W2000msgs.chm: Windows 2000 Error and Event Messages Help Topics | Previous | Next

Using Messages Help

Open Windows 2000 Error and Event Messages Help.

How Messages in this Help File are Organized

The messages in this file have been organized to reflect the Windows 2000 desktop. The messages appear in the Help file as follows:

• Messages are normally followed by a description of the circumstances that might generate the message and, if appropriate or needed, by a suggested user action.
  
  
• Variable names appear in italics.
  
  
• Most status messages that require no user action are not documented.

How to Search for Messages

There are several ways to search for messages in the Messages Help file. On the Contents tab is a hierarchical listing of topics grouped by application catagory or component as found on the Start menu. (Some additional topical groupings which are not application-specific are also included.) This list includes (in alphabetical order):

• Accessories
  
  
• Administrative Tools
  
  
• Command Line Tools
  
  
• Control Panel
  
  
• Desktop
  
  
• Dynamic Link Libraries
  
  
• Enterprise
  
  
• Event ID
  
  
• Event Log
  
  
• Help
  
  
• Internet Information Services
  
  
• Kernel
  
  
• Logon
  
  
• Setup

Double-click a main component to see a list of the applications that are associated with that component. For example, if you want to find an error message for Notepad, double-click Accessories on the Contents tab. Select Notepad to view an alphabetical list of the messages for that application.

Clicking the In Alphabetical Order button provides access to messages arranged alphabetically by the first letter of the first word of the message. Click the letter that corresponds to the initial letter in the message. If you cannot find the message that appears on your screen in the alphabetical list, it might be because it begins with a replaceable parameter. Variable names, which are placeholders for the specific word or number that appears in the message, are used as substitutes for replaceable parameters. They appear in italics in the Help file. For example, if the Help file message reads, "number files were not found", the error message that appears on your screen will contain the actual number.

To view the messages that begin with a variable or a punctuation mark, click the In Alphabetical Order button, then the Symbol button. These messages are alphabetized by the variable name used to replace that parameter.

• Clicking the Event ID button displays ranges of event messages that are organized numerically. Click the appropriate range to display the corresponding messages. The log in which a message appears is indicated at the end of each message string.
  
  
• Clicking the Event Log button displays the three event logs: Application, Security, and System. The messages in each log are listed alphabetically.