i am a computer idiot

Don't underrate yourself. Troubleshooting is all about taking a deep breath, grabbing a cup of coffee, and doing a bit of thinking.

How emotionally attached are you to PC Security Shield? If you feel uncomfortable surfing the Internet without antivirus software, why not try the free application AVG?

http://free.grisoft.com/

Post back in this thread if you need further assistance.

Rick/Portland, OR

that you do not need the Earthlink software to dial up. You would be better served over the long term to remove that software. You can call Earthlink tech support and ask them to walk you through the process of setting up your phone modem and dialup connection manually. While at it, if it applies, have them help you set up your cable (LAN) connection manually as well.

I have been an Earthlink customer since it belonged to Sprint, and maintain a dialup account with them. They have been quite agreeable in that regard, in my opinion.

No one actually needs any particular ISP software, and it is for the most part more trouble than it is worth.

Avast is also a good, free alternative for virus protection.

edit: Idiocy is unlikely in your case. nepenthe0 is correct, you are seeking advice and answers, rather than packing the machine off to someone else to fix. Good deal!

AOL is another example of an ISP that installs horrid software in one's computer.

You may wish to check out the free Internet browser Mozilla Firefox v. 3, currently available from the Mozilla web site in [i]beta[/i]. It was favorably reviewed in last week's Wall Street Journal by the Personal Technology guru, Walter Mossberg:

http://tinyurl.com/4wfvb7

I have personally tested it against IE-6, and can verify that it is significantly faster, and so far, trouble free.

Rick/Portland, OR

and note that you have this image posted at photobucket. You don't have to code it yourself when you use photobucket as the source of your pic. They have 4 options (I can never remember which is which) that make it easy. Just click in one of those options, and a copy is automatically done. Then paste to the place you want the photo.

Egad - did that make any kind of sense?

I actually discovered that, Boxfiddler, just before you answered my e-mail, but I wanted to make your instructions work, so I persevered and [i]voila![/i] as they say in French, there was my ugly mug larger than I intended.

I tried posting a downsized version to PhotoBucket (just 30KB) but the TR paste appeared the same to my browser. Curiously, I did a better job earlier today in the Discussion Forum:

http://tinyurl.com/5q8b3v

but I still need more practice. So watch out, Old Mycroft, 'cause I'm getting better at this stuff...

Rick/Portland, OR