Jamey

Have you considered Amaya?

Just as an update, I now have my MacBook and wow I have to say it's the best computer I've ever owned. :D

Samo, what about Firefox or Opera as the other poster suggested?

Hi Jude It'd be more prudent to use a tool such as Ad-Aware or Spybot - Search & Destroy. They both are designed to weed out various malicious pieces of software in two different ways. Combined, they nearly always clear out the problem. Download, install and then run the update feature in each of the programs. Don't run them at the same time, just one after the other. Remove/quarantine everything that is found unless you're sure it's something genuine. A good way of doing it is: download, install and updates these programs but then reboot into Safe Mode and run them. This gives them a better chance at removing whatever is found. HTH :)

Do you have a second optical drive, like a CD or DVD drive? Because there might be one way around this. You could download the Ubuntu Live CD from http://www.ubuntu.com, burn it to a CD (not as a file, using a CD image burning program) and then boot from it. This will boot up into a screen, press Enter to start Ubuntu and after a couple of minutes you will be presented with a fully working Linux desktop. The next thing to do would be to open up your Windows partition and burn the files onto a DVD that you want to save. This would require you to put the Ubuntu disc in the drive that isn't the DVD burner, then use the other one to boot Ubuntu from. Getting access to FAT32/NTFS Windows partitions is much easier in Ubuntu since the dawn of version 7.10, but if you have difficulty try Googling for a guide or looking in the help (Ubuntu help actually is helpful). HTH :)

Try using a CD/DVD cleaning kit, which will clean the lens of your drive internally. Otherwise, return the drive to where you bought it from for a replacement.

If they are all regular partitions and there is no RAIDing going on, why don't you scrap remembering which drive was which, pull out everything and start again. Reset your BIOS, take out all of the drives and IDE ribbon cables and start again. Put one as a master and another as a slave on one IDE and the third drive as a master on the other IDE.

It's impossibly difficult to diagnose the problem without more information, like what background running applications and services (anti-virus, anti-spyware etc) that you have installed, the version of Internet Explorer, the service packs you have installed for Windows and so on. The best idea I can give is for you to simply switch to a better web browser; I recommend Mozilla Firefox. It's very unlikely that anything of the sort will ever happen with Firefox.

If you're not experienced with computers, I hope you have a backup of your important files. You will likely have a system recovery disc that came with your computer. What you can do is backup your files and run this recovery disc. Here are directions for starting your computer in Safe Mode: To start the computer in safe mode.

Pentium 4's run hot even when idle, as you have found out. Make sure you have a really good heatsink and fan if you want to lower that temperature. Also, high-quality thermal paste will do wonders. Cases are designed to be a closed-box ventilation system. So really you should keep your case sealed and closed when running your machine. Also, make sure you have adequate ventilation physically around the outside of your case, don't place it close to a wall or any hard surfaces. Finally, keep your room temperature low if you don't mind the cold! It sounds like your power supply isn't powerful enough to give the graphics card enough 'juice'. Try upgrading to a branded PSU of 400W or above. I think 2 x 1GB is better because it's better value for money and your brother gets a RAM upgrade too. Also, it also allows better future upgradeability. As for the processor, unless you can specifically identify that with 2GB of RAM, a decent graphics card and better PSU that your CPU is causing lag and dragging performance, I wouldn't bother upgrading it. You won't have another temperature problem if you upgrade your CPU because the newer generation of processors run cooler than their predecessors, such as the Pentium 4.

Your best bet is to backup your files and perform a clean reinstallation of Windows. If your machine came with a recovery disc, use that.

The hard drive controller is processing logic built in to your motherboard that controls, i.e. sends/receives data, through the Parallel ATA ports (IDE) on your motherboard. It is likely broken and therefore you should replace your motherboard. Do not put another drive near that machine!

Well, obviously it is not your side and you have clearly put in enough effort to determine this. The likely fault is that your USB modem is simply broken or faulty and therefore you should request a replacement from Tiscali. Be assertive and explain the situation, USB modems don't cost very much and they should be willing to help you out. You are, after all, their customer.

You need to change a setting in your BIOS to output via the AGP or PCI Express slot rather than by using the integrated graphics. When you computer is first turned on, look for information on screen about the key needed to enter the BIOS (usually F2, Del or F1). Once you're in, search around for a setting for graphics output. Once found, exit and save changes. Then do not remove your CMOS battery otherwise this setting will be lost.

Try reading this page: http://www.atomicmpc.com.au/forums.asp?s=2&c=7&t=9354 The answer, it seems, is that it really depends on the card and your current hardware configuration. Obviously if you have a lot of hardware that is currently demanding a lot of power from your PSU, you'll likely need an upgrade. Post your full system specs here and the card you intend on getting, then we can advise further.