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so i get this comp thats messed up from a friend. I'm trying to fix it and its completely messed up. It had 873 viruses, and like 20 GBs of porn. LMFAO never seen anything like that.Amazing what a MESS some people create with their computers, isn't it!   It probably is badly infested with spyware, too.  If your friend has their Windows CD, a hard drive format and fresh INSTALLATION of Windows is the surest way to return it to your friend with the confidence that it's a clean system.Sounds like most of my friends' computers.  My suggestion?  Tell him to get a girlfriend.  That's how I solved my porn problem. Quote

Sounds like most of my friends' computers.  My suggestion?  Tell him to get a girlfriend.  That's how I solved my porn problem.

Hey Hows it goin !  

Have any idea why I am getting this, when analyzing my start up conf.  ?

Does it mean ? what it says ?  

Name: AolSoftware
Filename: aolsoftware.exe
Command: C:\Windows\aolsoftware.exe
Description: Added by the W32/Tilebot-CL worm and IRC backdoor. This infection should not be confused with the legitimate AOL file which can be found here.
File Location: %WinDir%
Startup Type: This startup entry is installed as a Windows NT, 2000, 2003, or XP service.
Service Name: aolsoftware
Service Display Name: AolSoftware
HijackThis Category: O23 Entry  
Note: %Windir% refers to the Windows installation folder. By default, this is C:\Windows for Windows 95/98/ME/XP or C:\Winnt for Windows NT/2000.
Removal Instructions:  How to remove a Trojan, Virus, Worm, or other Malware  



This is an undesirable program.

This file has been identified as a program that is undesirable to have running on your computer.
 This consists of programs that are misleading, harmful, or undesirable.

If the description states that it is a piece of malware, you should immediately run an
antivirus and antispyware program.


MY OS: Microsoft Windows XP
Home Edition
Version 2002
AOL is my IS ?  :-?

JpSounds accurate.patio,

Can you give me an idea, why it is called AOL software ?


I mean do you know what this is ? is it part of my AOL Internet access ?
What's it all about, why would AOL do this ?

JpIt's called that because a lot of people who make malware try to disguise it as legitimate programs.  Just because it's called AOLSoftware, that doesn't mean it was put on your computer by AOL.  AOL does add an AOLSoftware.exe, but usually somewhere in the Common Files folder.  You should only have to worry if you find it in your C:\Windows folder.CBMatt,

Thanks, mind if I try to get a little more info ?,. . .

Appreciate it if you would take a look at this;

Startup Item                  Command                  
AOLSoftware           C:\Program Files\Com

                      Location
         HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVer...

Can you tell me what location is this ?

Why has this not been detected by the Prevx 1 Console installed of my system?

What is it therefore, i.e., what mischief is it up to ??   !!



Jp
I'm sure it's not exactly the same on all computers, but according to HijackThis, my aolsoftware.exe is located in the C:\Program Files\Common Files\AOL\1150582181\ee folder.  Yours should be in a similar folder.  If not, simply do a system-wide SEARCH for the file.  When you find it, go to VirusTotal, click on Browse (near the top of the page), select the file, and click on Send.  This will scan the file for you and should hopefully put your worries to rest.

Prevx1 probably isn't detecting the file because the one you have is legitimate and not malware.

That HKLM location is referring to the file's registry entry, which is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\CurrentVersion\Run\HostManager.

Keep in mind that there are TWO versions of AOLSoftware.exe.  One is a trojan (look here).  One is a normal AOL file (look here) that is used for pre-loading AOL so that when you go to open the program, it will open faster.

I understand your concern, but it is most likely nothing to worry about.  However, if you're still WORRIED, you can remove the file.  It's not essential to make AOL work; it simply makes it load faster. Quote

Command: C:\Windows\aolsoftware.exe

Quote

Command: C:\Windows\aolsoftware.exe

We already know it's in his C:\Windows\ directory.  Download Anti-virus / Anti-Spyware software and run it.  That should get rid of it.

-Rock

aolsoftware        C:\Program Files\Common Files\...

Hey Guys

I have windows xp and was wondering how to get rid of that password box that pops up when I start the computar?

ThanksRegarding your other post. &GT;Here< is your answer...From what I see, there is no way to REMOVE this log on SCREEN! But my Laptop doesn't do this! Why?Are you talking about two different computers, a laptop and a desktop (in your original post)?Desktop Quote

Hey Guys

I have windows xp and was wondering how to get rid of that password box that pops up when I start the computar?

Thanks

Hi.
My computer or internet has deleted my BOOKMARKS. Twice now. I've had it for almost 3 years and it has NEVER done this before. Anyone now what could be wrong?
ThanksWhat browser?

What operating system?

What internet PROVIDER?
Mozilla Firefox, Windows XP, and Trition Airsurfer.If you get them back or have to do them over, you should back them up in Delicious or something like it.....Grab MozBack for future use.
It backs up your bookmarks, profiles and extensions and themes.
Works for ThunderBird as well.

The full PATH to your bookmarks is as FOLLOWS : Documents and settings/"your user name"/Application Data/ Mozilla/Firefox/default user/profiles/bookmarks.


Whew ! !

alright. so i check this comp thats a friends out cause its not working. clean up the 54 viruses on it and it STILL goes slow. now i restarted and it won't start up. just a BLACK screen and on the TOP left it looks like it wants me to TYPE something but can't.  oh and no system beeps. well it didn't do that before anyways. its a compaq S4000NX. I think its the processor because it was going very very slow for everything I tried to do. even safe mode. any help would be appreciated. thanks.hey i just tried to boot from a cd. it was loading the cd and then the black screen again.If you unplug the hard drive do you get any beeps?ok FIGURED it out. had to reset all the default bios settings.

Hi all- Its GREAT to find a resource such as this.
I am having a series of problems- all of which I suspect are related to registry problems.
Symptoms are: slow performance- many tasks do not complete and performance moniter for some shows that there is 100 % cpu USAGE for as long as I let it go.That problem has abated somewhat.
My Tenebrill spycatcher/ghost surf continualy tell me it has encountered a error, though it doesn't say which one.
I attempted to uninstall it I got: Internal error- Failed to load Dll "shfolder.dll". I found a site to DOWNLOAD that file but clicking on the link produced no action.
My IE7 fails to show many parts of webpages, some PICTURES and some links. It won't load the data from my exchange web access page. I rolled it back to IE6 with no better results.
I tried to download firefox, but it won't display the download button  on mozilla.
When coming back to my computer in the morning, it always appears to have rebooted in the night and is displaying an error window titled "sendbatchmail" with runtime error 70- Permission denied.
I have no Idea what sendbatchmail is.
I downloaded cclean- a registry cleaner sucessfuly, but when trying to install it said it could not find the vb6 files it needed. I downloaded & installed them,
but cclean was still unable to find them.I sucessfully downloaded regscrubxp, but on install I get " Internal error S105".
clicking the windows restore button will either produce a blank window or no result at all. I performed a virus scan at trendmicro with clean results. Does anybody have any ideas as to what to do next?? I feel that this is a registry problem, but there must also be SOMETHING else going on to prevent the cleaner programs from installing.


I am running xp Professional 2002 with service pack 2  and automatic updates.

Thanks for any suggestions you can give.Sounds like a wipe and reinstall to me  
 
Alan <><  :-)Have you tried booting into Safe Mode and running your malware scans?

The first thing you may want to do is make sure your malware protection is updated before trying this.

Once your malware programs are updated, turn off System Restore and then reboot into Safe Mode.

Run a complete malware scan using the software resources you have available to you.

Once the scan(s) are complete, reboot your machine, normally, and turn System Restore back on.

Post your results, here, please...How much free space do you have on your hard drive?  How much RAM do you have?  What are your settings for Virtual Memory?

I am using Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2 (build 2600) and with a pentium 4 processor and the following hardware Board: ASUSTeK Computer INC. P4SGX-MX REV 2.xx
Bus Clock: 133 megahertz
BIOS: Award Software, Inc. ASUS P4SGX-MX ACPI BIOS Revision 1006 BETA 002 12/23/2003

I have tried to remove an encryption program sold by PGP from my computer. When I attempt to remove this program using the add & remove feature found in the Control Panel screen, I get the following message stating that:

"Keys that were submitted to the PGP directory can be removed by going to http://keyserver.pgp.com, entering your email address, and follow the instructions there. It is recommended that you remove your key from the PGP Global Directory if you no longer want to receive encrypted email".

I then click on the OK button and I then receive a new message that states

"Error deleting pgpwded driver key. I then click the ok button and I get the following message:

"Error 1316. A network error occured while attempting to read from this file: ":\WINDOWS\installer\PGPDesktopUpdate.msi".

After clicking on the ok button the Windows installer box starts to undo the download and I then get a final message that states:

"Fatal error during installation" and when I click on the ok button I am returned to the "add remove" screen of the control panel window."

I have written to the Customer Service DEPARTMENT at PGP and received the following reply from their representative Billy D: who stated:

"Your keys are no longer on the keyserver. I have checked multiple times, but could find nothing. Are you using the Add\Remove programs option in the Control Panel?

I replied as follows: " Yes. And I get the same messages when I use a separate program titled "Add/Remove Pro in an attempt to remove the program.

I received the following response: "Unfortunately technical support is the only ones that might be able to help you with the issue that you are having. You can access Technical support at our website of support.pgp.com."

I wrote back and stated: "I do not have a contract that gives me technical support. However since all I want to do is erase your program from my computer, I would respectfully request that you make an exception and allow me to contact technical support."
I have attempted to contact technical support but cannot even when I visit "support.pgp.com" the only way to contact them is by having a contract which I do not."

He wrote back: "Since this is a technical issue I am unable to assist you. You can purchase Technical Support, or you can also visit our Forums and see if anyone else has had a problem similar to yours. However there is currently no method for Customer Service to create exceptions for Technical Support."

As such I am now asking for the assistance of your EXPERTS to help me remove this program from my computer.

 

Let's see what we can do for you here...

This program you are referring to...is it PGP Whole Disk Encryption?  If not, let me know exactly which program it is.  PGP has plenty of support for installing their programs, but none for uninstalling them.

Now, a few QUESTIONS...
1. Did you actually try going to the Keyserver and entering your e-mail?
2. Do you have any drives that are still encrypted?  If so, the program won't let itself uninstall, so you'll have to decrypt them.  It might be helpful if you go here and read Section 2.
3. Have you tried removing the program in Safe Mode?
4. Have you run CCleaner?  If not, give it a try.  And while you're at it, try its Add/Remove feature just for the heck of it.
5. Have you tried posting at the forum?  You might have a little bit of luck over there, since those people deal with this program on a regular basis.

Try all of these things and post back with an update.Nice legwork Matt !Why, thank you, pat.To add onto cbmmatts post an excellent program is system mechanic 6 pro or 7 seeing as that came out last month.  Its very useful when removing programs completely especially since it tracks windows changes and has many other FEATURES.  Along with finding unused registry files ect.This is your 3rd advertisement for that program...

I made a .exe application and its uploaded to my website.
 
When users open it is it possible to make it like a ghost application so when it opens its doing its thingbut the user dose not know that?You want an application on your web site to run invisibly on visitors' computers?
This sounds a little devious.
Would you mind explaining what this is to be used for?no i want to know i can send people a exe and when they open it it is invisableSo you want to send it them from your site and then it runs invisibly?
Quote

This sounds a little devious.
Would you mind explaining what this is to be used for?

This sounds a little devious.
Would you mind explaining what this is to be used for?
For example, what does this program do?

shuts my pc down

This is my question. since I couldn't PUT up pictures on here, I made a website quickly.
I really need my quick lunch internet bak on my TASK bar... And I know waht you thinking, click the right mouse bottom and go to quick lunch. Well, the 2ed picture is what it does...


http://www.angelfire.com/planet/dark_pit_of_alex/Desktop_Blowup.html

                                                                  RS

Odd.  Do you actually have Quick Launch enabled?  It's hard to tell in those small pictures (and it doesn't help that I use Classic mode), but I don't see a Quick Launch menu.  Go to Start > Task Bar and Start Menu and make sure that Show Quick Launch is checked.I think I know what's causing the problem...

Take a look at the attached image...

You will see two dotted lines that separate your quick launch buttons from the rest of the items open on your taskbar.  The first dotted line should be just to the right of your Start button...

Find the second one and move it to the left and or right, depending on where it's located, so it ends up just after your Quick Launch buttons, just after the first one (if Quick Launch is not enabled), or just before any other items that are open on your taskbar.

This should solve your problem...keep us posted...That thought occured to me, but he doesn't appear to have the dividing dots on his taskbar (good thing to bring up, though).  Also, it seems strange to me that he'd be able to ADD an icon to his normal taskbar.  Can this normally be done in the default XP mode?  It certainly can't be done in Classic as far as I know.Actually, taking a look at both of the images he suppled, the top one shows Quick Launch enabled, while the bottom image shows it disabled.

Since the size of the images are so small, you can't see these dotted lines, but you can see them on the image you supplied, CBMatt...

Quick Launch icons can be viewed in both XP and Classic mode.I must be missing something...I don't see where he has Quick Launch enabled in either of his pictures.  Actually, scratch that, I just saw what you're talking about.  I was looking only at the comparison pictures.  I didn't notice the very bottom of the main picture.  Sorry about that.  R.S, try Saviour's suggestion and see if that works for you.

Saviour,
I realize that Quick Launch can viewed in either mode.  I'm talking about adding an item to the taskbar, not Quick Launch.  Look at his second comparison picture.  When he adds IE to it, it's added to the normal taskbar and not Quick Launch.  Is this normal?  I tried switching to default XP and it doesn't happen to me.  Maybe he has his Quick Launch set on top of his taskbar?CBMatt...

In both of his photos...

The top shows the taskbar with a Word Document open on it.

The bottom shows the taskbar with an "e" (Which is Quick Launch - on)...and the open Word document underneath it.

I'm not quite sure what your're reading into these photos, but to me...it appears normal...other than the fact he needs to follow the above suggestion in ORDER to fix his problem.

So...right now...to be honest...I'm not seeing the same thing you are seeing. Quote

The bottom shows the taskbar with an "e" (Which is Quick Launch - on)...and the open Word document underneath it.

That's the one I'm referring to.  IE appears to be with the tasks and not part of Quick Launch.  

I have folders on my desktop with links inside that used to open in Firefox.  Now they want  to print.  Is this because I deleted the Avant browser because it kept insisting on opening EVERYTHING EVEN though it was not the default browser?  What can I do to restore the option of opening as Firefox PAGES?I'm assuming you're attempting to open web page links / shortcuts. If Firefox is the default browser it should be opening as it has in the past and uninstalling another program should have no affect. it's likely something else was installed or CHANGED that could of caused this ISSUE. I'd suggest having Firefox check that it is the default browser.

In Firefox click Tools, Options, and click the Check Now button to have Firefox check to make sure it's the default browser. If it is the default browser and that does not resolve the issue what are the type of files you're attempting to open and I'm assuming this is Windows XP?Yes, XP Home, and Foxfire is the default browser.  The links in the folders are links to other web pages.  But they don't open web pages, they try to print.

I just installed windows xp pro (legit copy) over a pirated copy that was already on my comp. Everything worked fine. Installed Panda antivirus 2007...still worked fine. Then I tried to get into my online role playing game (Neverwinter Nights) and had SUPER bad lag...my ping was around 890-1141 when it should be somewhere around 125-ish. I logged off of there and plugged in my other monitor thinking that was the problem (I had just plugged in a Dell monitor that was a bit bigger)and then windows won't load at all. I plugged the Dell monitor back in and xp won't load on that one either. I manually turned the computer off and left it off for a few mintues and when I turned it back on.....it goes to the windows xp screen and then to a black screen. My boyfriend's computer (that is connected to the same internet line through the same router) is working flawlessly! Any ideas? Thanks so much in advance!!

--Jeeplette :-?So you installed OVER it rather than a format and install? I think I would start with a totally fresh install to remove any possible variables.I don't know how to get all the files and such onto my other hard drive before formatting the 1st hard drive. I have LOTS of files/info/pics on the hard drive with xp on it.  :-/If there are two functional hard drives in the machine you should be able to just copy them over. Perhaps some details about your computer system would be helpful.My system is home built....about 5 yrs old with minor upgrades here and there as needed/wanted. I will try to be as specific as I can....thanks for bearing with me!

xp pro (upgraded from a pirated copy)
main hd - 120 gig (Maxtor)
2nd hd - 250 gig ( i think it's a Seagate)
OLD Via motherboard (model P4X266A)
Pentium 4 (i forgot the details on it, but it's an older one as well)
HP cd writer/rom
generic dvd rom/writer
flat panel monitor (GEM 15")
just added Logitec wireless mouse & keyboard yesterday before the xp upgrade

I'm not sure what other info would be useful....please advise.  Okay...I got the computer to boot from cd, but I don't know how to repair it from there. It asked what I wanted to repair...I said #1 (C:\WINDOWS) then it asks for admin password. It doesn't have a password so I just pressed enter (thinking it might bypass it) and then it said C:\WINDOWS. I typed "HELP" to get a list and now I don't know what to do. Which option should I use? Is there a general admin password?

Thanks so much!I had to plug the keyboard in with a cord (it wouldn't SEE the cordless keyboard and that it why I wasn't able to get into safe mode). After I did that, I got to safe mode and chose to reload with last settings that worked. I am still have a bit of a problem with choppiness but at least I can log into windows again.  PS/2keyboards are always good to have. Not as "kewl" but impeccabble support.

How much free space is there on the D drive (the big one)? Can you not just open to Explorer Windows and copy and paste some files for a test?Sorry to take so long to reply....

There's about 74 gigs on the 2nd hd.

I am really having problems with ping now. It mostly seems to be when I open Neverwinter Nights game and the ping is so bad I can barely even log in. I'm not sure how to go about fixing this. Any ideas? Would trying a different ethernet cable help?

I would SUGGEST backing up all the data from both HDD's to DVD's wipe both drives and start from scratch.
Make sure to re-install all your  drivers including MBoard and also grab all the current XP updates.
Have your protection programs in place before going online and get everything running smooth.
Then create a clean image of that install using Acronis True Image or another imaging program and burn 2 copies to DVD.
Store them in different locations.
You are now prepared for just about anything.

patio.   8-)patio, she/he has 400 GB... Only 300 with data, but still, if he/she need to put on dvds...
patio wants to say to back-up important data, not only because of your actual problem but it is a general good idea, you shouldn't have all important things (pictures, movies, important DOCUMENTS etc) only on harddisk and only in one copy.

I suppose you tried some antispyware programs as well?This is why regular backups are important...if you wait til you have accumulated around 300G of data and that HDD takes a dump on you well what are you supposed to do then ? ?

p.s. We have seen this scenario here at CH many times...Waaaaay too many times.  

If it is that important, it should be important enough to back up to something other than a hard drive.

No one has 300 gig of data files. Pictures, movies etc. can be stored elsewhere. I hear that legal copies of movies actually come on DVD's.LOL at GX1_Man! All the movies on my computer are legit...lol. As soon as I bought my favorite hard to find dvd's I put them on my comp...just in case. I understand that I should back up more often, but I suppose I am not entirely sure how to go about doing that. CD's? DVD's? External HDD? I knew I had put it off way too long, but I suppose the ignorance and the fear of screwing something up got in the way.

My computer is just about hopeless at the moment. I can't play ANY of my games now....something about I can't update the driver for my video card. I DOWNLOADED the driver but when I try to install it, it gives me an error that says I need to try using the standard VGA setting for my monitor. That sounds about right since I just attached a Dell (EWE!) flat panel monitor that is bigger than the one I had before. The computer now doesn't recognize the monitor to install a driver....it all just says unavailable now under the adapter info. So....I suppose my question now is...how would I go about setting it to standard VGA mode for the monitor so I can install the updated videocard driver? Thanks in advance for all your help, patience and understanding!! :-/http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/display_change_screen_resolution.mspx?mfr=true

I'm running windows XP media edition on a dell dimension and have mcafee anti-virus.
My computer randomly crashed today, during normal use, coming up with the blue screen that said windows had encountered an error and needed to shut down, along with a list of error codes that I failed to write down (kicking myself now).
I rebooted the computer and it ran CHECKDISK, which said the drive was "dirty"?, it completed the scan and then booted windows. It CAME up with the log-in screen, while I normally have windows auto log-in. It comes up only with my user name and the SPACE to write my password. When I do so, it comes up with this error
"The system cannot log you on now because the domain is not available". It says this regardless of what password I type in, or if I type no password at all.
This same problem occurs when running safe mode. However during safe mode it also gives me an "administrator" OPTION in the log-in screen, but it gives me the same error message when I type in a password or not.
I have not uninstalled/installed anything recently other than downloading a windows update that morning (a good 10 hours or so before the crash).

Any help/ideas would be very much appreciated, thank youWhat is the stop error code?  That is, what are the first numbers after the word "STOP" that begin with 0x? Quote

What is the stop error code?  That is, what are the first numbers after the word "STOP" that begin with 0x?

I need help!
My numpad does not WORK and when i HIT left CTRL it outputs a dot like this: .
I hope that someone of you GUYS can help meReplace your keyboard.   Are you sure?
Well whatever, its bout TIME to change it anyway

For the past several weeks, I have been unable to open pdf files on my computer. The bottom of my screen states "done", but the screen is blank. How do I remedy this? I'm pretty computer illiterate, so speak to me in simple terms please Thank you for any help. Love, juliahhJuliahh, you need to download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader to view that file format.

http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html

Click on that link for info.  Make sure you meet the system requirements.  If not, you can choose another version.  Whichever version you choose, download/install it without the Google toolbar.  Also, don't bother with the optional Photoshop Album, unless you really want it.  If you have anymore trouble, let us know.Dear Matt...thank you so much for your quick reply! I am going to download the adobe acrobat now. You're awesome Love, Julia You're welcome, and good luck.  If you have any trouble, don't hesitate to ask for more help.

Did you make sure your computer meets the system requirements?Dear Matt...you saved my day! Thank you so much! I love the internet! I'm completely amazed that a total STRANGER offered to help so quickly! I downloaded adobe acrobat and am now able to access the pdf files! You are my favorite person of the day! Thank you again, Julia Ha, I'm just glad I could help out.  Don't be a stranger now, ya hear?Why oh why did you point him to adobe.  Look up foxit reader.  Its much faster and uses less resources. Quote

Why oh why did you point him to adobe.  Look up foxit reader.  Its much faster and uses less resources.

Hello.
I have an eMachine computer with a Windows XP Profesional opperating system. A few days ago, when I pushed the BUTTON to start it, everything was normal up to the point when the Windows XP load screen came up. It just flashed fora second or so, and then the computer restarted. I then tried to put it on safe mode, and EVERY other option there was at the screen where it says that microsoft didn't load properly, but it just kept rebooting on the load screen. I have been researchign this on the internet, and I think that this happened because I shut the computer off too rapidly(I kept my finger on the on/off button, which shuts it off automaticly), and vital files that were saving or deleting are now missing or corrupted. I tried using the Ultimate Boot CD to boot it up, but the same results occured. I already tried EXTENDING the kernel file and everything that it says to do on http://support.microsoft.com/kb/314466, but it didn't help. An odd thing that has been happening for a while before this incident is that after every succesfull startup, two screens saying that a file was misisng or corrupted showed up one after another. Ironicly, I was going to try to fix whatever problem caused them this WEEKEND. If anyone has any suggestions in how I can SAVE my computer, please let me know.
THanks,
a very frustrated computer nerd.Have you tried ---->THIS

i GOT a customized computer but ive lostt all the disk that came with them.. all i remeber is that i have a asus a8v motherboard.. whenh i try to connect to the internet i go to control options then network settings and there is nothing. there is nothing to CLICK.  i have no idea what to do and i REALLY need help

someoneYou should be able to locate your manual and drivers....

----------->HERE


To get the exact motherboard number open er up and it should say on it in white letters.  But hes right ASUS website is where you can get everything for your motherboard.street1 and ntrealemail...

While you have POINTED out where this user can get the driver for their motherboard...have you taken into consideration the rest of the hardware that came with this "customized" computer?

The fact is, if they built this PC themselves, then they should know what's in it and contact the appropriate hardware manufacturers for drivers.

If it was built for them, then they should contact the builder's customer SERVICE or support team for assistance in obtaining all the disks that came with their system.You say you have lost all the disks ...well how long have you had this customized computer and was it working before or did this just happen?  Were you able to get on the internet before or did you just get this computer customized? Then realized you have no disks... Explain!

First, please note that this is for Windows XP USERS only.  It may work with Win2K, but I doubt it will work with other versions.  Only having XP, I can't test this.
If you don't have a password (the computer automatically logs you on) then this article doesn't APPLY to you.
But if your account requires you to log on every time, and you're the only user of the machine (or the one that uses it most), this article is for you.
In this article, I will describe how to set up your PC to load all the startup items before you enter your password.  It doesn't decrease the overall startup time, it just makes it all into one.  So instead of taking, say, a minute to get to the logon screen and then, after you enter your password, 2 minutes to get to the desktop and ready for use, it'll take 3 minutes to get to the stage where you enter your password and it'll be ready for use.  So you can GO and leave it to load up while you have a CUP of coffee or something, and you won't need to wait after you enter your password.
On with the article.
First, download and install Microsoft's free TweakUI tool, which has many uses besides what it is used for here.
Then open it up, and expand the "logon" item in the left hand column.
Click "Autologon".
Check the box that says “Log on automatically at system startup”
Click the “Set Password” button and enter in your windows login password
Click OK and close Tweak UI.
Go to Start > Run and type in “regedit” and press OK. Browse to [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run] and create a new String Value. Name it “Lock Computer on Startup“, and set the value to “rundll32.exe user32.dll, LockWorkStation“
Note: While you are in the registry, be very careful and change nothing else.  It's very easy to turn a PC into a doorstop with the wrong change.
Now, when you boot up your computer, it will automatically log you in to your desktop and start up your programs. However, it will lock your computer, requiring you to enter your password to access it.

I use this trick, because I frequently leave my PC booting up whilst I am elsewhere.  It used to annoy me that nothing would load whilst it was on the logon screen, so this seemed the ideal solution - it now loads while I am elsewhere, and when I unlock my PC it's ready to roll.
Remember that this will not reduce startup time though.
Another important thing to note is that starting in safe mode bypasses all startup items, including this, so starting in safe mode doesn't require a password, which can reduce security.I don't have a password but Windows XP STILL stops at the logon screen when starting.  So, I just downloaded TweakUI and did just this step: "Check the box that says 'Log on automatically at system startup'".  That stopped the logon screen from appearing during startup.Good point, I forgot Windows still prompts for a password even if there isn't one.
I've always auto logged on with this laptop, using this method.
Just thought I'd share it with others in case they fund it useful.

I POSTED this problem to the networking forum and never received a response. Hopefully your forum can help. Microsoft automatically installed Service Pack 2 after I had reformatted my system. I run XP Home and after SP2 was installed my ability to connect to the net was lost. I reloaded drivers, checked Device Manager and everything said working fine as far as my NETWORK adapters go but STILL no connection. There is no hardware or virus problem. I could connect prior to SP2 and now I have had to reformat my drive again and I can connect now, but without SP2 I can't use Media Player 11 and SP2 supports my USB Controller which I currently don't have because I don't want to replicate this problem. Questions: What MIGHT cause this?, Can I get a USB Controller w/o SP2? or What other options and/or solutions are there?
Thank you in advance for your help
BGWe need more information to help, like...

How are you connected, wireless, wired, dialup / with a router / cable / type "ipconfig" without the quotes in a DOS window...what shows up.  

Alan <&GT;<

Hello,
Win XP pro, socket 939, 64 bit, 2Gs memory, 1.2GHZ AMD processor. I can't see my DVD burner in my computer. I had this problem once B4 and was directed via link to the Elder GEEK website which worked. So I tried the same process again to no avail. Any idea what ELSE could be done to correct this problem? Also, if I were to RIGHT click on the drive I can see, to eject, both drive will eject at the same time.Thanking you in advance, Hennessy.Are both drives connected to the same cable / are they set to 'cable select' or are they 'master & slave?

Alan <><  They are set as master and slave.First Check to see if your dvd burner is registering in your bios.  Also once before i had that kind of problem but the drive itself had gone out and it wouldn't READ dvds nor burn dvds or cds.

to insert disk!

I had bought this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822145113

and this

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817392009

Perhaps of note is that the HDD is OEM. I'm not really sure if that plays into any of the following.  The plan was to use acronis to clone the disk, swap the drives and voila, I've UPGRADED to a 160gb HDD.  I have a dell e1505 with an 80gb HDD, 1 gb RAM.

Installed HDD into enclosure per instructions and connected it to laptop. Heard that little SOUND that windows recognized new device. So I go to my computer and click on my new removable F: drive. It asks me to insert a disk. Huh? That can't be. Open up acronis backup SOFTWARE and it only recognizes my boot disk and will not allow me to add the disk as it won't recognize any available.

I go to my computer and right clicked, click manage. So I see the drive as the removable F: disk. There is nothing in the window to the right though, actually its totally grey.

So I call hitachi and they SAY the don't understand why its showing up as a removable disk and that I should try contacting the external manufacuter. So I call vantec and their tech guy says this is a known issue that is not specific to their drives. Says that sometimes xp recognizes external drive that use 2 usb's to connect (1 for power 1 for data) as a flash drive if you ahve previously used one, which I have.

Tells me to reseat the drive, this did nothing. Also told me to try and plug in the flash drive, change its drive name (changed it to G" , restart the pc and try pluggin in the external HDD. This also did nothing. That was all he offered.

He was saying its some sort of issue that xp has in recognizing the current attached device as a former attached device, is this possible? Is this common? What can I do to remedy? Is my only recourse to return this product and try another?

Thanks for any help, I'm at a bit of a dead end here in so far as troubleshooting this myself.Never heard of this problem before, but if the manufacturer says it's a "known problem" then I'd advise returning the unit and GETTING something that will work.  I've hooked up several external devices to multiple computers and never had this problem.

Alan <><  

BTW - the links don't work  Your hyperlinks are dead but what it sounds like you bought was a hard drive and an external hard drive bay ?  lol i don't mean to laugh i just had the same problem before a few years ago and I felt pretty stupid after screwing with it for 20-30 min and calling a friend.  Format the hard drive.  Right now its just a blank drive.  Right click on My computer and click manage under the storage thing there is a disk management device from there you should be able to format it.

Hi The Title eplains it, I got this HP JetDirect 300x J3263A And i have a Actiontec DSL Modem/Router And i connected it through, the Ethernet on my router, and when i went to search for the printer through the network, it says it cannot find it, everything is on and i dont know what is the problem, PLEASE someone shed a little bit of light.Did you not get a manual with it?I just set up a color laser printer (networked) on my home network.  I had to go into the router and give the printer a static IP, reboot the printer and was able to INSTALL it on the other systems on the network.

Alan &LT;&GT;<  And, the instructions to do that were in the manual, right, Alan?

Hello

   With the help of street1 i have reinstalled my Windows XP , but before i reinstalled xp i had more used space on my C:/ then on my D:/ now i got a lot more space being used on my D:/ (mostly win98 zip files and such).  Well what i want to do is format my D:/ but i dont know because it LOOKS like my whole system is installed on D:/.
  I have a win98 cd-rom (no product key) and a WinXP upgrade cd-rom , will i have to find and purchase another win98 , format both hard drives , install win98 , install winxp upgrade or what.
  Hope you fine folks can understand what this old man is talking about.  What i am after is a new start , and cannot afford an full version of xp now.
Thanks
harleyYou could look at the files you currently have on both drives, by going to My Computer and checking the contents of each drive.  Optionally, you could open a command PROMPT and use the dir command to see the contents of each drive as well.

Are you sure the D: drive is not your CD drive?  Remove any CDs currently in your computer and check the D: drive again.

Also, was Windows 98 installed on the c: drive?  If so, the upgrade should have defaulted to the drive where your current Windows installation was.

Will wait for your answer...Saviour

 Thanks for REPLY. I am so confused now i dont know which way is up.  All i know is that programs that were working and i was using like winzip , mcafee anti-virus ,ad-aware , outlook express , games and so on dissapeared after i reinstalled xp so i started reinstalling everything  , come to find out that all my programs has a folder on my d drive.
   Well anyway Street1 is working with me on TRYING to get this thing back to nothing and starting over.
Thanks again
harleyOkay, harley88...

I will leave you in the capable hands of street1.  Just disregard my post and hopefully, street1 will finish waht he started.


All my best...

I keep getting this error when i TRY to INSTALL software on my computer it says "the system cannot read from the specified drive". I used the disk in the drive and go the error. Then i made a COPY as a iso to my computer then MOUNTED it and it still says the same thing.What happened before this started?
And what OS are you using?Nothing it just started out of no where. Everything was WORKING fine before trying to install it. Im using Windows XP Pro Sp 2Do you have the same problem reading other CD's?

Alan <><

I installed Windows XP, without setting a login password. For a while I could boot into Windows without having to login, then out of the blue, the login splash screen appeared & I had to click on the ADMIN icon to login, also when coming out of screensaver mode I had to login again. I right clicked MyComputer, went into Admin & disabled the Administrator login, I no longer had to login from screensaver so assumed everything was OK. Now when I boot-up the PC (even in safe mode), I cannot login to Windows because the Administrator login icon is no longer there. How can I get back in? I don't want to repair install as I have no way to back up data. I got to the Recovery Console on Win XP installation CD. Which command gets me back to Windows desktop? I am writing this message from a Linux live CD.Ajax,

Just curious, I doubt that I would have a solution, but, others might help ?

Is the LLCD installed on the computer you are having the,"Log-on", problem with ?

If not what is the systems model ?

JpYes it is, PCLinuxOS.http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/recovery_console_cmds.mspx?mfr=true

"logon" without the qoutes may workwhile at the login screen keep on pressing/tapping CTRL alt DELETE FRANTICALLY Quote

while at the login screen keep on pressing/tapping ctrl alt delete frantically

ok well yesterday I installed windows xp to override all of the things that I had on the computer. However, I made the mistake of putting all of the windows files not in the Windows folder but I changed the name to Window.I manually deleted the WINDOW file but when I made another installation of windows to be put in the Windows folder, nothing was deleted. In my program files, there was still everything inside. I deleted them all manually. Did i delete everything that i made from my WINDOW installation?GOOD question...

SINCE you just did this yesterday...why not start all over again...and this time do it right.Agreed...
And why do you need 2 Window's installations ? ?I did manually delete the WINDOWS and everything that went with it i just WANT to know if it is gone.Yes it probably is.
Does the machine start properly now ? ?no it does not work. If i use the installation CD to make a new fresh windows it still has all of the program files from my old windows. it is pissing me offSounds LIKE you need to format the drive and install it correctly. If you have any important data, be sure to back it up first.And don't change the destination folder this time...I have done all of that multiple times with the WINDOWS folder. it still will not overwrite it. My new administrator ACCOUNT is administrator(and the computer number given) i must delete that  manually. I dont know if its the drives fault or the installation cd. However, as it stands it still has all of the program files but has none of the programs

2 days ago, my FRIENDS laptop crashed on him and now when he tries to reboot the computer it goes to the safe mode menu but whichever option he chooses it does an automatic restart.  the error that comes up is saying his windows/system32 file is missing or CORRUPT.  he DOESNT have the windows restart disc and is wondering if there is a way to reconfigure windows without it.It may be STARTING the shut-down during his choosing an option, I have had a similar problem, and got it to start-up by remembering the exact locations of the OPTIONS and clicking one each time, as quickly as possible, until it started.

That is if the options are applicable.

I don't think that it would hurt to try this, you need to be pretty quick.

I'm sure there are other metods, but this may be worth a try.

Someone will come along with a different choice that will work if this doesn't.

JpBoot to the original CD and do a repair

Alan <><  Everyone needs a real Windows CD sooner or later. In his case it appears to be sooner.

As it SAYS, in my photo printing all LAYOUT options have disappeared, so I can't PRINT...anyone know how to fix? I have not downloaded any NEW software and I even did a system restore to no avail...ThanksIs your PRINTER turned on?  Has cables become loose or disconnected?

Win XP Home, SP.2.

Am TRYING to use the SOUND Recorder but the mic volume is very low.  I've checked the mic volume in the Master Volume control and it seems to be set correctly.   One suggested cure is to go to Control Panel>Sounds & Audio Devices>Audio and boost the mic in Sounds Recording>Advanced but the Advanced box is greyed out so cannot access it.

Can anyone assist please :-?

ThanksWhat sound recorder are you using? Sometimes its settings in the program its self.I guess this is Windows Sound Recorder.
Try shouting, lol.
Do any other programs capture the sound OK?
What sound card do you have?I suspect you need to access a control panel from software installed with your sound card and enable a microphone booster SETTING.  Where you find this setting is, of course, going to depend on the particular sound software installed on your system or, in other words, what came with your sound card.  Here's the panel where I set it in my system:


Again, I can not find this setting via Windows Control Panel, Sounds & Audio Devices.  To find it, I click on an icon in my Notication Area for C-Media MIXER.
 

And to add to all the excellent suggestions above is the mic hooked into the proper channel ? ?Another thing you might want to try is opening up Volume Control (just double-click the little Volume icon next to your CLOCK) and adjusting the Line In volume.

Also, have you tried this microphone on another computer?  Have you tried another microphone on your computer?  It's possible that you just have a cheap/faulty mic.

ok...
i have two major problems
1) just recently my monitor all the text on it is twitchy and moves around really hurts my eyes.
    ive already uninstalled the program i thought was causing it because the problem just came up after i installed it after i did that i restarted expecting it to be normal but it wasnt. when i start up in safe mode everything looks normal no twitching. also ive been reading other topics similar to my problem but people ask are there magnets or cell phones NEAR the monitor there arent... so ive decided to make my own post and ask how can i fix this?? ITS DRIVING ME INSANE!

2) ok ive been living with this problem on my computer for a couple of months now... there is this folder on my desktop and it will not GO away no matter what i try to do... ive tried to delete it in safe mode ive tried to scan it alot of stuff... but i need someone to help me with this issue please...

btw i have a windows xps 600 and ive never had problems with the monitor before this and i dont think it has anything to do with the monitor going out because its just the text twitching not images and it only happens in normal mode. Quote

ok...
i have two major problems
1) just recently my monitor all the text on it is twitchy and moves around really hurts my eyes.
    ive already uninstalled the program i thought was causing it because the problem just came up after i installed it after i did that i restarted expecting it to be normal but it wasnt. when i start up in safe mode everything looks normal no twitching. also ive been reading other topics similar to my problem but people ask are there magnets or cell phones near the monitor there arent... so ive decided to make my own post and ask how can i fix this?? ITS DRIVING ME INSANE!

2) ok ive been living with this problem on my computer for a couple of months now... there is this folder on my desktop and it will not go away no matter what i try to do... ive tried to delete it in safe mode ive tried to scan it alot of stuff... but i need someone to help me with this issue please...

btw i have a [highlight]windows xps 600 [/highlight]and ive never had problems with the monitor before this and i dont think it has anything to do with the monitor going out because its just the text twitching not images and it only happens in normal mode.

Patio:  I don't think I KNOW how to post properly.  I'm sorry if I am doing it wrong, first time on here.

Here is the information generated  by Everest Home--I'm a little worried about doing something like installing drivers, is there anything that could go wrong?  It's my only computer and I don't have the  money if anything goes wrong.... Thanks.
 
Motherboard:  
 
   CPU Type   Intel Pentium IIIE, 600 MHz (6 x 100)  
   Motherboard Name   Intel Mount Prospect MP440BX (2 ISA, 4 PCI, 1 AGP, 3 DIMM, LAN)  
   Motherboard Chipset   Intel 82440BX  
   System Memory   768 MB (SDRAM)  
   BIOS Type   Phoenix (11/30/99)  
   COMMUNICATION Port   Communications Port (COM1)  
   Communication Port   Communications Port (COM2)  
   Communication Port   ECP Printer Port (LPT1)  
whats the problem and maybe i can direct you to the right forum


unlovedwarriortlj it is best to keep this all in one thread...
And it's not an instant answer as i'm not on 24/7.
Under your mboard listing from Everest is a link to the Intel support page.
Double clik it while online and SEE what mboard drivers they list for your board...

Hello,
WIN XP pro, socket 939, 64 bit, 2Gs memory, 1.2GHZ AMD processor. I can't see my DVD BURNER in my computer. I had this problem once B4 and was directed via link to the Elder geek website which worked. So I tried the same process again to no avail. Any idea what else COULD be done to correct this problem? Also, if I were to right click on the drive I can see, to eject, both drive will eject at the same time. Both drives are on the same cable, Master/ Slave.Thanking you in advance, Hennessy.Might be ONE of the drives is defective.  Try disconnecting one-at-a-time and see if each one is visible.

Alan <><  What method did you try from ElderGeek ? ?
You could try removing them through Device Manager and re-boot...XP will automatically re-install them for you.The registry edit from The Elder Geek was what worked the last time.OK gotcha...the one that removes upper and lower filters.
Do the drives show up in Device Manager ? ? Or Disk Management ? ?
Have you added any NEW hardware/software lately ? ?

Try what i suggested above...

help!! a few months ago i lost my background? it wont let me CHANGE any settings? i used to right click any picture and SET as backgound, or use a default setting that came with this pc! but now i cant?  i have a compaq presario 56300nx  it came with windows xp.. can anyone help? the rest of the pc works great but its annoying me i cant put a pic on the background!   thanks!i still have no background! can anyone help me?How are you trying to choose an image for your background ? ?
Is Active Desktop enabled ? ?
If so disable it...active desktop is DISABLED/  i should be able to right click a picture and set as background but it only shows up for a second when windows shuts down, when i restart windows its gone!Right clik an empty area of the desktop instead and select Properties Then browse to the picture  you want to use after choosing it select "APPLY"
Does this work ? ?
If not you MAY be infected ...let us know.

I decided to turn off my Computor and restart it. I got the "ntldr is
missing" MESSAGE and ended up having to reinstall everything. When
reinstalling I chose the option to not delete my old files (did not want to
loose old photos and saved programs and music). The SYSTEM is back up
but has created a NEW user and deleted old USERS. I can TELL that my
music, photos, and programs are still saved under documents and settings
under my old user name, but I get the "access is denied" message. I am
the administrator of the pc,,,, how do I get them backTry This...Patio, Your great,, thanks.You're more than Welcome...stop by anytime.

Am I SUPPOSE to be Sorry I haven't DOWNLOADED SP2 ?

According to what I have found in the Information property below,(scrsht), and when directed to the MS web site,

>http://support.microsoft.com/kb/892199/en-us<,

regarding this the solution to STARTING the firewall which would not have started, if installing SP2, I would have my HANDS full.
and be way over my head in technical jargon in fixing this.



Can anyone give me some insight concewrning the many problems I will encounter concerning updating my system to SP2.

 :-?

Jp


Check this out.  It will answer most of your questions.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/sp2/default.mspx

Alan <><  Some may experience issues when and if they upgrade to SP2...

It depends on what type of security software you have installed, etc., etc.

The thing is...if you are using XP...SP2 is recommended.  If you install it and it causes issues...all is not lost:

http://support.microsoft.com/KB/875350

If you have additional questions about SP2:

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/sp2/default.mspx

Me...

I've installed it and have not had any issues with it since installation.

Hope this information was useful.Ale52 and Saviour,
Thanks for the feedback !   !

Is it not inevitable by the notation in Properties Information that I will have a problem, isn't this predicting that for some reason
my system will not be able to start the firewall ??  :-/ ??

I am just trying to READ into the system service at hand.

Jp

All of a sudden my monitor is stretched and askew  - I cannot see the LEFT hand side of the SCREEN because it is completely out of view.  It looks like a PIECE of fabric that is streteched at the top and bottom and then curves in the middle.  What is wrong?Someone screwed with the your monitor BUTTONS.

Hopefully you still have the manual for your monitor so you can read up on how to USE the buttons on your monitor to adjust your screen.

If you don't have the manual, see if you can find out the manufacturer and model of your monitor and look for an online manual you can use to adjust your monitor settings.

I am running Windows XP with 4 User Accounts.  Macromedia Flash Player will only run on 1 Account.  It works perfectly on that account.  It will not run on the other 3 accounts and I keep getting notices to download and install the player.  I go to the Adobe web site/download the player and Adobe says it is installed and working properly.  I go back to any site requiring the player and they say it I need to download and install the player.  Something must be blocking web sites from reconizing the player on these 3 other user accounts. The file shows it is installed in a "shared file folder" .  Can anyone help?   :-?ThanksMy guess: You installed the Flash Player while you were logged on as an administrator and the other three user accounts cannot use the program because they are limited user accounts.  If you are using Windows XP Professional or Media Center Edition, disable simple file sharing, right-click on My Computer and choose Manage, go to users and accounts, and change the limited users to power users.  They should then be able to use the programs.  

If you are using Windows XP Home edition you cannot create power users.  In that case, you can change the limited users to administrators so they can use the program.  I am using XP home edition.  I have already changed all accounts to administrator and still have this problem.  Only one account recognizes the Flash Player.   :-?  Helpgo to C:\Documents and SETTINGS\'local user name'\Application Data\ copy  Macromedia file
and paste them into to the application data of the other usersIf Death's suggestion does not work, try logging on to each of the other accounts and reinstalling Flash Player.  Some installation programs, during the setup of the software, will allow you to choose whether all users or only the user installing the program should be allowed to use it.  That might be the CAUSE of your problem.  hi there. i am having same problem. did you ever get an answer on how to fix this?

[email protected]Try following the advice in the above replies.And it's probably not a good idea to post an e-mail address in a public forum...that is unless you are in need of phony Rolex watches and *censored*.And special offers from Nigeria.  i use xp home..in my shared documents it does not show Flash Player installed, but i know i downloaded it. should it show up in this location?

also my computer is set up so everyone is using same account, so i do not have other ones to install flash into.i run xp home. i have copied and pasted Flash files into "all users" and "owner" under documents and settings, shared files and in my browser file. still the site i go to does not recognize my flash.

ACTUALLY what i get is a browser has encountered a problem and must close.

any other suggestions of whats wrong?Hey guys I still need help.  My flash player is NOT listed under Document and Settings but rather under a "shared documents" folder all by itself.  It is also titled "flash player".  If I try to open the folder or expand it I get a sub folder entitled "sys" .  Is this the right folder? It's the only one I found.  Also, when I downloaded the program, I saw nothing that said it would only work on one account.  I have also downloaded it on the other accounts but it won't run.  I can test the flash player on any of the other accounts at Adobe's home page and it works just fine - but only on their home page. How can this happen?  I have no spyware/viruses that show up.  I am using Windows XP Home/SP 2, AVG anti-virus, Spybot search and destroy, Adaware SE, CCleaner, and Spycatcher.  Other than this problem, the computer runs fine. Quote

And it's probably not a good idea to post an e-mail address in a public forum...that is unless you are in need of phony Rolex watches and *censored*.

I am using XP home edition.  I have already changed all accounts to administrator and still have this problem.  Only one account recognizes the Flash Player.   :-?  Help

I rebooted the computer back to an earlier DATE and when i did that, the start menu and all the desktop items were gone, how do i get them back please? I'm running windows xp. we cant get anything up only the wallpaper comes up. only by doing control ALT delete can we open up the internet :-?some one help me plzs.x. really don't wanna take it back to factory settings :-/ help pleasei think that is because of the explorer.exe and i think the problem is that
ur comp doesnt automatically starts explorer.exe Quote

i think that is because of the explorer.exe and i think the problem is that
ur comp doesnt automatically starts explorer.exe

I know you guys are attempting to help but the above just sounds like poor guesswork...
Kerry try the following: Go to Start/Run and type in sfc /scannow and hit Enter...have your XP CD handy as it will ask for it.
Let it run til it finishes, do not interrupt it. After it's done re-boot and let us know what happens.
How many user accounts are on this machine ? ?
After this we can direct you to some online malware scans to see if you are infected. If not you might be looking at a repair install of Windows...

Let us know.

Quote

I know you guys are attempting to help but the above just sounds like poor guesswork...
Kerry try the following: Go to Start/Run and type in sfc /scannow and hit Enter...have your XP CD handy as it will ask for it.
Let it run til it finishes, do not interrupt it. After it's done re-boot and let us know what happens.
How many user accounts are on this machine ? ?
After this we can direct you to some online malware scans to see if you are infected. If not you might be looking at a repair install of Windows...

Let us know.

Who are you to tell us that our ideas are poor guess work pffft.  This is a LEARNING forum where if at first you dont succeed you try something else and everyone involved learns something new in the process.  Patio you might be a more experienced technician than most here but making the new comers feel un welcome surely isn't the way to proceed.

I don't really know how to fix your problem

dunno if it will work though

Kerry try the following: Go to Start/Run and type in sfc /scannow and hit Enter...have your XP CD handy as it will ask for it.
Let it run til it finishes, do not interrupt it. After it's done re-boot and let us know what happens.
How many user accounts are on this machine ? ?
After this we can direct you to some online malware scans to see if you are infected. If not you might be looking at a repair install of Windows...

Let us know.

I have a lot of pictures and folders that ended up deleted, somehow. And now they're only location is in "C:\Documents and settings\owner\recent" I believe they are ".lnk" files. Now I cannot open them.. I FOUND them in the "RECENT FOLDER" but everytime I try to open them it says they point to a shortcut that cannot be found. How do I restore these files? I can see their file names plain as day in my recent folder--but I cannot open them. Is there any way to restore these files??I see lots of posts, such as this one, in COMPUTER help forums.

Though some may consider this as "spam", it isn't, becuase I want people to know about this software program...File Recover.  It's not free, but the investment is worth it, since I have used this program and it truly is a "gem"...it does exactly what it is intended to do...and the $39.95 (USD) price is well worth the aggravation caused by accidental file deletion.

Not only should you have a program, such as this one, installed on your computer, you should ALWAYS be constantly backing up any programs and/or files you want to save...in CASE something like this happens...I can't stress enough...BACKUP!  BACKUP!  BACKUP!

More about File Recover...

On my windows 98SE,IE6, I had 3 yellow ? in DEVICE manager.
PCI Ethernet Controller--Fixed--Bought new Ethernet Card
PCI Communication Device.  Yellow ?
PCI Multimedia AUDIO Device.  Yellow ?
Cannot install drivers for the last 2. Not sure how.
To help you understand my problem a little better.
What happens when I open the home PAGE is, it looks like your in safe mode.
Picture is light and faded.
Also, I don't have any speakers connected to the pc.
I need help.

Thank-You
John
PCI Communication Device.     Modem
PCI Multimedia Audio Device.  Sound card

 You need the correct drivers for both devices. Can you identify the make model of these devices?And if you can't, use Everest Home to find out:

http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4181.htmlOr you could try re-installing your MBoard drivers that came with the machine...I don't know how to find out what make or model they are.        
This is a used pc from a business that closed.
How do I use Everest Home?
What else can I do if anything.
There is no name on the pc.You need to download and run Everest as GX1_Man pointed
out.
It will ID you hardware then you will know the sound and
modem.

Go to the below link.

http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4181.htmlIf you have downloaded and installed Everest, just double its desktop icon and let it do its thing.Thing ing ing ing . Sorry an echo chamber patio got me
into a little ways back. Hi
I have everest home downloaded.
When I open it, there is so many files I don't know which one to open or use for my problem.
Choose "Make a Report" and then copy and paste it here. It may take several posts to get it all.  Resource      Share      Device Description
IRQ 00      Shared      PCI Communication DeviceResource      Share      Device Description
IRQ 00      Shared      PCI Multimedia Audio Device
Resource      Share      Device Description
Port DFF0-DFF7      Exclusive      PCI Communication Device
Resource      Share      Device Description
Port E800-E8FF      Exclusive      PCI Multimedia Audio Device
Resource      Share      Device Description
Port EF00-EF3F      Exclusive      PCI Multimedia Audio Device

Run Everest again. Click the + next to PCI Devices to expand the category. You should find the name of the modem listed there. This is what you need a driver for. If you never use a 56K modem, you can just ignore the ENTRY in device manager.

Do the same for multimedia tab. Quote

Choose "Make a Report" and then copy and paste it here. [highlight]It may take several posts to get it all[/highlight].  

Hey I recently got my computer from a friend and upgraded it to xp and when i get on it  :-?doesnt go to the welcome screen I HAVE IT SET TO GO TO WELCOME SCREEN WTH!!!!!
Just to clear this up:
(And I'm not totally sure this is the same guy, but I think it is as I directed him to the forums after trying to help in the chat)
He wants it to go to the welcome screen and click his name and enter a password to log in.
In CONTROL Panel --> User Accounts, Use Welcome Screen and Fast User Switching are checked.
The fast User Switching service is set to automatic.
He has restarted after trying this, and the welcome screen does not appear, his PC logs in as the Administrator account.
Hopefully this is a bit more info for you folks to be GETTING on with.
As I say, I was helping him but I simultaneously ran out of ideas for the MOMENT and had to go out, so I directed him here and left.
Hopefully SOMEONE can help.
PS If you're not the same person, I apologize and will remove this post.And there you have it.....Nope didnt WORK see my computer is an old aptiva ibm upgraded to xp from 98

i cant even go to the welcome screen how sad
Quote

And there you have it.....

Hey I recently got my computer [highlight]from a friend and upgraded it to xp [/highlight]and when i get on it  :-?doesnt go to the welcome screen I HAVE IT SET TO GO TO WELCOME SCREEN WTH!!!!!

My pc is ok and i used the same Xp disk my friend used and he CAN go to the welcome screen

Quote

My pc is ok and i used the same Xp disk my friend used and he CAN go to the welcome screen

I think he may have answered his own question with the above quote.

hi,

   I want to run a process in background using command prompt. In unix we have & to start a process in background like tht is there any command to start a background process in WINDOWS command prompt.

What background processes are you talking about? Anti-virus software, real-time anti-spyware software, etc?  If so, why WOULD you NEED/want to start it from a command prompt?  Why not just start it from the Programs menu or desktop icon?  

If you really need to do this, i.e. start a program from a command prompt, you can usually start the program (that RUNS in the background) by typing the name of the .exe FILE to start the program.

I discovered my computer isn't strong enough to run XP, so I scrubbed the DRIVE with System Mechanic drive scrubber and put in the 98 SE CD.
It wanted a boot drive so I downloaded an ISO boot CD which I put on a CD USING Nero.

I put the CD into the scrubbed computer but it keeps asking for a boot disk in A.  

What must I do to have it load the boot drives from the CD?

Sandy in FLDLoad a Win98 BOOTDISK from bootdisk.com
Double click the dload with a clean floppy in to create the bootdisk.
Put the floppy and the Win98SE CD in the MACHINE and POWER up.
At the A: prompt type in D: and hit Enter.
At the D: prompt type setup and hit Enter.
You will now be installing Windows...

hey ppl, i already UPDATED my operating system clock (Windows Me) but i have no idea how to update the time on Outlook Express 6. there's patches on the web but none of them support my os. help, PLEASE, email is crucial on my computer  :-?Question here...

Why would you have to update the time on Outlook Express if you have already updated your system clock?That's what I asked myself when i changed the system time. It's set to the current east COAST time zone but my Outlook Express is still an hour behind.   :-/DLoad and run tzedit From the Mothership...
Set it to start the first Sunday of NOVEMBER and end on the 2nd Sunday in March.
This should fix all MS products.
Remember as well to change the system BIOS clock as well....wooooo!!!!!! well, i Dloaded it from MS and it didn't work... so then i Dloaded it from some other site i found and i edited the eastern time zone to the dates you specified and my outlook express is working fine now

thnx so much for telling me about tzedit, i was scrambling all over the web last night and everything led to tzmove but never tzedit

now, you also told me about this BIOS clock (another thing that's new to me). how do i change that clock as well? Quote

DLoad and run tzedit From the Mothership...
Set it to start the first Sunday of November and end on the 2nd Sunday in March.
This should fix all MS products.
Remember as well to change the system BIOS clock as well....

While in Systems Configuration Utility,
I was attempting to disable Prevx1, I got a message box with;
 
Systems Configuration
An Access Denied error was returned while attempting to change a service. You may need to log  
on using an Administrators account to make specified changes.
 
I am the administrator as far as I know, since I am the one and only user since the computer came out of the box.
 
I have two users on the log in page, I use one and the other has no user.
 
When the log on page appears after start up, I just go to my user name and click on.
 
What to do about the message box, since I probably will be disabeling some programs.

 
Jp
Quote

While in Systems Configuration Utility,
I was attempting to disable Prevx1, I got a message box with;
 
Systems Configuration
An Access Denied error was returned while attempting to change a service. You may need to log  
on using an Administrators account to make specified changes.
 
I am the administrator as far as I know, since I am the one and only user since the computer came out of the box.
 
[HIGHLIGHT]I have two users on the log in page, I use one and the other has no user.[/highlight]
 
When the log on page appears after start up, I just go to my user name and click on.
 
What to do about the message box, since I probably will be disabeling some programs.

 
Jp

Hi everyone. Am new to the forum and need help. When I switch Computer on, small pop-up appears in bottom left corner. It says new hardware found and that I should install Driver Table Manager. I cancel that, then it comes back in a bigger box and says  searching for drivers, suggests I connect to net. I do, then it says hardware not installed because WIZARD could not find the necessary software. You have the option to back and  click if you have disk. Obviously I haven't so I just end up cancelling again. I should mention that before I cancel we tick the box to say don't come back!!!!. Unfortunately it ignores me. (and it's driving me bl**dy mad).
 
Have been to device manager to check for yellow exclamation marks (denoting a problem) and there aren't any. There has been no new hardware added for at least six months, and what was added was installed with no problems and is running well.  I have now run out of ideas and it's time for you experts to show off. Your help and advice would be much appreciated.
 
Thank you.
Welcome to the CH forums.

That sounds like a bit of malware.  see here..

Seems it's time for maintenance AdAware, SpyBot, CWShredder and full AV scan.

Good luckTo Dusty,
              Thank you for your help. I will investigate. I would say however that I am running Adaware for Spyware and AVG for virus control and not had any warnings from them.

Thanks again,

Graham.  Go to start>run> then type msconfig then choose startup tab and check to see if there are any strange items located in the startup that you don't recognize.  To check to see what some of these programs might be go to http://www.neuber.com/taskmanager/process/  This site will give you a detailed message of pretty much everything that could be located in a typical startup.  It will also tell you what to remove and what not to.  This method helped me solve a friends problem where his computer would hang for a long period of time before it turned off.  Good Luck

Hi people, I am back still with the same problem!! Have run every spyware program with no success. Some one said to go into My Comp/manage/services and set InstallDriver Table Manager to manual. Done it, Guess what ? Still the same. Every time it comes up it asks for permission to search the net for drivers, I say ok and INSTANTLY it says "cant find anything therefore cant install". It has obviously made no attempt to look as it was far too quick. The rest of my head is now beginning to match the bald area at the back. :-    Any other thoughts people?
Thanks a lot. Graham.Have you deleted the  C:\WINDOWS\TEMP\ folder :-?

Have you run a search for WPABLAN.EXE :-?

Hi People,
               Have deleted the Temp files and searched for WPABLAN with no success. I do appreciate all the help you people are offering. It's nice to have experts to go to in TIMES of trouble.

Cheers,


Graham. Quote

Hi People,
               Have deleted the Temp files and searched for WPABLAN with no success. I do appreciate all the help you people are offering. It's nice to have experts to go to in times of trouble.

Cheers,


Graham.

ok welp .. i turned on my comp and i got the black start up screen i guess it is.. its the one after it says the sees the mouse and keyboard... anyway..i get this message.. "Windows 98 is now starting your MS-DOS-based program"... then another bigger message a little lower says " WARNING: the LOCK command enables direct disk access by programs that can CORRUPT fiel NAMES and\or DESTROY disk data, resulting in the loss of files on your disk.  Are you sure (Y\N)? "  it doesnt seem to matter what i push y or n then enter .. i still get  "microsoft (R) windows98 copyright microsoft corp 1981-1999" then a little ways down it says " C:\> "   no matter what i do or type.. thats all i get.. how should i put this.. HELP!!!!! lolIt could be that your hard drive is failing - you should proceed to backup critical files then run disk scans to check its integrity after which you could try a repair install of Win.98.

At the C:\> prompt type WIN and press Enter just to see what happens.

Please post further info on your system, hardware configuration, anti-malware programs and whether you are running Windows.98 or Windows.98sei have win98.. and i tried that "win" idea.. and it got my windows back and WORKING.. so i think im gonna take action onto saving my important things, and rebooting or something.. anyway.. thanks ALOT! the help around here is ACTUALLY really good.. glad to see some people actually dont mind helping someone in need.
You're most welcome.  Backing up your 'important things' should be a regular habit.

Thanks for coming back at us..

Hi, for years, I was moving/copying Win XP Home PARTITIONS around. Just edit boot.ini accordingly. Now, I am (trying) to set up a NEW system in the same manner with XP Pro. MULTIPLE partitions  XP Pro for different purposes. I ended up in STRANGE situations. An installation resides on part 2. But, I have to start it with part 3 entered in boot.ini. !!?? Part 3 on this disk is an empty NTFS Partition. When I copy an installation into part 3 with the setting  for that partition, it does not boot at all.  On part 4 is another installation, that works with the correct settings. The setup what I am looking for is 1st Part DOS Fat 16 with boot manager, 2nd XP pro, 3rd XP Pro; 4th XP Pro. The boot manager hides the partitions who are not used. I do not want to install into each partition XP from scratch and reenter all settings and install all common programs gain and again. For me it looks like, that something has changed or is different with Win XP Pro. Does anybody know? Thanks!
No MATTER where you install XP or which partition you choose it is always going to write certain files to the root directory of C:...
So the empty NTFS partition must have been C: when XP was installed.
There is no way around this.

Hey.. I'll take it from the beginning. (Im running w2k btw)
I wanted to make my computer run a little more smoothly so I downloaded this "cleaner program" (yeah I know, it's a big *bad idea* sign right there), anyhow.. I downloaded it and ran it and afterwards my office2003 instalation complained about some .CAB file missing.

I googled for a sollution to that problem and changed a suggested registry value HOPING that it would fix it. It sort of did but then a new problem arose where it complained on some other file.

Well.. I then tried uninstalling it as per the usual way from the controll panel but it wouldnt let me now cause some .msi file was not longer valid(?). SO, I deleted my entire office folder and the "Office"-folders in the registry hoping it would "reset" stuff, then I tried to reinstall office thinking it might uninstall afterwards. It wouldnt install. I also downloaded some "get rid of office2003"-tool from MS but that didnt really do it either. ok..

SO THEN I deleted the files that came from the installation attempt (C:/programs/microsoft office), I ran the "get rid of office"-program and I re-deleted the registry-folders, prayed, and found out it didnt work. Then I kind of lost it. I deleted EVERY KEY in the registry that had the string "office11" and "microsoft office" in it hoping THAT might quench the evil. It's still here. I've deleted Every Single notion that I could find of anything that has anything to do with microsoft office 2003 on this here computer but ever so often when I try to search for something or when I delete a file some window pops up saying "wait while windows configures microsoft office professional edition 2003" and then some error message going "the function you are trying to use is on a network resource that is unavailable." and tells me to give an alternate location of some PRO11.MSI file (which I tried and it laughed in my face and said it wasnt good enough).

Since my rampage in the registry it doesnt actually tell me that I have office2003 anymore when I run the add/delete program from the controll-panel btw.. I guess that's something huh.

Im just curious if anyone knows what Frikken Program tries to reinstall this "devourer of sanity"-2003 so I can smite it from the realm of my computer Is it FIXABLE or is it fubar?  :-/

I'm almost ready for the looney-bin by now. (And no btw. I can't "restore" the computer to a previous working date because I dont have that function.. I think.. as FAR as I know).

Thanks in advance - Johan K

/Edit: I still cant reinstall because it complains about above mentioned.What is the exact error message (error code number and description) that you get when you try to reinstall Office 2003?  Is this the original Office 2003 CD or a copy?

pcdoc4christ
Thanks for the reply. I tried reinstalling the office package this morning and it worked! I then tried uninstalling it and it went without a hitch. However, the problem with the program tries to reinstall itself every now and then (When I try to delete a file or search for a file (and start windows)), it sais "wait while windows configures microsoft office professional edition 2003" (but in swedish), then it sais "the function you are trying to use is on a network resource that is unavailable." and asks me to provide an alternative path to a folder that contains the installation package PRO11.MSI, and when I point it to the office cd in the drive it sais "PRO11.MSI is no longer a valid installation-package for the product."

So it seems like theres some other program in the background that lurks there and tries to reinstall? I dont know what's going on  

/edit. There is no error code as such.Maybe this will help: PRO11.MSI-where can I find this file?soybean
Thanks for the reply and the link. It didnt really work (at all) though.

I can install, repair and uninstall office, but the problem is still here. When I delete or search for something (and sometimes just for the heck of it it seems) it wants to reinstall office. When it cant it sais "the function you're trying to use is located on a resource that is unavailable." and tells me to give an alternative path to the PRO11.MSI file. When I point it to the installation CD it sais "PRO11.MSI is no longer a valid installationpackage for the program. Look for a folder that contains the installationpackage PRO11.MSI and try to insall it from there". I then have no other choice really than to click "abort" and then it tells me "Error 1706"

Google helped me to "http://support.microsoft.com/kb/297834" but that doesnt really help me at all. I allready tried the "install, repair and uninstall" thing and the othe two options there isnt an option it seems.

I dont have office2003 on the puter anymore, but it's still alive :S like a ghost in the shell.Another reason i swear by Total Uninstall...

Try This Quote

I wanted to make my computer run a little more smoothly so I downloaded this "cleaner program" (yeah I know, it's a big *bad idea* sign right there),...

Another reason i swear by Total Uninstall...

Try This

I'm using Windows XP. Now, I don't know when this happened, but suddenly CTRL+ALT+DELETE is not working. Also, my computer/internet seems to have gotten slower than normal.

So, I went to Run on the Start Menu and typed in taskmgr.exe, but it gave me an error message

Another Program is currently using this file.


What I do? I've done Windows Defender, Spybot, and Ad-Aware, and they deleted some junk, but it didn't fix any problems at all. Please help!Run your scans, again...

Before you do...turn off System Restore.  Boot into Safe Mode and then run your scans.

Once the scan is complete...reboot your PC and turn System restore back on.

Post your results...Sorry, but how do you turn off system restore?

And by post your results, do you want to printscreen the RESULT screen and upload the image file?Yes, please follow Saviour's suggestion, but before you do, TRY to update the programs' definitions first.  Also, I would suggest downloading (and updating) AVG Free and doing a scan with that.  It helps to have an actual VIRUS scanner and not just a bunch of spyware scanners. Quote

Sorry, but how do you turn off system restore?

And by post your results, do you want to printscreen the result screen and upload the image file?

I downloaded the program and it found ALOT of infected files. I think the culprit may have been a p2p trojan horse back door virus or something. Anyway, CTRL+ALT+DELETE works now.

Thanks alot!