[BullKurtz]

Please help.
I have an 8 month old, $1500 machine that is right now a glorified DVD player. I have been getting Dr Watson Fatal Errors for weeks, and have been using System Restore to get this thing working again. Now, system restore has failed- not only that, but the last time I used it, it uninstalled my Office software, I have no idea where it went. The page says that system restore can be undone and no changes are permanent, but when I try to un-restore, the program says I can't do it. Every time I try to open My Documents, I get a Dr Watson error that shuts the computer down.
I'm sorry, but I'm just a writer- not a tech savvy guy. I can't be more specific in these descriptions. I'm in panic right now- I need my Word back, and I need a functioning computer to keep producing work. This is a total disaster, and I'm desperate for help.
I hate this worthless computer and want to destroy it, but don't have the money to. I also loathe Microsoft and Emachines, who both refuse to assist me in this matter. If I've lost my computer, I don't know what I'll do.
Other than that, life is just peachy. - The Bull

[Advertisements]

By the way, if anyone can help me, I promise to give them a nod in the "Dedication" section of one of my novels, when they get published. I'm actually quite funny and skillful when I'm not considering suicide because my machine won't work. Once again, forgive me for being so ill-informed and ignorant of tech issues, but all I understand is Word and I'm not even really sure what this debugging software does. But- what an irony- it sure as h*** doesn't seem to "debug" anything; it just crashes my computer. - The Bull

[BullKurtz]

By the way, if anyone can help me, I promise to give them a nod in the "Dedication" section of one of my novels, when they get published. I'm actually quite funny and skillful when I'm not considering suicide because my machine won't work. Once again, forgive me for being so ill-informed and ignorant of tech issues, but all I understand is Word and I'm not even really sure what this debugging software does. But- what an irony- it sure as h*** doesn't seem to "debug" anything; it just crashes my computer. - The Bull

[paddyt]

Hi BullKurtz,

Have you just installed Service Pack 2 for XP? If so lots of people are having similar problems relating to Malware. If you uninstall SP2 you should get control of your system back, then you will need to look in the Malware/spyware section of this forum and run the appropriate utils.

Paddy

[paddyt]

Hi Bull,

You may find that Service pack 2 installed itself automatically if automatic updates have been set up on your PC. To check if it's installed go to start> run and type winmsd, hit enter and then your system information file should appear and on the right you should see version and which service pack is installed.

Hope this helps

Paddy

[BullKurtz]

Rule Brittania!
Well, thanks to you, half the battle is won. That has to be the problem- I followed your quite lucid instructions and dumped the Service pack, and now can open things again, which is a load off of my mind.
My MS Office software is still gone, which really makes me angry, since System Restore SPECIFICALLY says that anything done is COMPLETELY reversable. It looks like they're liars. Too bad for me, but that's what you get from a bunch like that.
Anyway, a sincere thanks. You have no idea how much conflicting info I got, to the extent that Emachines claimed that "Dr Watson" was a virus, and that no such program is EVER installed on Windows-what liars! I'm glad people like you are out there- clueless types like me are utterly lost with this tech stuff.
Good work, and thanks again. - Bull

[paddyt]

Glad to be of help, I'll add Emachine to my list to avoid.

Paddy