Jeanette writes:

<< Last week I got the =
message:     WINDOWS PROTECTION ERROR.  IT IS NECESSARY TO RESTART YOUR =
COMPUTER.  It happened for a day or so, sometimes three or four times in =
a row before I was able to select option 5, confirm each command.  It =
was okay for a few days and now it is doing it again.>>

Possibly a registry corruption. This could have been caused by an improper
shutdown/restart.

Try running syscheck which will check your system files.

Try a registry restore (see my tutorial if you don't know how). This will
usually fix these minor probs.  If you don't have registry backups, the
solution may be a little more difficult.  The inbuilt Win98 backup system
may not be sufficient here, unless you have stored some old registry
backups. You will have to go back to a registry saved well before this
problem started.

Otherwise try reinstalling Windows over itself.  You shouldn't lose any
settings or data by this.

Boot errors of this nature need to be fixed fairly early, usually by a
registry restoration, or they may tend to compound on themselves, which may
be happening here.

Alternatively, you could run msconfig/startup, and untick everything in the
startup chain that's not absolutely necessary. (Only Explorer and systray
are essential).  If this fixes the problem, it means that one of the
programs in the startup chain is causing problems.  Then it's educated
guess-work plus trial and error to identify the culprit.

It helps if you can recall any unusual events immediately before the
problem first surfaced, such as any general instability, performance
slowdown, serious crash, new software or whatever.
Often these events are a pointer to the cause of the problem.

An outside possibility is an overheating problem, which will cause W98 to
show erratic behaviour.  Check for any sticky fans (especially the one
attached to the CPU chip) which might not be starting immediately when you
power on. Ensure vents are clean.

Don Penlington

Free computer tutorials at: http://www.geocities.com/donaldpen/
Also Fractal Galleries,  free icons,  poetry,  and beautiful Queensland beaches.

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