apparent cpu filling virus?.

[Iron Giant]

WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING
Use my advice at your own risk.
WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING WARNING

What I do:

Go to START | Run.

Type in regedit.

Go to HKeyLocalMachine - Software - Microsoft -Windows - Current Version - Run.

This is where programs start themselves if they are trying to hide from you. There are legitimate programs here too. You need to determine which is legitimate and which is not and remove the ones you dont want.

To do that, go to www.google.com and type in the .exe file name. You will find websites that will tell you what the .exe does. If its spyware, or a virus, delete it from the registry.

[Mudshark]

you coukld also do a ctrl-alt-delete and click the process tab. Not sure if this work in windows 98. It will list all running apps in 2000 and XP. Just close the un-needed programs

[Nocturnal]

In 98 it doesn't tell you how much CPU time each process is taking, but you can still shut down all the ones you don't recognize.

[Baron Munchausen]

It sounds like the 'upgrade' to your virus software might be the source of the trouble. How did you acquire this 'upgrade'? Did you download it directly from the company site? Are you sure you connected to the right site? If you got some sort of 'email notification' about the upgrade and clicked a link in that you might have been spoofed to download a trojan, you know.

First thing to try is to go into 'Add/Remove Programs' under control panel and see if you can uninstall that recent 'upgrade' of your AV software.

After that, removing any suspicious program from the 'run' list like Iron Giant suggests is a good step. Many contemporary viruses install themselves there and watch for 'anti-virus' and 'ad-buster' software, and will reinstall themselves after being removed! Once you've removed anything that doesn't belong from the run list you can reboot and see if Ad-aware can be run. You might also want to try something called Spybot S&D which is much more comprehensive than Ad-aware.

http://www.safer-networking.org/

http://www.safer-networking.org/index.php?page=download

[Ruatha]

You can also in the Run box type MSCONFIG and shut down those autostarted programs that seems guilty.
Or shutdown all autostart programs and then start them one at a time, timeconsuming but you'll find the culprit.

[Atrocities]

www.pestpatrol.com

This works far better than manually editing the registry. This program has been a part of my system for four years now and aside from detecting all my MP3 as having baligerant ware, (RIAA Spy ware) and recommending they be removed, it has saved my computer from thousands of spy ware, adware, trojans, and other pests.

I do recommmend buying it and using it if you are worried about such things as listed above.

[Gandalph]

Programs like that will also/instead of start themselves fron the HKCurrentUser-Software-Microsoft-Windows-CurrentVersion-Run hive of the registry.