GW 2.0: Animations do not Appear in Multimedia Greetings (185709)



The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Greetings Workshop 2.0

This article was previously published under Q185709

SYMPTOMS

When you create or view a multimedia greeting, animated images may fail to appear.

CAUSE

This error is usually caused by a problem with one of the following files:

  • IMGUTIL.DLL
  • PNGFILT.DLL
Other possible causes of this error may include:

  1. A problem with Hardware Acceleration on the graphics adapter.
  2. A conflicting program or utility.
  3. A corrupted or missing file.
  4. A file has been incorrectly registered.

RESOLUTION

To resolve this issue, please use the following procedure:

  1. Open the folder C:\Windows\System.
  2. Locate and delete the following files:

    • IMGUTIL.DLL
    • PNGFILT.DLL
  3. Insert the Greetings Workshop Setup CD.
  4. Open the folder named "AT" on the CD. Example, if your CD drive is "D:," the folder would be:

    D:\AT

  5. Copy the IMGUTIL.DLL and PNGFILT.DLL from the AT folder to the C:\Windows\System directory.
  6. Click Start and choose Run.
  7. Type the following line (without quotes) and choose OK:

    regsvr32 PNGFILT.DLL

  8. Return to the Run window and type (without quotes):

    regsvr32 IMGUTIL.DLL

If the above steps fail to resolve the issue, one of the following three methods may resolve this issue.

Method 1: Replace System Files

In order to ensure that the correct system files are present, rename the following files and reinstall Greetings Workshop.

  1. Remove all of Greetings Workshop.
  2. Save your Projects folder to a different location.
  3. Delete the Greetings Workshop folder.
  4. Using the Windows Find File tool, search for and rename the following files:

    GIFFILT.DLL
    WMFFILT.DLL
    JPEGFILT.DLL
    OCHLP30E.DLL
    OCIMG30E.DLL
    RNDR30E.OCX
    MMSPRITE.OCX
    MMBTN30E.OCX
    STAGE30E.OCX
    HOST30E.OCX

    NOTE: If you do not find these files, you may have System Files set as hidden. To unhide them, follow these steps:

    1. Double-click on My Computer.
    2. Choose Options, or Folder Options if you are using Internet Explorer 4.0, from the View menu.
    3. Select the View tab.
    4. Select to "Show all files."
  5. Restart your computer again.
  6. Disable any anti-virus or utility program that may be running.
  7. Reinstall the Greetings Workshop program.

Method 2: Manual Registration of Files

  1. Click the Start button, and choose Run.
  2. Type the following in the run line (without the quotes):

    regsvr32 GIFFILT.DLL

  3. Click OK
  4. Repeat this process for the following files:

    GIFFILT.DLL
    WMFFILT.DLL
    JPEGFILT.DLL
    RNDR30E.OCX
    MMSPRITE.OCX
    MMBTN30E.OCX
    STAGE30E.OCX
    HOST30E.OCX

  5. Test Greetings Workshop.

Method 3: Lower Hardware Acceleration

  1. Close all open applications.
  2. Double-click on My Computer.
  3. Double-click on Control Panel.
  4. Double-click on System.
  5. Select the Performance tab.
  6. Click the Graphics button.
  7. Move the Hardware Acceleration slider to "Basic."
  8. Click OK to this and the next window.
  9. Restart the computer and test Greetings Workshop.

    NOTE: If you now have difficulties restarting, follow this procedure:

    1. Press the F8 key when you see "Starting Windows 95."
    2. Choose "Safe Mode."
    3. When booted in Safe Mode, reverse the steps in Method 1.

Method 4: Shut Down Background Applications

Follow these steps to ensure there is not a conflicting program or utility loaded in memory.

  1. Hold down the CTRL+ALT+DELETE. You will be presented with a Close Program window.
  2. Click on an item other than EXPLORER or SYSTRAY (if present).
  3. Click on the End Task button.
  4. Repeat this process until only EXPLORER and SYSTRAY are present.
  5. Test Greetings Workshop.

STATUS

Microsoft is researching this problem and will post new information here in the Microsoft Knowledge Base as it becomes available.

Modification Type:MajorLast Reviewed:1/20/2000
Keywords:kbemail kbmm kbprb KB185709