PC Advice, again

[Coil Coyle]

Hey Guys,

         Somewhere along this year I picked up a program called "RegCure" that automatically "Scans" my computer. It finds a whole list of errors of which it will "Fix" two with my version and all of them with the "Registered" version which costs $20+/- bucks to register.

         My question; do I need to get my 860 currently listed "Errors" fixed? Or should I uninstall "RegCure"

          ???
Coil

[YellowJacket!]

NO. If you are running Vista you will probably end up with more problems.  I avoid two programs like the plague: Anything with Norton on it and any type of registry cleaner.  Both casue more problems than they are worth.
I spend a lot of time on several computer oriented websites and this seems to be a common question/problem.

David

[YellowJacket!]

I did a google on regcure and the first thing that was apparent is that regcure is "seeding" the search engines with lots of great things to say about itself - something that bothers me.  I had to dig through several pages of "reviews" before I could find a forum link where people were actually discussing it.  A quick review of a thread and lots of people are recommending cccleaner to get rid of it so that makes me think its crapware.

David

[The Prophet of Doom]

I second YJ
The reason the registry needs fixing is that when it gets to files that are no longer there, it can sit there retrying for quite a while before it gives up and moves on.  A couple of hindred of these and startup can be a mojor mission.    For some reason this comparatively simple task is done so badly by these registry cleaners that there is a 50:50 chance your machine will not run again without reloading wndows.  Loosing all your files in the process.

Even Norton's which used to be my constant toolkit companion is so unbelievably bad now that I could not recommend it to anyone.

Your best bet is to set aside a day every six months or so to back up your data, completely blow away your machine and reload from scratch

[Coil Coyle]

I think I got it, thanks guys.

;)

Reg Cure gets uninstalled.
Transfer all of Lori's pictures to the Seagate
Reload Vista. again.

Gratefully,

Coil

[YellowJacket!]

Or wait a couple monts for Windows 7... I love it.  Even on my lower powered machines it runs far better than Vista and just as well if not better than XP.

David

[Walt_M.]

I can't believe how much I hate vista! I am still an XP fan, if 7 is better, I'm in. I have been using Norton 360 for over 2 yrs now with no problems so I am still happy enough.

[kiawrench]

even bill gates hates vista!! that one program is ,in a nutshell , the absolute twin of windows millenium.
loose code, wobbly file management, selective follow through via usb ports, files that just go missing ... yep, i think it is just as good as wimdows ME   total junk

win 98 got really smooth once you tweaked it, xp can be fast and run alomst perfectly ,if you dont bog it down with a lot of internet acquired "additions " but i am hearing a lot of really good things about win7 , esp fact that it can be shaved down to very bare op sys  and run on laptops just as fast as a pared version of win 98 .
    i just have a thing for very small, very fast laptops,,, sorry .

[reardeac]

in the future try a program called cc cleaner... it works pretty well and no conflicts with vista or older versions of windows that i know of

[arthurdent510]

Chances are that there wasn't anything wrong with your system to begin with....  2 programs to use are spybot search and destroy and malwarebytes.  Both are free for home use and very reputable.

[YellowJacket!]

I'll second spybot and CCleaner.  Not used malwarebytes though.

Heres a thought... "Vista" - nothing but trouble and gremlins that required several updates and service packs to get right.  Requires lots of TLC to run smooth and lots of caring and maintenance.

"Vision" - Ditto

David

[arthurdent510]

The current version of vista isn't bad... you just need to turn off the uac and make sure you get the latest service pack and all the hotfixes.  I've been running windows 7 since the first beta - I was lucky enough to be able to attend the microsoft professional developers conference back in october and got a copy of it there.  They're doing some cool stuff with it...  In my opinion, defiantly worth upgrading over vista.

[YellowJacket!]

Yeah...I have Win7 happily running on a UMPC (samsung Q1U) with a 800mhz processor and 2 gigs of RAM. Running better than Vista did.

David

[Coil Coyle]

Thanks for all of the help, guys.

8)

I'm on my company laptop down in Monterey CA to see the Aquarium. When I get home I'll get on the PC, do the cleanup to the Seagate and rewrite the Hard drive.

Will Windows 7 run my Vista Business Office that we bought for Lori's classes last year? That was our original reason for leaving XP behind. I'd like to be able to keep that software.

???

Coil

[YellowJacket!]

You mean Microsoft Office?  Yes, both the last two versions of Office will run on Windows 7.

If you are talking about upgrading Vista Business to Win7, you can but remember that Win7 is still a beta at the moment and although highly stable, there may be some bumps in the road with it.  Also, the Beta period is set to expire sometime this august which menas that the beta software will quit working. There are ways to extend it longer but for all practical purposes, at that point you will have to buy a copy of Win7 and do a clean install as the beta (as far as I know) can't be uninstalled.

David

[kwells]

windows live one care has a free scan and it will remove issues as well as do some other windows cleanup.

It takes some time to do but works well.

http://onecare.live.com/site/en-Us/default.htm

[Aelwulf]

I used RegCure for a l'il bit.  It was ok but not the best (and since many do such practices now I wouldn't doubt that part).  Same with SpyBot.  Right now I'm using Bullguard since I've a 64-bit and it's the best one Iv'e found so far.  Security suite type deal, two month free trial (full version) and it found two viruses my old Kaspersky 64-bit had missed without the annoying habit of slowing down my machine the Kasperksy had.

[Coil Coyle]

As Walt and Inane keep pointing out, I must be some kind of a nut!
:D

When I bought Vista and Office I let Bill Gates keep my copy on something called "Digital Locker".

I just moved my files to the Seagate and then went to this handy MicroSoft site that had stored my $580.00 worth of programs only to find out that the "service" had been cancelled.

OK, Walt_M and InaneCathode, I must be mentally deficient to trust my money to MicroSoft

Fire Away, I own it!

;D
Coil

[Aelwulf]

Heh, I don't like using any of those backup services.  Even the photo ones are iffy as most I've signed up for have shut down.  The only I still use is Photobucket since it doesn't seem to be going anywhere anytime soon, and almost the only photos to survive my comp dying last summer were the ones uploaded to it.  Regardless there's enough DRM crap flying around giving me headaches, I don't need someone suddenly deciding to start charging preventing me from accessing my own software or something. :P Bullguard comes with a software backup service (the amount of free space varies depending on which version you get, and you can expand it for a fee) but I don't intend to use it.

[YellowJacket!]

As Walt and Inane keep pointing out, I must be some kind of a nut!
:D

When I bought Vista and Office I let Bill Gates keep my copy on something called "Digital Locker".

I just moved my files to the Seagate and then went to this handy MicroSoft site that had stored my $580.00 worth of programs only to find out that the "service" had been cancelled.

OK, Walt_M and InaneCathode, I must be mentally deficient to trust my money to MicroSoft

Fire Away, I own it!

;D
Coil

Jim, if you contact M$ they should let you download the software.  I had an issue with a digital version of Server 2008 that I purchased and contacted support and was able to redownload it.

David