RandyL

You might try the Acer eRecovery. And for the record I think you have the Acer Aspire T671.

dave can you go through the exact steps you take to get Windows to boot in normal mode? Please be specific. If you can get into Windows but not normally then I suspect malware as an issue.

Vauxbot how did you try the System Restore since you can't boot normally or in safemode? Is this computer a name brand and if so what is it? Make-model-number. Did you use a key command at startup? It is strange that if you got into System Restore that there are no points to restore to as Vista by default sets a point every 24 hours and it's not easy to change that in Vista. If you mean you got into boot or startup repair options and nothing works it's not a good sign. Was there a restore to factory conditions option? Seriously I would consider trying to save files at this point. After that try to obtain restore disks from the manufacturer. It could be the update, hard drive, malware or more but to me it sounds like windows is corrupted or the drive is failing. Sure you can buy a new OS but it won't be cheap. What can you tell us about your computer?

Hi Wizbuzz. If you can please wait for our malware expert to see this thread. If he can not get to you soon we will assist you in this matter. Like you said it has some problems but they can be cured. You have already taken some great steps and we do see the issues. Since you are not a novice can you possibly get HJT to run in normal mode and supply the malwarebytes log file? Personally I always uninstall all those crap games and poker programs before I even attempt to begin a cleanup. For instance Partypoker. I had a guy install it on my system withought my knowledge. Infections abounded. Dump them all and any suspicious toolbars too. As noted this machine is not updated and security is lax. IE6/SP2/AVG

The above post by siennal is spam. The link has been removed and this thread closed. Member banned. Thanks everyone for perfect answers and thanks also for pointing it out to me. I'm not deleting this thread because the answers deserve to be noted. I agree on this type of post.

Also you may need to check if your player is working or needs updated to a newer version. Version test for Adobe Flash Player

Good point Ken. And if it's a new mobo then an OEM restore disk likely won't work at all. Also Microsoft considers a new mobo a new computer so you might have to jump through a few hoops to revalidate it.

Hi straggler. At this point I'm going to tell you something you won't want to hear. Fortunately for you that you supplied the information you did though. First of all I'm betting your system is weak. Vista needs a good processor and a lot of RAM even if you have Vista Basic. You however have Vista Business and very little to run it. That's half your problem. You also said you have very little installed and supplied a short list but then you added that you have Limewire. Which leads me to what I think the second half of your problem is. Limewire is a P2P service for sharing files. In order for file sharing to work these programs have to maintain a connection that others can tap into just like you do when you download files through them. So in essence your internet connection is being tapped into by others not just your surfing or streaming. It's no wonder you are having problems streaming. Couple that with the fact you say your ISP is worthless (although you never did fully say how you connect or with what ISP) then it's no small wonder you have issues with viewing streams Now for the second half of Limewire and P2P. This is one of the most common methods of infecting a computer. It matters not what AV you have as none can detect everything and you may have allowed infections to bypass your security simply by having Limewire or downloading, opening, running or viewing such files. An infected computer is ripe to all sorts of problems. Some persistent. Some intermittent. So here is what I think you should do to eliminate problems and optimize your system in the proper order. 1. Uninstall Limewire. 2. Uninstall any programs obtained via Limewire. 3. Delete all types of files obtained via Limewire. 4. Post in our malware section and ask for a check. 5. Upgrade your RAM. 6. Get a better processor. 7. Get a better ISP. At the very least it would help to know how you connect (dialup, cable, adsl) and who your ISP is. 8. Disable from startup any programs you can or uninstall uneeded programs. I know you said you didn't have much at first but something like Limewire is big and these things are important and add up. Netbooks by their very nature are weak as a rule. Couple that with the other issues you may have and it boils down to starting from scratch. I don't believe this is an issue where you can pick any one thing as the source. It's likely a combination of many factors. Start at the top of the list and work your way down or restore to factory specs and see what happens. After that upgrade your computer or ISP.

I agree with Tootech on going to the manufacturers site if you think you need to update the BIOS. Be warned however should something go wrong you could render your computer permanently damaged. For less than $50 U.S. you could fit a new optical drive. Considering the risk, the cost and the fact you still probably wouldn't be able to load Windows from an external USB drive on your system are you sure it's worth the chance? For that matter you could just temporarily fit an optical drive, install Windows and pull it. It beats risking an expensive paper weight if something should go wrong. Although updating the BIOS is safer on newer systems why risk it? Besides, wouldn't a cheap optical drive have many more benefits than just reinstalling Windows. Personally I don't think you are going to find any downloads or updates from them. Support appears to be non-existent. In my honest opinion your only option is to replace the optical drive and use the disks they supplied. And don't even think about the possibility of installing Windows from a different hard drive that Windows was previously installed on even via an external device. I've also noticed that you have been asking about this on several different places. There are no answers available there either. Either way you should limit your questions to one forum or answer site at a time. To do otherwise might cause conflicting advice. At the very least you should inform us of where you have posted to avoid us going over the same steps and to minimize our time spent on researching. The point is the best solution is to replace the optical drive for a minimal cost and use the disks you have. It would also have the added benefit of a working optical drive.

naj for now don't attempt it until you hear from chiaz. All I can tell you is that it doesn't support Windows 7. chiaz your combofix download link produces the 404 error. As for me I've only used it on XP.

Are you saying that videos you downloaded and saved are not playing right? That would be entirely different. Off to bed for now but if so that's a good clue.

Well it's snowing again. It's a white Christmas. Been busy shopping, baking, sledding, playing, decorating, baby sitting, cleaning, haircuts, stocking beer etc. and generally going insane. :) Although I love my grandson sixteen days in a row (24 hours) is a long time. :) And my car battery went dead. But in the spirit of Christmas my best friend left his family Christmas dinner to help me. I don't care who you are, what religion you are, whether or not you believe in a divine being, where you are from or anything else. When a fellow man comes to your aid then I think Peace on earth and good will toward men everywhere. Merry Christmas.

Oh yeah. I've never been able to access certain UK video sites as I'm in the USA. So I haven't a clue if the BBC is acting up as I can't check it. Why the UK censors ingoing and/or outgoing internet services is beyond me. Censorship is something between citizens and the goverment but some traffic is indeed blocked. Like television. The point is I can't check it but if Dalo says it's been acting up I believe him.

Dalo refers to turning off things like scheduled scans of your computer. Do not turn of your Avast completely while online. That would leave you vulnerable. I think Dalo wants to know who use for internet service and is it a cable hookup or through a high speed connection through your phone line as opposed to a regular dialup service through your phone line. I see your model supports 2Gb of ram but unless you upgraded it probably only has 1Gb which is weak for Vista Home Premium and Business might need more. Dalo said that memory might be a problem. I don't know if the specs are a problem but here is a PDF file link for general specs. http://bizsupport1.austin.hp.com/bc/docs/support/SupportManual/c01658655/c01658655.pdf Personally I think most netbooks tend to be on the low side of specs. That keeps the price down. Netbooks are mainly for basic computing needs. However it should stream vidieos if your connection and ISP and RAM is good unless something else is using what little resources you might have. Dalo can advise you more on your specs and more. I'm just offering up the link above.

Hi kathi. Write this one off as a lost cause. Your printer only has drivers from 98 to XP. The printer is incompatable with Vista because no drivers were written for it. I'm glad it wouldn't let you install them because I've seen all sorts of problems with wrong printer drivers including not being able to boot into Windows. It's a shame when old hardware and software won't work on Vista but that's life. I lost many programs and tried the supported work arounds to no avail. But hardware is hardware. You either have the drivers or you don't.

If you need to email or call them contact | Packard Bell

You started the recovery with the first vista disk but couldn't finish because you didn't make the second. You tried the wrong disks for your computer for an xp install. Either way once you got as far as you did there is no hope other than to contact the manufacturer for the correct recovery disks or get a full retail version. Sorry.

I've moved this post from a different thread to here as it seems malware related.

How do you know that key is being changed and how do you manage to change it back if you can't get into Windows? Exactly what happens and when as you try booting and getting into Windows. Hopefully chiazs suggestion about safemode will work.

It might be worth looking at Yahoo to see if they have a newer version of the branded Internet Explorer. Unfortunately I can't look because only those with Yahoo as an ISP can. Install or Re-install BT Yahoo! Internet Software

Note the location where it's installed. After you uninstall it go to that directory and delete any leftover files and folders. Update Windows. That might be part of the problem. Reboot and reinstall. What is the exact error message? What exactly are those other msn programs?

Hi humph. Please post in the appropriate section and include as much information as you can about the software and your computer and hopefully someone can help.

I know we are all busy at this wonderful time of year but why not share your thoughts, your plans or even your pictures. I have my grandson for 16 days. What better gift is there? I have a picture of my front yard decorations but the snow storm made me lose a few. However here is a link to one picture. My snow storm damaged decorations

Hi stanton. I don't have an idea but I'm sure someone will. In the mean time can you tell the forum more? Any clue at all might help. By the way which model do you have? » Compaq Presario C740ED Notebook PC » Compaq Presario C740EE Notebook PC » Compaq Presario C740EG Notebook PC » Compaq Presario C740EL Notebook PC » Compaq Presario C740EM Notebook PC » Compaq Presario C740ES Notebook PC » Compaq Presario C740ET Notebook PC » Compaq Presario C740TU Notebook PC

Oh the wonders of computing. Glad it's working shrimply.