Avast makes my screen jump

[jimatqsi]

For a long time now I have had an annoying problem. Often when I try to point at a web link (I use Firefox), or at an entry in my Netscape Inbox, the screen jumps up and down, making it impossible to click on what I want to click on. The problem persists for a few seconds or more and then the screen settles down.

I have Avast 4.7 with current updates, and scanning indicates I have no virus.

I have discovered that if I turn off off the Avast On-Access scanner the problem goes away.

I am using Windows 2000, SP4.

How else can I stop this annoying problem? Thanks for any advice.

Jim

[ardvark]

Hi jimatqsi...

Well, that's an interesting problem

Did this start out of the blue for no apparent reason or did this happen as a result of some past action?

Also, does the same thing happen if you use Internet Explorer (not that I expect you to switch to it, just to get a feel for what's happening here....)

Try first performing an online scan to rule out the obvious:

http://housecall.trendmicro.com/

Best Regards...

[alanrf]

jimatqsi is not alone.

I have experienced the same condition recently with Firefox, but it did not occur to me to consider avast as the cause. 

Since this thread was started I have been trying to re-create the condition without success.  I am wondering if the originator is still experiencing the problem. 

[jimatqsi]

Thanks for the replies.

Yes, I still have the problem. I've had it for weeks, maybe months. I cannot say that any one event, installation or otherwise, made it start to happen. I cannot make it happen, sometimes it just begins to happen. It is not happening now.

It happens in Netscape email and in Firefox. I just tried Internet Explorer and it is not happening there. When I see it again in FF and Netscape (if one has it, the other does too) I'll try IE at that time.

I'll try an online scan later to double-check I don't have anything, but seems to me I did that before when I thought it was probably a virus.

Thanks again,
Jim

[Lisandro]

It happens in Netscape email and in Firefox. I just tried Internet Explorer and it is not happening there. When I see it again in FF and Netscape (if one has it, the other does too) I'll try IE at that time.

Which are your firewall extensions?
Do you use a firewall? Which one?

[jimatqsi]

This particular machine has no firewall employed, and no firewall extensions. I have FF extensions for talkback and Yahoo toolbar. It is possible the problem started after installing the Yahoo toolbar extension, but I don't see how that could be affecting the Netscape email program.

Jim

[Lisandro]

no firewall extensions

Jim, sorry, my fault. I was refering to Firefox extensions.
If you uninstall Yahoo toolbar, will it solve the problem?

[MikeBCda]

One thing you didn't mention (or maybe I missed it) -- is this happening while a page is still downloading?

For whatever reason, Firefox seems to save formatting code for last, or nearly so, so it's quite common (at least on my system) for the page to "adjust" itself several times until it's completely loaded.

[jimatqsi]

I have not seen the problem today at all, which seems unusual. It normally is obvious throughout the day, but not 100% of the time, maybe 50% of the time.

Is this happening while a page is still downloading?

I'm not sure about that. You know some pages seem to never really stop loading. But, my sense is that it continues happening after the page is completed. Does it start before the page is complete? Yes, I think so. I'm on dial-up and often open links in a new tab and don't even look until I'm sure it has had enough time to load. If I could get the problem to happen today, I could tell you for sure.

I'm really curious now, because it has been so persistent, and today it is absent. I'll post again as soon as it begins to happen and I can gather some more info.

Jim

[alanrf]

jimatqsi,

just wondering - do you have the Adblock extension installed in Firefox?

[jimatqsi]

just wondering - do you have the Adblock extension installed in Firefox?

No, I don't. I use a custom hosts file, which does the job very nicely.

Jim

[jimatqsi]

Well, I have made an interesting discovery, pending further testing. Yesterday, my problem was not happening and I didn't know why. Today, it was happening frequently. First thing I did was to double-check to see that I had eliminated the Yahoo toolbar extension from Firefox, and would you believe that after I checked that (Tools/Extensions) the problem disappeared again.

Yesterday I did the same thing, I went to Tools/Extensions after someone suggested a FF extension might be the problem. And yesterday I didn't see the problem at all.

I'm not sure Avast is causing it, but there is some relationship between this problem and my On-Access Scanner. A while ago, it seemed like the problem happened very frequently shortly after I turned on the On-Access Scanner, but it continued to happen for a bit after I turned off the scanner.

When the problem was not happening, I closed FF and Netscape and opened them again, and the problem did not begin. I suspect if I boot now I'll see the problem and that I'll be able to make it go away with Tools/Extensions (just inquiry, no action).

Jim

[chrisfry112]

Hi There can you tell us what Graphics Card you have may be it is the drivers for the Graphics Card see if there is an update driver for it. may be its  not avast as reading your problem lookes like the driver for the Graphics Card  our look at your lead to you monitor as a friend is running Windows 2000, SP4 with avast 4.7 and useing firefox and it working ok

[alanrf]

I am pretty certain that this is not a graphics card or loose cable issue.

The "screen" does not jump, it is more an issue of "autoscrolling" happening in a window where as you move the mouse to a link to click on it the contents of that window moves up or down a few lines.  The rest of the screen and other open windows are unaffected.

As noted by the originator - the condition would persist for a few seconds and then stop.   

I have seen this only with Firefox - it was happening for me for a few days intermittently recently and - as I mentioned - I have not seen it happen again since the thread was started.

[fanch]

I have the same problem with IE and Firefox. I do not have avast thought. The browser windows attempts repetedly to open the fullscreen view and get back to the normal view. All this is quite fast and extremely irritating. I have noticed that this happens also if I open a folder.
Any ideas?