Posts by mellowsailor54

Has anyone actually managed to get this new version of the IRS portal working on Windows XP after they pushed it out a few days ago?
So far, I was getting by just fine using Internet Explorer 8, but now suddenly they’re demanding at least version 11. To make matters worse, I can't even log in via Firefox because it keeps throwing a certificate error—which, for the record, definitely exists, but the site just refuses to recognize it. I can manage to log in through Chrome, but the second I try to sign a document or upload a JOPPD file, I get hit with an error saying 'eporeznaChromeNativeClient.exe is not valid win32 application'.
I’ve gone through every single troubleshooting step listed on the IRS support page, but—surprise, surprise—none of it actually fixes anything.
Look, I am fully aware that Windows XP is ancient news, but the specific software we rely on for our daily operations simply won't run on Windows 7 or anything newer. To fix this properly, I’d have to sink a massive amount of money into buying entirely new hardware with a modern OS... and honestly, spending that kind of cash just to submit documents through the IRS portal feels completely absurd.
If JPMorgan Chase can keep Citibank running smoothly on XP—working perfectly fine in both Chrome and Firefox—then I truly don't understand why this agency is making it such a struggle. It feels like there's just zero effort being put in on their end.

I just saw an update on the IRS portal letting us know they’ve extended support for their application on Windows XP 👍. Up until now, I’ve been bouncing between Firefox and Chrome because the old Internet Explorer was a total non-starter—and then, just a few days ago, even those stopped working on me. I finally went ahead and installed Internet Explorer 8, gave it a whirl, and—lo and behold—everything is running perfectly!
Honestly, we owe a bit of a thanks to the tech support team for actually listening to those of us still running XP. It feels a bit ridiculous to go through the whole ordeal of upgrading an entire operating system—which usually means shelling out for a brand-new computer—just to access one specific government app. Regardless, I have to give them credit for putting in the effort and actually paying attention to the *vox populi*.

Thanks so much for getting back to me with that recommendation—I have to say, I’ve consistently found nothing but top-tier advice on this forum since I joined!

I’m certainly no IT specialist, so I’m coming to you all for some guidance and perhaps a solid recommendation.
At my office, we have three computers currently networked together—they're all hardwired into the LAN ports of our Motorola Razr router. This setup gives everyone steady internet access and allows the machines to talk to one another without any hiccups. However, we now need to add a fourth workstation to the mix. The catch is that I don't have an available port left on the router, and this new computer needs to be physically located right next to one of the existing setups. My thought was to grab a network switch—essentially plugging the main line from the router into the switch, and then running two separate cables from the switch to the two computers sitting there. That should theoretically get the fourth machine online and fully integrated into our local network, right?
If a network switch is indeed the way to go, I’d love some specific model suggestions. To be honest, I care much more about reliability and uptime than I do about finding the cheapest option on the shelf.
Thanks in advance to anyone who can offer some helpful advice or a practical solution!

Once I finally disabled that HP installer from the flash drive, everything started running smoothly without any more hiccups👍.
Thanks again—honestly, every bit of advice I've picked up from you has been incredibly helpful... just wanted to set the record straight for anyone else following this thread🙂.
Best regards!

It looks like point 25 is the smoking gun... I actually got confirmation on that from a guy over on the newsgroups too 👍
Thanks so much for digging into this—I'll be sure to circle back and let you know how it turns out. I’ve got to run over to a friend's place right now; I recommended this printer to her based on my long history of solid experiences with HP, and now she's absolutely tearing me apart for it 🙂

He scrubbed it clean entirely, but once he’s finished recording that mess, the system won't even attempt to boot Windows... and just like you suspected, if he tries a hardware reset, there it is—right back at the top of the list. It's honestly unbelievable.

I’ve honestly never run into anything quite like this before—it's a bit of a head-scratcher. I'm trying to set up a new HP P1566 laser printer, but the moment I go to install the drivers, things get weird. It seems like the printer actually forces itself as the > in the BIOS via some sort of > utility, which ends up preventing Windows XP from even booting properly. I tried manually switching the boot priority back to the hard drive, but nothing changes; the system just stays frozen on a black screen with a blinking cursor. Interestingly, if I boot the PC with the printer turned off, everything runs perfectly fine—but the second I power the printer on, the whole computer eventually freezes up mid-use. The kicker? While the system is still responsive, the printer itself prints without any issues at all. I've already tried a clean reinstall of the latest drivers from the web, but it hasn't changed a thing; it's the exact same headache.
I’ve used a mountain of HP's printers over the years, but I have never encountered an issue even remotely similar to this one.
Does anyone have any bright ideas or perhaps a lead on what might be causing this? I would truly appreciate any constructive advice you can throw my way!