Hi Margaret,

The first thing I'd ask is how long ago was this Win98 installation done?  If you have a way to get your data off of it, it may be nice to just reinstall Windows fresh.  I know it seems excessive, but nothing else makes it run "as new" again as a fresh installation.  Hopefully, you know someone locally who could walk you through it?

Working with the current installation, this is what I do for all of my own PC's (I run 5 for my home business):

Install & run: AVG antivirus, Spybot:search & destroy, Adaware, Zonealarm, & Diskeeper Lite (defragmenter that runs rings around the one in Windows).  Here are the links:

AVG: http://free.grisoft.com/freeweb.php/doc/2/

Spybot: http://www.safer-networking.org/en/download/index.html (version 1.3)

Adaware: http://www.download.com/3000-2144-10045910.html?part=69274&subj=dlpage&tag=button

Zonealarm: http://www.download.com/3000-2092-10039884.html?part=zonealarm&subj=dlpage&tag=button

Diskeeper Lite: http://www.webattack.com/get/dkeeperlite.shtml

All are free for personal use.  Naturally, you would need to uninstall any similar programs prior to installing these.  Many firewalls & antivirus, especially, do not "play nice" if there's more than one running on a PC.

FYI- AVG requires free registration to have them email the serial number- which allows the installation to complete.  Zonealarm has one screen during it's installation where you must "tick" a button to choose the free version- don't accidentally choose the trial version.

I recommend these programs very highly- not just because they're free- but because they consume minimal system resources compared to a lot of the pay versions, IMHO.

Good luck!  Run these & you'll notice a huge change in how your PC responds-

Lynn Tracy

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