Spy ware...I update and run Adaware but when I try to delete the spam emails I get run over with spyware prevention ads. I have to close all these damn windows! Is there a way to stop it? low virtual memory alerts???? Do I need a new machine? Buy more memory? erase stuff? Is there a tune up site that can help figure out what's wrong? Besides adaware and killing my cookies is there any maintenance that I should be doing? my machines are at least 2 years old runing windows XP with Incredimail email program. Sorry to be so stupid.
I got a free download of Spybot a few days back. It cleaned up about a dozen spyware programs. Couple of days later, after visiting only 4-5 sites eight of them were back - may have been new ones, but some names look familiar. Go here for Spybot site There is a place on the site where you can make a donation, but it doesn't seem to work....
I had the same problem and finally broke down and bought norton antivirus and haven't had any problems.
Boy I tell you anymore this ad shit and browser takeover is really getting aggressive. Now all you have to do is click on something and they smear you will crap up the bunghole. Whereas before you normally needed to download to get anything like this. I got creamed a few days ago and ran both adaware and hyjackthis and still had crap in there. The only solution was to go back to a time on my computer that did have that shit. I hate these guys!
Heres what I do that works pretty well, goto internet options and set your security and privacy settings as high as you can while still being able to get to all your usual stops on the internet highway, i run adaware every couple of days, also I run peerguardian which blocks other people from getting your IP address or something like that, as well as a popup blocker, because some popups are just triggered by websites you go to and not spyware, oh and norton antivirus, has kept my puter clean so far! hope that helps
I run 3 spyware programs on most machines that come into my store due to them "acting funny." 2 remove the spyware, 1 prevents its installation. I also install a IE toolbar from Google that blocks popups very well. Useful search bar too. Spywareblaster 3.1 - http://www.javacoolsoftware.com Download, install, UPDATE, and enable protection. Spybot - Search & Destroy 1.3 - http://www.spybot.info Download, install, UPDATE, run, delete the crap it finds. Ad-Aware 6.181 - http://www.lavasoft.de Repeat Spybot instructions. Google Toolbar - http://toolbar.google.com Download, install, enjoy.
I've made a resolution to never buy any product that pops up on my computer. As long as they think it brings them sales, they'll keep doing the popups. What we as consumers have to do is convince these sales assholes and bean counters that the popups aren't working. I understand advertizing paying for the internet, but agressive popups have gone too far. I also don't visit any geocities sites. That friggin advertizing window they overlay on everything pisses me off. One thing that helps is to not use the free programs bundled with the stuff you download. They're almost all spam enhancers with very limited actual benefit. You really don't need all those secure download programs. If you did, you wouldn't have been able to download them in the first place. If the program you want to use doesn't work without all those bundled spam producers, shitcan it and find another. There's usually lots to choose from out there. Best defence is a good antivirus like Trend or Norton. They've gotten better at stopping spyware and popups. If you won't spend the money for a good antivirus then I reccommend you unplug your computer from the net and take up golf.
It's not an ad for a specific company. It tells me WARNING! my machine is infected with adware (NO SHIT!) When I click on it it brings up a whole laundry list of adware programs no a specific product. The Microsoft flag is at the top left. Is it Microsoft? Are all the adware programs teaming up hoping to get some of the scare bussiness? It's adware to sell adware prtection. Joe if I can't stop this I will quit surfing. I don't get it playing solitair and hearts
[ QUOTE ] Run Spybot and after you've eliminated the crap then let spybot innoculate your computer. [/ QUOTE ] <font color="green">That is the key to Spybot! Do just like Hup said. Forget Ad-aware. RASHY </font>
Having Norton doesn't guarantee you won't get Spyware. I use Spybot,and it helps. You can also delete all the old Cookies that have been collecting in your machine to free up a bunch of space.You will probably find several copies of the same cookies.
Also try Mozilla instead of Internet Explorer. http://mozilla.org It can be set to disable Javascript and block Pop-Ups. Plus tabbed browsing is the hizzy...
Tommy, if it's the one that offers to check your machine for adware from a popup window, you're right. It IS adware. don't use it. Run spybot you'll be amazed at all the stuff it'll find. Most of the others actually snatched the spybot code and added in their own adware.
I just turned on my home machine. I ran spybot before I opened IE. it found 4 problems and fixed them. imunized the machine. opened IE and got 4 popups opened email and got 3 more. Whatever I got it aint fixin' it. I have the Google tool bar too. I ran Adaware last night before I shut it down. This machine has Norton anti virus too. Whatever it is, it does a search! looking for spyware. Then lists all the possible programs to cure my problem. anybody got a clue about the low virtual memory warning?
<font color="green">Tommy, Go to Start/ Settings/ Control Panel/ Add-Remove Programs and uninstall Ad-Aware and also uninstall your Google toolbar. Also, keep a look out for any programs you don't recognize and delete them if they are obviouslt ad programs. Another thing you can do... Type in the name of any unknown program into GOOGLE and it will tell you what it is. If it's not something you want, uninstall it. You can also do this with the items that show up in your system properties (ctrl, alt, delete). Now, run the Spybot again, innoculate again and then DL your Google Toolbar again, keep in mind that you have the option of the Google bar operating as spyware or not. You want not. What you have is a program that got on your computer that downloads the ads automatically, since it is asking for the programs your pop-up blockers don't see it. Make sense/ It's hard to do this like we are. If you keep having trouble I will PM you my cell if you will call after 9 central. RASHY </font>
go to start/contorl panel/system / system is underperformance maintenance.then advanced tab click settings in the "performance"box comes up click advanced settings down at the bottom is the virtual memory setting you should see 372 mb if not click on change and custom size should have the green dot. Inthe boxes type 372 and below type 744 and press set button that is more than fine for anything you have in your home computer it should not have been changed by any spyware or ad sites but it can happen ,then your pages will load and not cause the computer to sit and run looking for mb's to use happens when you have so many pages open ,kind of hard to go over the whole story ,but that is something to look at and see what your settings are
[ QUOTE ] go to start/contorl panel/system / system is underperformance maintenance.then advanced tab click settings in the "performance"box comes up click advanced settings down at the bottom is the virtual memory setting you should see 372 mb if not click on change and custom size should have the green dot. Inthe boxes type 372 and below type 744 and press set button that is more than fine for anything you have in your home computer it should not have been changed by any spyware or ad sites but it can happen ,then your pages will load and not cause the computer to sit and run looking for mb's to use happens when you have so many pages open ,kind of hard to go over the whole story ,but that is something to look at and see what your settings are [/ QUOTE ] <font color="green">I don't think this is problem. Whenever an IE window opens it eats a ton of memory, When you have enough windows open you run out of memory. The setting you are talking about is the virtual memory. Tommy's probably running 64-128 meg. I am currently on a laptop with 128 and have three IE windows running, IE is eating up 34 megs on its own, throw in the windows explorer at 8-10 meg and you are way low. This does not count other programs that are running. The average computer user should use the option that lets windows select the size of the virtual memory. RASHY </font>
well when you get a "windows notice of a low virutal memory"when he is on the puter he should at least look at the settings ,god knows what happened with out being able to sit at his puter.so guess it is up to him to look or let some go over his settings,welcome to the world wide web, WELL AFTER READING HIS POST AGAIN HE AHS INCREDIMAIL AS HIS EMAIL ,THAT IS NOTHING BUT SPYWARE AND POPUPS,CRIPES GOOD LUCK GETTING RID OF THAT, THE UNINSTALL IS A NIGHTMARE ,HE WOULD ENDUP LOOKING IN THE REGISTRY TO FIND SOME OF THE KEYS THAT HAVE BEEN CHANGED ,
<font color="green">If you let Windows select the Virtual Memory level, it will adjust it if necessary. If there is memory left that it can adjust to you will get a warning that it is about to change the setting and you have the option of letting it or not. </font>
if all else fails gather up your install disks for video, sound, windows, etc write down all your passwords such as internet connection, email, email protocols, etc and Format the thing and start fresh! I bet you never formatted that thing since you got it and everyone when they first get on the internet gets all sorts of trash they don't need or understand and plugs their rigs up with the trash unless you got a system restore then you can give that a try I find a format is the answer for me but then again I don't got no programs in mine but what comes with windows so its easy for me to run my mouth when others might have stuff to valuable to lose and its not an optiion for them
<font color="green">In WINXP, you have four options. Let Windows choose what's best for my computer Adjust for best Appearance Adjust for Best Performance Custom. I use "Adjust for Best Performance. Why, you may ask? Because it will "Adjust for Best Performance" It automatically cuts out the cutesy Windows crap that eats memory. This is in XPpro on my laptop. Another thing, the memory settings you gave are dependant upon the amount of system memory in the machine and can also be affected by "shared memory" applications. For instance, my laptop with 128 meg can only bump to 384MB, it normally sits at 192MB. This is plenty unless I'm photoshopping, which I don't even attempt on the laptop anymore. The whole point being, if you fix the popup and errant program problem, you don't have to jack with settings that don't need it. RASHY </font>
There are many ways to combat this BS. Adaware and SpyBot will help and catch the majority of the spy/ad programs. These bastards are so clever that they embed components that "hijack" your system and can fuck you over even if you think everything has been removed. Sometimes you gotta bite the bullet and format the drive and reload the operating system, your applications and files. Try this first: shutdown the PC, restart in safe mode(without networking) (press "F8" repeatedly after the BIOS screen clears.) Once into the system go to add/remove programs and try to uninstall any BS programs that are not recognized as programs that you need or have installed. This does not alwyas remove all remnants of the applications so you will have too look in the program files folder and nuke any folders that look objectionable or can be easily linked to the offending programs by name. BE CAREFUL if you do not know what you are deleting DON'T FUCK with anything. Manually delete the cookies and temporary internet files from your profile in "documents and settings" Delete all temporary files in the windows or winnt \temp folder. Go start>settings>control panel>internet options and make sure the homepage wasn't hikjakced to some BS site. IMPORTANT... if you forget to get rid of a hijacked page after doing all of the other cleanup you previous work is now rendered useless. Your system will get screwed the first time IE is opened and whaddya know you've got computer syphillis again. While in there set the homepage to jalopyjournal.com. Do the arbitrary "delete cookies" and "delete files" and "clear history" from the same general tab you should be on. Reboot that bitch and go back into safe mode as before. Click on start>run and type in msconfig then hit enter. A system config dialog box will pop up. On the far right there will be a tab called startup. This lists all of the applications that automatically start when your system boots up all the way. BE CAREFUL as you can cause some legit apps to stop starting in the system tray by your clock. For the most part I uncheck anything besides anti virus applications. Your mileage may vary!!! There will no doubt be a shitload of entries here if your system is anywhere near as hosed as you say. Reboot the box normally and run spybot then adaware followed by your favorite anti virus software. If this still does not work... FUCK IT back up your shit, format that bitch and start over. If in doubt about any of this send me a message and I will walk you through any step you need.
ZoneAlarm is a free firewall that works great..!! you can also download a free 'toolbar' from Google that stops popups, and you can enable them if you'd like to from certain sites... since I downloaded those 2 things, my life has been MUCH happier..!!!
Exactly... treat the problem not the symptom. There are as many ways to set the page file (virtual memory for you non computer folk) as there are ways to set ignition timing. Everyone has ther own preference. For 99% of the world... don't fuck with it. Let windows manage it and you'll be fine. The error messages are from the other pop ups that are chewing up all the resources. Get rid of the problem and your resources will "magically" re-appear.
[ QUOTE ] There are many ways to combat this BS. Adaware and SpyBot will help and catch the majority of the spy/ad programs. These bastards are so clever that they embed components that "hijack" your system and can fuck you over even if you think everything has been removed. Sometimes you gotta bite the bullet and format the drive and reload the operating system, your applications and files. Try this first: shutdown the PC, restart in safe mode(without networking) (press "F8" repeatedly after the BIOS screen clears.) Once into the system go to add/remove programs and try to uninstall any BS programs that are not recognized as programs that you need or have installed. This does not alwyas remove all remnants of the applications so you will have too look in the program files folder and nuke any folders that look objectionable or can be easily linked to the offending programs by name. BE CAREFUL if you do not know what you are deleting DON'T FUCK with anything. Manually delete the cookies and temporary internet files from your profile in "documents and settings" Delete all temporary files in the windows or winnt \temp folder. Go start>settings>control panel>internet options and make sure the homepage wasn't hikjakced to some BS site. IMPORTANT... if you forget to get rid of a hijacked page after doing all of the other cleanup you previous work is now rendered useless. Your system will get screwed the first time IE is opened and whaddya know you've got computer syphillis again. While in there set the homepage to jalopyjournal.com. Do the arbitrary "delete cookies" and "delete files" and "clear history" from the same general tab you should be on. Reboot that bitch and go back into safe mode as before. Click on start>run and type in msconfig then hit enter. A system config dialog box will pop up. On the far right there will be a tab called startup. This lists all of the applications that automatically start when your system boots up all the way. BE CAREFUL as you can cause some legit apps to stop starting in the system tray by your clock. For the most part I uncheck anything besides anti virus applications. Your mileage may vary!!! There will no doubt be a shitload of entries here if your system is anywhere near as hosed as you say. Reboot the box normally and run spybot then adaware followed by your favorite anti virus software. If this still does not work... FUCK IT back up your shit, format that bitch and start over. If in doubt about any of this send me a message and I will walk you through any step you need. [/ QUOTE ] <font color="green">That is VERY good info and your page file post is what I was trying to get across. I did not think to get that far into the root of the problem, I wouldn't have gotten it across like you did anyway. So, I will print it out for reference in the future. That should be in the techomatic! Massengil, you an MCSE or work on the software side? I build servers and cabinets all day. Most of my work is hardware, Gateway 8450r's and now 975's. RASHY </font>
We've had good luck with a combo of Spybot, and Webroot's program " SpySweeper ". SpySweeper has a free version, but it only updates once. Very powerful though, really cleans shit up. The problem with a lot of free pop-up blockers is that they contain spyware themselves. Shit is getting out of hand, that's for sure. About half the work I do for clients is cleaning up spyware. Rashy, I wish I could do more hardware builds myself... I work at a "jack of all trades" computer shop, everything from removing spyware to building and installing 4U servers with 10 hot-swap 15k drives (for you none computer guys... 15,000 RPM SCSI drives are like friggin blown Hemi's on Alky. FAST!). Anyhow, I really love hardware builds, and hate network problems... i'm a screw turner, not a coder..
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