Slow Computer

[Genesis]

My computer has decided that it would like to work at a much slower pace.  The hard drive only has 20gb used space and it is 160gb hard drive.  I did the defrag thing then heard the Radio Geek on the radio say that this would not help a great deal and he is right.  had downloaded HiJackThis and have unistalled however I still need to remove the exe file and would like some advice on how to do this.  I also have somehow acquired Acrobat.com and did an uninstall on that but a file still opens each time I turn on the computer so would like help in removing this also.  The computer no longer swtiches to the screensaver when not used for a period of time, it goes to the background screen with no desktop icons available.  I was using AVG however as it is no longer free have downloaded PC Tools and this seems to be when the go slow started.  I hope that you can help me as I do not know where else to go for help and listen to ABC radio and heard you help people on that show.

[The Radio Geek]

Hi there Genesis, welcome to RadioGeek

Righto - sounds like there is lots happening for you, so lets go through a few things first and start at the basics.  I am going to ask a lot of questions here - unfortunately your problem is not straightforward or simple, and for me to give you any kind of intelligent advice I will need to know more about your machine.  Lets see how we go!

First of all - don't install any new software or tools to fix your machine - many of them will only get in you trouble...

HiJackThis is a bit of an advanced system  it is typically used as a diagnostic tool - and is really popular with many support/advice forums on the internet as it gives experts who can help you a real snapshot of what is happening with your computer.

Removing the exe file - I assume from your comments that you downloaded a file called "hijackthis_sfx.exe" this is simply a self extracting archive (like a zip file) which is like the delivery package for t hijackthis.  To delete it, find "my computer" (on your desktop or start menu) then RIGHT-CLICK on it, select "Search" and type in "hijackthis_sfx.exe" (no quotes).  This should bring up a listing of the file(s) and you can RIGHT-CLICK on them and select "Delete".  Please keep in mind that you should ONLY delete the file noted, as most exe files are rather important to keeping your computer running!

For all those reading this post as well - it is important to note that AVG is STILL FREE - yes free to non-commercial home users.  I have spent a bit of time talking about this one in the past - the main thing is that their marketing is getting a little more agressive and they are looking to get people to buy it by "hiding" the free version under layers of promotion about their low-cost paid alternative.  You can actually keep clicking on "give it to me free" (or something like that) and eventually they let you download it.

Righto - Now that we have that done - lets start looking at your system that is on a go-slow strike!

Can you tell me a few things about your computer.  We need to know:

Make/type
Age since new
Find "My Computer", RIGHT-CLICK and select "Properties"  Can you also post all the information on the "General Tab"  (windows version, processor, Ram etc..)

Can you please post this information (above) in this thread?

I suspect that it will be a conflict from the software running on your machine rather than a hardware fault - so next we can look at these options.

Cheers, RR

[Genesis]

Thanks RR, sorry I have not replied, however things got sorted out. Turns out there was more than one nasty little virus visiting me. Few dollars later and all is good. I have downloaded a security centre via JCU as I am a student and they do offer this gratis. Can you tell me if it is worthwhile running two antivirus programs. A guy a uni said that they check each other for viruses. I don't know. I always thought you only should use one as they would conflict with each other.
Cheers Genesis

[Genesis]

Hi RR

I have another problem. I upgraded my netgear wi fi through bigpond and now when I turn on my computer I have to control alt delete then supply the password. Thank goodness I did not set a password to start with because I can just click ok to access my user.  The computer used to load itself to a page that showed the users and then we would click on our user, now we can't. How can I change this back to the way it used to appear when I turned the computer on?

Cheers Genesis