From: V@nguard.LH   
      
   Peter Bennett wrote:   
      
   > Looking at Start/Programs/Startup, the only items listed there are   
   > Bluetooth and Digital Line Detect - no mention of Explorer.   
   >   
   > What is "Digital Line Detect"?  Any problem if I delete that?   
   >   
   > The computer is a Dell notebook.   
      
   I'll continue your discussion in this newsgroup (and abandon/ignore the   
   one over in alt.windows-xp).   
      
   Doesn't have to explicitly identify explorer.exe as the program.  It   
   could specify just a path which would then have Windows Explorer open to   
   show that path.  Anti-virus, tweakers, and other software could   
   eradicate a program but leave behind its arguments, and those arguments   
   could specify a path in the file system so WE opens to show it.   
      
   What does the "digital line detect" line have for a startup item?  That   
   is, what is the string shown in msconfig for the command line for that   
   startup item?  While you can expand the columns shown in msconfig so you   
   can see an entire string, I believe you can also hover the mouse over a   
   string to show a popup with the entire string shown.  Here is what I   
   found by searching on "digital line detect" and reading in the Dell   
   forums the responses by the Dell reps:   
      
     Digital Line Detect is a program sent out with certain V.92 compliant   
     modes to test your phone line. Digital phone lines run on a different   
     voltage than Analog phone lines.  If you connect your modem to a   
     digital phone line, it could damage the modem. Digital Line Detect   
     allows you to test the phone line to see if it is digital or not.   
     Analog phone lines are found in homes and most businesses.   
     Digital phone lines are found in some businesses and offices and other   
     "corporate" buildings.  You do not need the program if you are using   
     your computer at your home.   
      
   So it appears included in the bloatware found pre-installed by vendors   
   on pre-built computers.  But you need to look at the startup items   
   listed by msconfig to see if they actually specify programs for their   
   commands or if they only specify a path in the file system.   
      
   Msconfig won't delete any startup items.  When you have it disable an   
   item, it actually moves it from the registry location shown to a holding   
   registry location just for msconfig.  That is, a disable moves the item   
   to somewhere that Windows doesn't use as a startup location.  That way,   
   if you reenable an item, msconfig moves it back from its holding area in   
   registry to the prior location in the registry (which is a startup   
   location to Windows).  To actually delete means going into the registry   
   and deleting the entry (msconfig gives you info on that).   
      
   You could start Windows in its safe mode.  That will skip the startup   
   items.  If the problem goes away then it is a startup item causing the   
   problem.  If the problem went away in safe mode, use msconfig to disable   
   all non-Microsoft startup items.  Reboot to see if the problem went   
   away.  If it did, reenable just *one* startup item at a time in msconfig   
   and reboot.  When the problem reappears, it is caused by the last   
   startup item you reenabled.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)