clicking to ads in IE Firefox FB

I honestly dont remember downloading anything like that. I am thinking it may have come from facebook or java/pogo. it was very sneaky!!! altho like i said. i have not have a virus in eons. Again I appreciate your insight and knowledge.

One question. I did install NOscripts.... and how do i uninstall it? It has really changed my functionality and i am not sure how to fix that. Something has changed my font size also. In the noscripts i click on allow access, but it still seems to not allow all for the specific webpage that i am on. this seems to have impacted both IE and firefox. thanks, suzanne

To remove NoScript from Firefox please do the following ....

• Open Firefox, then click Tools > Add Ons > Extensions where you'll see all the extensions you have installed.
• Click on NoScript to highlight it, and then select Remove
• Agree to any prompts, and then exit out of Firefox.
• NoScript should not be present when you next open Firefox.

my start menu icons are not working.....

When you say your start menu icons aren't working, what exactly do you mean ?

1. Are the icons for your most recently used programs being displayed on the left side of the start menu ?
2. If they are, do they open the related program when you click on them ?
3. If they don't open the related program, let me know which icons for which programs are not working.

I have win 8. I mostly use the desktop mode. I dont know what you call the start page. the start page is where the icons are and i usually just go into desktop mode. which the desktop mode icon does work. when i click on the other ones it will start to load, disappear and then it goes back to the start screen with the icons on it. some of them are

xbox music
skype
maps
trending
calendar...

when i click on my mail, messenger, weather, it will say it is unable to connect try again later.

the ones that seem to open are:

desktop
IE
facebook

that is all...

Sorry I forgot you were using W8.

I don't currently have a W8 machine to refer to, so I'm going to have to do a little researching to see if I can find a resolution to your problem. I may be a while, but I'll get back to you as soon as I can.

By the way, the "start" page on W8 with all the square icons is called the Metro page/display.

Try the suggestions made on the following page .... http://www.thewindowsclub.com/fix-metro ... -windows-8 .... only try the first 2 steps, I don't believe that steps 3 and 4 are relevant.

Let me know if they help.

Question ... have you installed a new Anti-Virus program since we finished cleaning your computer ?

both of those first 2 steps were set at they say they should be. didnt help

I did not install anything other than the no scripts, which is disabled, and then the EI one also. WIN defender is not adequate enough?

it was suggested by my techic brother, to install Avira. Should i also install something like mcafee or norton? I do see the icon on the metro page for mcafee, i think i assumed that mcafee was installed on my computer. Is this not the case? ugghh so sorry

oh on the mcafe i had noticed during the beginning of our debugging that the mcafee icon wouldnt load back at that time

It's probably installing the 3rd party AV programs that has caused your problems, try uninstalling any extra protection programs you've installed and see if that resolves your problems.

Windows Defender on Windows 8 is not like Windows Defender on earlier versions of Windows, it is a fully functional anti-virus program, and easily as effective as most of the 3rd party programs you've been talking about. Installing a 3rd party AV program will not improve your defences. The only real reason for doing it, is if you've used the 3rd party program before, and you're more familiar with its functions and interface.

I'm not a fan of either Norton or McAfee, since IMO they are resource heavy. They're also damn difficult to remove fully if/when you get fed up of them.

Under no circumstances should you ever have more than one AV program installed on your machine at any time, doing this will cause conflicts which can manifest themselves in any number of ways. Of course Windows Defender is part of W8, so it cannot be uninstalled, but it should be disabled if you intend to install a 3rd party program.

I have not installed any other AV programs. I did install no scripts which i think i deactivated and the one for EI...

Sorry, I've obviously misunderstood what you wrote in your last post.

First .... I'm fairly sure that nothing we've done in removing your infection will have caused this, but I need to check through everything again to make sure.

Next .... Are you communicating with me from the affected machine, or are you using another computer to post your latest posts ? Please let me know.

Next .... I'm going to have to do a bit more research to see if I can find a reason for your Icons not to work in the Metro Page, and this may take a while. I will get back to you as quickly as I can if I find something.

If I don't find that we've removed something that we shouldn't have, and I can't find a solution for why your icons are not responding, I may need to pass you on to a forum that specialises in resolving that kind of problem. My speciality is Malware removal, and as far as I can see so far, I don't believe this latest problem is Malware related. I'll know better once I've checked everything again.

Yes i am communicating with you through the affected machine.

thanks, gary, i will be awaiting your response.

I've checked through the logs you've supplied, and I can't see anything we've done that might have caused your problems in the Metro screen. However, it does appear to be a pretty common complaint, and if your screen size, and/or UAC setting are not the problem (and we've already checked them), then the solution offered on the Microsoft support site ... http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_8-windows_install/windows-8-apps-not-working/01014156-fee4-4cbe-9744-47c8e07b3314 .... seems to be to Refresh your PC ....

If Metro Apps are still not working your other option would be to Refresh your PC.

Here is what will happen when you refresh your PC:

• Your files and personalization settings won't change.
  
• Your PC settings will be changed back to their defaults.
  
• Apps from Windows Store will be kept.
  
• Apps you installed from discs or websites will be removed.
  
• A list of removed apps will be saved on your desktop.

The following steps will take you through how to refresh your PC:

• Press Windows key + C on your keyboard to show the Charms bar (If you are using a touchscreen: Touch the right edge of your screen and swipe your finger to the left)
  
• Click Settings
  
• Click Change PC Settings
  
• Click General in the left column
  
• Under Refresh your PC without affecting your files, click Get started
  
• Follow the instructions that will be provided on the screen to refresh your PC.

Obviously if you do this, you'll need to re-install any apps that get removed manually yourself, and also you'll have to reset any settings that get changed back to how you had them yourself. I won't be able to help you with that.

There may be other solutions to this problem, but if there are, then I haven't found any so far that look reliable.

I can if you wish refer you a few forums that deal with these kind of issues, and they may have other suggestions for you. As I said earlier, this is not really my area of expertise.

Sure i would love redirection to other forums that may be able to help me with this issue. MS said they would help but at a steep cost. thanks again, gary!