Solved: Balky windows 98 2ed

Press Ctrl-Alt-Delete to open the Close Programs window. Highlight and end task everything, except Explorer and Systray. You should be able to run them now.

If that doesn't work and you still get the same warning, restart your computer in safe mode, then run them.

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Uninstall p2pnetworks in the Add/Remove Programs list, then go into C:\Program Files and delete its leftover folder, if it's still there.

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If you followed my instructions to uninstall it and delete its leftover folder, it should be pretty gone from your computer.

Be real careful using "Find - All Files And Folders" with a partial file name like p2p because you can easily delete files that are associated with other programs and then render those programs inoperable.

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I'd like to see what programs you have running in the background.

Click Start - Run, type in MSCONFIG and then click OK - "Startup" tab.

Besides ScanRegistry and SystemTray and antivirus program entries, what other entries are listed there with a checkmark next to them?

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Thanks for posting that list. Many of them don't need to be checked and running in the background.

Before I advise you which ones to uncheck and disable from running in the background, I need a list of the peripherals(printer, scanner, camera, webcam, iPod, etc.) that you use or have connected to that computer.

Also, confirm the spelling of the list of startup entries that you posted. I can tell that some of them are misspelled.

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OK, thanks for both messages.

You have an Epson printer and an Epson all-in-one, but you have no Kodak peripheral(printer, camera, etc.), correct? If that's the case, we're going to disable all entries that are associated with a Kodak peripheral because they're not needed. If you do use a Kodak peripheral, then leave them checked.

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You can remove the checkmark from:

OfotoNow USB Detection

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=OfotoNow

SpybotSD Tea Timer

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=SpybotSD

(I recommend disabling this one because it's known to cause problems and display error messages)

QuickTime Task

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=QuickTime+Task

KodakCCS

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=KodakCCS

msnappau

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=msnappau

LoadPowerProfile (Uncheck both entries with this same name)

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=LoadPowerProfile

CriticalUpdate

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=CriticalUpdate

Couponsandoffers

SchedulingAgent

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=SchedulingAgent

Kodak EasyShare Software

Kodak Live Update

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=Kodak

WinPopup

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=WinPopup

After you're done, click Apply - OK, then restart your computer.

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Post a new list here with the entries that are still checked. I want to make sure that you didn't miss any, and also want to see if we can disable more entries.

I don't know what processor type and speed and the amount of RAM is in your computer, but you should notice a shorter startup time and a bit more performance with not so many programs running in the background.

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I was getting ready to tell you that you forgot to uncheck:

TaskMonitor

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=TaskMonitor

but then I realized that I didn't include it in the list that I advised you to uncheck, so that's MY fault. Go ahead and uncheck it because it's not needed.

The "Truewizzard" error message is probably coming from this startup entry:

TrueSwitch

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=TrueSwitch

From what I've read about it, it doesn't need to run in the background if you're not changing ISP's, so uncheck it.

Uncheck:

Epson Background Monitor

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=Epson+Background+Monitor

From what I've read about it, your Epson printer should be fine without it running in the background. You can check your printer afterwards, and if it appears to need it, recheck it.

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Just to make sure that:

ctfmon.exe

http://www.sysinfo.org/startuplist.php?filter=ctfmon.exe

is the legitimate file that's associated with Microsoft Office, and that it isn't a virus or trojan with the same file name, click Start - Find - All Files And Folders, do a search for ctfmon.exe, then let me know what file path it appears in.

Is Microsoft Office installed in your computer?

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OK, good. The ctfmon.exe file is valid and in the correct location. If you're not using Office, you can uncheck it.

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I'm surprised that you have Office XP Pro installed in a computer with Windows 98SE. It may not even be a fully-functional version. Does the sub-menu for Office have a list for its normal programs - Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook?

I'm guessing the "Activate Product" sub-menu link is going to ask you to enter a serial number or product code to activate it and make it fully-functional. If it does and you don't have a number or code, you might as well uninstall it.

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Double-click MY COMPUTER, right-click the C drive icon, then click Properties. A window with a colored pie chart will appear.

How large is the hard drive and how much used space and free space does it show?

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