[Lopin_slow]

"Hey, daddy, I think think something's wrong with our computer"...

My home Windows XP PC tries to start up - very slow and eventually begins to flash the screen and distort. It will lock up and turn off the screen??? Once in a while I get a blue screen and Infident loop message...

Any advice. I am running AVG anti-virus software. Got to love my kids.

[blues_harp28]

Hi and welcome to TSG.
"flashing screen virus?"
Is a virus mentioned?
Try a repair install.
Insert the XP cd in the CD ROM Drive then switch on the computer.

You will receive the following message:

This portion of the Setup program prepares Microsoft Windows XP to run on your computer:

To setup Windows XP now, press ENTER.
To repair a Windows XP installation using Recovery Console, press R.
To quit Setup without installing Windows XP, press F3.
----------------------------------------------------------
DO NOT at this point select R.... DO NOT SELECT R

Select ENTER
----------------------------------------------------------
On the Windows XP Licensing Agreement screen
Press F8 to agree to the license agreement

Select current installation of Windows XP.and then

Press R to repair Windows XP.
----------------------------------------------------------
Follow the instructions that appear on the screen to repair Windows.
After you repair Windows , you may have to reactivate your copy of Windows XP

[Lopin_slow]

I was able to boot up windows in safe mode last night and ran AVG scan. I found no virus..which means it's clean or safe mode doesnt really allow for scan. I will give your recommendation a try. By following your instruction, will I loose my current data, pic, etc???

[blues_harp28]

Hi first try F8 startup..Last Known Good Configuration.
Or system restore.
System restore.
Tap f8 while your system is starting up.
Choose safe mode with command prompt.
Log on as an admin.
At command prompt type
%systemroot%\system32\restore\rstrui.exe
A repair install will [should]leave all data intact.

[sup2a]

just because AVG says there isnt anything doesn't mean its true... AVG has a much lower detection rate than many AV programs, if you can download some decent protection like Spybot or Avast and scan with them in safemode, it might be worth (if you can) posting a HJT log in the HJT/malware removal section on this site