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    ahundredhighways's Avatar
    ahundredhighways Posts: 3, Reputation: 1
    New Member
    		  
    #1

    Jan 21, 2007, 09:24 PM
    Formatting hard drive
    How do I format my hard drive, I'm trying to remove spyware and that's what someone had suggested, please help me!
    TechSupport's Avatar
    TechSupport Posts: 43, Reputation: 5
    Junior Member
    		  
    #2

    Jan 23, 2007, 07:18 AM
    What kind of computer do you have (mac, PC, something else) and what operating system is it running (Windows XP Home, Windows Vista, etc)?

    -TS
    ScottGem's Avatar
    ScottGem Posts: 64,966, Reputation: 6056
    Computer Expert and Renaissance Man
    		  
    #3

    Jan 23, 2007, 07:20 AM
    As noted we need more info about your PC.

    But a reformat is a last resort. Have you tried getting AdAware or Spybot (freeware spyware removers). What steps have you taken to clean out your PC?
    ahundredhighways's Avatar
    ahundredhighways Posts: 3, Reputation: 1
    New Member
    		  
    #4

    Jan 23, 2007, 02:11 PM
    I've removed most of the spyware and installed a firewall, anti spyware software, and an anitvirus program, but I'm still having some problems, when I try to sign onto the internet, it closes it out
    Curlyben's Avatar
    Curlyben Posts: 18,514, Reputation: 1860
    BossMan
    		  
    #5

    Jan 23, 2007, 02:33 PM
    When was the last time you did some serious system maintenance, as it sounds like you have been over looking it.

    System maintenance includes:
    Defrag
    FULL patching
    Virus scanning
    Spyware scanning
    Removal of rubish files

    Defrag is an inbuilt function in XP.
    Open My Computer > Right click C: > Tools Tab and it's there.

    To make sure everything is running fine run both anti virus and anti spyware apps in normal AND safe modes. (make sure that they are updated first ! ;)) (AVG is good and free AV)
    (A couple of good removal tools are Spybot and Adaware)

    ALso an on line virus and spyware scanner is Trend Housecall

    Just a note; actively running two AV's on one machine can cause problems.
    So if you are thinking about it make sure your current one is disabled first.
    Same thing applies to online scanners as well.

    Removal of junk files is easy with CCleaner a free app that does exactly what you neeed.
    ahundredhighways's Avatar
    ahundredhighways Posts: 3, Reputation: 1
    New Member
    		  
    #6

    Jan 24, 2007, 12:11 AM
    Quote Originally Posted by TechSupport
    What kind of computer do you have (mac, PC, something else) and what operating system is it running (Windows XP Home, Windows Vista, etc)?

    -TS
    I've got a PC running ME

    Quote Originally Posted by ScottGem
    As noted we need more info about your PC.

    But a reformat is a last resort. have you tried getting AdAware or Spybot (freeware spyware removers). What steps have you taken to clean out your PC?

    I've removed most of the spyware and installed a firewall, anti spyware software, and an anitvirus program, but I'm still having some problems, when I try to sign onto the internet, it closes it out

    I've done the defrag, virus scan, removed most of the spyware, and a cheep firewall form the internet, but I had some guy build my computer and the software that is in it is pirated, so I'm screwed to try patches or Microsoft programs
    ScottGem's Avatar
    ScottGem Posts: 64,966, Reputation: 6056
    Computer Expert and Renaissance Man
    		  
    #7

    Jan 24, 2007, 06:42 AM
    My advice would be to get a copy of Windows XP, Backup all your data files to CD or somewhere then do a fresh install of XP. Win ME is the worst version of Windows Microsoft ever released.

    Also, before you do that, go to belarc.com and run their Advisor. This will give you a comprehensive list of all the hardware and software on your PC. You can then make sure you have all your drivers and install disks.
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