'safely remove hardware' in task bar after installing

[davo]

hello

had to reload windows xp after pc probs, and on connecting to cable modem again, it detected new hardware. put in the ntl broadband cd, and it loaded drivers and seemed to be working. (cant check connection cos sync and ready lights on modem arent both on. but im told this can be normal after having switched off power for ages)(im on different pc at mo)

however, theres an icon in system tray now saying 'safely remove hardware'. with cable modem listed. and it wont go. i was advised to 'remove' it, then boot up, let it find itself again and reload drivers. so i followed instructions to remove, booted up, but icon still there. i cant exit it. its always there. usb modem is in device manager and says driver is working ok etc, so i dont think theres a prob. but why is this icon thee and how can i get rid of it?

cheers
__________________

sorry, that should say 'system tray' not task bar.

[Chris W]

I can't remember exactly what it says, but if you double click on the safely remove hardware icon it will give you a checkbox saying something like "show in system tray" uncheck that and windows will leave you alone

and hmm... sync and rdy should be coming on. When you say the modem has been off for a long time, how long is that?

[Paul K]

You could also

If you have an USB device attached to your system, you will notice an icon in the Notification area, which - when clicked -
will give you the option to Stop your hardware, before you unplug it.

It is possible that you never unplug this hardware. So how do you get rid of the icon? Right-click the notification area, and selecting Properties. Under the Notification area heading, click Customize. Find the Safely Remove Hardware icon and select Always hide in the Behavior column next to it (press OK and Apply to back out).

[davo]

hello mate

thanks for that. i was right clicking it, so will try double clicking when i get to pc again in a few hours. (why does it come up anyway out of interest?)

as far as the lights are concerned, i think its been switched off for a week or more by now, and someone told me it can take a few hours to connect again. is this wrong? should it be connected straight away?

thanks again
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thanks for that paul, but im no expert, and im not sure where this 'notification' area is that you mention. in device manager or something?

youre right about not stopping device before disconnecting. i never knew you had to. and im still not sure how to do this. can you explain more please mate?

cheers

Originally Posted by davo

(why does it come up anyway out of interest?)

It's just trying to be helpful. Certain devices (like external hard drives) have to be properly deactivated ('stopped') before they can be unplugged, or else there's a danger of you corrupting data stored on them. By default Windows makes the icon available to you when you have connected something it thinks you need to 'stop' before unplugging. If you don't want it to appear, you change the default setting as Monkeybreath and Paul have said.

[davo]

so will it have caused any problems not being stopped first?

and wheres this 'notification' setting?

cheers

[Chris W]

Originally Posted by davo

so will it have caused any problems not being stopped first?

and wheres this 'notification' setting?

cheers

nope won't cause any problems at all... only thing that will happen is that windows will give you an error message

"boo hoo hoo you unplugged a USB device without telling me. I don't like you any more so i'm going to sulk."

Won't do any harm with the cable modem though.

[davo]

and this notification thing?????? where is it to change settings?

cheers

[Raistlin]

The notification area is the place on the system tray where the "Safely Remove This Hardware" icon sits. The notification is the icon that you are referring to.

You need to click on the system tray background, somewhere neer the offending icon, and select proprties. Then click on Customise.

[daxx]

notification area or sys tray located bottom right on the taskbar (if you have your taskbar at the bottom of the screen).

There is no properties sheet attached to this icon, double clicking just brings up the main window to start/stop any USB plugins.

To 'remove' the icon use the properties (right click) of the start button, under the taskbar tab you will see the option to 'hide' unused icons, simply select the icons you dont want to see and use one of the three settings you see there.

[Paul K]

Just in case you are still wondering it's the bit near the clock

[davo]

cheers. ill be round in a bit to sort it. but apparently theres still no connection from modem. only the sync light is on, not the 'ready' light. and its been a few hours now since switched on.

is this a ntl prob? or do i need to sort some settings out somewhere?

cheers

[Paul K]

Have you tried powering the PC off, power off the SACM, wait 30 secs, power up modem, wait for lights to settle, reboot PC? If the ready light fails to lock you may have a BB feed problem that will require a call to CS.

[davo]

i havent mate, but so i get it right can you just confirm what those initials mean please? SACM? CS? SACM is cable modem? BB broadband? CS cusomer service?

[Paul K]

Exactly
Stand Alone Cable Modem
Customer Services
Broadband