.

Make sure that the battery is fully charged to avoid accidental closing of the shutter while you are cleaning. If the shutter were to close prematurely, you could damage the sensor permanently.

To expedite the cleaning, hold the camera so that the sensor is facing down. Use the blower without the brush to blow away any of the dust that has accumulated. The brush might add more dirt than exists already.

Use a timer if possible and set it to 28 seconds so that you have a warning as to the end of the 30 second window. Never use compressed air to remove the dust from the sensor.

Locating “Sensor Clean” or “Clean Manual”

Follow these directions to ensure that you are looking in the correct location for the location of the “Sensor Clean” or “Clean Manual” settings.

• Press the “Menu” button on the back of the camera.
• Select “Set up” menu.
• Press the “Select” button and at the same time select “Sensor Cleaning” or “Clean Manual.”
• Release the “Select” button.
• Press and hold the “Select” button and select “ok.”
• Release the “Select” button and the screen will display “Sensor Cleaning” or “Clean manually.”
• Press the “shutter” button.

Since you have already attempted to solve your problem, some of these suggestions will be repeats. Wade through them and try anything new first. Then, you can attempt to retry some of the others since they might actually work the second time around. The solutions vary in their efficiency sometimes according to whether you are using a 32 or 64 bit version of Windows Vista.

What Does Error 80073712 Mean?

If error 80073712 occurs when attempting to install an update for Windows Vista, the component store is most likely corrupt and in need of repair. What happens is that certain types of data (file, registry, and memory) have become inconsistent or corrupt. This prevents Windows updates from reaching completion.

Use System Update Readiness Tool

In order to fix an error 8007312 related problem, you need to use the “System Update Readiness Tool.” It is essential that you understand two important facts here. First, once you download the “System Update Readiness Tool,” it needs to run a scan. Second, the scan takes at least fifteen minutes (sometimes a great deal more) and it “pauses” somewhere around the 60% completion mark. Whatever you do, exercise patience and allow it to complete no matter how long it takes. This scenario will vary from one computer to another depending on system resources, hardware, software, and the extent of the damage. Visit Support Microsoft 947821 to download the “System Update Readiness Tool,” and to learn more about it. Scroll to the bottom of the page to find the download for your version of Vista.

Downloading Windows Vista Service Packs

Windows highly recommends that computer users download service packs using “Windows Updates.” This practice uses less resources than going through Microsoft’s Download Center. If you don’t have a lot of available resources on your computer and you are trying to download from Microsoft’s Download Center, you can run into problems. Additionally, if you go through “Windows Updates,” it checks automatically for problematic drivers. If they exist, the update will not take place until the drivers have been updated.

Free Support for Problems Installing “Windows Updates”

Microsoft is offering free technical support to anyone experiencing problems installing Windows Vista SP1. This free help is only available until March 18, 2009, so I suggest trying to take advantage of it as soon as possible. You can access this help at Vista SP1 Help. You have three options: email support, individual chat support, and phone support.