My family computer, a emachines desktop, has been having problems for years. The screen has often gone black and frozen, and the only way to turn it off is by unplugging it (it doesn’t work to just press the button sometimes).
Also, when we are online, a message comes up that basically says "Windows Internet Explorer has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience" Then it asks if you want to send an error report. It usually happens after about 30 minutes-1 hour after you started using the internet. It will then shorten the time between messages and it closing after the first message. It has gotten down to when it will say that even before the window opens, then the computer screen will go blank, and the button will not work. Sometimes when turn off the power, the computer stays on for a whole fifteen seconds while everything else turns off. (Is that normal?)
My parents will buy some cheap anti-virus software, but when I try to scan the computer, the "encountered a problem" message comes up, and then the screen goes blank. This can happen anyway from 3 seconds into the scan, from 5 seconds away from it being done. Sometimes it wil finish, and will have found nothing, which I don’t believe, because it still has so many problems. As compared to it having found around 50 problems when the scan cannot finish because the computer shuts down.
My mom finally got an anti-virus software from her work, called Symnatec anti-virus. From the look of it, it looks like it belongs on Microsft Windows 98, not XP (which is what it is recommened for). It has never found any threats, but the computer is still horrible.
I have tried to download free anti-virus software from online, but the download shuts down in the process.
So am I wondering if just repairing windows will get rid of the viruses, or do I have to do a complete reinstallation? Which my mom doesn’t want to do because she will lose all the things that she needs for her work. She doens’t anything about computers (she thought the pipes screen saver meant the computer was having a meltdown) but she is very stubborn about what we are going to do about it. All she does is complain, swear under her breath, and slam her fist on the desk, but she refuses to do anything about it. (As is buy a new computer, better anti-virus protection, or completely reinstall windows, if that’s what I need to do).
Thank you for reading all of this (if you did) and any help would be appreciated, if on my question at the top, or any suggestions of good anti-virus software.
Thanks again
We have tried firefox and the message still comes up. I have also downloaded the newest version of Internet Exploer, and still the same thing.

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