Cleaning up Windows 98

[Tshaw]

As I previous submitted in the "Windows 98 updates" thread, my parent's
system seems to be a mess. Are there any "Free" downloads out there that you
can suggest in helping me get this thing cleaned up SAFELY. For instance, is
Spybot good to run for spyware and is AVAST better than AVG as a Virus
protection ? I uninstalled their Norton as it was not updated in some time
and was using too much resources and seem to be reeking havoc on the system.
I also saw a site called CCleaner that does quite a bit. Any help is much
appreciated. Thanks Again !!

 

[MEB]

"Tshaw" <Tshaw@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news9A11BDF-2E25-483C-BF2E-C7A7646A5EEF@microsoft.com...
| As I previous submitted in the "Windows 98 updates" thread, my parent's
| system seems to be a mess. Are there any "Free" downloads out there that
you
| can suggest in helping me get this thing cleaned up SAFELY. For instance,
is
| Spybot good to run for spyware and is AVAST better than AVG as a Virus
| protection ? I uninstalled their Norton as it was not updated in some time
| and was using too much resources and seem to be reeking havoc on the
system.
| I also saw a site called CCleaner that does quite a bit. Any help is much
| appreciated. Thanks Again !!

Still some free stuff out there, though they do appreciate donations or an
eventual purchase.
It would be best to first clean the computer before installing any new
software, particularly anti-v programs. Either use an online scanning
service, or install one of the anti-v programs and anti-SpyWare tools, clean
up, un-install them and remove all traces, then re-install and re-run
[redundant check].

SpyBot is still useful to help cleanup systems infected with SpyWare and
some other hacks, as are several others.

AVG free provides basic anti-v, on-access, scheduled scan, and email
protection.
AVAST provides anti-v, on-access{2shields}, p2p check, instant messaging
check, email pop/IMAP protection, scheduled scan. However, for these to work
properly, you must generally do some manual setup.
Depending upon who, each has its own supporters, however, AVG is stopping
support for 9X this year. There are a few others available but only you can
determine what you/they need, and you must consider how much memory and hard
drive space they have to spare.. The number one issue after cleaning up is
to install a firewall if they have none.

SpywareBlaster provides good protection but is not active, nor does it
remove any presently upon a system..
HyjackThis is useful for diagnosing hard to remove issues, but requires
expert analysis of the log or in-depth knowledge of what is installed, what
is normally found, and other indications.
RegSeeker is also useful for searching the registry for entries and the
drive(s) for actual files once issues are found. This tool also requires
some knowledge to use.
cCleaner can be useful, but again, one must know what one is doing or be
receiving some advise before blindly removing entries..

--

MEB
http://peoplescounsel.orgfree.com
_________

 

[Gary S. Terhune]

Have you considered reformatting and starting over? How bad is the system
running? Have you already run the requisite cleaner-uppers
(http://aumha.org/a/quickfix.htm)? If the system is heavily infected with
crap, a reformat and clean install is the way to go.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS-MVP Shell/User
www.grystmill.com

"Tshaw" <Tshaw@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news9A11BDF-2E25-483C-BF2E-C7A7646A5EEF@microsoft.com...
> As I previous submitted in the "Windows 98 updates" thread, my parent's
> system seems to be a mess. Are there any "Free" downloads out there that
> you
> can suggest in helping me get this thing cleaned up SAFELY. For instance,
> is
> Spybot good to run for spyware and is AVAST better than AVG as a Virus
> protection ? I uninstalled their Norton as it was not updated in some time
> and was using too much resources and seem to be reeking havoc on the
> system.
> I also saw a site called CCleaner that does quite a bit. Any help is much
> appreciated. Thanks Again !!

 

[Bob Harris]

I use CCleaner and Spybot Search & Destroy. Both work well.

Norton used to run all the time and degrade perfomance, then I realized that
it was set to continuously scan every file on the hard drive. I changed
that to scan on-access, meaning when read, copied, moved, etc. That fixed
the performance issue. However, I do schedule a full system scan once a
week, starting when I go to bed.

But, there are some pretty good free anti-virus out there. Besides, last I
heard Norton was also dropping support for win98.

The description "system seems to be a mess" is a bit vague. Does it mean
too many files, and low disk space? Does it mean registry errors, like bad
file associations? Does it mean system freezes or crashes? Etc? The
solution(s) will depend on the problem(s).

Other worthwhile free programs include:

AIDA32, tells you about the system. Not supported, but still available.
AUTORUNS, see what starts up automatically and control them.
MRUBLASTER, removes traces of activities privacy protector.
PC Inspector File Recovery, gets back erased files, so long as their disk
space has not been over-written.
TWEAKUI, control many windows settings (be sure to get the version for 98,
not XP).
IRFANVIEW, picture and movie viewer picture editor slideshow.
WINAMP, music player also some videos.
Open Office (very large download, almost like full Microsoft Office).


"Tshaw" <Tshaw@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news9A11BDF-2E25-483C-BF2E-C7A7646A5EEF@microsoft.com...
> As I previous submitted in the "Windows 98 updates" thread, my parent's
> system seems to be a mess. Are there any "Free" downloads out there that
> you
> can suggest in helping me get this thing cleaned up SAFELY. For instance,
> is
> Spybot good to run for spyware and is AVAST better than AVG as a Virus
> protection ? I uninstalled their Norton as it was not updated in some time
> and was using too much resources and seem to be reeking havoc on the
> system.
> I also saw a site called CCleaner that does quite a bit. Any help is much
> appreciated. Thanks Again !!

 

[MEB]

One thing I forgot for AVG, the ability to create DOS floppy disks for
testing after installing. Last time I used AVG and did the disk, it took 14.

If you can still locate any DOS based Anti-virus programs, these would be
extremely useful.. heck I'd like to test them again...

Of course, if a CDROM is in their computer, you could use one of the Live
Linux distros to run all the checks...

--

MEB
http://peoplescounsel.orgfree.com
_________

 

[simpleton]

> SpywareBlaster provides good protection but is not active, nor does it
> remove any presently upon a system..

um,, the above seeems lika oxymoron,, or self-defeating, or negative,,

if it aint 'active', then how would it know to pick its toe-nails or cook eggs for breakky?
and if it dont remove squat,, then its purpose is?

not having a go meb,,, just trying to figure out what you mean by 'not active'? does it not
'look for' things its been told to look for? what does it do if not?

beena long night

 

[Buffalo]

simpleton wrote:
>> SpywareBlaster provides good protection but is not active, nor does
>> it remove any presently upon a system..
>
> um,, the above seeems lika oxymoron,, or self-defeating, or
> negative,,
>
> if it aint 'active', then how would it know to pick its toe-nails or
> cook eggs for breakky?
> and if it dont remove squat,, then its purpose is?
>
> not having a go meb,,, just trying to figure out what you mean by
> 'not active'? does it not 'look for' things its been told to look
> for? what does it do if not?
>
> beena long night

Check out their website :
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html
It should answer your questions.
The following was taken from it's Q&A:
"Does SpywareBlaster® remove spyware?

Solution

SpywareBlaster is a prevention program, unlike most anti-spyware programs
which utilize a "removal" approach after your system is already infected.
SpywareBlaster effectively prevents ActiveX-based spyware, dialers,
browser-hijackers and other malware or potentially unwanted programs from
ever installing on your system in the first place.




Many users employ a multi-layered "prevent and remove" strategy by using
anti-spyware removal utilities in combination with SpywareBlaster's
protection. We recommend the free and trusted Spybot Search & Destroy
(www.safer-networking.org) or Ad-Aware (www.lavasoft.de - the link to the
free version is at the top right).





When you install SpywareBlaster, any spyware already present on your
computer remains on your computer, although SpywareBlaster will disable it
if possible. To remove any spyware/malware remnants, we recommend running
Spybot S & D or Ad-Aware. Thereafter, there should be few (if any) items
needing removal each time you run Spybot or Ad-Aware, and most (if not all)
of the items detected will only be tracking cookies.

"