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April 21, 2006
Dear CNET members,
Happy Friday, folks! I'm in a wonderful mood! Why? Because the sun is finally shining and my rain-soaked webbed feet are slowly returning back to normal. Anyway, I hope this newsletter finds you all in good spirits. Now let's see if we can point Will in the right direction concerning his computer crashing every time he tries to access the Microsoft Update site. After going through the submissions this week, a majority of our members in one shape or another suggested that the problem could be caused by malware (viruses, Trojans, worms), but then again that is only one possibility among many. So to get started, I'll lead you off with the winning answer from Miguel, who gives us a healthy checklist of things try. And if that doesn't solve the issue, dig right in to the honorable mentions and other advice from our members. Will, if you find the solution, please swing by the forums and update us with what worked for you. We'd all really appreciate it! If any of you have additional advice for Will or have personally experienced this issue in the past and were able to solve it, please join us this week in our discussion. Thank you all, and have a great weekend, everyone!
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Member Question of the Week
Good day! I was browsing your newsletter and thought, why not?
I have an annoying problem that won't go away. My computer
crashes each and every time I try to access the Microsoft
Update site and also the genuine download site. I have
enlisted help from online support, and among other things, I
have reformatted and deleted most of my programs, all to no
avail. Would you be able to point me in the right direction?
My operating system is Windows XP Pro SP2 running on an AMD
64 Athlon computer. Thank you, and kind regards.
Submitted by:
Will M.
Will, you indicated that you are running Windows XP with Service Pack 2, but you failed to provide specific and detailed information regarding the circumstances surrounding the issue at hand, which programs you deleted, or even which browser you are using when you run into trouble. It is also unclear whether you are experiencing problems only when you navigate to the Microsoft Updates site, or if the issue affects Automatic Updates as well. Lastly, is your computer actually crashing--as in freezing and not responding at all--or do you merely get a Cannot Open Page error message? With these limitations in mind, let's work out a troubleshooting strategy.
Submitted by:
Miguel K. of Columbus, OH
For
Miguel's
efforts, we're sending him his choice of any
Help.com Learning CD.
Community Buzz
 Each week we take a look at topics discussed in the forums.
Best regards and enjoy!
unused programs?
One problem that people face when they buy a new computer is that it comes with programs that they don't need or want, generally known as bloatware. Member lani55 just received her brand-new Dell computer and wants to remove those programs; however, she isn't sure if she should just delete those unwanted programs or reformat the drive. See what our members
are advising.
More from the Computer Newbies forum
End of support for Windows 98 SE
July 11, 2006, marks the day when Microsoft closes extended support for Windows 98, Windows 98 SE, and Windows Me. This termination of support is causing concerns for member themoth02, who says upgrading to Windows XP is not an option due to the CPU and other items. And he's seeking advice on how he can still continue running Windows 98 SE safely without any more patches. Check out this discussion and see what members
are recommending.
More from the Windows 95/98 forum
Mozilla users warned--upgrade now
Just recently, users of Firefox have been urged to upgrade to the latest versions of Mozilla's software to protect themselves from a series of critical security holes. But member Oatmeal25, who is a bit frustrated by all the upgrades, asks: "Wasn't security one of the main reasons everyone was pushed to use Firefox?" What's your opinion?
More from Browsers forum
Concerned dad: parental
control recommendations
Member madbax is having some issues with his son viewing porn sites and is turning to our community to see if there are any good programs (free or not) that will allow him to block his son's ID but that will still allow the adults to view whatever they want. If you have any recommendations, come join this discussion.
More from the Windows XP forum
Mac nugget: Upgrading to an Nvidia video card in new Intel Macs
With a PC, if you want to upgrade your video card, in most scenarios, you crack open the box and install your new video card and you're set to go. Well, is it the same for Macs? See what our veteran moderators have to say.
More from the Mac hardware forum
Help WantedHere's your chance to help your fellow CNET members solve their PC and gadget woes.
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Check out next week's question:
I have a Dell Dimension 4500 PC with a Pentium 4 2GHz processor. The computer has been randomly restarting. It is not caused by using any one application, and it happens completely randomly; it doesn't matter if the computer has been on for 5 minutes or 3 hours. Also, the system clock is losing time (the time is always wrong and needs to be reset). I thought that the CMOS battery might be the problem, so I swapped it out for a new one, but there's been no change or improvement. Next, I thought it might be the power supply not having enough wattage (it is a 250W PSU). The PSU fan is barely blowing, and I thought it could be overheating. I haven't purchased a new PSU yet, because I'm not sure that is the problem. I have Norton AntiVirus 2006 installed, and a full system scan has not revealed any viruses. I have Windows XP SP2 and have all downloaded Fixes/Updates. The Microsoft Malware removal tool did not find anything either.
I bought this computer from a friend. She was not too discerning in her Internet usage and ended up having to reformat the hard drive and reinstall Windows XP due to viruses. Since then, I have utilized Ad-aware, antispyware, and Norton to clean up the computer. There are no more problems with the computer that point to viruses, other than this random system restarting and the system clock inaccuracy.
--Submitted by:
Derek B. of Chicago, Illinois
If you have the answer,
e-mail us at messageboards@cnet.com.
If we choose your response, you'll get a
free Help.com CD.
Have a question?
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• PC Upgrading
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| Member Profile of the Week |
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User name: beelissa
Location: Upstate New York
Member since: February 19, 2005
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About me: I'm a stay-at-home homeschooling mom, and I guess you could say I am the IT dept. for my household, though...
(read more)
Each week we feature a CNET member who contributes to our community. Fill out your profile to get a chance to be featured in our newsletter and win a CNET t-shirt!
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Simple question, simple answer
Help your fellow members
This week on CNET
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