Russ999

It always makes me laugh when people say what a big fuss about nothing Y2K was. It was a HUGE issue, which IT staff across the world worked hard to avoid. Because they all did a great job in fixing the problems, no major issues were encountered. But because they did a good job, everybody said there was no problem in the first place. It is a shame that everybody needs a catastrophe to happen in order to realise how big a problem it is, rather than thank and respect those that prevented a major catastrophe from happening in the first place...

Hey when I go on holiday the laptop stays at home But if I did take it with me, well it's got 3G built in, so good old MS can check up on me whenever they like !! I see your point but realistically I am sure that the OS won't deactivate simply because it's not connected to the internet. I expect it's more that if it IS connected, it will do a check. Just because you've read something on a forum somewhere doesn't make it true!

Hi - I'm also getting the same error Any chance of posting the download link here? Thanks, Russ.

The only people who should be worried are hackers and pirates. Constantly checking the OS for legitimacy - why would anybody even THINK about listing that as an issue?? PS, thanks for posting the DLA removal tool but unfortunately it doesn't work for me. I did a restore, and the removal tool has now removed the software from my uninstall list, but the driver error is still there. I'm sure there is something simple that I'm missing - I'll keep trying, and if I find a solution I'll post it here so you can add it to the forum. Cheers, Russ.

To be honest I don't really care ... I've installed Vista, am using it as a media centre PC, and I think it's great. You're all paranoid The only bad thing about Vista is the Sonic DLA error that Roxio haven't released a fix for yet!

I removed the update and the problem is still there, I do not believe the update is the cause of the problem. Considering that this is affecting so many people (I know of 8 Vista installations from colleagues and friends, ALL of whom are getting this error - there must be tens of thousands of people getting it!) I would say it's pretty serious. The thing is, I don't even want a revised driver, or a fix, I just want to know how to uninstall it, and nobody can help!

Hi John, I tried the work around, did not work for me. Unfortunately I can't add this machine to a domain to try the above... but all that seems to do is hide the popup rather than actually fix the driver, which doesnt bring my dvd drive back

I think you have posted the wrong link. This one above is one person who had installation problems with Vista, then lots of replies saying "works ok for me mate". Not sure where this mentions the RTM being any different to the public release version? Infact the original post was submitted at the beginning of November just when RTM was released - ie, before it could be compared to the release version. And, because it was RTM, at the time of installation, many drivers and software would have been in beta or not yet available. So, I can only assume this is the wrong link?? PS - being a "microsoft group" means pretty much nothing, it could have been posted here or any other forum! Anyway back to the point in hand. Still no Sonic DLA removal tool, and still no ETA

There were some minor changes between RTM and Public release, in the form of a few patches and updates - just like the ones that get released weekly by MS for XP. Nothing drastic enough to prevent the release of software, and seriously - it can't be used as an excuse. As I said, I have downloaded and installed drivers for EVERY other piece of software and hardware on this and several other computers. Absolutely EVERYTHING on my computers with Vista is working excellently and I am stunned how stable all of the drivers and applications are. All apart from Sonic Solutions DLA... The decision to wait was a bad one, but not worth dwelling over. What's important is that a fix is produced urgently. If I was senior management at Roxio, I would have my developers work 24/7 to get a solution out. Having this error pop up on machines across the world that Sonic Solutions have an incompatible driver, causing Vista not to work properly, will be harming their reputation without a doubt. I really hope a solution will be out soon, both for the sake of the thousands of users this issue is affecting, and for Sonic as a company.

Same here. Removing the update didn't help.

Thanks John. Any "guesstimate" on a release date for a DLA removal tool? Are we potentially looking at weeks/months, or more like hours/days? At present my Vista PC is just about unusable as the DLA error pops up in the middle of the screen every 5 seconds and can't be disabled, and my DVD drive is disabled as a result so I cannot install software. At my office, 4 people have installed Vista. Three of us on Dells (me on laptop, two on desktop), and another on a toshiba laptop. ALL four of us have had this same problem. This is a HUGE issue and there will be thousands of people all over the world looking for a solution. I appreciate it is number 1 issue for your company... set up a Paypal "developer overtime / pizza fund" and I'll gladly donate a few pounds if it means it'll get sorted quicker. Thanks, Russ.

Vista RTM is the same as the public release version. The beta version was different, but not much. If it was really so different, how come SO many hardware and software suppliers were able to release production versions of very complex items on production day with zero problems? Answer - it wasn't! I'm no trying to argue, but the reason there is no update on release date is nobodys fault but Roxio/Sonic Solutions, and for the sake of their users (and their bank balance!) I just hope they get on and fix things soon.

Of course not - I would expect the manufacturer to plan ahead. If you want to compare the Vista release to a car, it would go something like this. Car manufacturer : Hey everyone, we are going to be releasing a new car in about a years time. Because some things won't work right with your product, here is a version of the car so you can work out what won't work. Third party component supplier : Thanks, we will start developing right away. End user : That's very reassuring Car manufacturer : Yes, that's why we give everyone plenty of notice. In fact, now the release is only 3 months away, here is an RTM (release to manufacturer) version of the car. It is identical to the version that will go to the public in 3 months time, so you have plenty of time to identify any problems and fix them. You can even release beta-fixes to the beta-users of the car to make sure it all works before the public release date. Third party component supplier : We have a beta version available for testing, and feedback is being received and worked in to the final version. End user : Great! Car manufacturer : Today is release date, everything works fine because everyone was given plenty of notice. Third party component supplier : Indeed, and here are all of our new parts which work with it. End user : Perfect. Now here is what has happened with Sonic Solutions... Car manufacturer : Hey everyone, we are going to be releasing a new car in about a years time. Because some things won't work right with your product, here is a version of the car so you can work out what won't work. Third party component supplier : Thanks, but its ages away, a year, we don't need to do anything yet. End user : That's a bit worrying, but I'm sure you know what you are doing. Car manufacturer : Well, we do give everyone plenty of notice and recommend you start to work on changes. In fact, now the release is only 3 months away, here is an RTM (release to manufacturer) version of the car. It is identical to the version that will go to the public in 3 months time, so you have plenty of time to identify and problems and fix them. You can even release beta-fixes to the beta-users of the car to make sure it all works before the public release date. Third party component supplier : We haven't even started developing a beta version yet. But hey, it's still three months away. Plenty of time. End user : Erm, ok, but you only have three months left. Car manufacturer : Today is release date, I hope everyone has used this last year wisely to develop the 3rd party components. Third party component supplier : Umm, not quite. Lets just wait for thousands of people to crash their cars, and when they start complaining, we'll start working on it. End user : CRASH. Erm, help, please? Third party component supplier : Whatever, it only came out today, give us a break. We'll start on it now. Infact, you have a Dell, go speak to them, it's not our problem (even though it's our software).

I don't believe that link implies that Dell should be liable at all. All I want to know is how to remove DLA from my laptop. Pretend it's not Dell then - how would I do it? I can only assume that the answer of "it is Dell's problem" means that there is no generic "Sonic Answer" which would work regardless of the machine, hence the buck passing?

... and I would respectfully suggest that you check your facts before replying with snide remarks! Vista was released to manufacturers in November, but to the general public on 30th January. The idea is that manufacturers and developers have access to the software months before launch, giving them plenty of time to develop their software and drivers to work prior to the public launch. Waiting for the public launch, and for users to have all of these errors, is no good. I had a Beta version of Vista months and months ago (as a home user), and was sent an RTM version (legally) in November. So for software companies to be at a point in time several days past the _general public_ launch with no resolution to these errors is surely embarrasing on their part. All decent software providers have had "Vista Beta" versions of their software and drivers up on their websites for weeks/months! In case you don't believe me (and Silver...), here is the link about the release date. http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/feature...08VistaRTM.mspx Russ.