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PC Download Help
This page covers these questions:
Will I be billed for what I download?
We do not collect any fees for the software, our download pages are simply recommendations
for programs to try. Some programs are "Shareware" and are free for you to use
for a limited time, but require a small payment if you wish to continue using the program beyond the trial time.
If you download something that asks for a payment, and you don't want to pay for it, you should just delete it from your hard drive.
We list the fees for the programs on our pages so that people are aware
from the beginning if the program they are downloading is free to
keep, or how much it costs. But we do not collect any fees. We also
don't and won't charge for anyone to access these pages, nor do we get fees from the shareware authors
for posting their programs - this is a totally free service.
I'm getting an error when I try to download, now what?
If the error is a 'File Not Found' kind of error, please contact us.
If there is any change in the filename, like the author put a new version up in the archives, our link to the program will
break. Also the archives sometimes do a major shuffle and move things around. At any rate, we'll need to track down the file
and fix the links.
Please include the name of the file you are trying to download and the error message you're getting, so we can best help you.
If the error reads something like 'Could Not Login to FTP Server' or says something about 'user limit' or 'server full' then you just need to keep on trying. You can try that server again in a few minutes, or you can click on any of the other sites offered. Sometimes trying to download from a machine located on the other side of the globe makes sense, because it is not so heavily loaded at the time.
If the error is 'No Viewer Configured for File Type...'
This is a Netscape error, letting you know that it does not have the helper application set up to decode the file. That is fine, just select 'SAVE' and it will write the file to disk, you can decode it later.
I can't download from any of the sites you have listed
First, write down the name of the program listed under 'Source:' that we list with the file descriptions. You might also be able to find the program using part of the text name of the program.
You can then try searching for the file at zdnet
You should also let us know, so we can double check that the links are good.
- How do I download a file?
- To download from our pages, look for the area that says 'Download Sites:' which
lists sites where you can get the program from. Click on one of those sites,
and the download should begin. You only need to successfully download from one of
those sites. Then you will need to unzip and install the program. Generally, you
can unzip the file by double clicking it. When the file is unziped, you can double
click the program file or the setup program in the unzipped folder to install the
program.
- I have Win 95/98/ME/2000/XP, can I run the programs for Win 3.1 and DOS?
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Unfortunately most programs that were made for Windows 3.1 will not work with newer versions of windows.
Most DOS programs should work fine, but some may not.
- I have a Web TV, can't I use these programs?
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Unfortunately, no. While WebTV does give access to web pages, it is not a full computer, and these
downloads require that you have a PC. Fortunately, we have many games and activities that you should be able to use, such as our
online games.
- Why do I receive a login request when I try to download something?
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Sometimes the FTP sites that the Kids Domain uses are overloaded. So that
the machines can cope with the traffic, the various sites set a limit to
the number of consecutive connections. Unfortunately, by setting this
limit it stops site maintainers connecting as well. The solution to this
is to only limit 'anonymous' connections. When the limit is reached,
rather than informing you that there are too many 'anonymous'
connections, it presents you with a login form just in case you are a
legitimate user of that machine.
This behavior only happens with certain browsers, like AOL's old browser.
Netscape and Internet Explorer users will just see a 'too many users, try again later' kind of message.
Basically, if you ever receive one of these requests then just ignore it and try to connect again. NEVER put your own username and password in the box!
Sometimes, it is a sign that the server is no longer offering free downloads. If the link doesn't work after you try it several times at different times of day, it's probably no longer available.
- I get a "No Viewer Configured for File Type..." Error
- This is a Netscape error, letting you know that it does not have the helper application set up to decode the file.
That is fine, just select 'SAVE' and it will write the file to disk, you can decode it later.
- I have downloaded and tried to open a file, but Windows asks which program
I would like to open it with, or says that it is not a valid win32 application. What do I do now?
- Most likely, you are missing a compression utility. Many new machines
include most software necessary to get started on the Internet. However, a
lot of them come out of the box with no idea how to unzip a file! When a
program ends in .exe, your computer will recognize it as an "executable"
file and will automatically know how to open it. When a file ends in .zip,
you will need a program to decompress it.
The most popular product for unzipping files is WinZip. It can quickly and easily open any .zip files that you download from the Internet or get from friends.
There is another possiblity - if your file ends in .sit or .hqx, you accidently downloaded a program for the Macintosh computer instead of the PC, and it won't run on your system. We have large areas for both the Mac or PC, and the top of the page identifies which kind of computer the download is for.
- When trying to install a file I get the message that the file is damaged or is not a valid application. Why isn't it working?
- Many times while downloading, a site will disconnect leaving the file only partially downloaded. When trying to run this program, the computer will recognize that some of the components are missing and let you know. The best way to handle this is to check that the file size on the download page matches the file size on your machine. Although these are not always exact, they should be very close to the same size. If they are not the same size, then try downloading again. If this problem happens repeatedly, try using a Download Manager.
If you are unable to download with the manager, then it is time to contact the webmaster to check on the status of that particular file.
- Help, this download is taking FOREVER!!!
- This site is a collection of links to programs. These pointers point to machines all over the world where
archives are located.
Those archives are sometimes overloaded -
especially on weekends and Friday nights. If you try to download from one site, and the response seems really bad, try another.
If the site that is storing the file or your internet provider is
overloaded, downloads will be slow. You might get better results downloading from a site on the other side of the world, where
people might be sleeping.
- What is a (.zip), (.sit) and (.hqx) file?
- A (.zip) or a (.sit) file is a single compressed file that contains many larger files. Compressed files are good because they cut your
downloading time in half or even less, and make it possible to fit large collections of files onto one floppy disk.
A (.hqx) file is an encoded file that makes it possible to transmit a file as a text file, and is useful for emailing files. Another format is mime.
We've got another page of answers to questions.
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