800 MHz 512 RAM
but have been running WinXP for several years.
Just over the past 2 weeks has it started the very slow
reaction. Win Word 97 would not work. Mircosoft update
indicated no new patches needed.
It sounds very much like you do have malware running. However, without
seeing your machine it is impossible to tell for sure. If Norton will
not install, then your machine is 1) not clean; 2) the system has been
damaged; 3) combination of both. You can try this:
1) Take the infected machine off the Internet and any lan immediately.
2) From a different, clean machine download Stinger from:
http://vil.nai.com/vil/stinger/
and run it in Safe Mode. Stinger is a limited virus checker, but its
advantage is that it is standalone and doesn't need to be installed.
3) Hope that Stinger cleans up the machine enough to be able to install
the new NAV. Update its definitions and do a full scan.
4) Continue the cleaning process by removing any spyware with Spybot
Search & Destroy (
http://www.safer-networking.org) and Ad-aware
(
http://www.lavasoftusa.com). Be sure to update these programs before
running them. These programs are free, so run them both since they
complement each other. It is best to run antivirus and spyware removal
tools in Safe Mode.
If that doesn't work, you may either 1) take the machine to a
professional (not a BestBuy or CompUSA type of store); or 2) format the
hard drive and clean install Windows, install drivers and programs,
restore data from backups. Note that formatting will wipe everything
off the drive.
Malke
