Odds & Ends: SpeedTools freeze; Startup delays; more

SpeedTools UMAX scanner = freeze Les Dodson found that launching Hard Disk SpeedTools 3.3 would freeze when it was doing a device scan. Intech Software informed him that it was related to a bug in the firmware of his UMAX scanner. Intech had developed a patch to work-around this bug, but it "was inadvertently turned off in HDST 3.3. We have turned it back on in the upcoming 3.4 version" - which should be released soon.

Prevent the 2 minute wait at startup after a crash If you crash, and have the General Controls Shutdown Warning enabled, a version of Disk First Aid will run at your next startup. If you're not there to click OK when it's finished, the dialog box stays there for 2 minutes! ResExcellence has posted a do-it-yourself patch (using ResEdit) that eliminates the 2 minute wait. It works in Mac OS 9.0 and 9.1, but apparently not 9.2 (although one reader reported success in 9.2.1).

Slow startup with extensions off? Matt Rosenberg wrote about something that we too have noticed for months (ever since Mac OS 9.1 and perhaps 9.0 or even 8.x) - but have never commented on before: When starting up with Extensions Off (Shift key held down at startup), our Macs actually take longer to startup than when we startup with our normal full complement of extensions. Previously, starting up with Extensions Off had been quite fast. The delay is accompanied by excessive disk activity, which finally subsides just as the desktop appears. Anyone know the explanation for this?

Bridging 802.11 Networks An article on oreillynet.com discusses "Bridging 802.11 Networks with Linksys."