My sincere thanks to Alwil, and especially Vojtech, for their help!
I waited a few days to make sure I had downloaded the patch properly, and everything was working before I posted that my internet mail provider is now working. Avast! is set up to my specs, and running the way it was meant to be...
There are no more problems with the internet mail provider not starting, or only starting after "jumping through hoops" to get it started.
Thank you also, Walker and Technical, for your assistance. I deeply appreciate your efforts!
Annie