BeeCeeBee

Hi Tyler and Welcome to Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help. We are glad to know as much about you as we can and from your recent replies to other members it is clear that your customers must be very satisfied with your service. :) Great to have you!

Good mornig JB. Well so much for logic. What your friend has suggested is possible particularly if the neighbor is using excessive bandwith such as downloading games, movies etc. Is your wireless connection secured? Did you need to use a WEP key when you installed the new router?

We will be glad to give you some recommendations but lets get this problem sorted first. There is no point in adding things to your PC right now.

HI Layler, I am not going to go into long winded explanations but I will tell you what you have to do so that you can follow Randy's direction and answer his queries. 1. While in IE7 click on tools (on top) and "manage add ons" from the drop down menu. Simply disable all running add ons. 2. Go to your settings and then control panel. In control panel go to "add and remove software" and uninstall any toolbars that you see. They will say toolbar in the program name. 3. Finally while still in control panel go to Windows Firewall and click on it. Simply click "off" and then OK. (if you do not have a seperate icon for windows firewall go to the security center and click on firewall where it says to manage security settings and turn it off there. Assuming that you have your antivirus disabled you will now be running without add ons, firewall or antivirus. Try that and get back to us please.

Not a problem really. What you will find is that the spelling used in help and perhaps in the menu bars etc. will be the American spelling. Frankly since I have never installed a UK version I do not know if that is universal. However what you put into a program is a product of your settings and not the office program. The program (word for example.) will recognise your settings and even give you language choice for spell check purposes. They will work fine - feel free to unwrap. :)

Hi Ancient Lady, If you mean can you use it in your UK pc the simple answer is yes. All of my office software is from the States. I don't know what programs are contained on your discs. If it happens to have any dedicated accounting software, which I doubt, it may be US oriented. Even that will "work" it just may not be much use to you.

The questions TooTech has asked may well have to be addressed in trying to work out what may be going wrong and he is quite right that you did not mention whether you connect by cable or wireless. I am assuming (which is often the wrong thing to do) that you are using the same method of connecting with both computers. My advice to you is to still attempt to deal with what I, at least, view as the most logical first step. You have the same problem on 2 different computers and do not "swap" anything between the two. You were wise to suspect the router but a brand new one did not solve the problem. Next you conferred with your ISP and it has reported no problem to you. It would be wrong of you to not follow your logic to the next step and rule out the only issue that remains in common and that is the use of Bullguard on both machines. My level of expertise only goes so far and there are others, like TooTech who are willing and able to step in. He may or may not be here when you return from work later and I would not want you to wait on acting with regard to the antivirus in the expectation that there is another fix to be forthcoming. What I suggest will do no harm and, if logic wins out, may solve the problem. I am, of course, mindful that when it comes to PCs Logic does not always prevail.

Please do. It could always be something else but if this is not ruled out we will always have to keep coming back to it. Sometimes it is just the simple things. Let us know.

Is Vista your original operating system on this PC?

Hi Celticwiz, Welcome and ask away that is why we are here. There is a lot to be learned by just browsing through our forums as well. Hopefully you will never have to So again, welcome to our community!!

I am not familiar with with Bullguard other then a quick review of Wolfey's link but it appears to be a complete Anti Virus package not just a firewall. You do not mention any other AV protection so I assume this is what you are using. If I am correct turning off the firewall would not have any effect alone. I am suggesting is that you disable all bullguard protection and get one of the AV programs I suggested and see if that resolves the issue.

Hi JB Since Bulldog is the one area of commonality I would suggest that you first disable it temporarily and if you have a decent connection download a good free antvirus like Avira or Avast and run with that for a while and see if your problems continue. If you are at one of those times where your connection is good then download the av first then disable bulldog.

Is Bullguard on both computers?

Hi JB and welcome to Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help. Two things come to mind immediately. Since you appear to be having the same problem on 2 different machines it would seem that malware is probably not the issue, BUT, if these 2 PCs are both under your control, is it possible that you may be swapping files and programs between them? While you were right to suspect the router, have you been in touch with your ISP? It may well be on their end. It would be good to rule out these 2 possibilites first.

Well I have heard of many addictions but this is a new one. Since you seem to go into the hardare pretty heavily and following up on Randy's point. One of the most common causes of hardware related problems is a failure to properly seat or reseat the dimms. (memory sticks) Often they look ok to the naked eye. I would suggest that while you are trying out Randy's auggestion you at least remove and reseat the dimms applying equal pressure when you do.

Hi daveesp, Not sure I understand what you mean by running at its limit? Have you checked the percentage of CPU usage in Task Master when it appears to be running at peak. Also while SUPERspyware is an excellent anti malware program it is not sufficient by itself to isolate and remove any malware that my have infected your system. It would appear that you already have suspected that malware may be the cause of your problems. I am going ask you to follow the following instructions carefully in order to either get rid of any malware or rule it out as a cause of your problems. Once you have finished please report back here and let us know if your problems persist. Your computer could 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. You can also download it from Majorgeeks.com 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 __________________

Hi Beebye I hope when you read this post it is because you are just back here and not back with even bigger problems. I am a bit concerned. You should first be aware that Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help has no economic interest in any software or sites we recommend. The Snapfiles.com link that Seth provided to you should have taken you directly to the ATF cleaner download. Just click on it. In additon, you did not mention anything about either the Antimalware bytes program or the eset on line scan. These programs combined are designed to give you the best chance of ridding your machine of all malware infections. The fact that you may have rid yourself of whatever symptoms you may have experienced is no guarantee that you have actually done a proper disinfection. I may be wrong but you seem to be relying on a SUPERantispyware scan and an AVG scan alone. AVG has had, and is having, its share of problems and not a forum favourite. The reason for the multiple malware scans it to make certain that everything gets caught. I am not saying you are still infected but it would surprise no-one if you are. I know this is not what you may want to hear but we are concerned about our members and would be remiss if we didn't at least warn you of potential problems.

Hi Bill, So I guess it isn't actually "running great." :) I think maybe it is best that you give us a run down of all of your issues so we can see if they are at all inter-related. I may already have mentioned elsewhere that you can probably ignore the clock warning while on POGO. It probably relates to your time not being in sinc with theirs (time zone etc.) and they are, I believe, a real time games site. Do you get this warning at any other time? Lets just get a handle on all your current issues and maybe they can be tied together and solved.

Hi Crisk, Since uninformed advice is often worse then none at all a few things need clarifying. Before I ask I am assuming that you have copied all of your drivers to disc and if you have not please do not forget to do so. Now for the questions. What was the original problem that cause you to reformat? What issues needed to be resolved. What version of Vista are you using? Is it an OEM disc, store bought or an upgrade? You indicted that there were a number of attempts to install Vista that failed. What exactly happened on those occaisions. If we can sort out the process you are using and the chain of events we may be able to get to the bottom of your current problem.

No point in jumping on the bandwaggon but I have tried a number of media players and while admittedly most were "back in the day" (Windows 98 - thats 1898 by the way) I have always returned to WMP. It is far less intrusive once you make your initial settings and is about as user friendly as you can get. Probably its one drawback is as a DVD player but even there Real Player was worse. WinDvd pretty good for that one. I know it is fashionable to try to avoid microsft but wmp seems to get it right.

Hmm. He must be right. I seem to remember that this was supposed to have to do with Star Trek, or Star wars, or Star Gate or something. Maybe I'm wrong. I guess I am getting old. So there is no point in another reply maybe someone more mature will join in. Time for the nurses to feed me now. Gota go!

This is an open message to all our members who may read this. Dalo Harkin is not only an adminsitrator but a brilliant technician who gives of his time freely to help Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help members. If you are fortunate enough to receive PC advice from him you would be well advised to follow it. Unfortunate like many brilliant people he is a bit out of touch with reality but we do make allowances for that. MOST IMPORTANT: Do remember that all of this is posted in FUN STUFF!! Warmest regards to all beeceebee

Poor you Dave! When all else fails you resort to elder abuse to make a point. And you an adminstrator no less. Out of kindness I will not report this thread and suggest that you spend your day researching paradoxes, etc.

What a silly young man you truly are. Clearly Seth, having never seen first contact, was referring to battles with the Borg in more contemporary times. Hence my comment remains true and yours invalid.

And not to mention the obvious. In order to use real bullets they would have had to bring them back from all their time travels and make sure that the had sufficient amunition to match the weapons that they had. Clearly you guys are not aware of the lack of strorage space on most starships.