Reformatting my computer

[Guest]

Hey, my friend told me that he was infected from my IM's. He said that I must have this virus through IM's on America On-line because he was having the same problems as I do. Not being able to visit webpages and instant messages freezing up. He said that he reformatted his computer and now the virus is gone, and now I want to reformat my computer, but I'm too nervous to do it on my own. What if I make a mistake? Do I need to reinstall Road Runner too as well?

 

[Will Denny]

Hi

Have you virus-checked your system to see if a virus is present? You may
not need to reformat or reinstall XP. Check for any spyware that may be on
your system as well:

Ad-Aware - www.lavasoftusa.com
Spybot - http://www.safer-networking.org/
CWShredder - http://www.spywareinfo.com/~merijn/downloads.html

Also see the following link:

http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm

--

Will Denny
MS-MVP Windows - Shell/User
Please reply to the News Groups


| Hey, my friend told me that he was infected from my IM's. He said that I
must have this virus through IM's on America On-line because he was having
the same problems as I do. Not being able to visit webpages and instant
messages freezing up. He said that he reformatted his computer and now the
virus is gone, and now I want to reformat my computer, but I'm too nervous
to do it on my own. What if I make a mistake? Do I need to reinstall Road
Runner too as well?

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the programs, I just downloaded them all. Let me see if my computer freezes if I open up a webpage on AOL. Thanks.

 

[Bruce Chambers]

Greetings --

Formatting the hard drive and reinstalling the OS is only rarely
necessary as a corrective measure. It's most often recommended by the
truly clueless.

What makes you think that you do have viruses? What specific
antivirus application are you using to identify these purported
viruses? Have you followed the removal instructions provided, if any?
Has the thought of using an antivirus application even occurred to
you?

List of Antivirus Software Vendors
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;49500

Until then:

Trend Micro - Free online virus Scan
http://housecall.trendmicro.com/

McAfee Security - FreeScan
http://www.mcafee.com/myapps/mfs/default.asp

Symantec Security Check
http://security.symantec.com/ssc/home.asp



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

Hey, my friend told me that he was infected from my IM's. He said

that I must have this virus through IM's on America On-line because he
was having the same problems as I do. Not being able to visit webpages
and instant messages freezing up. He said that he reformatted his
computer and now the virus is gone, and now I want to reformat my
computer, but I'm too nervous to do it on my own. What if I make a
mistake? Do I need to reinstall Road Runner too as well?

 

[Miss Perspicacia Tick]

Thanks for the programs, I just downloaded them all. Let me see if my
computer freezes if I open up a webpage on AOL. Thanks.

You want a solution once and for all?! Follow the instructions below and
your problems will be over - forever!

You will need a very firm will and to be incredibly forceful if you are to
complete 5) successfully as AOHELL are very persuasive and will offer you
n number of free months to stay with them.

1) Take the AOHELL CD

2) If you are old enough to drive, and have a licence, place it in the
middle of the drive and back over it several times.

3) If you are not old enough to drive - or don't have a licence - place
said CD in the microwave and cook on full power for a couple of minutes - it
really is fascinating, and most satisfying, to watch. If you don't have a
microwave, use your imagination - you could smash it with a hammer (just
remember CD shards are sharp) or you could recycle it.

4) Place resulting mess in the rubbish

5) Pick up the phone, call AOHELL 'Customer Service' and tell them you
wish to cancel your account.

6) Ask people for recommendations for a proper ISP.

7) Call new ISP of choice and sign up.

There! Problem solved.

Unfortunately, removing AOHELL's trojanic software will, most likely,
require a complete format and reinstall.

 

[Guest]

LOL, that was so cute and clever. Thanks.

You want a solution once and for all?! Follow the instructions below and
your problems will be over - forever!

You will need a very firm will and to be incredibly forceful if you are to
complete 5) successfully as AOHELL are very persuasive and will offer you
n number of free months to stay with them.

1) Take the AOHELL CD

2) If you are old enough to drive, and have a licence, place it in the
middle of the drive and back over it several times.

3) If you are not old enough to drive - or don't have a licence - place
said CD in the microwave and cook on full power for a couple of minutes - it
really is fascinating, and most satisfying, to watch. If you don't have a
microwave, use your imagination - you could smash it with a hammer (just
remember CD shards are sharp) or you could recycle it.

4) Place resulting mess in the rubbish

5) Pick up the phone, call AOHELL 'Customer Service' and tell them you
wish to cancel your account.

6) Ask people for recommendations for a proper ISP.

7) Call new ISP of choice and sign up.

There! Problem solved.

Unfortunately, removing AOHELL's trojanic software will, most likely,
require a complete format and reinstall.

 

[Guest]

Well, like awhile ago...I used all these programs I had, like Spy Sweeper, RAV Anti-Virus Scanner which scanned like 5 or 6 infected files I had...instead of using an Anti-Virus program, I tried to clean the viruses by hand...meaning locating where the virus was and all that. And like a few days ago, I ran RAV Anti-Virus again and it said 0 files had been infected. So then, I was relieved. But when I went on AOL, and tried to look at webpages, it took longer than a dial up connection would take when loading a site. And in the middle of loading, it would just freeze on me and I wouldn't be able to tell because it was loading really slow. And, I can hardly accept IM's because I just freeze up and have to reboot the computer. My friend told me that I have a virus through IM's because I didn't send him anything in the mail, I only chatted with him on IM's...and he got the virus, too! He was having the same problem as me...like freezing up while it loads a site, and freezing up when someone IM's him. He said that when he reformatted his computer, he didn't have that problem. And he suggested me to do the same, but the thing is I'm not advanced to be doing it and I'm actually really nervous about it. What if I make a mistake? How will I be able to fix it? Please...help! Thanks a bunch.

 

[Miss Perspicacia Tick]

LOL, that was so cute and clever. Thanks.

It wasn't supposed to be "cute" or "clever" - it was a serious answer to
your problem. The sad fact is that AOHELL doesn't give a damn about its
victims (I'm afraid there's no other word for them). Its aim is to install
its trojanic software on every PC in the world. Once there it will
infiltrate its way into every corner and eventually kill the system. AOHELL
is poison - trust me. You don't want it on your system. It's probably the
direct cause of half your problems and indirectly involved with the other
half.

GET RID OF IT. Seriously. There is nothing special about it, don't believe
the adverts. It doesn't have any special "spam filters" or "child protection
filters" that you can't implement with a proper ISP.