BeeCeeBee

and here I thought you were the subject.

Are you still without any sound at all Thomaca?

:o Hi Wrightgk, I can understand your annoyance and it is not without good cause. Sometimes even in the best of worlds things can go wrong. I would like to think that yours is the exception that proves the rule. Fortunately we get very little of this. You posted a hardware question and, while I know it was seen, there was no hardware expert on line as it was deep into the holiday period. After that it seem to have been lost in the shuffle. Your post should, at very least, have been acknowledged which would have called new attention to it. The fact that it was not is our fault and we deeply apologise. We value your membership and hope to see you again at Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help.!

Beautiful Card and a Beautiful thought! Happy New Year Mara and thanks!!!:)

Just to restate. You cannot go to these sites even with all security programs disabled (AV, antimalware, firewall). Your IE is properly set to internet. It would appear that you have been infected with malware that is blocking those sites. This is by no means unusual. I have also looked at your overall protection and it would appear that the stuff offered by Virgin is not very highly regarded. You will need to run our antimalware program completely and then have a look at our recommended security products. http://extremetechsupport.com/forum/malware-removal-av-firewalls-etc/3597-free-pc-help-recommended-security-products.html First please follow the directions below and get back to us with the results. Your computer is probably be infected with Malware. Malware is software designed to infiltrate or damage a computer system without the owner's informed consent. It is a combination of the words malicious and software. The expression is a general term used by computer professionals to mean a variety of forms of hostile, intrusive, or annoying software or program code. Required Cleanup Steps Disable the Spybot Search & Destroy TEA TIMER if you use it and if it is enabled Run a Temporary file and cache cleaner (ATF) Run 2 Anti-Malware scanners (Listed Below) Run an Online Anti-Virus / Anti-Malware Scanner (Listed Below) Clear out old System Restore points If continued Malware type activity is present you may be asked to post a TrendMicro™ HijackThis™ Log file, do not do so unless requested. The reason to run multiple scanners is to ensure that no single scanner is missing something. The time it takes will vary depending on your system and your internet connection speed. Typically the SUPERAntiSpyware and Malwarebytes scanners will take between 10 to 90 minutes. The ESET online scan should take between 1 to 3 hours. In most cases, these scans will suffice to clean and disinfect your computer. Heavily infected systems or slower PCs can take much longer to scan and clean. For best results print the following instructions and bookmark this Web page To keep this guide printer-friendly, use your cursor to highlight the contents below. From your browser select File - Print and in the printer dialog box under "Print range" click the Selection choice to print out these instructions for removal of malware. http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn266/FPCH/Malware%20Guide/printer-selection.gif ____________________________________________ STEP 1 Disable Spybot Search & Destroys' TEA TIMER: (if installed, if not go to Step 2) Run Spybot-S&D in Advanced Mode. If it is not already set to do this Go to the Mode menu select "Advanced Mode" On the left hand side, Click on Tools Then click on the Resident Icon in the List Uncheck "Resident TeaTimer" and OK any prompts. Restart your computer. __________________________________________________ STEP 2 Follow these instructions carefully. Download ATF-Cleaner from Snapfiles.com to remove un-needed temporary files from your computer that may contain malware. When you run ATF-Cleaner, check the items as shown below for Main. For FireFox, be sure to click on the FireFox tab on top and check the items as shown below for FireFox NOTE: If you don't have FireFox or Opera installed then they will be grayed out and can be ignored Then click on "Empty Selected". http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn266/FPCH/Malware%20Guide/atf-cleaner01.gif . http://i306.photobucket.com/albums/nn266/FPCH/Malware%20Guide/atf-cleaner02.gif __________________________________________________ STEP 3 Install and run the free version (not the Professional version) of SUPERAntiSpyware from SUPERAntiSpyware.com Accept any prompts to allow SUPERAntiSpyware to install the latest rules and infection definition files. You do not have to send them your e-mail address, just click next. You can leave the automated check for updates on. You can uncheck "Send a diagnostic report to research center" if you don't want to send the information. DO NOT allow SUPERAntiSpyware to protect your Home Page settings. On the Top Left select the Scan your computer button. Make sure there is a CHECK MARK on all Fixed Drives. Click "Perform a Complete Scan". Click "Next" to Repair issues found and reboot the computer when prompted to do so. __________________________________________________ STEP 4 Install and run Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware from Malwarebytes - (direct download) Accept all defaults for the installer Allow the program to update the definitions Click on the Quick Scan and click Next. If any items are found allow it to clean them and then Reboot your computer. __________________________________________________ STEP 5 Run an online scan with ESET from Free Virus Scan: Use ESET's Online Antivirus Scanner You must use Internet Explorer for this online scan. FireFox, Opera, etc will not work for this scan. If your computer is running Window's Vista, then you must first start Internet Explorer as an Administrator. To do so, right-click on the Internet Explorer icon in the Start Menu and select "Run as administrator" from the popup context menu. Accept the terms and click "Start". Once the scanner is ready, check "Remove found threats" AND "Scan unwanted applications". Click "Start" to begin the scan. When completed restart your computer __________________________________________________ Make sure your internet firewall security is enabled, and then please return to Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help and tell us how the computer seems to be operating. At that time, you will receive instructions to assist you in removing malicious programs from your Add/Remove program list if warranted. If required this is the download link for TrendMicro™ HijackThis™ Unless instructed to by the Technician helping you then do not download this tool. Once you and the Technician agree that your system appears to be clean then you should delete all your System Restore points and recreate a new one. Please follow the instructions here How to turn off and turn on System Restore in Windows XP How to turn off and turn on System Restore in Windows Vista

But is the Internet Explorer set specifically for "internet" in your security settings (the Globe Icon)?

Hi Simon. While it sounds like a hardware problem the words "just fitted" are a little imprecise. Clearly you have booted the computer or you would not know that it did not shut down. Have you downloaded anything at all since your first boot? If it was a clean install did you reload any saved data from an external source? Malware can cause shut down problems so the possibilities must be examined.

Assuming that there is nothing in your firewall blocking these sites (and you say it has been turned off) The issue must be with your Internet explorer. Check your security settings (Tools>internet options> security) and make certain that it is set to internet and not trusted sites or restricted sites.

Lexmark is famous for its low cost printers and high cost Ink. That being said it may be a spooling issue. Have you had any problems since you last rebooted?

Both really but if you get help from Dell with the proper discs then that would be a good result and one we can deal with.

Eggy that is the problem, you really don't. The COA that you have was for the discs that came with it. The link that Wolfey gave you is for a new OS and from a reputable company that many Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help members deal with successfully. Please do not ask for or expect help on ways around these facts. We value your membership.

Hi again eggy. It would have been a lot better if you were a little less forthcoming with your confessions. As it stands you leave us little choice. We have strict rules about helping with p2p issues but since you had already downloaded the XP we were prepared to give you the benefit of the doubt based on your license. Now however it seems that your license does not apply to this machine and this install. As I have said many times, we are not the PC Police and we are not the guardians of morality. In fact I am quite sympathetic. But we also are in no position to take on the software giants or copyright holders. We plan on being here for a long time. This is no longer a p2p issue it is now a licensing issue as well. The good news is that with Vista taking over, legal copies of XP are not very expensive but until such time as you can assure us that you are using a valid copy of XP we must decline any further help and this thread must be closed.

Happy Birthday enjoy the new toy!!

I am not familiar with your particular router but generally when you go into it there is a means to view your wireless connection. The SSID is the name or identity given to your connection by the ISP. If you hit reset it may well be gone. You may want to try the installation program again as it will probably then set the SSID or if you locate it enter it exactly by hand being sure that the wep or wpa key is correct and exact.

That is not quite what I am saying but the result is the same. When you install windows it is installed based upon the configuration of the machine that it is being installed on. These 2 machines are entirely different. Even if your version of XP is a full one you will still have problems reinstalling on a different machine because windows will recognise the difference and not allow the install on other then the original machine. But anyway, now that the original hard drive is back. What are you seeing when you boot.

Welcome to fpch Eggy ! We will do our best.

Hi Eggy, First in the current state of things it will be impossible to sort out your "clean install"issue. From what I gather you did the install onto what I will call hard drive 1. When you ran into problems you tried hd2 and hd3. The problem is that your OS (windows) is installed onto HD1. Whatever may have been on hd2 or hd3 it is unlikely if not impossible that it would be recognised by your machine's motherboard etc. Simply put there is nothing in the PC that would retain the data from your install and by removing the hd you have removed the version of windows that you installed. You need to return the original hard drive to the the machine and see what occurs or wipe one of the others and install a full version of windows on it.

Welcome to fpch Chicken!! With your background you are not likely to lay an egg on here so the offer of help is greatly appreciated!!:)

Welcome Diurno!! Glad you have picked up on our "motto" members helping othe members. I have looked at your avatar as well and think we have met before down in Florida. I know Mickey Rat! :D

Two questions. Have you tried connecting to the router via the ethernet conections? What firewall are you using and have you checked it to see if it may be blocking your router?

Could you please let us know what IT is that worked. Thanks!

Hi Bruce and welcome! I am not sure where to begin because there are a number of things that may have happened so I will deal with the most likely. Removing the CPU was not a good move. There is a very good likelihood that you bent one of the many pins and even one bent pin will cause the PC to fail. What you are going to have to do is remove the CPU again (and you really should be properly grounded when you do any of this.) BUT before you do you should have a very strong magnifier or glasses available. Look at the pins closely and try to find any that are out of line. Look from the top sides etc. You will need to move them into alignment with a small device of some kind. If you do it right and you are sure you are putting it back in the right direction, it should give almost no resistance. Next remove the memory again (what you referred to as the processor boards) and make sure they are seated perfectly. They should be installed with equal pressure from above and not rocked in one side at a time. In fact, as I think about it, you may want to try this first and reboot the computer and hope that it works. As far as your data is concerned, what you have done probably has not effected the surface of the hard drive and hopefully all is still safely there.

I can see your point but did any of them have a magic genie? Of course not that is why we are so agreeable! ;)

Better a memory stick then a hard drive Chelle! It was becoming evident that you had a hardware problem. Come back soon!

What we need is a full time staff but, oh well! Please just post your concerns or just what you want to know and a genie appears and gives you answers. Welcome back Struggling!