1. Since the help files don't give any duty description of the Log settings, I had never changed it from the Emergency level. I have now changed it to Debug and will watch to see if that makes a difference.
2. I said I have one or more corrupted Windows files that may be causing problems because when I first had this computer built (not quite 2 years ago), the guy that built it put Win98se on it and told me the Windows Help program wouldn't work because it was corrupted on his original CD but it was the only OS he had so I could take it or leave it. Besides that, I have recently been trying out anti-Spyware programs (again) and none of them have ever worked well on my computer. They either freeze up my computer, or parts of the program don't install and therefore don't work; even after several reinstalls. Last week I downloaded Spyware Detector which seemed to work ok and found more than 200 spys on my computer but I was aggravated that I could not delete any of them without buying their program first and an annoying persistant pop up kept flaunting the spys in my face and telling me to buy the program, so I uninstalled it. Immediately after uninstalling this program I noticed that the Volume Control and Scheduled Task icons had dissappeared from my quick launch toolbar and I haven't seen them since. Today, I downloaded Spybot S&D from Bleeping Computer site as advised there before using HijackThis. Spybot would not open or run but instead gave me a big error message that dissappeared before I could even read it and then a full white screen with "pybot" (the S was missing) Search & Destroy, but it would go no further. I waited for more than an hour and finally had to use the reboot button and then uninstalled it. I haven't tried RunScanner yet but I will attempt that tomorrow after I give my brain a rest.
3. I bought XP Pro Upgrade because I have some programs I don't want to lose and don't have the discs for. That's the main reason I have been trying to make sure my system is clean before installing the upgrade. I do have the 98se disc and will do a complete install if I absolutely need to.
4. I have rescaned the 2 files in my virus chest. This one is causing me the most trouble: virus chest name: UNINST~1.EXE, original location is c:\windows\temp, last modified on 1/31/05, and virus name is Win32: Adware-gen. [Adw]. I thought I should restore this because it belongs to my Alltel DSL Check up Center program, (an automatic diagnostic program for my DSL router, internet connection, and Outlook Express email with live 24/7 support). A few days ago we had a bad storm and I started having problems with my internet connection so I opened the Check up Center but it kept giving me an error message. I called Alltel for advise and was told to just uninstall and reinstall it. While I was uninstalling it Avast gave me an alarm that it had found a virus. I don't remember what it said the virus was but it was not enough info for me to realize that it was part of the Check up Center program that I was trying to uninstall, so I put it in the virus chest until I could check it out. Right after that I got an error message that the uninstall failed. The only thing it actually uninstalled was the app title from Add/Remove Programs. I called Alltel support again and was told that the program could not be removed without using Add/Remove Programs so they didn't know how to help me. I tried Oldman's advise to reinstall the program first, but that option is not available to me since Alltel's website sees it as still being installed on my computer. I tried again to "restore" it from the virus chest and this time it allowed me to do so and said that it had been restored successfully. I checked the file path and found it had been put back in C: \windows\temp, but the app title has not been put back into Add/Remove programs. When I go to the restored file and click on properties, it has the description: Alltel DSL Checkup Center application, Copyright: Motive. When I open the program it still comes up with the same error message as before the restore, so I doubt the integrity of what was "restored." The error message has the program title across the top and in the dialog box is a yellow triangle with an exclamation mark and in the middle of the page is a number 0. However, the program seems to run after I close error message.
If anyone can help me get this program uninstalled from my computer I would be very grateful. I suspect it is causing more problems than I realize because when I initially tried to open Spybot today it first gave me this same wierd error message with the triangle and the 0. I closed it and that's when the other error message came up that dissappeared before I could write it down or even read it.
The other virus chest file I wanted to restore is rather unimportant. It is: popcaploader.dll, c:\windows\downloaded programs, -no virus-. The loss of this file has prevented me from playing Popcap games online without having to download them; which I really don't have time to do anyway. Virus chest will not restore this one.