annoying popup/icon at startup!

Running 98se and decided to try adobe reader 3 from www.oldversion.com but did not monitor the install.

After uninstalling and cleaning with reglceaner (which had recurring adobe entries somehow), I still get this annoying little red popup/disappear icon with like a @ (but not quite) type "a" along with the tiny numbers
3.01
32
like that under the "a".

I had later installed adobe 4 reader but the popup persisted. I want to install adobe 5 reader now so decided to take another kick at the can to rid of the popup icon first by monitoring another adobe 3 install, uninstalling, and then clearining out remnants via Total Uninstall hoping that might do it - no go.

Now, I have no adobe reader installed at all but still have the darn thing popping up and harassing me every startup. Anyone know how to get rid of it?

Give Spybot a shot,,,

http://beam.to/spybotsd

Adobe puts in several pieces of junk including reference to Netscape Navigator. Perhaps the above will identify and remove your nig...

And if Spybot doesnt fix your problem ^dAvEy^, go here and download and run Startup List. It will generate a log file. Copy the log and paste it back into this thread (you may have to halve it and make two posts).

We will be able to see where its starting from and get rid of it for you.

Might want to check your registry under the run key.

HKLM\software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run & HKLM\software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Runonce

thanks gang...
Ridgerunr
Always a pleasure - I have, use and update spybot regularly
- all hits clear, but none solve the prob

AnnMarie
Ah, my favourite kiwi - how's things, darlin?
I'll get on the startup list in a bit and post or edit back...
exhausted from exams and 1 yet to go!

TeeDub
ya, checked it out, but only found stuff I dunno about but might be ok...will come out in the startup list - thanks

attaching the list...
<I think there's maybe something screwie going on in there, but then, I always think that!>

Hiya ^dAvEy^ - I'm great thanks. Good luck with your exams :D

Your Startup List is one of the cleanest I have seen. Absolutely no problems there. I suspect that the problem is in the Registry though.

Run regedit again and this time, click on Edit and Find. Type Adobe in the box and run a search. Delete any entry that is clearly identified as an Adobe key or value. You can choose to export the key or value first (create a new folder and click on Registry or File Menu and choose export to the new folder) so the entries can be restored if you have any problems.

Let us know how you get on.

>>Hiya ^dAvEy^ - I'm great thanks. Good luck with your exams
- Super to hear, AM.Thanks. Finished up today. Think all went atleast okay...

>>Your Startup List is one of the cleanest I have seen. Absolutely no problems there.
- Again, super to hear...

>>I suspect that the problem is in the Registry though.
Run regedit again and this time, click on Edit and Find. Type Adobe in the box and run a search. Delete any entry that is clearly identified as an Adobe key or value.
- here's the thing:
- Needed a pdf viewer before I could get the poppup icon thingy thing sorted out...
Installed adobe reader 4 a la Total Uninstall monitoring...
- Do you think it's worth uninstalling adobe reader 4 now, cleaning out remnants via Total Uninstall and then see what SpyBot, Adaware, RegCleaner, Xcleaner and Spider can clean out...
THEN follow your edit/find suggestion above, AnnMarrie?
maybe sounds like a big deal <and even like I'm complaining>, but it's not and I'm not!
Could do the lot in under 10 minutes, I reckon...
Whatcha think?

>>You can choose to export the key or value first (create a new folder and click on Registry or File Menu and choose export to the new folder) so the entries can be restored if you have any problems.
>>Thanks - such is my regular registry regime

Hiya ^dAvEy^

Quote:

---

Could do the lot in under 10 minutes, I reckon...
Whatcha think?

---

Yep, thats a good idea. Complaining? No, I didnt think that. I know how annoying these little things can be. :D

HELP!!
that little bu**er is still popping up!
I delted all hits for adobe and acrobat and even a few related acro hits too, by it still there!
I searched for anything I thought could be related with searches of jpg, gif, bmp, and ico files and still no go!
any other ideas?
:mad:

Just run a quick look in the regs, using 4 though and in HKEY classes root I found 36 hits.

I would try reinstalling 3 and use ADD Remove pro to remove it and see what happens. How about just seeing in 4 will upgrade 3 with a overinstall?

Acrobat is just as bad as McAfee and ADD Remove Pro does a fine job of getting it out.

hiya Train - how's it going?
didja 'do the Puyallup' this Fall?

Here's what I've tried so far:
1- uninstalling adobe 3 - no joy
2- ran reglceaner and spybot - no joy
3- searched for and cleaned out My Computer and registry any hits for all I could find of adobe, acrobat, adob*, acrob*, acror*, acrbt, and whatever other combinations I could think of - no joy
4- reinstalled adobe 3 a la total uninstall, uninstalled via uninstaller, cleaned out remnants via total uninstall, ran regcleaner and spybot - no joy
5- installed adobe 4 a la total uninstall, uninstalled a la uninstaller, cleaned out a la total uninstall, regcleaner, spybot - no joy
6- redid #3 - in fact, I get no hits at all with searches a la #3 anymore - no joy
7- did individual searches in My Computer for image files for possible indications for the sucker (*.jpg, *.bmp, *.gif, *.ico) - no joy

I'm at a loss!

well did you look into the programs folder, and see if the adobe folder was in there. It normally has lots of junk left in it.

Family did 'do the Puyallup' , me, I dodged that crowded mess again :D

Located mine at C:\Program Files\Adobe

Perchance, did you look in the startup folder real good for adobe?

Autoexec.bat , config.sys are a couple more places to look.

You might check the load= and run= lines in Win.ini also.

Hi ^dAvEy^

Been following this thread with Interest (BUMP)

I have both acro reader ?? and adobe acrobat 5.0 installed and I haven't had the problem indicated, so I really don't know what the H... is going on in your situation.

Have you checked for an adobe folder in the root drive, mine is in my documents? if you have the folder then check it to see if there is anything in there that may be called for in the start up.

Might want to install a free start up manager and see what is listed as starting up, and uncheck suspected items (can probably use the ms start up tab in msconfig) for the same thing. One thing for sure it is starting on boot, and all one has to do is find the app and prevent it or eliminate it.

I know that this can be frustrating to say the least, trial and error, wish I had the answer.

My wife's puter had a crazy start up that I just redirected to an item that was on the puter(flashget) and it started on boot, then I just went to the options in flashget and deactivated the start on boot.

Wish it were that simple in your case but maybe you can use some of the information in my post - don't know but I sure hope that you are able to fix the s.o.b. and get rid of the aggrivation. i know that this was just a workaround, but I really did not want to waste time messing around with her system to find the culpret.

Take care - following the thread with interest. Hang in there, some one will hit on the fix and we will all learn something!