Topic: The thing's gone bonkers!!

[adam04]

for a start,  i have never heard of that programme,   NEVER EVER download any spyware programme that comes as a pop-up like error safe, it usually is spyware!

get a programme called adaware, or one called Spybot.

or get both.

both will install updates when you launch them, andwill completly clean you PC and by using two, you know that there is a very very small chance you have anything left.

Those two are both free and meant to be the best around.

Pop-ups though are a pain and nothing can seem to gget rid of them anymore, they are often built into computer programs and thats how they pop-up. so unoless you delete programs then you will always have the odd pop-up.

[ken (69)]

Downloaded that Gloworm, useful addition to the rest.
Never had a virus yet, am sure that a lot come in via outlook express, which is why I do web email, and I never visit portals, dens of iniquity.
Get rid of pop-ups with google taskbar, Adam

[Derekthefox]

Thanks Glowworm, I ran it too, all clear ...

[Glowworm]

I'm new to computers. I'm over 60 and I've been sitting in front of a PC for only a year now... and boy! am I pissed off about a few things...

In just a 12-month period I have had two computers and a total of four clean-wipes and re-installs onto my hard drive all costing a small fortune.

Right from the beginning I have had the most highly recommended anti-virus software - two of them free downloads and the third I pay for (ZoneAlarm with Anti-virus).

And then I have always had Spybot Search & Destroy on my system... as well as two Firewalls - and BHODemon - and 'RegistryFix' (again, a paid-for software).

I am totally convinced that there are nasty cyber-bugs going around of which none of these anti-this and anti-that software programmes have a clue about. I have also been very careful to keep my anti-virus programmes fully up to date with the latest downloads.

But despite the care I have taken I had to dump my first computer in the garbage bin upon the advice of the manager of my local computer repair shop.

Then when I bought a super-dooper new computer model with an operating system of Windows XP... it only took 6 months before once again I had to trek down to the repair shop to have the hard drive wiped clean and have Windows re-installed... all at painful cost to my limited budget.

And now, only a week after having the computer returned back from the shop - I've already got some problems... !! I think I'm jinxed.

Not only that - but online computer technicians haven't got a clue how to help me with these problems. They are as baffled as I am by my continuing and ongoing bad luck with computers.

As a reward for putting up with my bitching and moaning - here's an online help site you might find useful...

  http://www.protonic.com/   

[Rosa_Mundi]

But despite the care I have taken I had to dump my first computer in the garbage bin upon the advice of the manager of my local computer repair shop.

Gloworm, I would seriously suggest that you change the shop you frequent. Any computer, no matter how full of spyware/viri/malware can be fixed by re-installing Windows. There is NEVER any need to bin it unless you cause physical damage. Whoever advised you is looking to make money.
There is no reason to take the machine back to the shop to re-install Windows, either - if you have been sold a legal copy of Windows, you will have a CD entitled "Windows XP" or whatever. Simply unplug external devices (such as printers) from your machine, put the CD in your CD drive and press return; it will give you he option to re-install Windows, and that's it; peripherals, such as printers, will be installed separately by Windows later; plug them in one by one, install, and then re-start and plug in the next.
If you have time, have you thought of looking for an "Introduction to Computing" course at a local college? Many of these are run by local councils, and would probably be free if you are retired.

[Glowworm]

Thank you for your interest Rosa_Mundi. I bought my first computer for peanuts off an organisation which is made up of retired people who buy up old computers from offices and auction warehouses so they can then give them a tune-up before on-selling them to budget-conscious blokes like me.

There's no doubt I bought a lemon. It was a Pentium 2 running on Windows 98 Second Edition. It just kept on breaking down. In the end, and upon the advice of the repairs shop manager -- he took it around the back and shot it like a lame horse.  :-[

I tried to clean-install the hard drive of my new pentium 4 (equivalent) PC with Windows XP Home Edition... but even this didn't work for me. It went along fine for a while - with me following the prompts... but then it just sort of gave up. Probably my inexperience was the cause of this. I've got the Windows Installation disk and another disk I've been told is for me to install the sound system and some other bits and pieces.

As for going to school to learn about it all... ? -- no way! My brother and his wife went to one of these evening courses only to find that 99.9% of the time the teacher was talking right over their heads. They started with not a clue... and finished the term with not a clue. The only way I am able to learn is at my own pace -- at home -- and making heaps of notes in a fat note-book.

Thanks for the advice about disconnecting the external hardware before trying to re-format.

Incidentally, after a whole year of being a computer newbie I have never yet met anyone who can tell me what 'formatting' means. Even the people who run the computer repair shop could not give me a direct answer to my question:

"What do I say when I want my hard drive wiped clean before then having Windows XP re-installed in it... ?"

I'm aware that you can re-install an operating system into a hard drive without first needing to have the hard drive wiped clean. You could say that's 're-formatting'.

But what is the correct terminology when you mean to say you want the hard drive wiped clean before then being 'formatted' with a new install of the OS?









 

[Rosa_Mundi]

Hello, Gloworm. The word you want is to "wipe" a disk, but you don't need it; there is such a thing as a "35-pass wipe" for those with highly confidential information on their machines, but it's not used normally.
Formatting is dividing a disk up into sections that a computer can use; there are separate sections needed to store files, another where the index of the disk is stored, and so on. It's like writing the numbers of the days in a diary; without the numbers, you would have no way of knowing which day you intended to do things. Similarly, unless a disk is formatted, a computer cannot use it.
With regard to your problems, there are a couple of things to be aware of. One is that popular sites, such a music download or games sites, are good sources of viruses and trojans. Advertising sites are prone to leave popups and such nasties unless carefully chosen. Free items should be treated with caution; again, many carry nasty bugs that they don't tell you about. Another point is to be careful with unsolicited emails; NEVER click on a link in an email unless you know exactly where it's from and know it's safe.
With regard to learning more, have you tried the "Windows for Dummies" books? They will start rather beneath you, but you many find that things are explained more sensibly in them later on. Good luck!

[Derekthefox]

I would add one minor but important detail as well. It is generally necessary now to be firewalled, and the software carefully set up so that it is effective. I am extremely fortunate in having two sons who are doing computing degrees, and they generally keep my machine running correctly.

Glowworm, your local library may be able to help with suitable courses that start from scratch. Many people are in this situation. Also if you are on a 'basics' course, don't be afraid to ask ... the tutors often may assume that the students are comfortable with basic issues, so that they can progress to more demanding stuff. Also, your Windows software should have a tutor, unless this has been deleted from XP, and you can use the net to search for more 'tutors' dealing with various issues.

[Glowworm]

Thanks Derek and Rosa for your help with this. Right from Day One I have kept a fat note-book where I have indexed and written 'How to' notes on everything which has become clear to me. I now have 160 pages of Computers for Retards to refer to...  8)

To tell you the truth, at 62 I'm not a whole lot interested in studying the various theories and social philosophies which lie behind operating a computer - I just want to know how to wortk the d**n thing.... and most of all (for the sake of my skinny wallet) - I want to know how to 'wipe' the hard drive and re-install Windows XP at home in my living-room.... I want to put those shifty buggers down at the repair shop out of businesss so far as I'm concerned anyway...  ;D

[Rosa_Mundi]

Try this: PCWorld is a trustworthy site:

http://www.pcworld.com/howto/article/0,aid,105866,00.asp

[Glowworm]

That'll be a great help to me Rosa Mundi - thanks heaps! I have heard people say it's a good idea to occasionally 'refresh' your operating system with a new install without wiping the hard drive. I don't know if there's a general rule... every 3 months.... ? every 4... ? ... only when your system's going a bit willy-wonky... ?

 

[Glowworm]

When I burnt some music onto a CD-R disk it played okay in my stereo system. But when I burnt the same music onto a CD-RW disk it wouldn't play in the stereo.

[Rosa_Mundi]

You only need to "refresh" your operating system if it starts acting slowly, Gloworm - otherwise, don't worry.
The CD-R CD-RW question may be your stereo - some don't recognize both types of CD (although most new ones should). You could also be unlucky and have a CD that doesn't work with everything - that can happen quite easily

[Derekthefox]

Something that I am guessing at here but may be necessary for RW disks, you may need to specify that the disk is 'closed' as it may default to remaining open. ie your music system may only recognise a closed disk. However once you have closed the disk, I dont know whether it can be editted ...

[Glowworm]

I've taken note of your comments Rosa. And thanks Derek - I'll check that out. I notice after burning there's a notice which tells me that.... 'Protected?' - 'No'.

I've been thinking if it's not protected then that means the CD disks will play in anything. But maybe I've got it the wrong way around. And you've given me an idea - I'll see if the CD-RW will play on my neighbour's stereo which is much more modern tech than mine is.



 

[Glowworm]

If there's anyone here who can tell me (and a few million others) how to uninstall search plugins in the Firefox sidebar you'd be doing us all a favour.

It's dead easy to install new search plugins... ie 'Add Extensions'... but just try to delete any of them... ! I've followed their instructions at ... http://kb.mozillazine.org/Uninstall_search_plugins ... but I'm still none the wiser. I know from others on forum boards that this is a pain in the neck to many others besides myself.

It seems quite extraordinary that Mozilla Firefox can be so good with so much else that they've done and yet go ahead and blot their reputation with something as irritating and dumb as this.

Derek - maybe your boys can shed some light on this. Believe it or not a few months ago I could actually do this... uninstall these search plugins... but what I did no longer works. To uninstall I would install another search plugin - and then, while the download manager window was up I would delete what I wanted to from the list of what I had previously installed.

Problem is - I can't get that d**n Download Manager Window to appear any more...

It seems that with each problem I solve - three more take its place... ! I wonder sometimes why I put myself through this punishment... !  :'(

 ;D

 

[Yellow Petals]

Tim, how is your spyware problem now, any better?  Still need advice? (have only just seen this thread!)

Sam

[Derekthefox]

I will ask next time I see my eldest lad glowworm ...

[Glowworm]

Thanks Derek - but you're not going to believe this - I only just now came across a piece of software equipment which enables people to delete what they want to from the Firefox sidebar. This 'uninstall' software has only been out a month.

Here it is - your eldest son probably hasn't even had time to catch up with this yet...

https://addons.mozilla.org/extensions/moreinfo.php?id=1563

Cheers.
 

[Glowworm]

Sorry - but I spoke too soon. This uninstall software has turned out to be a lemon... a little pile of dog-poo.

Now when I click to uninstall these search plugins they all come back onto the sidebar list again.

I just can't win with this.  :'(