My dad’s computer has been infected with a virus which redirects searches to completely random places. Ted’s spent about twenty hours trying to clean it up, to no avail. In desperation, we turn to the hive mind to see if anybody has suggestions he hasn’t tried. The following is what he *has* tried:

Ok, so the computer has run into js/fake alert and I can’t seem to get rid of it. Have uninstalled and reinstalled completely the browser.

Used Spydoctor, McAfee, and Norton to try and get ride of the problem and still no joy. After reinstall of Firefox the search feature will work for a while and then start back up with random websites keyed to something that I cannot find and will block any attempt to get to antivirus software web pages. I cannot get Norton to update and windows update does not work either (and that is on explorer 8). I have not found anything on the web to guide me in a permanent fix.

Any suggestions would be helpful.

Also I am not convinced that the problem with web page navigation is related to the virus but nothing else is coming up to point me in
another direction.

I know he has also downloaded spyware and virusware updates onto memory sticks from a different computer and installed them, so it’s not just being unable to get to upgrades–the latest thing he can download doesn’t seem to be doing the trick either.

Nor can we tell if possibly Dad’s hitting some site which is reinfecting him, so if anybody has any idea where the virus might be *coming* from, that could be helpful too. :/

Thank you in advance!

currently: hopeful

In possibly the fastest-ever reversal on a comic book I’ve ever experienced, X-MEN FOREVER #2 put me off reading the series entirely. I’ll probably pick it up in (softcover) trade, but wow, I’ve never gone from really quite eager to read a series to dropping it that fast. There’s no continuity between 1 & 2. They skipped a huge chunk of action, which we will presumably learn As The Story Plays Out, but it’s not a storytelling ploy that I’m willing to accept. It just pissed me off, and even Ted, who is *much* more lenient than I am, said, “Well, I can wait for the trade now.”

I also picked up the hardcovers for ASTONISHING X-MEN 1 & 2, because I’m hopelessly behind on the X-Men in general, which is not a good state for someone who’d like to write for Marvel to be in. I’m still pissed at one of the Astonishing storylines (and think Joss’s Emma and Kitty sound like Spike and Buffy, which, no. gah. bad. wrong.), so Ted was very surprised when I picked them up. B I have to start catching up *somewhere*, and Astonishing is at least an obvious and visible break point from some of the stuff that’s come before. And I’ve *read* most of what’s come before, so at least I’ve got legs to stand on there.

At P-Con, /Paul Cornell and I were bemoaning the lack of a Complete Marvel Graphic Novels page on the internet. We believe it should exist. We believe it should tell us all of the Marvel graphic novels, and the order in which to read them. We both, it turns out, have thought, “I should make that list!”, and then thought, “Wow, but such a lot of work, somebody else must have done it by now,” but neither of us have been able to find it. I suspect there’s an entire internet full of Marvel fans thinking, “I should make that list! …wow, but such a lot of work, somebody else must have done it by now…”

ytd km swum: 47.7

currently: apathetic

Yesterday /Lithera pointed out some new images from some noir thing Marvel is doing, so I’ve made up some icons from the images. Not sure I’m *entirely* pleased with them, but I like the banner a lot, at least, and maybe I like some of the others too. :)

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currently: creative

Looking at my notes, apparently the Dabel Brothers panel was on Thursday, so technically this should go under that last entry, but oh well. Short version: Chance didn’t get announced and I’m frustrated by that. I don’t know when it’s even going into Previews–it didn’t make it into this month’s as it was supposed to, so right now I’ve got no publication date on it. Maybe I’ll get one by next week, as I did get a chance to talk with them on…Sunday, and they’re having a full team meeting later this week, but right now I’ve got nothin’. I’ll let people know when that changes.

…completely not-really-related-except-sort-of, I’m considering launching a forum-based website for Chance/my writing sometime toward the end of this year, except reality says I’m not actually the person to run it. If anybody’s interested in helping me design/moderate something like that, let me know, huh? I don’t actually know if there’d be enough traffic to bother, but it might be worth thinking about.

Anyway, more ComicCon!

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currently: happy

Actual new words today! 1100 of them! Revising never feels much like new words, so I am triumphant in having achieved New Words. I am certain my old words were the wrong ones, so I hope these new ones are the right ones. :)

I brought the list of things what need fixing over to the estate agent today, but it turns out that we also don’t know how to turn on the furnace/get hot water at the house, so I’m going to have to stop by again tomorrow, or call, and say, ‘Help!’

…I must have this wig. Obviously. *shakes a tiny fist at Kate*

ytd wordcount: 209,500
miles to Minas Tirith: 505

currently: dorky

Well. I went forth to buy some summer clothes today, and spent over two hours shopping, which is my personal idea of hell. Moreover, I didn’t like much and what I did like I couldn’t afford, with the exception of a linen dress which had a broken zipper on the one size that fit me. That sucked.

Ted, however, cleaned up, as I picked up the new D&D books for him and also found THE SPOOK’S MISTAKE, which must’ve just come out Tuesday. So at least that was a win.

And I had lunch with Kate, which was very pleasant. We geeked a lot, and eventually stopped at the goth shop to see if we could find anything irresistible. I found some very long white clip-in hair thingies, and on the logic that I might someday grow my hair out again, bought a couple for a non-bleached Rogue stripe. But I have to get rid of the red at the bangs before I start growing it again, I think…

I was walking down the stairs a couple of days ago with HOUSE OF CARDS and THE QUEEN’S BASTARD in my hand and had a real moment of surreality: I wrote these books. I do this for a living. Buh!

thinks to do tomorrow:

- CB AFS
- email jason the edits
- work on “frwl”

miles to Minas Tirith: 490.1

currently: tired

I shoulda left the damned streak in my hair and called it good.

I suppose this color will do. It’s darker. I prefer it to the last color. But the whole thing makes me really just want to cut my hair into a Louise Brooks bob and have done with it.

*mutter* Stupid hair.