Aggrivation with the G751 - experienced PC user is annoyed and could use some help

[di_Valenti]

Greetings,

I am having some real issues with just trying to get some very simple things going on this end. I have a G751 JY, I have had to recover the system - almost immediately after a windows 8.1 lock screen issue that I couldn't find a fix for... I have since simply recovered, and set that to off.

Today was the Windows 10 launch day and I put Windows 10 on my older Asus G71 Quad Core 9800GS just to test that OS out for this production system - most of the time I am doing work with Epic UR 4 or Unity 5, along with Blender and then some gaming titles that are all current. There isn't a lot on the system and I keep a ext. HD for backups so it's not a major issue to wipe the drive and recover.

But, I was until this system (G751-JY) using Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit, and it was only in the last month or so that I got the ASUS G751 JY and had to do a crash learning course on Windows 8.1 which was a lot of catch up in a way - mostly leaning the back way in to the Windows 7 interfaces and all that are still there (and Windows 10 has similar). But it's been a bit of a change and I am getting worn out with brain overload, so I would really appreciate if someone could help with the following things and make my life a bit easier.

1. I have 8.1 on the G751 - I can't find the much needed MS Key Code anywhere - not in the BIOS (at least the F2 interface screens) and not anywhere else - this is new to me - and I am told it is in the system itself - problem - I wanted to upgrade some things from the MS downloads store - and it demands a key code. Which brings me to the next issue...

2. The DVD player - it sounds very nice and all on the specs - I didn't know it had no means (software out of the box) to play DVDs - and I am in the middle of a kind of DVD library disaster - about 50% of mine I think are not working due to surface issues or worse and I can't get anything to play on this system - as apparently Windows 8.1 has no native media player DVD whatever it was that was in 7s Media Center - I can't download that because I have no key code, and I can't use the DVD drive as well.

Now I have tried Free DVD players in the past and it's always ended up being a mal ware or water mark or something disaster and so I am very shy of putting anything free on this system as it's a production work PC for me and well - issues.

I really want to like this system, it's my 3rd ASUS ROG Laptop and I put out a 2k+ USD for it along with Pad, Mouse, Nomad and more - so I would really like to keep it a clean but functional system.

ATM I don't have a DVD Player, no idea on how to make a copy of a DVD or to back it up, and I don't have a fix. And I don't have a key code either that I can find.

*Sigh*...

Ok, well hopefully someone can help here, and am burned out from Google searches and reading wrong solutions, and all that.

Thanks for the help and for reading, I don't want to sound like I haven't tried to figure this out but I am on my 12th hour on these problems, but coffee is all gone and I am just beside myself on this.

[benjmyers1]

you are welcome

http://www.leawo.com/blu-ray-player/

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/windows-8/a/windows-8-product-key.htm

[di_Valenti]

Thank you for the quick reply.

I will give them a try. I am currently backing up the G751s ISO (I think) using ASUS Backtracker as suggested else where - but since I did a recovery (not a clean install just the F9 version that read of the recovery drive) I hope that is what it originally came with - software included and all - I am not going to even try Windows 10 on this system for now simply due to being to ignorant of the last two OS changes.

I appreciate the help here - I am really fried mentally - besides the two things you suggested here and the BT backup - is there anything else I should be doing? to avoid total disaster at some point?

Also I should mention I was a very good IT engineer for a lot of years, but I got out of the whole things other then a user after about 2003/4 and as such I am way out of my depth for the time being.

I can't even figure out how to actually rip a DVD to a HD - that is how bad it is at around here. 🙂 Though I think most of them are dead from heat damage or something - (Car Trip+DVD binder = doesn't read).

Ok, rambling here - THANK YOU!... very appreciated. Hopefully this gets me going.

[joshindaphils]

di Valenti wrote:
Thank you for the quick reply.

I will give them a try. I am currently backing up the G751s ISO (I think) using ASUS Backtracker as suggested else where - but since I did a recovery (not a clean install just the F9 version that read of the recovery drive) I hope that is what it originally came with - software included and all - I am not going to even try Windows 10 on this system for now simply due to being to ignorant of the last two OS changes.

I appreciate the help here - I am really fried mentally - besides the two things you suggested here and the BT backup - is there anything else I should be doing? to avoid total disaster at some point?

Also I should mention I was a very good IT engineer for a lot of years, but I got out of the whole things other then a user after about 2003/4 and as such I am way out of my depth for the time being.

I can't even figure out how to actually rip a DVD to a HD - that is how bad it is at around here. 🙂 Though I think most of them are dead from heat damage or something - (Car Trip+DVD binder = doesn't read).

Ok, rambling here - THANK YOU!... very appreciated. Hopefully this gets me going.

Regarding ripping DVD's http://www.slysoft.com/en/ has a great set of tools for such things, there are free tools arround, but they tend to not be as polished. I got a great price on lifetime updates for most all of their products a bit over 10 years ago.

They have tools for making copies to single layer disc, direct copies, and for converting to a video file, all products have a 30 day free trial IIRC.

[di_Valenti]

joshindaphils wrote:
Regarding ripping DVD's.

Hi Josh, I am currently flashing my BIOS from 204 to 208 - I am not sure if each has to be done in order 5,6,7,8 but figured I would do them just as I would have if I had had the system then and a full reboot between each update just to make sure everything is working.

I had a bit of bad luck a while back - I had two series that I really wanted to keep for the long term - Babylon 5 1-5 seasons, and my BSG75 1-4.5 - I think the BSG survived (haven't tested them all yet) but a lot of the B5 stuff doesn't read - some does... what I wanted to do was back them up somehow on a new ext. HD I have

I will give this a look - I might also have to have these disks polished (physically) to get them to work - seems they have scratches even though never really got used much in the DVD player on the G71.

[joshindaphils]

di Valenti wrote:
Hi Josh, I am currently flashing my BIOS from 204 to 208 - I am not sure if each has to be done in order 5,6,7,8 but figured I would do them just as I would have if I had had the system then and a full reboot between each update just to make sure everything is working.

I had a bit of bad luck a while back - I had two series that I really wanted to keep for the long term - Babylon 5 1-5 seasons, and my BSG75 1-4.5 - I think the BSG survived (haven't tested them all yet) but a lot of the B5 stuff doesn't read - some does... what I wanted to do was back them up somehow on a new ext. HD I have

I will give this a look - I might also have to have these disks polished (physically) to get them to work - seems they have scratches even though never really got used much in the DVD player on the G71.

Lots of places have disc polishers (I've mostly seen them in music stores) that can restore your disc, there are also kits you can buy and home remedies that will let you do it at home (Google is your friend here). In theory so long as the silver part (just under the top label) is undamaged you are good to go, as a general rule if you hold up the disc to a light and if you see clear points of light though the disc... other than the center, that data is gone for good.

Aeolisio gave you good advice on the BIOS updates.

[di_Valenti]

joshindaphils wrote:
Lots of places have disc polishers (I've mostly seen them in music stores) that can restore your disc, there are also kits you can buy and home remedies that will let you do it at home (Google is your friend here). In theory so long as the silver part (just under the top label) is undamaged you are good to go, as a general rule if you hold up the disc to a light and if you see clear points of light though the disc... other than the center, that data is gone for good.

Aeolisio gave you good advice on the BIOS updates.

Hey thanks - and I think I found the issue with some - I must have used something to clean them and it fogged the plastic on the reading side - the data on all of them looks good - so I think just a polish and they should all read - I am still looking for a way to digitize them into VLC playable files - that is the player I have choosen since Windows 10 has no player installed and I am not going to mess with it - just did the Minimal install on VLC and all good for now, seems very workable.

Also BIOS went ok - no issues and is now current - I am still running windows 8.1 on the G751 for the time being - production machine - but the G71 seems to have no issues with a base install of Pro form 7 Ultimate - the only oddity is that I have two "Base System Device" flags in Device Manager on that system that can't seem to be resolved and I have no idea what they could be as everything that I can spot has a driver for it - so it's made me a little cautious of putting 10 on this machine atm.

Anyway, thanks for the help here - my aggravation is gone and so help was helpful. Probably ask more about 10 in that thread when the time comes to migrate.

Thanks again to all who posted you where of immense help.

[joshindaphils]

di Valenti wrote:
Hey thanks - and I think I found the issue with some - I must have used something to clean them and it fogged the plastic on the reading side - the data on all of them looks good - so I think just a polish and they should all read - I am still looking for a way to digitize them into VLC playable files - that is the player I have choosen since Windows 10 has no player installed and I am not going to mess with it - just did the Minimal install on VLC and all good for now, seems very workable.

Also BIOS went ok - no issues and is now current - I am still running windows 8.1 on the G751 for the time being - production machine - but the G71 seems to have no issues with a base install of Pro form 7 Ultimate - the only oddity is that I have two "Base System Device" flags in Device Manager on that system that can't seem to be resolved and I have no idea what they could be as everything that I can spot has a driver for it - so it's made me a little cautious of putting 10 on this machine atm.

Anyway, thanks for the help here - my aggravation is gone and so help was helpful. Probably ask more about 10 in that thread when the time comes to migrate.

Thanks again to all who posted you where of immense help.

Again check out the offerings at http://www.slysoft.com/en/

[squiddly]

Try using MakeMKV. It's free and fast, and the MKV is readable directly by most video players. Take a look at at at makemkv.com. I'm not in any way related to the company, but I have used the software to rip my DVD and blue-ray collection to my drive (well over 200 movies) without any issues.

[di_Valenti]

Ok, annoyed again...

I have done the BIOS upgrades, and I registered the PC - I think, because it kept saying the serial number was wrong even though I kept putting it in exactly as it was on both the BIOS screen and the Box which did match and where the same as input - it finally came back with a this product is already registered after about 10 tries of it saying it wouldn't take it - what a worthless system of doing that - and then no feed back.

Now I have used the Product ID finder and got the code out - and the Windows 8.1 media center pack instructions take me to a put in that code and it says it isn't good.... what the hell...

Doesn't this come with a Windows 8.1 that is compatible out of the box with media center or must I get PRO!... for 99.99? what exactly did I get with windows 8.1 here? a gimped version? ASUS really doesn't make this a pleasant experience all the way around with a new purchase here.

ugh.