XP crashing on occasion since Windows Update to IE7; might be NAV

[Guest]

Since doing Windows Update a few days ago (XP SP2) that included IE7 (I did
everything based on the defaults or "recommended" settings), my system has
twice frozen while doing important work. Both times it was almost a complete
freeze but with still minimal GUI activity: mouse movement, could drag open
windows, and could open Start-Programs; however, program icons on desktop and
in Start-Programs were all simple generic images and not the normal graphics,
and nothing would launch, not even Ctrl-Alt-Del for the Task Manager. The
first instance was when working in a Dreamweaver file. I didn't realize
anything was wrong until I tried to save it. It said I didn't have access
rights and suggested I save it in My Documents, but it wouldn't let me do
that either. The latter instance was on trying to install QuickTime, when,
midway through, it gave me two error messages, one saying it couldn't access
a file in the Temp directory it created for installation, and one error
message being titled "C:\Program Files\Norton AntiVirus\navapsvc.exe" and
saying "Windows cannot access the specified device, path or file. You may not
have the appropriate permissions to access the item."

Symantec TS says the problem is that I'm running Norton AntiVirus 2006 and
need to go to NAV 2007, but they also didn't even know (get this) that IE7
had been released! The tech sincerely thanked me for letting them know and
said they'd post the info on their web site! (This was per a call I put in to
them 11/19/06, three weeks after the release). I haven't been able to buy NAV
7 via download for a whole day now (because Symantec's system is having
errors and wont' allow a purchase by web or even by phone with Cust Svc on
the line since their own interface isn't even working... this after a day of
their TS phone line not going through to anyone... really not giving me that
warm cozy feeling with Symantec lately).

Is NAV 7 going to resolve this, or do I need to be looking at something else?

 

[wisccal]

Have you tried disabling NAV? If the system still freezes without NAV
running, then it is very likely that there is another cause for your
problem. You might also want to try a system restore.

Regards,
Steve

 

[Guest]

I'm not planning to run for up to a day without NAV running, and since the
problem is intermittent, that's what it would take to do the test you
suggest. Nor am I anxious to do something as radical as a system restore
unless it becomes a final option (uninstalling IE7 and any recent updates
would be a far more logical step first if it gets to that point). I prefer to
be more prudent with my system. I have a business relying on it. But thanks.

What I was really after here was whether there was a "known issue" cropping
up.

Footnote: Some people have been posting on this newsgroup who are not all
that tech savvy. It is appreciated but doesn't help much and tends to hinder
answers from more experienced people because it looks to them at first glance
like the question has been answered, when it really hasn't.

 

[Malke]

I'm not planning to run for up to a day without NAV running, and since
the problem is intermittent, that's what it would take to do the test
you suggest. Nor am I anxious to do something as radical as a system
restore unless it becomes a final option (uninstalling IE7 and any
recent updates would be a far more logical step first if it gets to
that point). I prefer to be more prudent with my system. I have a
business relying on it. But thanks.

What I was really after here was whether there was a "known issue"
cropping up.

Footnote: Some people have been posting on this newsgroup who are not
all that tech savvy. It is appreciated but doesn't help much and tends
to hinder answers from more experienced people because it looks to
them at first glance like the question has been answered, when it
really hasn't.

1. For the problems with Windows Updates, go to Add/Remove Programs,
check the Show Updates box, and uninstall the recent updates after
which you had the problems. You can set System Restore points as you do
the troubleshooting if you like. Then only install one Update at a
time, testing after each install to see which one (if any) is causing
the issue.

2. Symantec would naturally say that you should update to NAV 2007. Both
NAV 2006 and 2007 are pretty dreadful and personally I don't recommend
either of them. Recommended av's are Kaspersky, NOD32, and if you want
free - Avast. If you decide to uninstall NAV (and you can simply take
the machine off the Internet if you want while you're doing this),
follow the instructions:

http://tinyurl.com/q7nsf - Removing and reinstalling Norton Internet
Security, Norton AntiSpam, or Norton Personal Firewall (2006/2005/2004
versions)
http://basconotw.mvps.org/SymRem2.htm

3. For questions about IE7 - You should post your question in the IE7
newsgroup *after* you spend some time reading through the posts there.
The IE7 newsgroup is:

microsoft.public.internetexplorer.general

There are a huge number of posts so it would be smart to start by going
to Google Groups Advanced Search. Use a search term that describes your
problem, constrain the search to the IE7 newsgroup and the date to very
recently.

4. For your footnote - This is Usenet and that's the nature of Usenet.
Sorry, but that's just the way it is. If you want paid tech support
(and naturally there is no 100% guarantee in life anyway), then find
someone local - not a BigStoreUSA type of place.

Here is general information about Usenet so you have a more accurate
sense of what to expect from this resource:

Since you are using the web interface, you may not realize that this is
really a newsgroup. You will get far more out of this resource if you
learn to use a newsreader. There are many good newsreaders for Windows,
but you can use Outlook Express since you already have it. Here are
some links to information about newsgroups:

About Usenet:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usenet
http://groups.google.com/support/bin/static.py?page=basics.html - Basics
of Usenet
http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Usenet - a brief
explanation of newsgroups

Using Outlook Express as Newsreader:
http://michaelstevenstech.com/outlookexpressnewreader.htm
http://rickrogers.org/setupoe.htm
Accessing the MS newsgroups in Outlook Express Newsreader
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone/newsgroupsetup.mspx

How to Post:
http://www.dts-l.org/goodpost.htm

http://aumha.org/nntp.htm - list of MS newsgroups
microsoft.public.test.here - MS group to test if your newsreader is
working properly
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/munad.htm - how to munge email address
http://www.blakjak.demon.co.uk/mul_crss.htm - multiposting vs.
crossposting

Malke