desktop blanks/apps hang

[peterv]

XP Pro with several strange symptoms. All SPs installed,
IE is latest. No virus according to NAV. Microsoft
Security check passes OK.
Symptoms: MSWORD (XP Office) hangs - cannot close it,
desktop will flash and then go blank - it then comes back.
Sometimes I note that I cannot "start" programs.
Sometimes trying to open the Explorer will fail - does
not open.
CHKDSK runs OK. Defrag performed.

Any ideas appreciated. This seems to be an XP problem.
Second PC with XP Home also shows these symptoms.
Thanks for any suggestions.

 

[roger]

Hi,


[...]

Any ideas appreciated. This seems to be an XP problem.
Second PC with XP Home also shows these symptoms.
Thanks for any suggestions.

Perform a scan looking for malware using updated ad-aware and spybot:
Ad-aware
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/support/download/

Spybot S&D
http://www.safer-networking.org/index.php?lang=en&page=download

Good luck