RandyL

Indeed the new hard drives are very quiet compared to the old ones that existed. Since you said your computer was cleaned of dirt that really only leaves four possibilities. Your hard drive is bad. Even new ones can be bad. An old or cheap drive was installed. You have a fan that is bad and making noise. You have something taxing the drive that shouldn't be. As maynard said make regular backups. If the drive fails you're out of luck. How did your friend install XP Pro free of charge on the new drive. What did you have before? Do you have the CD's?

My best suggestion based on my limited knowledge and past posts is to get a dedicated game box. As you already said you need a better PSU for your card and computer. A better card would help too. Since you seem to have said money is not an issue a good gameing computer could cost up to $6,000 American. Can you be more detailed on your specs?

Good points AdvancedSetup and petef as always but there might be more to it. Ron as you know I don't have Microsoft Office anymore. I did however save an Open Office document in RTF and Wordpad would not open it properly. I have had problems in the past with opening Microsoft documents between different versions of the same program such as Office and Works Word. To ensure both forward and backward compatability for all users I suggest that the conversion packs are the best option for everyone using Microsoft products. Especially with the introduction of Microsoft Office 2007. If anyone is still using pre Office 2007 they will surely need this in the future if documents are to be shared as you noted. Even if the file is saved in a different version format the end user may still have to use the "OpenWith" function. With the advent of Vista this function is not always so easy to use as you maye have to "browse" for a compatable program as Vista will not always list it. These conversion packs have worked well for me in the past. Since we don't know the nature of the Office file saving as RTF or txt might not be an option. If it is just a plain text file or one with Rich Text then simply putting the text into the body of the email might be the most assured method. This is not a user issue in my opinion but rather a fault of Microsoft for not making their products truely and fully both forward and backwards compatable without the conversion packs. So I stand by maynards suggestion to have the end user install it. Otherwise just put the text into the body of the email unless there is more then just text in the document. RandyL

Please do let us know how it goes somerton. Thanks for posting back.

Hi Lisa; The download link on that page is for 2000, Server 2003, XP and Vista. The end recipient may need to install this.

Did you disable System Restore via this method? How to turn off and turn on System Restore in Windows Vista

I would try that Spartan as Trojans can reside there and re-install from there. It seems you have them too. It's very important that you follow the guide as closely as you can. Good luck and get back to us please.

Yes somerton Uninstall AVG first. To be safe disable the Windows firewall before installing the suite. AVG and BitDefender are not compatable with the TrendMicro suite. I know you don't have BitDefender. You can disable Windows Defender too while you install then re-enable it but it should not matter either way. They should work together. The main thing to remember is to not run two AV programs or two Firewalls at the same time.

Your system is still infected. Quite honestly the malware removal process should have cleaned it even without the Eset scan. Malwarebytes and SuperAntiSpyware are two of the best programs to be found. Then your problem returned after running a Vista repair. Where did you obtain Vista? Did you let malwarebytes clean everything it found? Did you let SuperAntispyware clean everything it found? Did you remove the Restore points after cleaning?

If you want to get prompted as to what program you want to use to open certain media type CD's or DVD's go to Control Panel Home and click on Programs. Under Default Programs click Change default settings for media and devices. From there you can select a program or choose "Ask me everytime". You can also check the box in the upper left to Use AutoPlay for all media and devices. http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn266/FPCH/DefaultPrograms.jpg

Go to Control Panel Home and click on Programs. Click on Default Programs or one of the options under it to view more. Do you see anything there that would relate to what you are having an issue with. Are you trying to associate a program with the files on the disk? For instance do you want to play a DVD movie in WMP or Media Center? Or do you want to get the notification back that prompts you as to which program you want to use?

Hi norm; Help me to understand a little more. There is Auto Run which will start a program such as an installation CD from disk automatically and then there is the option to choose from a dialogue which program you want to use to set the auto play function depending on what is on the disk.

I think what Bob is saying is that the logo is already or is going to be designed by a professional to the owners exact specifications. This could mean that mike himself is going to do it as he is a professional. Although the contest idea sounds like a lot of fun to me it would not have any practicable purpose under the circumstances. Thanks for the ideas though.

Hi ccm; First of all I don't know what she edited or why since you deleted your or her content. Perhaps you should have asked why first. Secondly FPCH does have the RIGHT to edit any content as we see fit for any reason. I had no issue with your tutorial but if you are going to pull them everytime you get upset then why should we continue to post them. It only makes for more work for the team to clean it up. Thirdly the Tutorial forum was changed to View Articles as noted on the home page. For many reasons we decided that all articles should be reviewed first and comments not added. If you wish to submit an article contact us and we will review it. Thanks for pointing out though that members can still edit their own content in the closed forum. Rest assured that it will be corrected in the future. Lastly this forum is not a place to rant or vent anger. If you disagree do so politely or in private. This includes the angry smiley faces unless done in jest. Thankyou for your time.

I like it.

LOL. Justs shows how old I am. I remember those.

Hi somerton; You mentioned Windows Defender and Bit Defender. They are not the same thing. Windows Defender is a Microsoft antispyware program. It is actually shipped with Vista. If you have Bit Defender on the other hand uninstall it.

Hi pete; SP3 contains all the previously released updates. So no you don't need SP2 or SP1.

Hi CCM; Of course it is news and not just a joke. But there can be plenty of humor in news too. Stupid things criminals do is one of my favorites. Nobody said they were smart. I'll laugh now. This section is for all kinds of fun. Birthdays are fun I hope. I hope yours will be and look forward to it. Keep in mind that the main purpose of this site is to offer computer support. As such that is where our main focus is at the moment. But as you may have noticed and will notice more we intend to deal with the social aspect much more. Stick around. You might like it.

Reg Edit; Out of context your above posts in this thread seem to be nothing more then criticism with no merit just for the sake of having a voice. That is the best thing I can say about them. I will not debate your statetments of "facts" or your free speech rights. There is no merit as you well know. This is an open forum for all but not if you have a hidden agenda. What that is I don't know but it seems you have one. You have started no threads. You have only supplied negative comments to previously existing threads since you joined. This is a computer help forum. Since you have joined you have not offered any advice on any subject related to computers. All you have done is bash the forum, moderators and administrators. Not only that but it appears you have also chosen to closely immitate my avatar. I know it's slightly different and it does happen with members that create their own but I'm an Administrator and you are a new member. I doubt this is by chance. All things considered I think everything you have done is deliberate and is meant to disrupt the forum. At any time you could have offered constructive comments if you disagreed with us and done it in a polite manner but instead you have deliberately persisted to be borderline rude. You have been warned by Private Message. You have been warned on the forum. Yet you persist via trying to keep your comments just inside the rules. You missed a rule though. You have been rude. If not to the members then to the forum. As I feel your only intention on being here is to disrupt or confuse the members and not help you will no longer be welcome here. RandyL Administrator

Hi beeb; I'm glad it's working better. As maynard said though it's only the start. He knows you still have more issues. "Good job again maynard". As wolfey said as long as you have these "certain programs" you will continue to have other issues as they come bundled with malware that might re-install. Use add/remove programs to uninstall ALL P2P file sharing programs. Do the same for add on toolbars unless you are sure of them. I would also suggest a better antivirus than AVG. And lastly wait for out techs to review your posts and your log.

Poor mod in the middle AKA maynard.

From Dell: At the first text on the screen, or when the Dell™ logo appears, press the <F2> key every three seconds until the message Entering Setup appears.

Well there's nothing you could have changed in the bios that would prevent you from getting back in. It most likely is just a timing issue. Have you tried a different keyboard and if so was it PS2? Have you tried removing the cmos battery for a few minutes?

To enter the BIOS on a dell dimension continually tap either the F2 or Del key at startup. It could be either one.