Posts by darkcyclist92

The three of you... if this is how you handle technical troubleshooting, you're absolutely incompetent.

One of you is just narcissistically parroting my own response while blindly accepting bad sectors like a drunkard; the second is hiding behind useless jargon to lecture a kid who clearly doesn't realize his Seagate is failing; and the third would actually suggest cloning a drive that is practically dead—I'm talking physically scratched by the actuator arm.

Bravo. Truly top-tier work...

wiredtiger2 said:Hey everyone.

So, my laptop's internal Hard Drive (a Dell Latitude) is split into two partitions. I've got the C: drive, which is about 40 GB and holds the OS, and then the D: drive, roughly 280 GB, where all my actual files live.

For years, I stuck with Windows 7, stubbornly refusing to make the jump to Windows 10.

Then, sometime after New Year's Day back in January, I was forced to format the C: partition to get some specific programs working, so I did a clean install of Windows 10. On the other hand, I didn't touch the D: partition at all—it's vital to me since it’s packed with private family stuff and work documents.

That's when things started going south. Windows 10 was "slow as molasses"
and it seems like that 40 GB wasn't nearly enough... After the install, I was left with maybe 2 GB of free space. It was painfully slow, but I just dealt with it.

But about ten days ago, it started acting up. It wouldn't boot on the first try, and the Hard Drive itself started making this weird noise—never happened before. For the last ten days or so, I've had to restart the laptop three or four times just to get Windows to boot. Most of the time, it just throws an error saying "There is no O.S.," as if the operating system vanished. And even when Windows 10 finally decides to load after several tries, it's incredibly sluggish and keeps freezing. Plus, there's that strange sound coming from the Hard Drive... As of yesterday, getting Windows 10 to boot is basically impossible.

Last night, I grabbed a Windows 10 installation disc and a Windows 7 installation USB stick. First, I formatted the C: partition again, but neither one would install. Neither Windows 7 nor Windows 10. Just kept throwing error 0x80070005.

From what I can tell, it looks like the Hard Drive is dying. I won't say it's completely dead, but it's definitely "on its last legs." It's about 10 or 12 years old, after all.

Let's say I go out and buy a new Hard Drive, pop it into the laptop, and everything works fine.

What I need to know is: how am I going to rescue the important data on the D: partition from this current Hard Drive? How can I temporarily connect this existing Hard Drive to the laptop to copy those files over? They're really important to me.

Just grab a USB enclosure for that old Hard Drive, slide it inside, and you'll be good to go once you've finished setting up the laptop with the new Hard Drive.

It is highly probable that the read/write head on that old Hard Drive is damaged, so you might actually have to give it a little physical tap to get it spinning when you boot it up, but you should be able to make it work.

Robin Hernandez8 said:Alright, thanks for all the input, everyone. This wasn't some cheap piece of junk; it’s a SanDisk. I actually remembered in the meantime that there's an official SanDisk site claiming they have file recovery tools. That was my whole reason for paying a premium for this thing—so if things go south, I'd at least have a backup plan. Anyway, I'm currently working through it. If I can't get it sorted, I'll probably just take it to a pro so I don't completely screw everything up myself.

So, did you manage to get it back?

PS: You might want to try plugging that card into a different computer to see if you can salvage anything. Give it every shot you can.😁

The software released by Intel is generally top-tier, but keep in mind that those tools are designed to recover corrupted memory sectors, not necessarily the actual data itself. Unless something has changed recently...

Kenneth Cruz67 said:I mean, what is even the point of all this hassle with taping up individual sheets of A4 paper? If you're already making the trip down to a print shop, why wouldn't you just load a massive roll onto the plotter and call it a day?

👍 You simply set your canvas to A2 in Adobe Photoshop, tweak the image until it looks right, and you're done. When it comes to plotting or standard printing, 72 dpi is perfectly adequate; of course, 300 dpi—along with LPI—remains the industry standard for professional printing, though that really depends on the specific paper stock you're using.

That A2 project could easily be handled by a standard desktop printer, as most modern software includes tools to tile large formats into sizes the machine can actually manage. But, looking at the big picture, your best bet is always to finish the job on a plotter or via digital printing.

You can find those services on practically every street corner these days, and unlike in the old days, they are incredibly affordable.

Sam Peterson6 said:I honestly have no clue what’s been going on with me the last few months. I’ll find some cool images on various sites that I want to save, right? So I do the usual—right-click and "save as"—but all I get are these two weird options: Google file or JPEG 8BIM header (mac)

It makes zero sense because I used to have standard JPEG as an option all the time. Now, it feels like a total chore because I have to run every single image through a converter just to actually view them.
Anyone have any idea what the deal is?

To be perfectly clear, this isn't some failure of your browser; rather, it is a deliberate choice made by the site administrators of the very platform you are visiting and attempting to scrape images from.

Google is a format specifically designed to protect the intellectual property rights of web publishers regarding their photography—much like how YouTube functions for video—while simultaneously offering much more efficient compression. The entire objective is to ensure that this content is viewed on-screen rather than being downloaded and redistributed.

Now, while I will admit the actual level of protection provided is practically nonexistent, it remains a step up from the older formats.

Terry Green3 said:I honestly don't see what the anti-sanction crowd would even argue. What’s the alternative? Just sitting back and watching a sovereign nation get carved up?

How exactly would they propose sanctioning this kind of behavior?
The European Union was basically forced into this reaction. The Russians played their wild card in Crimea.

Right now, these sanctions are primarily hurting the EU, and frankly, it’s an even bigger blunder for those who have already abandoned the Russian market, yet all this really proves is that the world is moving to discredit Russia entirely, signaling that any expectation of prosperous business there is becoming utterly futile.

Which, I suspect, also paves the way for potential military action—take the Waste-land, for example.

darkcyclist92 said:So, here is the plan: clone the main Seagate Hard Drive onto a Samsung SSD and run everything from there, while keeping the old drive as a safety net just in case that Samsung SSD decides to give up the ghost under heavy workloads.

My apologies, I neglected to mention that the single greatest advantage of Windows XP right now—especially when you consider professional workflows and data backups, which is essentially what high-end desktops exist for, particularly those running xpom—is the simple, undeniable fact that XP no longer receives updates.

The reality is that once you have configured a machine today with all its patches and completed your backup, that system will remain identical ten years from now; you won't be forced into some endless cycle of downloading nonsense from various "help centers" the moment you plug that backed-up drive into a chassis and go online.

In my estimation, Microsoft’s fundamental flaw regarding Windows is their desperate attempt to engineer something "innovative" or "different," but the insurmountable issue is their likely realization that they already perfected the formula fifteen years ago and there is no more glory to be found in reinventing the wheel; I am convinced that these constant "revolutions" and new editions are nothing more than a calculated effort to confuse users, lead them astray, and manipulate them simply to maintain market share.

When it comes to serious work, Windows 10 is an absolute joke in terms of both its Graphical User Interface and its core concept.

Truly great software does not have an expiration date, yet the companies that produce it certainly do, because regardless of how brilliant a product is, they eventually find themselves cornered into declaring it "outdated" just a year or two after release.

Jacob Bennett34 said:Since you're running Windows XP, you really ought to double-check your setup first; from what I can see, those systems don't provide native support for SSDs, which means you'll be stuck needing to manually install specific drivers just to get things moving, and even then...

It’s not an issue at all, just for your information. I am actually typing this from a freshly installed machine running Windows XP (that hacker-style SP3 build) equipped with a Samsung SSD. I haven't performed the clone yet; I’m currently posting from my secondary backup rig, which is running an Intel Core 2 Duo E6300 at 1.86GHz with 4GB of DDR2, an AMD Radeon card with 2GB, and some old Gigabyte motherboard with those copper heat pipes.

The only real issue we’re facing today regarding this specific date in history—specifically concerning Windows XP—is exclusively a matter of web browsers. Every single developer has abandoned them except for MyPal, yet I remain hopeful that someone will eventually realize that an operating system isn't just some fleeting trend or a race to see who can push updates the fastest; it is fundamentally about necessity.

Richard Lee47 said:An SSD will run on Windows 2000 without any issues whatsoever.

This is nothing short of magnificent news. I absolutely adored Windows 2000; quite frankly, it stands alone as the finest operating system Microsoft ever produced. The only reason I reluctantly, and quite honestly with great hesitation, made the jump over to XP was because of the necessity of running the Adobe CS2 creative suite—specifically the then-ubiquitous Flash Studio and Premiere. Beyond that, I was also starting to run into persistent driver conflicts on Windows 2000 involving the newer graphics cards hitting the market at the time.

I have been running Windows 2000 Pro for years, man, and let me tell you—disks failed, motherboards died, and graphics cards gave up the ghost, but that OS never, ever once crashed on me. I didn't encounter a single system failure or even one of those dreaded Blue Screens of Death. Never.

Every single operating system released since then has been nothing more than Microsoft wandering aimlessly in circles; it is patently obvious that a company capable of engineering truly flawless software simply cannot survive for long in this industry. In order to maintain a steady stream of revenue within the programming world, you are practically forced to ship an OS or software riddled with bugs just so you can pivot to selling endless patches and updates later on. If you don't create a problem that only you can fix, nobody will ever have a reason to need you, and frankly, I have absolutely zero interest in wasting my life babysitting constant updates.

While Windows 98 SE was undoubtedly the gold standard, let’s be honest—it was the absolute king of chaos. 🙂

Tyler Brown75 said:Look, if you attempt to clone that drive onto a newer machine, you’re almost certainly going to run headfirst into an ACPI error, which means the whole thing likely won't even boot on the new hardware.

Thanks, but I’m passing on that idea. I intend to install the SSD solely as a direct replacement for my primary HDD to boost OS responsiveness, because experience has proven that an SSD performs exceptionally well when working in tandem with existing HDDs.

When it comes down to the actual preservation and potential recovery of data, I find myself placing much more trust in traditional HDDs, though I will concede that an SSD performs brilliantly when it comes to handling OS-level tasks. It is worth noting—purely for the sake of information—that HDDs can actually be three to four times faster than an SSD when it comes to the specific process of writing and opening massive files. Ultimately, while an SSD is an excellent choice for your primary boot drive, you should absolutely let HDDs handle your long-term data storage.

So, here’s the objective: I am going to clone the primary HDD onto an SSD and then burn it, keeping the original drive as a backup just in case the SSD fails under more aggressive workloads down the line.

What domain are you using for your email address? Is it just @gmail.com?

Thanks a million, everyone. I’ll have everything ready to go in a few days once I finish prepping the drive—dealing with some bad sectors, running defrag, reordering data, moving files around, and all that good stuff—so I can dive right in and test it out immediately.

Does anyone have a suggestion for some freeware that won't be an absolute headache to use?

My goal is to clone my entire HDD over to an SSD, including all the system files and the OS itself, because I really want to avoid a full reinstallation if there is any way to bypass that. The database is sitting at roughly 40 GB.

I'm working on a desktop running Windows XP. I've seen plenty of cloners advertised online, but the real issue is that most of them demand a monthly subscription or some other ridiculous fee; they seem geared exclusively toward enterprise customers rather than regular users.

Thomas Sanchez2 said:The sheer volume of software tools available today is overwhelming, and I am honestly struggling to navigate it all. Should I be teaching myself? Use online resources like Udemy, SmartNinja, or something similar?

Only teenagers with massive, lightning-fast cognitive capacity can truly pull off learning to code entirely on their own; they might manage to scrape together a decent skill set over five years before being tossed into a corporate environment where some senior developer gives them a modicum of respect, and that's the extent of it.

I would agree with gentlecyclist16 that Java is a premier choice given current digital trends, but if you want my honest, unvarnished advice, I would tell you to stop thinking about programming altogether.

You have waited far too long to start, the competition is already too fierce, and the technical challenges are becoming increasingly complex. By the time you even grasp the fundamentals, you will have exhausted yourself by age 40, merely scrambling to keep pace with everyone else, only to realize you wasted four or five years of your life on a dead end.

It is much more logical to focus on your existing strengths and strive to become an absolute expert in whatever field you are currently working in.

If you are absolutely hell-bent on programming, you will need to find a professional mentor—someone who has been in the trenches for years. With a tutor, you will acquire knowledge five times faster than studying solo, though the inevitable problem remains that you will still lack the raw practice and hands-on experience required. It is your choice.

I am not a programmer now, but I used to be, and I wouldn't go back to that profession for any amount of money.

Hey,

You can't just pick any random VPN or proxy at random; you specifically need to select a proxy that grants you access through an American server (IP address). If such a VPN even exists—though they typically route everything through the US anyway.

Essentially, you need a proxy that offers "services" similar to this one:
https://www.urban-vpn.com/

That should do the trick.

mistyhound94 said:The charm of this forum? It’s absolutely delightful when you can't even log in for twenty minutes.

Look, it isn't going to kill you, but let's be real. It is perfectly standard for high-traffic forums to experience their own little oops moments because everything relies on database-driven data.

By the way, this massive lag we've been dealing with over the last few days is likely just a technical loop issue within the server farm; essentially, one specific server or node in the chain is acting up, and that happens even to the most robust server farms out there.

Or, alternatively, hackers have been running rampant lately, and they might have launched an attack against the farm or managed to slip into a specific server somewhere in the network.

If you aren't willing to shell out $10 ANNUALLY to ensure they have better servers and improved functionality, then fine, you deserve to enjoy these "charms" to the fullest. Personally, I don't find much enjoyment in it, but at least I offer constructive suggestions. Besides, implementing a membership fee would solve the issue of all those clone accounts, and people might actually start policing their own language more carefully. 🙂

Actually, if forums were paid services—and why should it only be this one?—I suspect people would be even less careful about how they express themselves, especially if a lag spike like this happened again. 😁

Unfortunately, those enthusiasts who come forward with such "constructive internet etiquette" suggestions usually end up owning niche sites and content that nobody reads, nobody takes seriously, and nobody ever visits. 🙂

wearymason4 said:I've got a bad feeling about this working out, mostly because MS-DOS 6.22 just doesn't know how to handle SATA drives or any of the newer hardware found on modern motherboards.

👍

To pull off something like this, you’re going to need a machine built somewhere between 2000 and 2008, if you ask me. It isn't just about the limitations of MS-DOS; it's about finding the right drivers for Windows XP for your graphics card, sound card, and everything else. Essentially, the older the better.

For instance, I currently have machines running almost every operating system imaginable, specifically Windows 98 and XP. In my opinion, Windows 98 was an absolute masterpiece—it was incredibly easy to mod and the games were legendary. 🙂 Actually, I even have one sitting in a closet with Windows 95 and a 166MHz processor; I haven't even powered it on in two decades, but I assume it still runs. 😂 I even have an old Dell CRT monitor paired with it, a 15" model.

By the way, why on earth would you even need DOS running on top? 😲

PS: One thing I know for certain is that 1GB of RAM is far too much for Windows 98... the installer won't even function on a machine with that much memory. It just throws a "too much memory" error and offers to abort the installation.

Jonathan Fowler14 said:Most of the local clubs had to put everything on hold because of the pandemic, so that wasn't really an option until recently.

In Germany, you can get by with English, but locals definitely prefer sticking to their own language—it makes sense. Since there are so many immigrants around, it sometimes feels easier to bond with someone from abroad than with a local German; they just don't quite get what we're going through. 😁

So, I guess I'm not the only one feeling this way! 🕺

Well, that’s just standard operating procedure for Germany AWHic! I know someone who lived there before moving back to the States, and he swore that unless you are part of their inner circle, there is absolutely zero warmth. It is as if their entire culture lacks any sort of social depth or genuine human connection—they just don't mess around with being friendly.

That said, even here in the US, the crowd has become a bit much lately, though it isn't all bad. I was out recently and met about ten different people; they practically drained me dry with their endless stories and constant chatter, so what can I tell you? Just come back home already, haha. 🙂 By the way, what are you even doing over there anyway?

Jonathan Fowler14 said:That's a good analogy, I feel exactly the same way haha 😲
Seriously though, people used to be down to go digging a hole with me, but now they'd rather just grab a coffee.

It sounds like people are literally fleeing the country just to get away from me hahah. It's actually just a few people who either travel a lot for work, moved away temporarily, or had to head back home for personal reasons. These are three specific people I really clicked with, and they aren't even connected to each other.

I love socializing and meeting new people. But most of the time, I end up doing things alone—traveling, shopping, walking, going to a cafe or a movie by myself... It's not that I *need* someone, I just enjoy sharing my time with others... I think that's pretty normal.

It's really tough when you move somewhere new, you don't know the language, and your opportunities to bond with people are limited. I'm still learning the language, so I'm mostly stuck using my native tongue or English for anything more complex.

At work, I'm surrounded by men 95% of the time, so there's zero chance of finding female friends there... and the people at my classes are mostly older. There are a few girls, but we can't really talk because of the language barrier... I'm okay with one of them, I guess... she invited me out this weekend, but she already had plans. I chat with a guy here and there, we're fine, but I wouldn't look at it as a potential friendship; I don't really believe in platonic friendships between men and women.
Even though I'm in contact with people every single day, there isn't much opportunity to develop real friendships, as you can see.

It’s funny how people who haven't even met me tend to steer clear, haha. Does anyone have a theory as to why? ☕

So you're actually quite aggressive when it comes to socializing, huh? You even moved abroad just to be near them, haha.😂

I love socializing and meeting new people. Most of the time I end up doing things alone—traveling, shopping, walking, going out for coffee or hitting the movies by myself... It’s not that I need someone, I just enjoy sharing my time with others. I think that's perfectly normal.

That’s lovely, really. And yes, it is completely normal, obviously! If you were in New York City, for example, I would gladly go out with you and play along with whatever feminine role is required over coffee; it’s no issue at all. 🙂 Sherlock Holmes knows all about those platonic friendship tropes, but personally, I see absolutely no reason to initiate anything, fall in love, or sleep with every single woman I grab a coffee with, even during my downtime. 🙂

It’s a mess over here. Every woman you invite for coffee assumes you're looking to hook up, and if she actually goes, she finds it bizarre when you don't necessarily want to take it further. 🤔

So I just snap back at her: "Why shouldn't it be none of your business?" 😂

It is incredibly difficult when you move to a new place, don't know the language, and your opportunities to connect with people are so limited. I'm still learning the language, so I'm stuck using my native tongue or English for any complex conversation.

Hmm, where exactly did you relocate to? Honestly, I suspect communicating in English would be much easier; fewer things would be taken the wrong way compared to how they might be interpreted in American slang, for instance. Besides, with the massive surge of introverts these days, many people view simply grabbing a coffee as some sort of intense social obligation.

Jonathan Fowler14 said:I’ve joined a few Facebook meetup groups, and I keep running into the exact same pattern: a huge crowd of people all chime in saying they want to hang out, but the second someone actually suggests a plan, everyone goes silent. Honestly, I just don't get the logic behind it.

It doesn't matter if the groups are local or international. Most of us have just moved here, we're looking for friends, maybe still learning the ropes, and we're all essentially in the same boat. It seems like a great way to meet like-minded people—connecting online over shared interests, grabbing coffee, getting to know one another. I’ve had some success and met plenty of cool people, but things always seem to fizzle out because of busy schedules, people moving away, just not clicking, or people being super flaky and canceling last minute. 😁

I really miss having a consistent little crew to hang out with occasionally, but it feels like mission impossible lately. I’m not necessarily looking for my soulmate or a BFF, just a few reliable girls where we can make plans and actually catch up every couple of weeks.

So, in a group of 60 or 70 people, absolutely nobody is available ON THE WEEKEND to go for a walk, grab coffee, ride bikes, play sports, or hit up an event.

All 70 of those people are members of a meetup group, they scroll through the posts, read the comments, and specifically hunt down the link to join the WhatsApp group—so why? The reason clearly isn't to actually socialize, because in the last group I was in, there was only one attempt to meet up in three weeks, and almost everyone canceled at the very last second. I personally suggested hanging out three different times; I got a few promises and then just "we'll see," and that was it. This has happened with three different groups now.

I’m genuinely stumped. What is the point of joining these meetup groups if you have no intention of actually socializing? Is it just to have another useless group on WhatsApp? To get notifications and invites you don't care about? Do these people have some weird fetish? Do they just want to feel like they belong to a community without actually participating in it? 🙏

I totally get that people have jobs, families, and responsibilities. I have a ton of obligations myself; I'm on my feet from dawn till dusk and work weekends, but I always manage to find time to see people. My schedule is usually set almost two weeks in advance, and I don't deal with nonsense like sudden shifts "because a coworker is sick" or "I have to be home for a package delivery."

I truly believe friendships are vital, especially for our mental health. It makes me sad to see so many people put social connection at the bottom of their priority list, brushing off chances to meet new people and failing to respect other people's time.

When I hear responses like "I'll see, maybe," or "I don't know, I don't really feel like it," it feels incredibly unserious, and honestly, it's a turn-off.

Please enlighten me! If you have any suggestions, I'm all ears.
I stay active, I have hobbies, and I'm constantly reaching out to people... but I've been pretty unlucky because every time I finally connect with someone, they end up moving away. 🤣

It was merely a component of something larger. And that latter part...

I’m an active person with plenty of hobbies, I’m constantly out in the world interacting with people, and I’m always the one reaching out to organize get-togethers—but honestly, my luck is absolute garbage because every single person I actually manage to connect with ends up moving away immediately after we hit it off. 🤣

It’s quite simple, really—they just plain old bad luck whenever they're around you. 😂 5+ 👍 This topic is absolutely brilliant; you’ve genuinely had me laughing out loud. 😂

In my estimation, people like that are exactly like an old car left to rot in a garage for years; they’re going to struggle just to turn over, let alone actually hit the road no matter how much they might want to. You have to be willing to put in the work, getting close to them and patiently grinding through the friction until their behavior finally smooths out and the basics actually become second nature to them. 🙂 Some people are just fundamentally incapable of being reliable, and they stay that way their entire lives. Lately, I’ve actually been making an effort to reach out and invite folks to grab a coffee, but honestly, it’s a joke—it feels like I’m asking them to go dig a trench in the middle of a construction site rather than just sitting down for a drink. 🙂

By the way, what kind of mess have you managed to get yourself into that makes this meeting seem absolutely vital? You don't come across that way at all. It’s pretty obvious that everyone has moved on from you, isn't it? That’s quite the lonely little portfolio you’re building there—just you and the realization that everybody else left. 😂 I’ll definitely have to use that line when someone inevitably asks me, "So, where are all your friends?" 🙂

velvetskipper8 said:Epson EcoTank ET-2800.
Every time I hit print, the machine goes through all the motions like it’s actually going to work, but then—bam—I get this error message popping up on both the printer screen and my laptop:


success is counted sweetest critical analysis

The thing is, I didn't get any heads-up that an ink cartridge needed replacing or anything like that. I tried the whole "turn it off and back on again" routine since that's what the manual suggests, but absolutely nothing. Even the help center suggested the old-school trick of pulling the plug to hard reset it, but nope—didn't help one bit.

Is this a "take it to a repair shop" situation, or is there something else I can try before giving up? Honestly, this thing has barely printed anything in its entire life, so it’d be a total disaster if it’s already kicked the bucket.

The unfortunate reality is that infrequent printing is the absolute worst-case scenario for inkjet printers. To stay functional, these machines need to churn out at least a few pages every single week just to stay alive. Personally, I can't stand them. The ink constantly dries up—usually right at the source, which led me to frequently soak the cartridges in a little saucer of water🙂—and eventually, a stray drop of moisture on the paper ruins the entire print job. I haven't touched an inkjet in at least a decade. Plus, those cartridge contacts would kill the machine sooner or later..

Naturally, that video you linked provides the solution for the specific types of failures you're describing, provided you actually possess the technical skill required to perform that kind of service work. If you’re truly attached to that printer, you'll have to go through with it. It is what it is.

Thomas Sanchez2 said:I think I’ve got a bit of an issue with my laptop, or maybe it's just how it's behaving on my monitors (it shows up on both the main laptop screen and the external one I have plugged in).

Here’s the situation:



You can see it happening at the bottom of the screen—basically, I'm scrolling through a Microsoft Excel sheet when it happens. It looks like some kind of screen flickering, I guess. I just finished installing Windows 11 Pro and everything is completely up-to-date. Does anyone have any clue why this is happening? Is this probably a hardware failure? Or maybe there's something I can try to fix via software?

That is clearly a problem with the graphics chipset; my assumption is that a single pin isn't soldered properly or perhaps it loosened up due to overheating. Alternatively, there is a possibility that the display's ribbon cable is having issues distributing signals across one of its pins... though that all depends on the specific factory design of the device (some screens have their own dedicated chips, others use COF cables, and some don't have chips within the display assembly at all), and even COF cable issues are possible, though unlikely in your case.

The fact that this is isolated to Microsoft Office doesn't change much, as it would likely show up in any similarly intensive program, but it serves as a clear indicator that the fault lies within the chipset or the controller managing it. My suggestion is to simply ignore it and let it run until it eventually dies.

It is easy enough to claim that it might "hypothetically" be a driver issue. The fact that you are running those recent Windows updates actually makes things worse if the chipset manufacturer pushed out a buggy "up-to-date" driver for an obsolete chipset, or if they lumped an entire series of chipsets into the same driver package.

If you are feeling curious, try playing around with the refresh rate within the driver's control panel; for instance, try setting the screen refresh cycle to 60Hz. That should address the flickering problem you demonstrated.

By the way, are you seeing any issues when running video games, assuming you even play them?