Christine,

Which version of Windows are you running it on and is that a 32bit or 64bit installation of Windows?

Also, when you say that it gets an error when opening, do you mean the moment after you try to run the program?  Or do you mean that the program opens to the main screen but crashes when selecting something on the main screen?  If it is the latter, please provide me some examples of what you are clicking on when it crashes.

i am using windows xp dont no if it 32bit or 64bit. when i click on the icon on desktop it starts to open but dosent. it says hallmark card studio 2012 has encountered a problem and needs to close.  We are sorry for the inconvenience. i uninstalled the program and took off my firewall and reloaded it but i still get exact same message

Christine,

Thank you for providing the requested information.  If you are running Windows XP, then you are most likely running the 32bit version of it.

If the program is crashing when immediately first opening, it may be that there is something running in the background that is conflicting with the program.  Please try the following as a test:

1) Close all program
2) Click on the Start button and go to Run
3) Type "msconfig" without the quotes in the Open box and click the OK button
4) On the General tab of the System Configuration window, select the Diagnostic Startup item
5) Click on the OK button
6) At the prompt, select the Restart Now option
7) After the computer restarts, test the program to see if the problem still occurs

You can re-enable your startup items by performing the following steps:

1) Repeat steps 1-3 from above
2) On the General tab of the System Configuration window, select the Normal Startup option
3) Click the OK button
4) At the prompt, select the Restart Now option

After the computer restarts, your startup items will have been re-enabled.

that did not work

Christine,

If that did not work, the next thing I would suggest is you try to boot your computer into Safe Mode.  To do this, you would first need to restart your computer.  After you see the initial BIOS information on the screen, start tapping on the F8 key.  The timing on this can be a bit tricky.  So, you may need to restart your computer a couple of times.  Basically, you have to hit the F8 key just at the right time before the Windows screen first appears.  You will know that you were successful when you see the Safe Mode menu appear.

Once that appears, simply select the "Safe Mode" option and press the Enter key.  Your computer will then boot into Safe Mode.  It will probably take longer than normal to boot into Safe Mode.  So, do not worry if it take a while to get there.  Once you get to your Desktop, please try launching Hallmark Card Studio 2012 once again.  Does the program launch successfully that way?

that didn't work. i still get same error

Christine,

I apologize for not responding to this sooner. I have been out of town for the last week and have been unable to keep up with SoftCity during that time.

Is your installation of Hallmark Card Studio the download version of the program or a disc version?

it is a disc but i returned the disc for a refund

I have been through all of the above. In searching for answers I am discovering that Hallmark Card Studio Deluxe2012 is giving many people problems.

I used Hallmark 2009 and 2010 for years and when 2012 was downloaded, I got the same error message: " has to close, sorry for the inconvenience". I have yet to get it installed on my computer. Now I don't even get the error message. The download seems to go normally, and then when I go to open the program, my screen goes blank, and then back to desktop. Nothing opens.

I have removed the SQL's, done safe mode, done misconfig, etc,etc, etc,

What do you recommend for a card software program that works? I can't even put my 2009 or 2010 back on the computer. To say I am frustrated is an understatement.

Kristi,

I am not sure I understand the problem you are experiencing. You state that you are trying to install the software, but the error message you are getting is one that appears after the software is installed. If you go to Start - Programs - Hallmark, do you have a Hallmark Card Studio 2012 option in that menu? If so, then the program is already installed. In that case, you do not need to keep running the download installation file.

As a side note, you can have multiple versions of Hallmark Card Studio running on the computer at the same time. The program was specifically designed to allow you to do that. For example, I have Hallmark Card Studio 2009, 2010, 2011 & 2012 installed on the same computer.

Robby - I am reinstalling the software because of all the recommended "fixes" that are given. Yes, Hallmark option is on my Programs list.  I know it is installed...it is opening it that is the problem.

Any suggestions??

Kristi,

Which version of Windows are you trying to run this on and is that a 32bit or 64bit installation of Windows?

It is 32 bit.

Some additional information and trouble shooting on this end:

When I choose "run as" up comes which administrator to open program...current user(me) is checked. I have created another administrator and password and it still won't open.

Under program properties for Hallmark, if I click on compatibility, it lists the following for "run in":

  Windows 95    Windows 98/Windows ME      Windows NT 4.0(SP5)

   Windows 2000

Why is there no Windows XP listed?  

I tried reloading my Hallmark 2010 and it will not work either.

One more thing to mention: the program IS installed on the computer b/c it is listed in my add/remove programs. When I try to open it from either the desktop icon or from All Programs, the screen blips to dark blue with desktop icons still visible. I "lose" my background screen.  This will not come back unless I log off/on.

Kristi,

I also need to know which version of Windows you are running this on.

My systems properties says Windows XP Media Center Edition

Kristi,

Thank you for providing that information. I do not think you should have any problems running that on the Media Center Edition of XP.

Now, you said that you tried "reloading" Hallmark Card Studio 2010. Am I correct in assuming that this means that the 2010 version was on this computer previously? If so, was it working the last time you used 2010 on this computer? Or were you experiencing problems with it previously, as well?

Robby, I guess I better back up. I had a Windows crash Oct 2011. System was repaired and up and running. All software programs previously installed were lost. I began reinstalling previous programs. This is when I discovered that Hallmark would not open. After hours of tech support - both by Dell for computer and Hallmark tech support, they issued me the 2012 Hallmark Deluxe edition software. This is where I am to date: Hallmark will not open on my computer. Before you launch into a long list of "fixes" geared at my computer, let me tell you that I have spent close to 20 hours with tech support doing every imaginable repair(safe mode, systems reconfig, test administrators with trial versions of Hallmark installed, fixed patch registry problems, clean boot state with reinstall of software, turning off firewall before install, etc,etc,etc. In addition to diagnostics, I installed the most up to date version of McAfee anti-virus  AND System Mechanics to the tune of $203.00.  I also have used Mr. Fix It

As a test for myself, today I reinstalled a software program I have called Punch Home Design studio. It opens and works fine. BTW...I have read through most of the comments on this site and I see that I am not the only one having this problem. What does Hallmark say about all this? Do you have a direct line through to them? I have only had luck once talking to them - hence this site for information. Thanks for your ear.

Kristi,

Thank you for sharing that information. This may help explain the cause of the problem. My assumption is that before the system crash and repair, Hallmark Card Studio 2010 was working, correct? If that is the case, then I would like to gather some more information about the repair.

How precisely was your system repaired? Was the computer reformatted and Windows reinstalled after it was formatted? Or was Windows reinstalled over the existing installation of Windows? Given the problem you are experiencing, I am thinking is the latter method and not the former.

Also, I understand that previously installed programs were lost, but was other data lost? For example, were previously saved projects from any program, Hallmark or otherwise, still on the computer after it was repaired?

Regarding the problem you are experiencing, there are a number of causes for the generic "has to close" error message. Almost all of these are caused by something outside of the program.  On top of that, it depends on your version of Windows and the version of Hallmark Card Studio that you are getting the error message in. I understand that there are a number of other people on the SoftCity site receiving a similar error message. However, I can speak with fair confidence that the cause of their problems are not the same as the problem you are experiencing.

As a side note, Hallmark does not make the Hallmark Card Studio software. The program is licensed to Hallmark Software, which is a different company. I have no contact with Hallmark. I do work on occasion with the developers of Hallmark Card Studio to report issues that come up on the site.

I will answer in order that you asked above:

Yes, Hallmark 2009 and 2010 were on my computer and working BEFORE system crash. I have tried to reinstall 2010 and get it to run but no luck. I removed it from my computer.

Windows initially crashed - repair #1 was bogus by Dell( I was told they did not put a fresh installation on - only installed an operating system on top of old one).  I lost all files, folders,and programs. This is when I discovered that Hallmark(2009,2010) were gone, as well as Corel Photo Album. I contacted Tech support at each company and could not get programs on.  Hallmark sent 2012 at this point to me.

Windows install # 2 - this time I had an engineer from Dell working on my system. He did a reinstall and background diagnosis. We removed Hallmark and Corel, and reinstalled hallmark. Still could not open.

That was end of November. My computer system is working fine - send/ receive email. internet connection good, etc. I have yet to be able to get through to Corel to receive another download for the Corel program but hope I can get that back as well.

The Dell tech was able to retrieve my files and folders. I lost software installs, address book and emails.

I don't understand the term "reformatted". Can you determine the  answer from what I have told you?

In your opinion, is it worth to continue trying to solve this issue(Hallmark will not launch) or should I try another card making software?

Kristi,

Thank you for providing that additional information.

I am going to apologize up front, because I know this response is going to be long. So, I apologize for this long response. I feel I need to explain what is going on so you can make an informed decision on how to proceed with this.

When a system suffers from a serious crash like the one it seems you experienced, there are generally only 3 options that can be done if repairing Windows is not feasible. Each of these options have their pros and cons. I am going to outline them below.

The first option is the one that your technicians performed on your system. This is the option of reinstalling Windows without formatting the hard drive. This was probably the best option that the technician took. The benefit of this option is that you do not lose any other data on the computer. So, if you had pictures, music, videos, projects, documents, etc., this would preserve that information while allowing you to get back into Windows. The disadvantage to this is that it leaves information on the system that may cause problems. I will go into more detail about this later.

The second option is to format your hard drive and reinstall Windows. Formatting a hard drive is essentially erasing everything on the drive so it is blank. From there, you can reinstall Windows and all your programs. The disadvantage to this option is that you lose everything on your hard drive. So, if you have pictures, documents, etc. that you do not want to lose, you would not want this option. If you are not concerned about losing anything, this is a better option than the first one. This is because that you would not have to worry about left-over files potentially causing problems on the system.

The third option is to re-image the drive. Some computer companies provide an option that will put everything on your system back to the way it was when it was when you started the computer for the very first time. Like formatting your hard drive, you will lose everything that was saved to that drive after that first time you started it. The advantage is that it puts everything back to the way it was when you first started the computer. So, you do not need to reinstall the programs that were pre-installed on the computer or install Windows, update the drivers, etc. Everything is back to the way it was originally.

The problem you are experiencing with getting Hallmark to run stems from the way the system was recovered. From the problems you experiencing, I am fairly certain that they reinstalled Windows in the same directory that Windows was originally installed in. The problem with this is that Windows is constantly changing over time. You are getting new updates to Windows. There are new modules added to Windows. There are additional drivers added for new hardware or software. So, the Windows directory that you have a month or two after you purchased the computer is not the same as the Windows directory when you started the computer for the first time. The longer you get from the first time you started the computer, the more the information in that directory changes.

Since the computer was not formatted and Windows was reinstalled in the same directory a lot of files are present in that Windows directory that should not be in there. The problem with this is that those files require updated Windows files or saved registry settings that are no longer present since Windows was reinstalled.

The problem with all of this is that some programs require those files and settings to function properly. So, the program will check to see if those files are present. If they find the files present, they assume that those files got there the correct way by being installed at some point and not left over from a reinstall of Windows. Since those files were left over, they do not function like they should, or at all, and the programs that require them will run into issues. Hence your situation with Hallmark.

So, where does that leave you and why such a long winded explanation? Well, there is a chance that we may be able to get your Hallmark running again. There are a couple of things we can try to see if they make any difference. However, I am not very confident that they will resolve the issue.

What I would suggest you take into serious consideration at this point is to format your computer or re-image it back to the way it was when you first started it. Re-imaging the computer would be the ideal option if possible. There are a couple of reasons why to you should consider doing this.

The major concern I have is that you will start seeing problems with other programs. I understand that a number of programs are working at this point. If you do not foresee installing many more programs in the future, then you may skate on by with how your system is running right now and never see any other problem. However, you may have trouble later on installing/running other programs that you may find critical for you. This may force you into a situation where you will have to reformat/re-image.

This leads me to my other concern. If you are forced into a situation where you need to reformat/re-image, the longer you wait the more information that may potentially be lost. At this point, your system is stable and you have an easy means of backing up any information you need to save. However, you have to think about six months, a year or more from now. How many emails, address books, projects, documents, etc. may be lost if you wait? What are the chances that you may lose or damage one of your programs' installation discs in the intervening time?

Believe me, this is not something that I recommend very often to people. If I was fairly confident that only one or two programs would be affected by this, I would suggest just going out and getting a different program. However, I think you will only see more and more problems develop as times goes by. Again, this depends on your computer usage. The less changes you make to your computer, such as installing programs or updating programs, the less likely you will have any problems.

If you reformat/re-image your computer, I do not expect you to have any further problems with installing and running Hallmark Card Studio. Of course, this is a big decision to make. If you would like to try the other things to see if they resolve your issue, I would be happy to try to help that way. You should just be aware that there is only so much that can be done with the state that your computer is currently in.

If you have questions about any of this, please let me know. The problem is complex and not easy for me to describe. So, if there was anything that I need to explain better, please let me know.

Wow! Thank you so much for such a great reply and explanation of everything. I think I understand now what is going on, and it sure does make sense. I wish the techs I had been working with could have explained things this way. Half the time I couldn't understand what they were saying.

I vaguely remember one of them asking me when my computer last ran correctly, before the error message. He asked me for a date. Could this be a reformat/reimage attempt? I believe I have most everything I would want saved on a thumb drive.  Is there a way to determine if the reformat/reimage has already been done?

Is what you are suggesting something I can do from home myself? Or do I have to lug my computer in to a shop and have it done. I always worry about someone having access to my computer.  I am up for whatever I need to do to be able to have full use of my computer and putting my Hallmark software back on it.

Thank you again for all of your help. Kristi

Kristi,

At this point, it is a bit difficult to tell whether they reformatted or re-imaged your drive. I suspect that neither has been done though. Do you know if you only have one hard drive in your computer? If that is the case and they were still pulling your files off your computer with both technicians, then I would say that neither has been done. If either had been performed, all of your information would have been deleted from that drive. So, they would not be able to recover anything.

Either may be difficult to perform unassisted. This mostly depends on whether you can re-image the computer. This is not always an option. It has only been within the last few years that computer manufacturers started including the images of the drive when shipping out computers.

If you are sure that you have all the information you need from your computer and want to proceed with this, I would suggest that you contact Dell support once more. Then, ask them if they can walk you through performing a "factory restore" on your computer. I believe this is the term that they use for re-imaging the computer back to the way it was when it was first shipped from the factory. If you tell them that you want to restore the computer back to the way it was when it was first shipped from the factory, they should know what you are asking for.

Again, it may not be possible with your computer. It may be that they did not make images of computers at that time. They may also need to send you a special disc to perform the restore. Sometimes those are shipped with the computer and sometimes not. Each manufacturer handles things differently.

If restoring (re-imaging) is not possible, then while you still have them on the line, ask them if it is possible to format the hard drive and reinstall Windows with the software they provided with your computer. If so, ask them to walk you through doing that. It is important that you ask if you can do it with the software they provided. Some computer manufacturers do not provide a Windows disc that you can use to reinstall Windows on a formatted computer. They may only be usable when reinstalling Windows over an existing installation.

Hopefully, they can perform the "factory restore" to re-image the drive. This is the simplest method of the two.

I do have a disc titled " Microsoft Windows XP  Media Center Version 2006 with Update Rollup 2"

It says on the disc "only use this DVD to reinstall the operating system on a Dell PC.  This DVD is not for reinstallation of programs or drivers."

I have used this in troubleshooting with the Dell Techs. 

I will follow your suggestion and make one last call to Dell. I just hope I can get them to do what you suggest. Most of time they want to go back to square one and start redoing everything that was done before by another tech ( and I have case # and detailed notes).

Thanks again for your help. Kristi

Hi Robby - I have finally gotten my computer back to normal! Call it luck of the "call" or whatever...but I was able to get a Sr. Tech at Dell yesterday who knew exactly what to do to fix ALL my problems.  I now have a working computer as well as Hallmark Card software.

I won't get into the politics of telephone support but basically it boils down to who answers your call. Thank you for your suggestions and the time you took to give me the information.

Kristi,

I am glad to hear that they were able to help you resolve your issue. Out of curiosity, do you happen to remember what type of work they did to correct the issues? I do not need the step-by-step specifics. I am just curious if they reinstalled Windows or managed to perform some sort of repair on it or some other procedure.

Robby - I was told that my problem came from a  corrupted boot file...which they replaced.

I also had 2 anti-viruses on at the same time which were creating havoc. I had been told that one was removed by a previous attempt at fixing my computer but in actuality had not.  At one point the Windows Reinstall CD was loaded onto the computer but he never referred to the repair as a reinstall.

I hope you can help some other poor soul who has the same problem. It cost me more $$ but my computer is working like a charm right now...Kristi

Kristi,

Thank you for the additional information. I suspect what may have happened is that the first time they reinstalled Windows over the existing installation and the second time they installed it in a separate directory. Then, the boot file was pointing to the first reinstall instead of the second one. However, all of this is guess work. I am just glad you were able to get everything running again. Take care.