I got hit with that trojan that says you are not online, but you are. I couldn't keep my computer running long enough for a virus fix.

I completely reformatted a six year old XP. Why is my Outlook Express not working right? For one problem, it downloads my e-mail, but keeps giving me an error message. Next problem, Spell Check is not working at all.

Any help to update my old computer welcome or an idea of how to fix Outlook Express would be fantastic!

Wildflower:

Try Downloding your Outlook Express program.

It probably got corrupted when you reformatted & Reinstalled your O.S.

DEK

Spell check in OE is a function of MS Word. Is Word installed and working correctly?

As far as the connection, are you running a AntiVirus program? Could that be blocking the access due to a Firewall or a problem with AV itself? One way to see is to temporarily disable the AV program and see if OE is able to connect with your mail server. If necessary, temporarily disable the Firewall, too.

You can contact your Internet Service Provider for telephone assistance. This is usually a free service and they can assist you with getting this connection problem fixed.

I hope this helps,

Dwight

Thanks so much for your advice!

I have reformat disc for my computer, but it's elderly, by computer standards. Word came with my computer as a separate disc.

I went to the Microsoft site and read about a clash between Outlook and Word. Thanks to the advice about Word that may be a problem, I discovered that I downloaded the 98 version, not XP.

Thank you guys so much! Finally, my Outlook and Word programs are both working. I had no idea that the two programs were working together.

Actually, my anti-virus program was the problem making my computer run so slow, with few programs and all of our stored document, pics, and vast mp3 are on disc, not the computer.

My computer seems to be working ok. Thanks!

Anti-virus programs are a joke anyway. I don't use them anymore. Since you're a person that knows how to restore your own computer when it gets in bad shape, I'd say junk the Anti-virus program. They just make your system run like crap, and you'll just end up getting a virus anyway. All you need is a good firewall.

I suggest you ignore the RR advice about junking your AntiVirus. But you can install a more computer friendly program. I like the free AVG program which you can get here..

quote:

Originally posted by Wildflower63:
Actually, my anti-virus program was the problem making my computer run so slow,

Has Dwight found an Anti-Virus program that won't do this? What's the point in having anti-virus programs when they bog your system down and make your computer run like it has a virus all the time. The smart thing is to watch your surfing habits. Stay away from those porn sites and sites offering you stuff for free. And never download freeware stuff which is a major source of viruses.

Most people need an anti-virus program. But she obviously knows how to restore her system if she gets a virus, so why not enjoy a well functioning system for a while that isn't bogged down with a bunch of junk programs.

I know one reason for getting and keeping an anti-virus program is because if you get a virus you could, unknowingly (is that a word), be spreading the virus to a whole lot of other people. I sure don't want your virus.

I ran my computer for about a year with no anti-virus protection at all. It was my mom's computer that got hit about a week before mine. My mom is kinda old and doesn't go to questionable sites and I don't either.

My mom was running a 98 computer that she can't even buy software for, so bought a new one. Neither of us had current virus protection. The trojan told both of us we were not online, but were. It also said we had spyware and asked us to hit some download that only made matters worse. It was not spyware, but a trojan.

There really is a valid point to virus software making your computer so slow that it isn't even worth using. You may not notice how bad a anti-virus software will really slow down you computer with DSL or cable net.

My computer was running well before this virus hit. I stupidly did not create restore points on my computer. If I did, the virus wouldn't have been a problem at all to my computer or spreading this trojan to others, as if my computer ran well enough to spread it.

Computer virus or trojan don't exactly go unnoticed. We all know something is wrong with our computer and try to find out what, just as I did. I really do have to question if this virus program is worth it. My computer is running sloooooow.....because of it.

Is virus software really worth it? Keep in mind, many people have to report 'infected computers' before a guard or fix is available. In my experience, I have had updated virus protection and gotten trojans that crashed my computer anyway. Isn't a 'restore' a better option?

In my opinion, the answer is "No". No antivirus utility program is 100% effective, but they are pretty darn good. In the years that I have been running Windows, I have never been infected on any of the 3 computers that use regularly.

But Antivirus does not need to slow your system and the AVG that I mentioned above is an excellent one. There are others, either free or low cost that are just as good.

I do not recommend either the Norton or the McAfee programs because in my experience they create as many problems as they solve.

In a previous post quite some time ago you mentioned that your children did frequently download music using a P2P (Peer-to-Peer) connection like Napster (See this article) and that often resulted in infecting your computer when it was connected with another system that was already infected. This connection disabled the AntiVirus software protection and so it was helpless to defend your system. Even so, if downloaded files had been manually scanned after download and before installation, the system can be protected. The new version of Napster and other similar systems are much better at not infecting your system, but there is still an element of risk.

Having discussed AntiVirus, I must add that Spyware is probably a bigger threat. A virus is an act of vandalism. There is no profit here, just mischief. But Spyware has a very large profit incentive and the spyware writers work very hard to figure out methods of defeating your systems protection. Using AntiSpyware on a modern Internet computer is essential in my opinion. You can read about and download my recommended AntiSpyware here: http://dwightblackburn.com#spyware

Please read about and use the Hosts file as well. It is very good.

I hope this helps!

Dwight

Thank you for the info! You are correct about my family using P2P for many downloads, usually music and video. Those viruses have always been an easy fix.

Given that my mom got hit a week before I did and she is a bit old, it wasn't some porn site or P2P share that hit both of our computers with the same trojan.

I reformatted my computer. I have tried every Windows Update I can find for an elderly computer. This time, I am not ignoring Restore! Looking through my discs, I am guessing the last trojan that took down my computer for reformat was over three years ago.

I am missing drivers! I have looked at Microsoft and had no luck. Not sure what drivers I am missing, but know they are much newer than my computer.

I can now easily use the net, but cannot get pictures and video to work right with Windows Media Player. I have tried updating that program also.

I have found a driver option on the Windows site, but can't seem to download it at all. Any advice?

Have you ever emailed your mother from your computer? Put on a file (like a picture or document or just a "toy" file) from one system onto the other one? Have you used an Instant Messaging program to "chat".

Any of these activities can spread a Trojan. As I say, it is just much better to prevent problems like this that try to come in and fix them after the fact.

We need to know what drivers that you're missing and what make/model of hardware the drivers are for. For instance, if it is a driver for a graphics card, what make and model of graphic card is it? This page may help

We need to know the make/model of your computer and what restore disk that you used.

Dwight

Let me just say that the day after I said that, Windows Vista found a virus on my laptop. Funny thing is, it was a brand new laptop and I hadn't even had a chance to install anything on it. It must have came with the virus... Anyway, I got to reformat my brand new laptop. You guys jinxed me...

Dwight, the answer is no, I do not e-mail my mother. We live a whole seven houses away. I talk to her on the phone almost every day, since my grandma, her mother, died.

I didn't give this trojan to my mom and she didn't give it to me. No need for e-mail when you have family that close. We got this trojan from different sources.