FRUSTRATED WITH COMPUTING

frank_f15 · Apr 16, 2005

Seems some of my web pages take forever to load ( especially yahoo mail) so i have down loaded and installed , micosoft anti spyware, lavasoft ad-aware and spybot s&d ran all the scans found numerous stuff and the computer still works the same. also it seems between getting updates for WINDOWS, updates for NAV, updates for all 3 spywares and running all the scans it leaves no time for anything else. plus all these programs use differnt terms and configuration is difficult if you don't know what they mean. guess i am having a bad day and just had to vent. ANYBODY ELSE FIND THIS TO BE a PITA /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif

RobertN · Apr 16, 2005

Windows and its software tends to be a pain. Although it is pretty well distributed does not make it great.

When I worked hi-tech, I got to use Solaris and other IX based systems. They were much nicer to work with, and were a much hardier system. No blue screens... I never saw something hang the whole machine... It was pretty simple to shut down applications that were not working, in the limited extent that that occurred.

They still had thier terminology, and app specific stuff. But, they were and still are a hardier setup.

kenmac · Apr 16, 2005

I havn't had many problems after installing norton antivirus & now spybot. I have them set to scan everyday at a certain time.I think spybot expires in approx. 30 days. Then maybe will have to pay for it to keep it.

pilonidal · Apr 16, 2005

You probably need a reformatt. Comps over time load up with junk and it slows them more and more. You may think you are getting rid of the spy-adware stuff with all the scans, but you don't get rid of it all, some of it is buried very deep in the system. I can go for about a year before my comp just starts to really slow down and mess up and I can't take it anymore myself and reformatt my comp. You may think you are deleting/erasing stuff, but the comp leaves traces and just tucks it away and slows your comp down.

I must say though that Microsoft is finally getting it together with their security fixes and anti-spyware software. It's pretty good. I think it's better than pay for software but it isn't perfect with out a reformatt to start from scratch.

I used the microsoft spyware, but it still found stuff everyday. It was the same 2-3 programs it was finding. My comp was locking up alot also. So I reformatted.

After I reformatted I made sure I got all the available security patches and microsofts spy-ware loaded first. Don't visit any website after a reformatt with out loading up the security patchs first. Your system is truly clean so don't visit some website first to start your headaches all over again.

Since I reformatted a couple of months ago and loaded up the spyware from microsoft it has not found one thing out of all the daily scans.

Bob_Skurka · Apr 16, 2005

Frank, constant software upgrades that were needed by MS programs to work with each other, constant system crashes, and constant minor bits of grief caused me to switch to Apple's Macintosh systems. I got frustrated with some cross platform compatibility issues with the Apple so I switched back to Windows. I found all the same problems again with Windows and switched back to Apple. The later Apple systems (OS 9.xx and OS 10.xx) have eliminated 98% of the cross platform issues, system crashes virtually never happen, spyware and hacking is a minimal issue. And the system is more intuitive.

Barton · Apr 16, 2005

Sounds like the registry may be cluttered up. I downloaded, installed, and ran the trial version of Registry Mechanic. The trial version will fix about half of the parts of the registry. Then I did the same thing with the trial version of Registry First Aid which will fix every error it finds but only 10 - 12 per run. It helped quite a bit, but if RegFirstAid finds numerous errors it will take you awhile.

You have plenty of time on your hands, right? /forums/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

Yes, I guess it's a PITA but it's just the price we have to pay to use Gore's Net.

I use the same 3 anti-spyware programs that you do, also NAV and firewall and stay pretty clean.

Farmall47 · Apr 16, 2005

Frank,
If you haven't tried this already, give it a shot:
Search for files: ~*.*, *.tmp, *.dmp and cache.dsk on your hard drive. Highlight all the files that show up (Ctrl + A). Then hit the delete key. You may get a message that there are some "read only" files included in the list...that's ok, just select delete all.
These are temporary files and can be safely deleted on WIN XP, WIN 2000 and WIN NT systems. This may help to clear out some of the "clutter" on your system.

Hope it helps.

F47

frank_f15 · Apr 16, 2005

thanks for the advise, but perhaps i did not make my self clear. MY computer is not slow or sluggish JUST some web sites take longer to load than they did a few weeks ago, not many but a few. i know i am using slow dial up, but some sites just seem to take longer.

Bob_Skurka · Apr 16, 2005

Frank, try a different web browser. Some load faster than others. I find FireFox loads very quickly. Safari is also a fast loading browser. Its been years since I used Netscape, so I can't speak to that. I'm not a big fan Explorer, but I occasionally use it. My experience is that is loads very slowly compared to Safari or FireFox.

slapshot · Apr 17, 2005

I'll second the idea of a browser switch. I've not met anybody yet who has tried FireFox that wasn't knocked out by its speed. It is really fast.

-dave

ScottAR · Apr 17, 2005

Loving firefox so far. Like the others I formated, downloaded the security updates, installed my antivirus, and then put on firefox.

My antivirus hasn't kicked off once since.

This is for the internet computer. It's just for browsing.

The computer with the important stuff is across the room in it's own computer universe, only connected to a printer. Never the two universes will meet.

gws · Apr 17, 2005

My linux box doesnt seem to have any of those problems. Maybe its the tool your using?

JayC · Apr 17, 2005

I, too, agree on the browser switch. When I used IE, it would literally take forever to load a secure webpage. I never understood why. I switched to Netscape 7.2 and am quite happy with it. Netscape is developed by Mozilla, so it is more secure than IE.

OkeeDon · Apr 17, 2005

I wonder whether Linux, Macintosh or any of the other systems are actually more "secure" than Windows, or if it's simply that there aren't enough people using them to make it worth the while for hackers to try to invade them. I would expect that if there ever gets to be a critical mass of users of the off-center stuff, the hackers would soon find a way onto them, too. In the meantime, I would keep it very quiet if I was using something that worked.

I've been using Firefox on two of my computers for several months, now, and it is smaller, faster and more reliable. However, it is NOT immune to adware. Spybot still picks up some things that have been downloaded. Maybe I have Firefox configured wrong or have not kept up with the updates, it doesn't matter. I have it configured the way it came, and it was touted at the time as being adware-proof, so if it isn't as good now, it's because more hackers are working on it. There is a limit to how much time I want to spend configuring and staying up to date, which is the original lament of this thread.

frank_f15 · Apr 17, 2005

( There is a limit to how much time I want to spend configuring and staying up to date, which is the original lament of this thread.
)

That was my point exactly /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif between all the updates and running scans it all takes time. Also it could actually be that my DIAL UP ain't cutting it anymore, seems like any site you go to is loaded with graphics and annimations+ our phone lines out here are not very good as they are very old. MAY be i might have to bite the bullet and go to CABLE HIGH SPEED. But that still won't stop the need for updates and scans. + i don't like the idea of being online any time i fire up the computer.

Hypernix · Apr 17, 2005

Frank,

The problem of keeping computers up to date is not going to go away any time soon. In fact it is getting worst every month! /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif A lot of factors contribute to the problem but some wize(sp?) choices can minimize this problem.

Just to give you some "food for thought", I have no antivirus, no spyware and no automatic patching currently running on any of my home computers. I do patch the software running on my computers 1 or 2 times a month and it takes about 15 to 30 minutes. This is done with 2 simple commands! That's it.

( I wonder whether Linux, Macintosh or any of the other systems are actually more "secure" than Windows )

Don, this is a very hot topic in IT today. I'm not sure I want to elaborate more since this usually starts all kinds of flamming! /forums/images/graemlins/blush.gif
I vote for Linux/Unix anyway /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Hypernix

Alan L. · Apr 18, 2005

The only problem with Apple is that most of the software I need won't run on it.

Spiffy · Apr 18, 2005

i don't like the idea of being online any time i fire up the computer. 

Just disable your LAN before you turn off the computer and it will come back on likewise. It really shouldn't matter if everything is up to date, but being slightly paranoid I sometimes do exactly that myself.

On the other hand, if you don't like to pay the phone company extra or hate all the BS previously mentioned (from excessively detailed sites to poor browsers), I'll protest with you, but won't give up my DSL! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Chad

Bob_Skurka · Apr 18, 2005

The only problem with Apple is that most of the software I need won't run on it.


What I have found over the past 8 years, after switching from Windows to Mac, back to Windows, then back to Mac, and existing in an office enviornment that (with the exception of my laptop) is 100% Windows is that there is usually a cross platform equivalent program that will work with Mac. I can access our office IBM AS/400, I can run our purchasing software, all the of Microsoft "Office" programs are seamless when sharing files between Windows and Mac. Graphic arts programs and publishing programs are also, for the most part seamless in being cross platform. Now I will grant you that there are specific programs that are not cross platform. There are also specific programs that are not avaiable for the Mac, but with about a quarter million different titles of software available, I've not found any real stumbling block in the business world. MOST things are available or have an equivalent. My wife is a teacher, she also has a Mac laptop, her school is 100% Windows. She has no problems sharing files with the other teachers, students, etc.

I'm not saying it is the best answer for anyone, but it was a great answer for me. I also explored UNIX and LINUX and think those OS's have some real possibilities. They are generally considered more secure, more stable, but they are also harder to get software for. Mac's operating system uses a UNIX core, it gets the upside of UNIX with the software support of Apple.

Jagmandave · Apr 18, 2005

Well, the advantage of going to cable/DSL is that it's SO much faster than dialup that downloading and installing patches and such takes only seconds instead of hours. I run IE and use Google for my desktop homepage, so when opening the browser it only takes a second or so to load the page, no useless "news" graphics and ads to wait to load. Then I go straight to TBN!

When you download patches and updates, they download so quickly they're usually done before you know it! Also, you can set your update programs to run automatically in the background and it doesn't slow your surfing down a bit.

Sometimes, a web page that you've visited before will load slowly due to something happening on their end, nothing you can do about that.

You can also clear your history and temp folder cache each time you sign off, that eliminates a lot of garbage too.