Well absolutely no one should be online without adequate protection these days, too many scoundrels out there by far. The 2 most popular seem to be Superantispyware and Malwarebytes. Be careful installing and stay with the free version, Malwarebytes is free but does not appear to say so as you install. I run one or the other perhaps weekly, more if I feel I have visited doubtful places. That is a very smart move taking your scanner when visiting rellies, at least that way they feel safe in that the photos remain in there possession. Also you get the chance to discuss each and perhaps make notes because no one thought to write on the backs of the photos. On the printing issue have you considered having them done for you? This can be done online at a large number of places including your local supermarket and/or pharmacy. You then collect them the next day or whatever the rules are at any given location. This to me is cheaper than using your own ink and I think their ink quality is somewhat better than we get for our printers. I found scanning slides very trying but that was a few years ago and the equipment was not as good as we have now. You say the scanner is expensive and no doubt it is. But when I started the local computer joint charged $10 for the first scan and $8 for any others done at the same time. It made sense to buy a scanner and save a bundle, you have to decide how many scans you need to do then decide on which route. Photo editing for tears, bends and scratches is very interesting but time consuming and a steep learning curve at the outset. I enjoy that stuff, in fact I just removed a no longer son in law from the middle of a family group for a lady.

Absolutely owbist, back up everything and do an image if you can with Acronis. And follow all the download and install directions to the letter which means turning off all antivirus programs, firewalls, spyware protection and any other running programs, even better install it in safe mode where you have only minimal processes running. Using the cd or the full version is much better than doing it through update from everything I have seen and read on all the tech forums, you get the full install and it seems to go easier. So having the cd is a good thing plus you have it to keep should you ever need to format your pc and need it again. There just are no guarantees that things will go well, many thought they did have a good install and things are now showing up, why that is who knows, it could be specific to something they have on their pc that sp3 was not compatible with, think of how many programs there are out there, it is impossible to make any thing compatible with all. (however the big companies work with microsoft to make these things work prior to release that is why the beta testing for so long, so it doing what it is with programs like Norton and some of the other big names is not a good reflection) Unfortunately there were more people that had their restore points disappear than just that one instance and they had not changed anything so it is definitely affecting restore points on some computers. I have kept my pc fully updated since sp2 so there fore I have pretty much everything I need from sp3 already, at this point my decision is not to install with a wait and see point of view. What each person choses to do is up to them, it is however essential to know all the information so you can do so in an educated manner. That is why I am posting when something new has been discovered that they did not know, that way we stay educated as to what needs to be done and what to expect. But then you also have to expect the unexpected! LOL

Just a few days delay and the computer that I had configured is no longer available. So I guess I'll "downgrade" a bit and get one with 3rd generation Intel i5 and on board graphics. Only additions I chose were some USB3 ports on the front and a wireless adapter, both of which added a total of $20 to the sale price. Operating system Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Processor 3rd Generation Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-3330 quad-core processor [3.0GHz, 6MB Shared Cache] Graphics card Integrated Intel(R) HD Graphics [DVI-I & DVI-D, DX 10.1] Memory 6GB DDR3-1333MHz SDRAM [2 DIMMs] Hard drive 1TB 7200 rpm SATA hard drive Office software Microsoft Office Trial Primary optical drive SuperMulti DVD Burner Productivity ports 15-in-1 memory card reader, 2 USB 2.0, 2 USB 3.0 Sound Card Beats Audio (tm) -- integrated studio quality sound Keyboard and Mouse HP keyboard and optical mouse Networking Wireless-N LAN card (1x1) Starting price $619.99* Price epp price icon $607.59* Instant rebate -$100.00 Total: $507.59 Does this sound like a pretty good deal? I'll decide by Monday if I'm going to buy it. I have a Logitech wireless keyboard and mouse and powered Creative speakers with subwoofer. I may need an adapter to continue to use my present monitor, but that shouldn't be a problem. It is 5x4 and I prefer that to widescreen.

I have nothing to show that the Dropper was false or positive except for the Malwarebytes results. It identified that a Registry key was infected -- ..amazon kindle for pc (Trojan. Dropper). Two files infected: ...\Downloads\KindleForPC - installer.exe (Trojan.Dropper) and the \Kindle For PC\uninstall.exe (Trojan.Dropper). As I understand the process, a trojan can be a conduit for further viruses and problems. I can in no way debate that the Dropper was/was not a real problem but is is strange that in our relatively small population of Gardenweb users as well as one who posted on the Malwarebytes site got the same, perhaps identicsal, result. Anyway, my problem appears to have gone away and the Kindle routine seems to be okay.