I recently started up my grandpas computer he gave me. It runs XP as it was installed before hand and well things are being quite odd. Problems: -Can't download things... -Whenever I go to a new webpage almost everytime a window asks if i would like to continue. -How the window looks. All the buttons (Minimize button close button etc." is about half the size it should be.) I've tried fixing it with properties. -Can't re-boot it. It won't let us start off from scratch... My main fear is with this being connected to the internet it catching a horrible virus and being totally compromised. So any help you can give would be greatyle appreciated. Merged Post: Anyone?
Well thats why, you NEED a virus protection program if you're gonna access the internet. I suggest Zone Alarm. I use it and my comp is working great! Don't get Norton or McAffee because they didn't fully protect my computer and I ended up having to completely wipe and format my computer and reinstall XP twice becasue of them. Haven't yet had to do that with Zone Alarm, for secutiry reasons anyways. The only time I ever shut down Zone Alarm is when I'm playing a high demanding game, such as because my computer is exactly top of the line anymore. It's a three year old Dell Dimension 8300 and only thing aftermarket is the addition of an NEC DVD Burner, an ATI X1300PRO AGP graphics card, a new Ethernet PCI Port, and a USB 2.0 PCI Hub (USB 1.1 stock).
This seems like your best bet because if you DO have the virus than this will clean it out. As for all the weird things going on; I have no idea how to fix. You should be able to download and your comptuer shouldn't ask to continue UNLESS your Grandpa has parental software installed so you can't download or view certain webistes. Backup > Format > Problem Solved.
