Well, you could try what some of us did (which seems to work for me), is to create a new Windows user account and install Vegas Pro under the new account. This cleared up a lot of problems and crashes for some people that tried this.

IF you are still using Win XP ..
I'd suggest making an image of your system drive before doing this so you can restore things if you have to ..

Clean Reinstall Vegas

Have you tried right-clicking the program icon and selecting "run as administrator"?

Any possibilities of a virus changing permissions in some of your folders? I had that happen to me in December. Check the program folders and "local settings" and "application data" folder in Documents and Settings to see if any global changes appear to have been made. Some files need to be read-only and some, such as log files, caches and temp files need to be write-allowed. In my case, all were changed to read-only. Several programs would not open, just the spinning hourglass. And because of the insidious way it was done, I could not successfully do a system restore to solve the problem.

And if you try another uninstall/reinstall, I would clean the registry before reinstalling and either use Leee's suggestion for a Vegas user account, or to at least make sure to install as Administrator. I haven't used Leee's procedure but it seems to have worked for several folks. And disable any virus software during install.

Edit: and just to make sure you know, following all the procedures for a clean install that are given on the link above will probably mean reinstalling V9 as well. Looks to me like their procedure calls for taking ALL Sony and SCS references out of the registry.

Hi all! I'm so surprised to hear about the huge delay in Tech Support. I've always had very timely responses in the past.

Thanks for the suggestions. I have been able to *complete* a clean uninstall and reinstall of 10, including removing all the Sony folders and registry entries, it's just that 10 will still not open afterwards. 9 does.

I have tried Run as Administrator with no luck, but I have not done a thorough study for any virus infection. I will do that and try the new Windows user trick as well.

I am trying to be polite here, but why are you asking Sony Vegas Tech Support to fix your PC?

Have you looked at the Windows System Logs to see why the program wouldn't start?

Well, I tried the new user creation to no avail and there seems to be no virus issues.

I have looked at the system and application logs in the Event Viewer and there are no errors or warnings.

I'm having no trouble with any other program on the computer, including Sony Vegas 9. It's just that suddenly, Sony Vegas 10 has decided to no longer open.

If you're not even getting the splash screen when you attempt to open, it seems like there may be a erroneous path to a very basic file Vegas needs. If you have a registry tool such as CCCleaner, you may want to verify it doesn't show any broken links in the registry. I don't have access to my Vegas machine now, but if you can find an install log in either the program folder or the folder created during the installation process, you might check to see where files were put. Not knowing how familiar you are with the usual file structure and with me being away from my office, I can't give you a lot of guidance of troubleshooting from that point, but something obvious to you may come up.

I had a similar issue on my work PC back when I was running Windows Vista. The issue was permissions and since you appear to be running XP the top FAQ may work for you:

Edit the registry to ensure that all users have full access to the program:
https://www.custcenter.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1109/kw/reinstall%20vegas%20xp/related/1

Another FAQ that may or may not be helpful - Select "Run as administrator" when first launching the application: https://www.custcenter.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/1101/kw/reinstall%20vegas%20xp/related/1/session/L2F2LzEvdGltZS8xMzI4ODA2ODQxL3NpZC9lSWtMWWdRaw%3D%3D

Thank you all for your suggestions, but I've still gotten nowhere with this. Luckily, it is one of our student stations and it can just run Vegas Pro 9 as I am unable to get 10 to open even after trying everything and doing yet another Clean Uninstall of all Sony products and reinstall.

Still haven't gotten a response from Tech Support which is very discouraging.

I'm probably going to sound very cranky here, but I'm not. Well, maybe. I *am* just recovering from the flu. But whatever.

I'm not going to make excuses for tech support because SOME sort of response is always warranted. That said, You're trying to run a program that is a DECADE newer than XP to run smoothly on it. There's a point where it's fair for software publishers to NOT fully support dated operating systems (I'm looking at you IE6).

At the time XP was released, much of what Vegas can do wasn't even thought of for several years. And for those things that were, it was still several years until hardware caught up.

An allegory: "the wiper blades on my 2011 Camry don't fit on my 2001 Camry." The reality is, Toyota is VERY slow to make changes. But in two decades the Camry has gone through two major revisions. And you know what, the wiper blades on the 2001 actually DO NOT fit on the 2011. That dog will not hunt!

You can't teach an old dog new tricks...XP is out to pasture - there are no patches, you're vulnerable to viruses, attacks, and further system instability.

In summary, while a lack of any response is disappointing, your first thought should be to upgrade your hardware and operating to something Vegas 10 was specifically written to operate under.

Sharon,
Not sure if this'll work, but try it anyway.

Navigate to the folder where V10 is installed.
Run a program in that folder called PRSConfig.exe
Detection level should show the default of "Full". Change that to "Compatible".

Way back in the past this worked for me..

YMMV,
Tom

Tom: Thanks for that suggestion, but sadly, it did not work either.

Andreas: Only very mildly cranky, but correct nonetheless ;) I completely agree with you. Our two *real* editing stations are updated each year to keep up with the changing technology. As a nonprofit, however, we've learned to push every piece of our equipment to its limits and beyond. This particular station is one of three student/intern/training stations and we have to make do with what they are. Luckily, Pro 9 still runs just fine. It's only frustrating that 10 did run perfectly well for several months, then when it stopped working, I didn't get any type of reply from Sony, which is very unusual because we have been a client for decades and have never had that happen before.

But, it is great that there are so many fellow users out there willing to share their experiences on forums like this one to help each other! Thanks all!!

You might try downloading V10 again just to make sure nothing is wrong with the file. Reboot? Are the .net windows files up to date?
JJK

Julie (Sharon?), Are you located in Wilmington, DE? I live in Pike Creek Valley.

I've been a Sony Vegas user for nearly 9 years, retired IT professional for DuPont/CSC and did some part time work in technical support at the University of Delaware.

I'm also retired, so have I have the time stop by and look at your install - if you'd like.

I might not be able to fix your problem but another set of eyes never hurts. Either reply here or send me an Email.

...Jerry

Something to try:

Hold down shift+control when you start Vegas.

This will reset the internal prefs.

Pewter

There's a point where it's fair for software publishers to NOT fully support dated operating systems...

Andreas, with respect I disagree with you regarding Windows XP. There is nothing wrong with it just because it's old, and Windows XP SP3 is on VP10's list of supported operating systems. So it should run correctly and SCS should support it fully.

XP is out to pasture - there are no patches, you're vulnerable to viruses, attacks, and further system instability.
This is not true. Microsoft continue to deliver security and other updates via Windows Update. They sent me a load just yesterday in fact. My Windows XP machines are rock stable and I don't believe VP10 would run any better on Windows 7.

@Nick: I didn't realize they were still patching. A quick look at the MS site reveals that "The support for this product (XP) ends April 8, 2014" - Mind you, given the size of the install base (millions...billions?) it would be hard to just abandon.

The ultimate take away from this thread is that it must be REALLY hard for SCS (et al) to make a program work equally well in operating systems that are a decade apart. Heck, you can't edit new projects in old versions of Vegas, but it still has to run on a 10 year old OS. Oy.

I have tried installing from the original disc as well as downloading the newest version when prompted.

I also have updated Windows fully, including several NET framework updates.

I tried holding Shift+Ctrl while double-clicking the exe file and I did get a window to reset all Vegas preferences.

However, still no program open ;(

Everyone is fantastic with all the suggestions, though. Thanks so much!

Jerry,

Thank you so much for your wonderful offer - I may take you up on that. I'll email you once I chat with my colleague who uses that system.

I think we may have met before - are you friends with Mike Brenner?

julie