Jaksta

After installing the 2004 feature update to Windows 10 Home x64, I started Jaksta's Media Recorder.  I got some message about some .dll that had its registration changed or stolen, and was suggested to uninstall and reinstall Media Recorder.  I did the uninstall, but kept the old settings (so I would have to wander through them again to set to my preferences).  I reinstalled Media Recorder.  It was already registered perhaps because I saved the settings, or your uninstalls leave behind a registry entry with the key.  Media Recorder worked.  Later I restarted Windows, but this time it complains "Error: Please select a network monitor on the Settings -> Internet Downloads tab".  I went there were 2 monitors were listed: Npcap Monitor and Network Monitor.  I cannot select either one, because both are grayed out (disabled).  Okay, so now how do I get Media Recorder working again?

I uninstalled Media Recorder again.  This time I had the uninstaller delete all my old settings and something to do with "library".  I rebooted after the uninstall completed.  I checked the installed apps list, and the uninstall did not remove the npcap 0.995 program, so I uninstalled that, too.  No reboot was indicated as required.  I reinstalled Media Recorder for the 2nd time.  This time, I saw Npcap listed as a component in the Recommended (default) list.  I don't remember seeing it during the 1st reinstall.  The "Jaksta Network Monitor (legacy)" was not pre-selected, and I did not select it as I recall Npcap was the better choice.

Now Media Recorder would load without stopping to complain about choosing a network monitor.  In the Settings -> Internet Downloads tab, Npcap was selected.  When I looked in the installed apps list in Windows, Npcap 0.995 was again installed.  This is the same as before, but when Media Recorder complained used to complain about me having to select a network monitor (but both were disabled).  

Why did the 1st reinstall not reuse the Npcap program already installed?  For the 2nd reinstall, I first uninstalled both Media Recorder and Npcap, and the 2nd reinstall included an install of Npcap.  Why couldn't the 1st reinstall reuse Npcap but the 2nd reinstall could?  There seems a break in the integration of these 2 programs that can only be fixed if BOTH are uninstalled and BOTH are included in the reinstall.  

Fixing Media Recorder to get it to use a network monitor (Npcap) was far more difficult than should be for  your typical users.  If a reinstall of Media Recorder will not connect to an existing install of Npcap then include an uninstall of Npcap with the uninstall of Media Recorder.

 

Despite problems with Media Recorder and Npcap, I consider myself lucky in that the 2004 feature update to Windows 10 didn't screw up my computer even worse.  I've read the horror stories.  When reading the release notes for the 2004 update, there are still lots of problems listed as "Investigating" which means they have not yet been resolved.  Microsoft didn't offer me the 2004 update until less than a month ago, and now 2010 ( aka 20H2) is out although its description is that it is mere GUI fluff.

The only other problem that I've run into, so far, is the playback device changed to the digital output which is not used.  I had to switch back to the analog RCA outputs.  Before I installed the 2004 update, I saved a full backup image as an escape route (System Restore is unreliable hence worthless since it leaves behind a hodgepodge of new and old versus an image backup that gets me back to exactly the same state as before).   If I had not figured out how to fix Media Recorder (but the program hinted in a popup to do an uninstall and reinstall) and also uninstall an reinstall Npcap (because I couldn't get Media Recorder to reuse the existing install probably due to the 2004 update breaking the driver as you mention), I was going to revert to the backup image. 

Thanks for the help.