Why are pop-ups constantly appearing on my computer?

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AI Thread Summary
Pop-up ads claiming system and registry errors are a common issue, particularly for users of Internet Explorer (IE). Recommendations for addressing these pop-ups include enabling the pop-up blocker in IE, although it is noted that this feature is less effective than those in other browsers like Firefox. Users are encouraged to switch to Firefox for better security, customization, and adherence to web standards. The discussion highlights the advantages of using tabs in browsers, which allow for easier navigation compared to multiple open windows in IE. Security concerns regarding IE are emphasized, with suggestions to use alternative browsers such as Firefox or Opera. For users experiencing persistent pop-up issues, running anti-malware tools like Spybot-Search and Destroy is advised, along with checking for unfamiliar processes and entries in the system registry. Overall, transitioning to a more secure and user-friendly browser is strongly recommended to avoid such problems.
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There are pop-ups comming left and right and I can't figure out how to stop them. The present one claims that there are system errors. The last one claimed that there were registry errors.

Help! :cry: They're alive

Pete
 
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Are you using firefox?
 
Well if you're using Internet Explorer, it's just Tools then PopUp blocker-PopUp blocker settings, turn on. End of story or am I missing something?
 
Hey, saltydog, are you still using IE?
 
saltydog said:
Well if you're using Internet Explorer, it's just Tools then PopUp blocker-PopUp blocker settings, turn on. End of story or am I missing something?
I don't have that on my version of IE, he may not either. I use a spyware and adware program though, in addition to anti-virus software, so I don't have the problem he's having.
 
saltydog said:
Well if you're using Internet Explorer, it's just Tools then PopUp blocker-PopUp blocker settings, turn on. End of story or am I missing something?
I don't see anything like that on my computer.

Pete
 
You need XP SP2 to get that feature and it isn't as effective as firefox's popup blocker. I HIGHLY recommend you switch to firefox.

http://www.mozilla.org/
 
dduardo said:
You need XP SP2 to get that feature and it isn't as effective as firefox's popup blocker. I HIGHLY recommend you switch to firefox.

http://www.mozilla.org/

Jesus Dduardo, I haven't seen a pop-up on my machine in I don't know, might be a year for all I know, whenever I got that update I guess. How much more effective do you want?
 
Does IE block popup from plugins like flash and java? No.

Also, how can you stand not having tabs? IE is a crippled piece of junk that doesn't follow W3C standards.

By using IE your holding back Internet innovation
 
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  • #10
dduardo said:
Does IE block popup from plugins like flash and java? No.

Also, how can you stand not having tabs? IE is a crippled piece of junk that doesn't follow W3C standards.

By using IE your holding back Internet innovation

Please tell me what are "tabs"

Thanks,
 
  • #11
I agree with dduardo. I cannot believe that there are people here at pf that still use IE, as I think most of the people here are more intelligent than the average joe.
 
  • #12
Ok. I read Walt Mosberg's description of it. Sounds interesting. Didn't know it existed. I'll try it. Funny how things work out. :smile:
 
  • #13
See this image:

http://theopencd.sunsite.dk/programs/images/prog/firefox_screen_01.png

Right under the url bar you'll see tabs. With tabs you don't have twenty windows open.
 
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  • #14
mattmns said:
I agree with dduardo. I cannot believe that there are people here at pf that still use IE, as I think most of the people here are more intelligent than the average joe.
I've seen the tabs on firefox and can't imagine what good they'd do me. I also don't have any problems with IE. IE is the browser used by all large businesses, so I have gotten used to it because I have to use it all day, every day. It really comes down to what you're looking for, firefox would be of no benefit to me due to how I use my personal computer and is not an option for when I am at work.
 
  • #16
Evo said:
I've seen the tabs on firefox and can't imagine what good they'd do me. I also don't have any problems with IE. IE is the browser used by all large businesses, so I have gotten used to it because I have to use it all day, every day. It really comes down to what you're looking for, firefox would be of no benefit to me due to how I use my personal computer and is not an option for when I am at work.

That's quickly changing:

http://networks.silicon.com/webwatch/0,39024667,39130377,00.htm
 
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  • #17
If the OP is talking about non-advertisement "pop-ups" i'd run HijackThis and let someone read the log.
 
  • #18
Evo said:
I've seen the tabs on firefox and can't imagine what good they'd do me. I also don't have any problems with IE. IE is the browser used by all large businesses, so I have gotten used to it because I have to use it all day, every day. It really comes down to what you're looking for, firefox would be of no benefit to me due to how I use my personal computer and is not an option for when I am at work.
I was skepitcal of firefox at first too, especially tabs. I thought tabs were silly, but after a week of using firefox I had found it impossible to not use tabs. Don't worry about tabs though, when IE 7 adds them you will realize how much you have been missing out.

The real reason to not use IE though, imo, is because of all the security problems. Check out www.secunia.com

IE: http://secunia.com/product/11/
Firefox: http://secunia.com/product/4227/
Opera: http://secunia.com/product/4932/

Also as dduardo said, IE is not standards compliant which makes things a pain in the rear.

Seriously just try out a non IE browser like Firefox or Opera for a week or so, give it a serious try, and you will probably never go back.
 
  • #19
dduardo said:
See this image:

http://theopencd.sunsite.dk/programs/images/prog/firefox_screen_01.png

Right under the url bar you'll see tabs. With tabs you don't have twenty windows open.
You don't have windows open with IE either, see the tabs along the bottom?
 

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  • #20
Evo, but what happens when you have other programs open, and multiple IE windows open?
 
  • #21
Evo said:
I've seen the tabs on firefox and can't imagine what good they'd do me. I also don't have any problems with IE. IE is the browser used by all large businesses, so I have gotten used to it because I have to use it all day, every day. It really comes down to what you're looking for, firefox would be of no benefit to me due to how I use my personal computer and is not an option for when I am at work.

Well, that's cus' you not a hacker Evo. :smile:
 
  • #22
BS, those aren't tabs.

Here is a guy that is a well known Microsoft supporter that has a career praising their products. When he starts talking crap about Microsoft then there is definitely a problem:

http://www.windowsitpro.com/Article/ArticleID/47208/47208.html

"My advice is simple: Boycott IE. It's a cancer on the Web that must be stopped. IE isn't secure and isn't standards-compliant, which makes it unworkable both for end users and Web content creators. Because of their user bases, however, Web developers are hamstrung into developing for IE at the expense of established standards that work well in all other browsers. You can turn the tide by demanding more from Microsoft and by using a better alternative Web browser. I recommend and use Mozilla Firefox, but Apple Safari (Macintosh only) and Opera 8 are both worth considering as well."

Microsoft is making NO effort to bring IE up to the 21st century.
 
  • #23
EvLer said:
If the OP is talking about non-advertisement "pop-ups" i'd run HijackThis and let someone read the log.

The log is very doable. Took me about, say 10-12 hours to get good enough to excise a hijacker. But I'm a hacker and don't mind fooling with the system files and registry.
 
  • #24
Evo, open a few programs and a few "tabs" with IE. Personally my taskbar would become crowded quick.

http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/6898/multiplewindows1xs.png
 
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  • #25
mattmns said:
Evo, but what happens when you have other programs open, and multiple IE windows open?

When you have multiple IE windows open, you have a bar on the bottom. Right now mine says: 5 Internet Explorer. That means I have 5 windows of IE open now. Click on that bar and a menu pops up and you can select which one to go to.
 
  • #26
saltydog said:
When you have multiple IE windows open, you have a bar on the bottom. Right now mine says: 5 Internet Explorer. That means I have 5 windows of IE open now. Click on that bar and a menu pops up and you can select which one to go to.

With firefox you go directly to the tab you want to. I'd say firefox's way is easier.
 
  • #27
mattmns said:
Evo, open a few programs and a few "tabs" with IE. Personally my taskbar would become crowded quick.

http://img77.imageshack.us/img77/6898/multiplewindows1xs.png
ACK! You mean it keeps enlarging your screen so that you can no longer see the entire page without scrolling? Are they planning to fix that? That would make me crazy. :bugeye:
 
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  • #28
Wow, you can't possible think that, can you? The tabs get smaller as you have more open. Your screen size does not change.

http://img18.imageshack.us/img18/1276/multiplewindows19ez.png

edit... You should seriously try it out for yourself, don't take my word for it.
 
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  • #29
mattmns said:
Wow, you can't possible think that, can you? The tabs get smaller as you have more open. Your screen size does not change.

http://img18.imageshack.us/img18/1276/multiplewindows19ez.png
Ok, that's exactly what IE does. So what's the difference?
 
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  • #30
Evo, as Linus Torvald (Creator of Linux) would say:

What the heck have you been smoking?

As someone involved in the technology sector I would think you would be smarter than that.
 
  • #31
I like the tabs best with my Mac and Safari (I've been cautioned, I think by someone here, that Firefox isn't all that up to snuff for Macs, so stick to Safari), mainly because there is no task bar and I set the "dock" which functions somewhat like a task bar to be hidden until I mouse down to where it is. It gives me a very uncluttered screen.

Evo, when I first heard about tabs and figured out what they were, I had the same reaction as you have...big deal, who needs them? But, now that I have them and use them, I can't imagine going back to having to sift through multiple windows.
 
  • #32
The difference is that you have multiple tabs taking the place of one spot on your taskbar.

saltydog said:
When you have multiple IE windows open, you have a bar on the bottom. Right now mine says: 5 Internet Explorer. That means I have 5 windows of IE open now. Click on that bar and a menu pops up and you can select which one to go to.

Which dduardo responded with:
dduardo said:
With firefox you go directly to the tab you want to. I'd say firefox's way is easier.
 
  • #33
dduardo said:
Evo, as Linus Torvald (Creator of Linux) would say:

What the heck have you been smoking?

As someone involved in the technology sector I would think you would be smarter than that.
I'm serious, my tabs start off large and as I add more they get smaller. What's the difference?

I've seen firefox, I don't use it. You guys haven't explained what the difference is.
 
  • #34
Got it! Running it now. Hell, I got a Gb on my machine, run um' both for a while
 
  • #35
mattmns said:
The difference is that you have multiple tabs taking the place of one spot on your taskbar.
So, firefox has tabs at the top, IE has them at the bottom. When I want to switch to something I go directly to the tab. What's the difference?
 
  • #36
Moonbear, thanks for supporting the cause. Even though your not using firefox, safari is just as good.

Evo, the difference is that firefox is more secure by design, is more customizable, has a better user interface and SUPPORTS WEB STANDARDS.
 
  • #37
Moonbear said:
I like the tabs best with my Mac and Safari (I've been cautioned, I think by someone here, that Firefox isn't all that up to snuff for Macs, so stick to Safari), mainly because there is no task bar and I set the "dock" which functions somewhat like a task bar to be hidden until I mouse down to where it is. It gives me a very uncluttered screen.

Evo, when I first heard about tabs and figured out what they were, I had the same reaction as you have...big deal, who needs them? But, now that I have them and use them, I can't imagine going back to having to sift through multiple windows.
I don't sift through multiple windows and I usually have quite a few open.

Pehaps Matt can open 20 windows and show me a difference?
 
  • #38
Evo, open up 8 "tabs" with IE, then open up another program or two, and post a screenshot of your taskbar. I will do the same with firefox and 8 tabs. You will see that there is a lot more space on firefox, which allows you to see what is going on with what webpages you have open. If you have IE open and do not use any other programs at all, and have a very wide tasbar, maybe one with 2 or 3 or 4 stacks, then it is ok, but then you are taking up more space again.
 
  • #39
Evo said:
I'm serious, my tabs start off large and as I add more they get smaller. What's the difference?

I've seen firefox, I don't use it. You guys haven't explained what the difference is.
What you have with IE are "buttons" on the task bar for your open IE windows PLUS all your other open applications. With Firefox (or any of the other browsers), when you are in the browser window, all your tabs for open pages are up across the top that with a single click you can bounce back and forth to whatever one you want, and then there's still lots of room at the bottom on your task bar for you to see the other applications you have open.

The other thing I like about tabs is that when I have multiple windows open instead of tabs, I have this problem where there's a little bit of one window peeking out from under another, so as I'm mousing over and dragging my scroll bar to read, I end up accidentally clicking on the window beneath it and moving that one on top. With tabs, that just can't happen.

Though, on a Mac, I have to keep going to the window menu to switch between windows unless I'm minimizing them everytime I look for another, so it really makes a huge difference for me to have tabs instead.
 
  • #40
dduardo said:
Moonbear, thanks for supporting the cause. Even though your not using firefox, safari is just as good.

Evo, the difference is that firefox is more secure by design, is more customizable, has a better user interface and SUPPORTS WEB STANDARDS.
I'm not supporting IE, as I've previously mentioned I never liked it, Netscape was better, but 1) I have to use it for work, the systems I use are made to where they only work on IE and 2)I've never had any problems with windows. I just don't see anything (yet) in Firefox that I would "personally" see as a benefit for how I use the computer. You use your computer a lot differently than I do.
 
  • #41
Evo said:
I don't sift through multiple windows and I usually have quite a few open.

Pehaps Matt can open 20 windows and show me a difference?
20 windows is a bit much, I am not sure if I have that many programs even installed. Here is a screenshot with 10 tabs open in Firefox, and 10 windows open on the taskbar. Personally if it was not for the icons, I could probably not make out what some of the things were on the taskbar. On firefox, however, due to the extra space, I can see more info with the same amount of "tabs" open.

http://img9.imageshack.us/img9/980/multiplewindows25uj.png
 
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  • #42
Moonbear said:
What you have with IE are "buttons" on the task bar for your open IE windows PLUS all your other open applications. With Firefox (or any of the other browsers), when you are in the browser window, all your tabs for open pages are up across the top that with a single click you can bounce back and forth to whatever one you want, and then there's still lots of room at the bottom on your task bar for you to see the other applications you have open.
Aha, thanks, now I understand. I have :blushing: somewhat of a photographic memory. :blushing: (when I get enough sleep). Remembering what the "buttons" are is not a problem for me. If I'm not sure, for some reason, the second the cursor is over the button it displays the title, so if I "was" wrong, I'd know not to open it.

The other thing I like about tabs is that when I have multiple windows open instead of tabs, I have this problem where there's a little bit of one window peeking out from under another, so as I'm mousing over and dragging my scroll bar to read, I end up accidentally clicking on the window beneath it and moving that one on top. With tabs, that just can't happen.
My windows all open the same size, I don't have that issue.
 
  • #43
Evo, you stubborn mule, have you every tried firefox?
 
  • #44
mattmns said:
Evo, open up 8 "tabs" with IE, then open up another program or two, and post a screenshot of your taskbar. I will do the same with firefox and 8 tabs. You will see that there is a lot more space on firefox, which allows you to see what is going on with what webpages you have open. If you have IE open and do not use any other programs at all, and have a very wide tasbar, maybe one with 2 or 3 or 4 stacks, then it is ok, but then you are taking up more space again.
Let me ask you something. When I open your screen shot, I have to scroll to the right to see everything. Are you just posting a larger than life screen shot or do you actually have to scroll to the right to see your entire screen?
 
  • #45
Yeah Fx is not just tabs, there are an insane amount of features that many people do not know about. You can customize firefox to pretty much do whatever you want. One thing I like is a feature called keywords. You can bookmark a site and give it a keyword of "sd" for slashdot, or whatever you want. Then if you want to goto slashdot you just have to type "sd" and press enter (without the quote marks). You can also do this for searches. For example, I have google setup so that I can type "g firefox rocks" and I will be taken to a google search of "firefox rocks" You can do this for pretty much any search and any webpage. Also, as you can see in my screenshots, I do not really use the refresh, home, forward, etc., buttons. Instead I have removed them, moved up my location bar, and now use mouse gestures for those actions and a few others. The features go on and on, but you will not know what you are missing out on until you try it for yourself.
 
  • #46
I see the whole screenshot without having to scroll. What resolution are you using? I'm at 1280x1024.
 
  • #47
dduardo said:
Evo, you stubborn mule, have you every tried firefox?
No, I'm on my daughter's computer right now. At home I've always used my work laptop. I've been someone's computer that had it but nothing caugh my attention, like "wow, this is awesome". But I just checked my e-mail.

Seriously, 99% of what I do is work related and firefox isn't even an option. Probably never will be.
 
  • #48
Evo said:
Let me ask you something. When I open your screen shot, I have to scroll to the right to see everything. Are you just posting a larger than life screen shot or do you actually have to scroll to the right to see your entire screen?

My screen resolution is just large than yours. I do not scroll at all.
 
  • #49
dduardo said:
I see the whole screenshot without having to scroll. What resolution are you using? I'm at 1280x1024.
1024x768...
 
  • #50
Evo said:
Let me ask you something. When I open your screen shot, I have to scroll to the right to see everything. Are you just posting a larger than life screen shot or do you actually have to scroll to the right to see your entire screen?

I think he's posting a larger than life screenshot. I've never seen anything that required scrolling sideways to view the whole screen (except on the occassional web page that gets all stretched out by the content).

My windows all open the same size, I don't have that issue.
Mine all open the same size, but there's still always a teensy space on either side. I think Monique mentioned this problem once before too, and she uses PCs (I think she's mentioned using IE too), so I know it's not just a Mac issue, or related to a particular browser.
 

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