Xp Sp2
 

I finally installed the SP2 update. I bought my daughter a laptop recently and just wiped out and reloaded my mother's desktop computer.

It seemed that they have had no trouble with the full XP program including SP2. So I broke down and installed it finally on my computer.

I have never been so disappointed in an operating system before as I am with XP with SP 2

I could not take it SO I finally removed it from the puter and am very happy that I did. I think that I will do what I did to my mother's system. I think I will wipe out the hard drive and reinstall XP with the SP1 upgrade only.

What problems did you have? If you have a network turn off the firewall. Other than that SP2 is solid. As an upgrade or clean install it is the same.

I have used popup blockers for years without a problem. But with SP2, I went to purchase a prepaid US Post Office label for the many boxes that I ship and SP2 now blocks the popups each and every time and never lets me allow the popup thru. I now have had to put claims in to the Post Office for labels that I paid for but were blocked by SP2.

The Post Office can not give you an instant refund, they have to wait at least 15 days, to make sure the label is not used. So I am now waiting on almost $100 in refunds from the post office because SP2 blocked my abilibity to print out the labels I paid for.

I'm sure you have seen the bar at the top under the address bar where you can right click and allow them right? And under the tools menu you can add sites to allow popups from?

I did click on the yellow bar to allow popups from that site, but it did not allow it anyways,

I never saw a "tool menu" unless you mean the yellow bar. but half the time I never saw the yellow bar, as I was looking at someone else.

pawed,
The tool menu is a standard menu but with SP2 that is where the settings for popups are located. It is on the menu bar. File/Edit/View/Favorites/Tools/Help

I don't believe microsoft is doing updates for sp1 anymore so not updating would be a bad idea.

Another nice option would be to use Firefox, http://www.mozilla.com/firefox/ to use to surf the web. It runs much like IE and most people tend to like it better than IE for lots of different features, but its worth a try. With this you could keep your SP2 upgrade so you could keep bugs fixed and things patched in the future and still get around those pesky IE quirks.

You should NOT be running windows XP without service pack 2...

You may have alot of spyware & or rootkits on your computer that you may not realize are there. I would be very wary about typing in your credit card information if your not on SP2 and running XP.

I would probably format my hard drive, and not with just the quick option in the installation, do the longer format that way you zero out every byte on the drive and dont leave anything behind, a quick format will still leave all your data behind, but will only make your OS think its gone.

For the popup blocker, its just like any other one, you sometimes have to train it, just like any other pop up blocker and also get used to it.

If you think something on the site should be working, look to the top bar for anything that might be getting blocked. If it is, you simply click on it and select the appropiate action.

IE7 is out now so for all of u not running it, go get it.

SP2 is not going to "fix" all spyware and rootkits. In fact, if you happen to have those, the SP2 install may hose the whole system - happened to my father in law. He was without his system for a week while a shop undid that disaster.

No, a format, either quick or slow, will have the same result as far as the OS installation is concerned - your data will be inaccessible and overwritten in short order. You do not need the "longer format" in the installation. You gain nothing, as far as getting a "clean install", by doing one vs. the other.

Unless you have software that might not be compatible with it. Like Quicken. Or if you use your computer for work purposes - you may find yourself running afoul of company policy by installing IE7 on a system that connects to the company network (or if the company owns the computer itself).

The earlier suggestion of using Firefox instead of IE is very solid. Using Firefox instead of IE will protect you from a very large number of the attacks and threats that you're vulnerable to while using IE.

I agree 100%. Really I don't see why people are still with IE when there are so many better options out there. Firefox, Flock and Opera are all worth taking a look at. Hackers and the such target Microsoft and the noobs. Thus putting the target simply on Internet Explorer they win almost the entire mark. I think if you try any of the above three browsers you will be very impressed in comparison.

Too I agree that SP2 is a much needed pack. To clarify a bit more it is not the service pack that has done this, it is without any question the browser itself. Best of luck to you. :)

Did you go to microsoft update site and update after the sp2 install?
There are still many update you'll need that do not come with sp2, including IE7 which will go mandatory soon.

As far as I'm concerned, the aboslute best place to find the solution to any problem is Broadbandreports.com, microsoft help forum. They've helped countless people through this process.

There will be ways to get updates without IE7 - it shouldn't be "mandatory" for a while. Especially while there are still questions about application compatibility out there.

Haven't checked lately, I think it just became available to the public. I shouldn't say mandatory, but "strongly promoted".