Jeez...these things wont stop!

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Can anyone tell me how to turn off these annoying pop-ups? It comes accross as Windows Messenger in a new window, but only has the "X" (close) button in the top right corner and an "OK" button at the bottom of the window that closes it also. Please email me with an answer if you have one. Thank you.
 
Hi,

Dealing with Unwanted Pop-ups
http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/nopopups.htm

Herb said:
Can anyone tell me how to turn off these annoying pop-ups? It comes
Click to expand...
accross as Windows Messenger in a new window, but only has the "X" (close)
button in the top right corner and an "OK" button at the bottom of the
window that closes it also. Please email me with an answer if you have one.
Thank you.
 
Try this: Start, Control Panel, System, Advanced,
Performance Settings, Visual Effects - If you choose best
performance all the baloons, fades and junk disappear.
You can also choose 'custom' if you want to keep some of
these distractors around. Just check or uncheck the box
(s) to your liking.

-----Original Message-----
Can anyone tell me how to turn off these annoying pop-
Click to expand...
ups? It comes accross as Windows Messenger in a new
window, but only has the "X" (close) button in the top
right corner and an "OK" button at the bottom of the
window that closes it also. Please email me with an
answer if you have one. Thank you.
 
Herb said:
Can anyone tell me how to turn off these annoying pop-ups? It comes
Click to expand...
accross as Windows Messenger in a new window, but only has the "X" (close)
button in the top right corner and an "OK" button at the bottom of the
window that closes it also. Please email me with an answer if you have one.
Thank you.

You have the Windows Messenger service running, and you don't need it.
Turning off the service will stop this cold. It's very quick to do.

http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/pro/using/howto/communicate/stopspam.asp
 
Greetings --

There are at least three varieties of pop-ups, and the solutions
vary accordingly. Which specific type(s) is troubling you?

1) Does the title bar of these pop-ups read "Messenger Service?"

This type of spam has become quite common over the past year, and
unintentionally serves as a valid security "alert." It demonstrates
that you haven't been taking sufficient precautions while connected to
the Internet. Your data probably hasn't been compromised by these
specific advertisements, but if you're open to this exploit, you may
well be open to other threats, such as the Blaster Worm that recently
swept cross the Internet. Install and use a decent, properly
configured firewall. (Merely disabling the messenger service, as some
people recommend, only hides the symptom, and does almost nothing to
truly secure your machine.) And ignoring or just "putting up with"
the security gap represented by these messages is particularly
foolish.

Messenger Service of Windows
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;168893

Messenger Service Window That Contains an Internet Advertisement
Appears
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=330904

Blocking Ads, Parasites, and Hijackers with a Hosts File
http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.htm

Oh, and be especially wary of people who advise you to do nothing
more than disable the messenger service. Disabling the messenger
service, by itself, is a "head in the sand" approach to computer
security. The real problem is _not_ the messenger service pop-ups;
they're actually providing a useful, if annoying, service by acting as
a security alert. The true problem is the unsecured computer, and
you've been advised to merely turn off the warnings. How is this
helpful?

2) For regular Internet pop-ups, you might try the free 12Ghosts
Popup-killer from http://12ghosts.com/ghosts/popup.htm, Pop-Up Stopper
from http://www.panicware.com/, or the Google Toolbar from
http://toolbar.google.com/.

3) To deal with pop-ups caused by any sort of "adware" and/or
"spyware,"such as Gator, Comet Cursors, Xupiter, Bonzai Buddy, or
KaZaA, and their remnants, that you've deliberately (but without
understanding the consequences) installed, two products that are
quite effective (at finding and removing this type of scumware) are
Ad-Aware from www.lavasoft.de and SpyBot Search & Destroy from
http://security.kolla.de/. Both have free versions. It's even
possible to use SpyBot Search & Destroy to "immunize" your system
against most future intrusions. I use both and generally perform
manual scans every week or so to clean out cookies, etc.


Bruce Chambers

--
Help us help you:



You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. -- RAH


Herb said:
Can anyone tell me how to turn off these annoying pop-ups? It comes
Click to expand...
accross as Windows Messenger in a new window, but only has the "X"
(close) button in the top right corner and an "OK" button at the
bottom of the window that closes it also. Please email me with an
answer if you have one. Thank you.
 
Greetings --

Please stop deliberately posting potentially harmful advice.

Disabling the messenger service is a "head in the sand" approach
to computer security that leaves the PC vulnerable to threats such as
the W32.Blaster.Worm.

The real problem is _not_ the messenger service pop-ups; they're
actually providing a useful service by acting as a security alert. The
true problem is the unsecured computer, and you're only
advice, however well-intended, was to turn off the warnings. How is
this helpful?

Equivalent Scenario: You over-exert your shoulder at work or
play, causing bursitis. After weeks of annoying and sometimes
excruciating pain whenever you try to reach over your head, you go to
a doctor and say, while demonstrating the motion, "Doc, it hurts when
I do this." The doctor, being as helpful as you are, replies, "Well,
don't do that."

The only true way to secure the PC, short of disconnecting it from
the Internet, is to install and *properly* configure a firewall; just
installing one and letting it's default settings handle things is no
good. Unfortunately, this does require one to learn a little bit more
about using a computer than used to be necessary.

And, anyway, why are you advising the OP to disable the messenger
service to deal with what is clearly a totally unrelated browser
pop-up? The OP needs an Internet pop-up blocker.

And, yes, I do know what that particular Microsoft links says.
It's very bad advice, nonetheless, and I've complained to Microsoft
about it.

Bruce Chambers

--
Help us help you:



You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on
having both at once. -- RAH
 
Try this: Start, Control Panel, System, Advanced,
Performance Settings, Visual Effects - If you choose best
performance all the baloons, fades and junk disappear.
You can also choose 'custom' if you want to keep some of
these distractors around. Just check or uncheck the box
(s) to your liking.


ups? It comes accross as Windows Messenger in a new
window, but only has the "X" (close) button in the top
right corner and an "OK" button at the bottom of the
window that closes it also. Please email me with an
answer if you have one. Thank you.
Click to expand...

This advice has absolutely nothing to do with his problem.

--

David

Programmers write "Help Files" for a reason. use them.

"Due to Viewer dicretion...
Graphic violence is advised"

http://www.HeroicStories.com/
http://www.thisistrue.com/
 
I'm having the same problem. I downloaded a program
called "Save" and was told through the company that sends
these out that if you go to your "add/remove programs" in
your control panel that they would stop...they haven't.
You may want to try that.
-----Original Message-----
Can anyone tell me how to turn off these annoying pop-
Click to expand...
ups? It comes accross as Windows Messenger in a new
window, but only has the "X" (close) button in the top
right corner and an "OK" button at the bottom of the
window that closes it also. Please email me with an
answer if you have one. Thank you.
 
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