XP IS ALMOST DONE...

[MAN OF BLUES]

so, i downloaded a manual to do service to a wee strom, along with it caame a  bunch of other sheee-it, i never wanted.. a Norton virus alert, a bunch of others, 6 i total, which totlly hosed my XP based laptop... recovery didn't help... I couldnt link to google maps after that point, and went back periodically 5 months in increments, after removing the software..
really frost my agates..
still my google maps wont load right... just a bunch of png. files loaded, and an error.
argggggGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH

so now, just downloaded chrome, as they still support XP, which has been the most flawless program in history...
we'll see how that goes for another year... f'ing software hackers, yeah, they hide the stuff, but they make it impossible to undoo the crap they injected... kida like an AIDS infection.. bastiches.

[VirginiaJim]

Was the manual from a reliable site, Rich?

[wahrsuul]

There are a couple of viruses/trojans out there that will totall hose the system, but most are removeable.  I use Spybot S&D and MalwareBytes.  Both are free for personal use (donations requested, but not necessary).  MalwareBytes has a "chameleon" feature that keeps most virsues from detecting it's install.  I've run into a few that'll remove the executable if you install after getting the virus.

I'd offer to help more, but I don't think we're located anywhere near each other. 

[Conrad]

No matter which OS you are using it's always a good idea to have at least two user accounts set-up on your computer. One account should be a limited use account and the other a password protected administrative account. Day to day use should be with the limited use account to help prevent infections. Plus that way if the limited use account gets hosed you have the admin account to fall back to while you try to remove the virus.

Malewarebytes really works great, give that thing a try. Check the settings before you use it and tweak them for max scanning. Be sure that it's 100% up to date and run it from an admin account.

[RFH87_Connie]

I'm surprised XP connected to the internet ran this long.  Here's a flyer I wrote for my co-workers more than a year ago...

[MAN OF BLUES]

This was on an XP Professional platform, it wasn't virus that hosed me, it was tag a long software. Nothing malicious, just had to uninstall all of it,  and that Norton scan software is was hosed my registry. I'm running mcaffee, and it conflicted.

No problemo, I downloaded Chrome, and it seems to work fine, actually better with any google based stuff like maps.
All is good, for now....

As for malwarebites, I'm very familiar with it, ran it on every machine I've touched in the last 10 years at one point or another...

It took me almost 20 hours to remove the FBI virus from my home tower, running in safe mode, and transferring the MWB software back and forth between 2 laptops and the tower...because I couldn't link with the tower... and almost 9 hours on my work computer... and I have no idea how those both got infected, I assume it was resident on the work machine when I was given it, but the only thing I can link it to on the home tower was momma surfing in a non aware mode....

Thank god I have semi-highspeed internet on cable... when in Va I was on DIALUP.....doh.
I would have taken an axe to the machine then...

[MAN OF BLUES]

Was the manual from a reliable site, Rich?

I think so... weird thing was I downloaded the manual on my nook no problem, its android based... but when I did it on my laptop, it brought in all the goobers. I can't change platforms on the laptop, it was given to me by my employer 4 years ago, and I have lots of expen$$ive cad software on it that I don't have discs for anymore... same with my home tower, and thats why I still run xp on it also...

I cant afford anything till I get back to work, and surely can't afford about $10k + in cad software.....

[T Cro ®]

I will be very sad when I am forced to retire XPP as it is just so dam simple and robust.... We have numerous computers that are still running XPP and they cause me the LEAST amount of trouble!

[VirginiaJim]

Quite frankly, Windows 7 has been less troublesome than XP as far as I'm concerned.

[MrPepsi]

Quite frankly, Windows 7 has been less troublesome than XP as far as I'm concerned.

This.
I get so tired of people whining about new OS'.
However Vista sucked! 

[VirginiaJim]

Absolutely.  We require the use of PCs as consoles to the servers I install.  I recommend XP, Win7 and even 8.1.  Vista I give the sign of the cross and back away.

[wahrsuul]

Vista wasn't great, I'll grant, but ME was worse.  And don't even get started on BOB!

Still, I like 7 a lot and even after a year I'm still not fond of 8.  I have "duelling systems" in my room, matching hardware (for the most part) one runs Win7 or 8 in a removable HD setup, and the other runs Linux.  I also run a Linux distro on the file server.  Can't beat the price, and the community has been good to me.  But we use Windows at work, so I need to stay current with that, and most of the family wouldn't switch, so....

[MrPepsi]

Windows 9 sucked, but Windows 10 looks good. 

[Cholla]

I see quite abitof similarities between Vista and 7.

Why dont these companies test their products fully before releasing them? As it is now the consumers are the testers. What is thefix? A new OS and we come full circle.

[stevewfl]

Between Microsoft missing the boat on mobile platform, and Apple/Droid murdering them in the tablet arena, and PC/laptop sales slim to nill........

LoL @ "windows"!   

[VirginiaJim]

I see quite abitof similarities between Vista and 7.

Why dont these companies test their products fully before releasing them? As it is now the consumers are the testers. What is thefix? A new OS and we come full circle.

I have had zero, nada, nothing, no issues with Windows 7.  It's worked great for me.   I think MS saw what a piece of crap Vista was and improved it to Windows 7.  And actually Windows 8.1 isn't bad either, but I'm using Start8.  No issues with that release either.

[B.D.F.]

The last GOOD OS that came out of Washington was DOS 5.0. 6.0 and 6.22 were really just 5.0 with compression and some (mostly useless) extended features. I used 5.0 as the base of a bunch of industrial real-time OSs, which DOS really was (a real- time OS). Then we had a whole series of nightmares (Win. 3.0, 3.1, 95, 98, 2000) followed by something that generally, mostly worked- XP. Yeah I know Win NT was in there, and it was actually an excellent OS but it was the red headed stepchild that just did not support enough apps. and was too expensive for individual workstation use. XP still goes off on those 20 second jaunts of 'housekeeping' but unlike all the earlier versions, it almost always comes back :-) With a Raid setup and some fairly vigorous fire-walling and blocking of anything even remotely suspicious, I have been pretty happy with XP. Soon enough I will have to move on and cannot upgrade to 8.1, 8.0, or even 7.0 without first upgrading to Vista (yeck!).

At least I have been able to get some exposure to 8.1 on my wife's Surface. Not what I would call 'slick' but not un-usable or even horrible either really.

Maybe I should time it so that I go over to a new platform, new OS and new provider (Fios instead of the local cable company) all in one gigantic step? That ought to make for a black hole I probably cannot climb out of....

Brian

I will be very sad when I am forced to retire XPP as it is just so dam simple and robust.... We have numerous computers that are still running XPP and they cause me the LEAST amount of trouble!

[Nosmo]

Still sort of partial to DOS.  Believe it or else, at work we still have some test sets that are based on DOS computers, designed then and never upgraded. 

But I still have my XP desktop for storage and the Toshiba laptop with 7 that I am typing this on on which I am typing this.  No real preference, but I'd never consider hooking the XP up to the interweb these days.  I've been "fake FBI'd" a couple times with the laptop and managed to get rid of it.

[Classvino]

I get calls all the time from Microsoft's Indian or Asian offices...   They tell me my computer is having problems and has been beaconing for help, and if I'd be good enough to sit down at my PC, they'd be happy to walk me through a couple quick registry changes that would quickly solve the problem.

Surely they could help...

Jamie