Start the Wireless Zero Configuration (WZC) service

Today, my neighbor handed me a ten year old Dell XP computer and said she was unable to get a wireless connection. We received the following message when trying to connect to a wireless network:

The following is how I resolved the issue. I went to the Microsoft site and pulled up the following documentation:

Wireless Zero Configuration Reference

Wireless Zero Configuration is a Windows service on Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 that is used to configure and manage wireless network connections on a wireless adapter. The service name for Wireless Zero Configuration is WZCSVC. On Windows XP, the display name for the WZCSVC service is Wireless Zero Configuration. On Windows Server 2003, the display name for the WZCSVC service is Wireless Configuration.

The Wireless Zero Configuration service is normally started at boot time. The programming interface for the Wireless Zero Configuration service can be used only if the Wireless Zero Configuration service has been started. If the Wireless Zero Configuration service is not started, then the Wireless Zero Configuration functions will return an error.

To enable the Wireless Zero Configuration service so it starts up automatically, go to the Start button. Select the Settings option and then select Control Panel. If you are using the Windows XP view, select thePerformance and Maintenance category and then select Administrative Tools. If you are using the Classic View, then select Administrative Tools. Click the Services icon in the left pane. Click the Wireless Zero Configuration icon in the right pane and change the Startup Type dropbox to Automatic. This setting will set the service to start automatically at boot time. Then click the Start button to start the Wireless Zero Wireless Zero Configuration service and click the OK button.

The Wireless Zero Configuration can also be started and stopped from a command prompt. To start the Wireless Zero Configuration, run the following command:

net start wzcsvc

To stop the Wireless Zero Configuration, run the following command:

net stop wzcsvc

Note: Once you enable the WZC Service and reboot, it might not stay enabled. The following could be the reason. The following is from a Microsoft MVP:

 My Wireless Computer does not work with a Wireless Router, or an Access Point.

SQL Maintaining Tables

Table Creation

When creating a table, you should normalize the data attributes you want to store in the table. See SQL - Data Base Basics of SQL to find out about normalization.

Decide on a table name, column names, primary key, and data types.

Create a query to track the employees in your company. You need to track employee birthdays, age, and salary. Create a table to store employee name, department, and phone numbers.

Table name: Employees
Column names: EmployeeID, FirstName, LastName, Department, HomePhone, WorkPhone

Next, go through the normalization steps to make sure you don't include data that is better suited for another table.

Create a table:

CREATE TABLE Employees
(
EmployeeID CHAR (50) Primary Key NOT NULL,
FirstName CHAR (50) NOT NULL,
LastName CHAR (50) NOT NULL,
HomePhone CHAR (20),
WorkPhone CHAR (20),
Department CHAR (20)
);

Results:

SQL Inserting Data

INSERT: Inserts data (rows) into an existing table using the INSERT, INTO, and VALUES keywords.

• The INTO keyword indicates the table name. 
• The VALUES keyword indicates what to insert. 
• You can insert a partial row or an entire row. 
• The NULL keyword indicates no value.

SQL Table Joins

Friends

A SQL JOIN combines data from two or more tables based on matching keys indicated in the SELECT statement. The matching keys are what creates the relationship between tables and uniquely identify the rows in a table.

INNER JOIN: This is the most common type of join and is considered the default join type. The inner join, sometimes referred to as an EQIJOIN, only brings back data that is a match between both tables being joined. In the example below:

SELECT statement states that we want all (*) columns from both tables.

FROM indicates the first table wanted.

INNER JOIN keyword specifies the other table we want to join to, the Orders table.

ON keyword is used in conjunction with the INNER JOIN keyword to indicate how the two tables are to be joined, in this example, the CustomerID of the Customers and Orders table. Customers.CustomerID and Orders.CustomerID is the format because the CustomerID name column is the same in both tables.

Example:

SELECT *

FROM Customers

INNER JOIN Orders

On Customers.CustomerID = Orders. CustomerID

note: If you fail to indicate the relationship between the two tables, you will end up with a Cartesian product. A Cartesian product causes each row from the first table to be multiplied by the total number or rows from the second table.

SQL Subqueries

Tremblant, Quebec

It is possible for SQL queries to contain other queries, called subqueries. The values of one query are passed to another query.

Subqueries can be utilized in SELECT statements, as well as the INSERT, UPDATE, and DELETE statements.

Subqueries allow you to connect queries together, so that you can query more than one table at a time.

Subqueries can either be nested within another query or it can be connected to another query using a keyword. When the subquery is nested in a SELECT statement, the innermost query is processed first. When a subquery is connected to another query using a keyword, the last subquery is processed first.

note: MySQL versions that are prior to version 4.1 do not support subqueries. MySQL uses JOINS to accomplish the same thing as subqueries.

SQL: Summarizing and Grouping Data



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Data Summarization

SQL has aggregate functions that allow you to summarize large volumes of data. Summarizing data helps to determine trends. Many times data needs to be summarized with reports. Aggregate functions

take the values of multiple rows grouped together, i.e., values stored in a column, and returns a single value. 

Common aggregate Microsoft SQL functions:

AVG(): Returns the average of data stored in a column

COUNT(*):  Counts the rows in a table (including NULL values)

COUNT (Column name):  Counts the rows in a column (excluding Null values)

FIRST():  Returns the first value stored in a column

LAST():  Returns the last value stored in a column

MAX():  Returns the highest value stored in a column

MIN():  Returns the lowest value stored in a column

SUM():  Returns the sum of values stored in a column

SQL - Calculated Fields and Functions

Customer Table

To create a new database in Microsoft Access:

• Open Microsoft Access and click Blank Database under the New Blank Database heading. 
• Name the database in the File Name box on the right side of the screen. Click the folder icon to place the database where you want. 
• Afterwards, click Create to save the database you just created.

To create a query using Microsoft Access 2010:

• Switch to SQL View by clicking Create from the menu running across the top of the screen.
• Click the Query Design button, causing the Show Table dialog box to appear. 
• Click Close in the dialog box without selecting a table. 
• Locate the View drop-down button near the top left. 
• Click the down arrow and select SQL View. This is the place to type the SQL script. 
• To execute the script in SQL View, click on the Run button.

SQL - Sorting, Retrieving, and Filtering Data

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Query Terms and Syntax Rules

query: a command that you use to retrieve data from one or more tables.

clause: a component  of an SQL statement.

keywords: reserved words.

statement: keywords and data in the SQL query.

FROM keyword: to indicate the table to retrieve data from.

SELECT keyword: gives you the ability to retrieve data from the table by telling the database which column(s) to display.

SQL - Data Base Basics of SQL

SQL is a computer language used to retrieve and manipulate data from relational databases. Some of the functions of SQL:

• Modify a database's structure
• Change system security settings
• Add user permissions to databases
• Query a database 
• Update a database

Important terms

• client: a single-user computer that interfaces with a multiple-user server
• client/server database system: system that divides time between a client and a database server
• database: collection of related data stored as organized files
• server: multiple-user computer that holds the actual database and provides shared database connection, interfacing, and processing services

Internet Explorer encountered a problem and needs to close

A recent install of Windows 7 on a Toshiba laptop started producing error messages each time I closed Internet Explorer 9.

This was not a random situation. Without fail, Internet Explorer generated a message saying that Internet Explorer encountered a problem and needs to close.

I hate when that happens. At first, I ignored the error, but, after awhile, it became annoying.