Hi there.
I posted this article over in
microsoft.public.windows.inetexplorer.ie6.browser, but I probably
should've crossposted it here to begin with... Argh. Well, the
thread's there if you want to read what some folks have already said. =)
I'd like to thank in advance anyone who responds.
Here's my OP from microsoft.public.windows.inetexplorer.ie6.browser:
-----
Well, a few days ago, a strange little problem started plaguing me.
First, let's discuss my system's specs.
MSINFO32 has this to say:
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SYSTEM INFORMATION
Microsoft Windows 98 4.10.2222 A
Upgrade using Full OEM CD /SrcDir=D:\WIN98 /IQ /U:xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
IE 5 6.0.2800.1106
Uptime: 0:06:52:48
Normal mode
AuthenticAMD AMD-K6(tm) 3D processor (ed.: yeah, it's old =)
128MB RAM
84% system resources free
Custom swap file on drive C (5866MB free)
Available space on drive C: 5866MB of 9777MB (FAT32)
Available space on drive D: 9772MB of 9772MB (FAT32)
RUNNING TASKS
Kernel32.dll
MSGSRV32.EXE
Mprexe.exe
Mstask.exe
MMTASK.TSK
KB891711.EXE
Explorer.exe
Taskmon.exe
Systray.exe
Wmiexe.exe
Ddhelp.exe
Thunderbird.exe
Rundll32.exe
Msinfo32.exe
STARTUP PROGRAMS
ScanRegistry Registry (Machine Run) C:\WINDOWS\scanregw.exe /autorun
TaskMonitor Registry (Machine Run) C:\WINDOWS\taskmon.exe
SystemTray Registry (Machine Run) SysTray.Exe
LoadPowerProfile Registry (Machine Run) Rundll32.exe
powrprof.dll,LoadCurrentPwrScheme
SchedulingAgent Registry (Machine Service) mstask.exe
KB891711 Registry (Machine Service)
C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM\KB891711\KB891711.EXE
(ed.: HijackThis came up with the same results and no suspicious looking
entries of any other kind. Also, I take above average care not to allow
malware into my PC and I've never had an infection on the PC in
question, so there's that to consider.)
INTERNET EXPLORER
Version 6.0.2800.1106IS
Build 62800.1106
Product ID 55736-OEM-5334751-04305
Application Path C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer
Date of Last Install 3/9/06 1:17:51 AM
Language English (United States)
Active Printer Not Available
Cipher Strength 128-bit
Content Advisor Disabled
Update Versions ;SP1;Q905915;Q837009;Q833989;Q891781;q313829;Q912812;
Java VM Version 5.0.3810.0
IEAK Install Yes (ed.: I had IEAK downloaded once... I can't
remember if I installed it or not. I definetly have the IE 5
PowerTweaks installed, so maybe that's what it means... I probably just
don't know what this is actually referring to. Pay no 'tention to the
man behind the curtain. =)
INTERNET EXPLORER CACHE
Page Refresh Type Always
Temporary Internet Files Folder C:\WINDOWS\Temporary Internet Files
Total Disk Space 9777 MB
Available Disk Space 5866 MB
Maximum Cache Size 1 MB
Available Cache Size 0 MB
-----
I install and uninstall a great deal of software on this machine on a
regular basis, though my problem didn't seem to crop up following any
particular installation and I haven't been doing much installing in the
past few days. I keep the disks (2 physical HDDs; see above)
defragmented fairly regularly and run scandisk on them regularly too, as
well as Steve Gibson's excellent SpinRite 6.0. I keep my machine
current with all applicable Windows Updates (which is now a non-issue
with good ol' Win9x =). I use cable Internet and connect out to the
great yonder through a hub (a straight up hub, not a switch or a router)
which itself plugs into a Linksys router which obviously connects to my
cable modem. I share the hub with 1 other PC and 1 other PC plugs
directly into a LAN port on the router. So my network looks (roughly)
like this:
GREAT YONDER
|
|
CABLE MODEM
| PC 2
| /
ROUTER----------HUB------
| \
| PC 3 (THAT'S ME!)
PC 1
This's in my home, if that matters.
That's pretty much all the pertinent pre-problem info I can think of to
tell you at this late (for me) hour...
....So here's the problem:
Whenever I close my 1 open IE window, my PC "freezes" for almost exactly
1 minute (if it's not dead on 60 seconds, it's pretty close; I watched
the clock several times
. The reason I put quotes around freezes is
that the PC doesn't *completely* lock up. I mean, I still have control
of the mouse and keyboard, and in fact, I can click on the icons on my
Desktop and they're actually able to gain focus (you know, they turn
blue and "get selected"; click on an icon once in any version of Windows
if you have double-clicking enabled and you'll see what I mean). I can
click on different icons and change the focus too, and I can even use
the arrow keys on the keyboard to change icon focus (that's how I knew I
was still able to use the keyboard
. I can click on the Start button
and bestow focus on it as well (click your start button and watch the
actual button itself change; that's what I see, minus the menu itself).
But, if I try and double-click on anything, nothing at all happens...
Until 1 minute later. Then, any folders I clicked on open up, any
apps start to run, etc. This has so far *only* occurred when I close
IE, and, as I said in the subject line, it happens *EVERY* time I close
IE. Well, actually that's not 100% true. If I simply open IE to my
start page and then close it without clicking any links or navigating to
any websites, then this problem does NOT occur. However, if I open
multiple windows (Ctrl+N) then, even if I merely close them and don't do
anything else, the PC still "freezes". Even stranger, if I open
multiple IE windows and then click a link in each window (say, 4
concurrently open windows) they all dutifully load the page with no
apparent performance hit...but if I close them all, then the PC *REALLY*
freezes, with almost no responsiveness on the mouse and keyboard, but
only for about the same blasted minute, maybe a little longer. Gah!
I've not tried much yet because I'm a little in fear of breaking stuff
on this PC... I need to make a current HDD
image/ghost/clone/what-have-you, but I'd kinda like to not take a buggy
clone if I don't have to... So you see the sort of catch-22 I'm keeping
myself in. =) In any case, I regularly clean out my temp files, browser
cache, and I have restarted the PC multiple times since this started
cropping up (in fact, when I first detected this chicanery, I thought
Windows was just locking up on me as it is wont to do, and I gave it the
old 3 finger salute and restarted a number of times before I noticed the
pattern...
. I've turned the PC completely off once or twice also in
the hopes that that might help... So far no good. I read something
recently about Windows not liking if the root directory of the boot
partition being full of files, so I set about clearing out the rather
messy root directory of my C: partition (I was given this PC so, hey,
*I* didn't get it messy =). That too did no good. The only other thing
I can think of that I've done recently that's out of the ordinary is
that I accidentally downgraded my ASPI drivers from version 4.7something
to 4.60. I thought that may have been the cause of the problem, so I
re-updated my ASPI drivers to v.4.7whatever, but I'm still stuck with
the issue. But there it is anyway, maybe that means something and I
don't know it...
If anyone out there has any advice or ideas, I'd be very glad and
equally appreciative if you'd share it. I'd especially like to know if
this is an issue with IE itself, or if this is something else's cancer
making IE look like the culprit. My thanks go out in advance to anyone
who responds.
Cheers to one and all.
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