I am running Win98SE with IE6.0 and OE6. Just recently I have encountered a problem of system freeze-up when (but not always!) I click on an icon (not always the same icon) on the desktop. I am then unable to Ctrl|Alt|Del or go to Start and must do a manual reboot.

Upon rebooting I immediately run ScanDisk on the C: drive and receive the following error message: C:\Windows\ApplicationDate\Identities\{62C9CE40-DDFF-11D6-972C-C6BBB2539269}\Microsoft\OutlookExpress 'folder contains incorrect information about cleanup.log'.

In an effort to remedy I re-installed (without removing) IE6.0 that includes OE6. When that did not help I re-installed (without removing) Win98SE. Also no help.

I have not deleted the contents of the cleanup.log as it appears that the problem is one level above that in the folder Outlook Express. However, that folder contains all of my email correspondence in .dbx files that I would prefer to not lose.

Any suggestions would be gratefully received for which thanks in advance are extended!

Clarence

Hi Clarence, welcome to SAF

As far as I remember, cleanup.log may grow to insane sizes and slow down with OE launch. I think it is not a critical file, and you can safely delete it, but, this is simple to verify. Just rename it to cleanup.old

A new fresh cleanup.log file will be created.

Chris

btw, I don't think this will solve freezing problems on your system.

Well, self help and exploration seems to have found the answer. I originally concluded that the problem probably wasn't in the cleanup.log but in another file in the same folder that contains the cleanup.log.

Exploration of the path described in the error message produced by ScanDisk took me to the "Outlook Express" folder that contained, in addition to the cleanup.log, a number of .dbx files containing email that I had collected over the last several years and never bothered to eliminate from my HD.

I carefully copied each of those .dbx files to a CD to preserve them if ever needed in the future then deleted them. As a precaution, I also defragged my HD and again installed IE6 to get a clean copy of OE6.

Miraculously, the problem disappeared! Happy camper? You bet!

Didn't get any suggestions from Suggest-a-Fix but it is nice to know that it is here for future reference.

Clarence

No longer happy. The problem has returned with a vengence. However, I now get more of an explanation from ScanDisk but I have no idea how to fix it or if it can be fixed. It says:

"The size of the file is different from the size recorded for it in its folder. If you attempt to open the file before correcting the error, the file's data may become damaged or your program amy fail.

ScanDisk repairs the error by changing the size recorded in the folder to be consistent with the actual size of the file."

I have NOT restored the large amount of email that I removed earlier so that cannot be the problem. I have very few emails saved at present so volume should not be the problem. It appears that the problem is the size of the cleanup.log file that is being recorded in its folder.

This happens ONLY when clicking on an icon on the desktop such as trying to open IE or ANYTHING ELSE! It is frequent, not occasional.

The reinstallation of Win98SE did not cure the problem, however it looks like it IS a Win98 problem. I just hate the thought of doing a clean re-install so does anyone have any better solutions? H E L P !!!!

Clarence

Hi Clarence,

Windows98 freezing may have a lot of causes, such as bad RAM stick, corrupted registry file, corrupted .dll files and others... Normally, reinstalling Win98 on top of itself may solve the issue, unless it's not related to some hardware problem, like bad disk, bad RAM, etc... or some virus/malware running on background.

At this point, I would recommend you to run Windows Scandisk and, if some lost clusters appears, do not convert it to files, but discard them.

If this does not solve the problem, I would try to swap memory sticks, and try them one at a time, if you have more than one. You may also run Memtest from http://www.memtest.org

Running updated versions of AdAware SE and Spybot S&D (one at a time) and performing a housecall online virus check will not hurt.

If the problem persist, I recommend you post a HJT log on "Malicious code" forum.

Housecall - http://housecall.trendmicro.com/
HijackThis - http://www.suggestafix.com/index.php?act=S...ST&f=15&t=16053

Chris

QUOTE

Didn't get any suggestions from Suggest-a-Fix but it is nice to know that it is here for future reference.

btw, I did not understood this, as I posted a suggestion before...

Chris, you are absolutely right. You did post a suggestion and I hope that you will accept my apology. Obviously, that suggestion did not turn out to be the cure.

I will check out the other items that you suggested and see if that helps. I know that these odd occurences are often difficult to diagnose even when sitting at the offending computer and it was ungracious of me to not properly acknowledge your last response.

Clarence

cmthomas,

I also run Win98SE as my Windows OS, and my "basic" suggestion would be replace IE & OE with Mozilla and/or Firefox plus Thunderbird.

With this setup - I have no major crashes or freeze ups and no BSOD in years.

NOTE: I'm browsing here with Linux, so reaching my Windows files is a "real production" !!!

If you're interested, I can give "specifics" on Mozilla and Thunderbird.

Hey Clarence,
do not worry about it

Post back if the problem persists (or not )

I hope we'll sort it out !

Oldbob, your suggestion has great attraction but for one problem I have yet to solve. Maybe you have found a solution.

I use Hotmail for my email POP3 and have done so for many years. I just cringe ast the thought of educating all of my correspondents to a new address. Since I spend half of the year in one place and the other half in another, each with different ISP's, I must have an Internet email address.

I have both Firefox and Thunderbird installed but cannot find a way around Mr. Gates' roadblock other than by going directly into Hotmail which has problems beyond the scope of this difficulty on which I am working.

Further, the problem is not isolated to IE or OE, although I admit that it may be caused by either or both of those devils. After closing IE, either intentionally or carelessly, it seems that any icon that I click on the desktop will freeze the computer producing the same error notice on ScanDisk that I related above. True, the error message seems to indicate Outlook Express as the culprit but it is something of recent vintage as I have used OE on this computer for years without problems. All I can say is Arghhhhh!

Clarence

Thanks, Chris. I am still working through your prior suggestions. I ran the virus checker and found no viruses but it did suggest a bunch of MS Updates that the "Windows Update" checker never suggested.

I followed through on each of them (there were 8) and installed where appropriate. Alas, as soon as I was finished the sucker froze up on me again!

My next effort will be to utilize the HJT log and see what happens. I'll keep y'all informed and really appreciate the input.

Clarence

(That emoticon is SO appropriate!)

Clarence,

A little of my background, I started surfing the net with a "hand-me-down" NEC tower. A friend, who was consulting, got six of them when the company he was helping replaced their entire office network.

The tower he gave me had neither a sound card or modem and was running Win95. I bought a copy of Win98SE - "without Windows" [this was when WinME was the "latest" and already had a "bad rep."] along with a sound card and a $20 modem. Linux later required a US Robotics modem.

I "opted" for AOL 5.0 [I had CDs laying around] because I had "zero experience" with the internet and AOL requires no knowledge of kppp, pop3, smtp, etc...]. And didn't use any Microsoft software [IE, OE, Hot Mail, etc..]

I stayed with AOL for years until WinXP came out. I decided to try Linux rather then submit to Microsoft and all its "permissions". I have already installed Win98SE 10 to 15 times on half a dozen different hard drives.
So AOL [$23.90] had to go, I got two different $10 ISPs [with two new Email addresses] and $4 change !!

Since Linux use [Mozilla, among others] I replaced AOl with Mozilla. So I still have "zero" IE, OE, etc.. experience.

The point of all this is --- using Win98SE + Mozilla + AntiVir + AdAware + SpyBot + Spyware Blaster [that Win98SE CD was the last software I paid for].
I have had virtually "zero problem" with "crashes, viruses, trojans, keyloggers, dialers, etc..] I suspect that the "virus hackers" may have passed me by.

Regarding Email addresses, [I don't have that problem] I believe I heard of a way that Email can be "forwarded" from the OLD address to the NEW address while your correspondents learn your new address.

Maybe somebody else can add to this ???

Bob, sounds like you have been there - done that! I won't try to one-up you but I'll bet that I beat you in the "old" department!

Sounds like you went from apprentice to journeyman to master geek in 200 easy lessons!

I'm not sure that I want to change email addresses but Mr. Gates may be forcing me to do so.

I have learned one additional fact about my problem. As long as I leave OE open on the bottom bar when I am doing something else I have no problems clicking on other icons on the desktop. It appears that the problem is created when I close OE and then try to open something else. I can do a work around on that although it uses up my resources.

I would imagine that I could get used to checking my Hotmail by going in thru their site but it sure isn't as convenient as a POP3 download and I don't get a signal when new mail comes in. I know several people who have gone over to Mozilla entirely and have experienced many fewer problems in the computer life. It is tempting!

I would think that if some code got messed up in the OE download that re-installing it should solve the problem but that has not proven to be the case. Guess I need to wait for OE7 to come out as a fix!

Thanks for your support.

Clarence

Clarence,

Mr. Gates/Microsoft/WinXP/Longhorn/Vista are what attracts all the hackers/virus authors and makes you a target right on "ground zero" !!

You never mentioned what ISP you now use, MSN, Cable, DSL or dial up. I use dial up [retired, you know] and that has been my thinking. If you're not on dial up then disregard my suggestions.

What you might consider, for as little as $10/month is a separate ISP for Email. Eventually you might even want to shift all your Email to this account.

This new ISP would get you out of the range of hackers that are targeting Outlook Express, Hot Mail, etc... And one I use is so good at "screening" I have to tell them to let my legitimate mail thru.

Regards, oldbob

P.S. My birthday is identical to Mickey Mantle's [If he was still alive]

You win, hands down, as being a charter member of the OFC (bet you know what that stands for too!). Beat me by almost 5 years.

I still like my T-shirt that says "I'm a Senior Citizen and I want my Damned Discount!" Only in Florida!

Getting back to the issue at hand, I am on cable broadband and don't desire to ever go back to dial-up. I have come up with an idea that will help me isolate the problem.

I have beguin to use Firefox as my browser and at the same time I open Outlook Express independently so that IE isn't running in its full glory. I minimize the OE and let it sit on the bottom line until I get some mail. Being online whenever the computer is on I get my mail whenever it arrives rather than having to periodically search for it.

If the problem still persists I can conclude that OE may be where it is located. I know of no way to reverse the test and open only IE without OE but may find a way to do that if my first test fails.

I tried to uninstall IE and when I did so it offered me a "repair" option that I took. No help. When it finishes it doesn't even tell you if it repaired anything. I will persevere but it is sure nice having Firefox as a backup. I weaned myself from Netscape ages ago.

Clarence

I am sure you will like FireFox.

I am using CrazyBrowser, which uses the IE engine but never freezes like my IE6

I also let my Outlook Express minimized all day long, as I need to update some websites on-the-fly.

Clarence,

Just one small point.

You don't want to [read can't] get rid of Internet Explorer, there are some web sites that will only work with IE.

Regards & good luck, oldbob

Thanks for the help! I am going to put this out of mind for about 3 weeks while I go half way around the world to visit China and Tibet on vacation.

Fortunately, my laptop (that will be with me) has WinXP op-erating without problems.

I think that the solution I have working now will be my permanent fix. I am not inclined to spends hours upon hours trying to figure out what is wrong with the IE. I'll just let it sit there in the dark! Even removed the icon from my desktop so I don't open it accidentally. I have a separate incon to open OE.

Cheers and I will check back in after 9/19 if anything new creeps into the old machine and makes a nest while I am gone!

Clarence

Hi Clarence, wich you'll have a fun and safe trip

If you want to try Crazy Browser, as I said you before, I think it will solve your problem, as it uses the IE engine (no compatibility problems) and it never freezed with me.

http://www.crazybrowser.com/download.htm

Chris

Chris,

I just downloaded the Crazy Browser. Non of my IE favorites show up (they are grayed out) Can I import or must I replace? Also, I presume I can delete my IE shortcut.

Chris

Hi Chris,

They are greyed out but are still there, no need to import. You can open them normally or click on "open all links". This will open all of them in different tabs.

Chris

Ironbender Chris,

Since Crazy Browser is "IE based" doesn't it still leave you open to all of Internet Explorer's "problems" ??

QUOTE (oldbob @ Sep 5 2005, 08:54 PM)

Ironbender Chris, Since Crazy Browser is "IE based" doesn't it still leave you open to all of Internet Explorer's "problems" ??

Yes, I think so, although I am not absolutely sure of that...

But, as you said before, "You don't want to [read can't] get rid of Internet Explorer, there are some web sites that will only work with IE."

Since I use Crazy Browser, I never had any problems with freezing or with the silly IE message "This program has performed an illegal operation and must be closed" (or something like that, as my Windows is in Brazilian Portuguese)

Safe browser habits and some security programs may take you apart from many problems, as long as we take also care with e-mails (it's impressive how many mails have bad scripts embedded on them).

Chris

Actually I still have Internet Explorer [the big blue "e"] on my quck launch bar.

But, since I get my Win98SE Microsoft updates through Big Fix.

And I got a copy of Micro Trend's "on-line virus scanner" that works with Mozilla.

I haven't "clicked open" IE in weeks maybe months.

Meanwhile, here are still more browsers -

http://www.softpedia.com/get/Internet/Brow...t-Browser.shtml

for your entertainment.