Avant browser closes (unexpectedly & often)

[Heathen]

First, thank you for being here!  
This has been going Since September, but is happening more often.  Today was the first time there was no error message ("avant ...error & will now close").  I've added no new software, and repeated scans by NAV 2007 have turned up nothing.

The computer is a Compac Presario 5000 series, originally installed with  win xp home, now running win xp pro (a friends' now ex-husband "fixed" an error by installing his -unknown to me-bogus pro over the home.  The Compac didn't come with a copy of the OS, so as yet I haven't tried to revert to the legit home (I will soon, but that's another post  ).  Just wanted to give background on what's in here.  Over time I've manually updated the OS with some DLL's from SP2 (learning never to force an install of advapi32.dll ), but many are original.  I don't use IE, nor do I use the Windows firewall.  NAV 2007 has a firewall component & I use McAfee Firewall.  Both have my browser enabled without limitation.  My internet connection is through Verizon DSL, but I'm not using the router firewall.  I do have the docwatson crash log from the last occurrence (the Event viewer gives all the closings the same error message & details:

Sorry for such a long post.  But the "please read this 1st" post said to be detailed.  Thanks for your help!

[saving disk space - old attachment deleted by admin]

[Deerpark]

Over time I've manually updated the OS with some DLL's from SP2 (learning never to force an install of advapi32.dll ), but many are original.

Are you saying you've update part of your XP system files to SP2 manually? That sounds so incredibly bad to me and I wouldn't be surprised if this was the source of your problem. SP2 wasn't just another update but actually a complete rewrite of some parts of the XP core. I would under no circumstance mix and match between SP2 and pre-SP2 system files.

I don't use IE,

Actually that isn't completely true. Avant is based on core IE components and as such couldn't function on a computer without IE installed. And since IE is integrated very tightly with Windows this again strengthens my suspicion that this have something to do with your system files.

EDIT
Almost forgot... Welcome to the Computer Hope Forum Heathen.

[Heathen]

TY for the welcome  !  I've been enjoying the "introduce yourself" postings.  Some very smart and funny (in a good sense), people here.

Actually, yes I did manually update some dlls & sys files (see attached list), but that was a long time ago.  The last time I did this was Nov 2, 2006 (the advapi32.dll scare with message: "..something about lsass...windows will close in 30 seconds. Please save your work", right after the windows welcome screen).  So if this was the cause, its been a long time building. 

And you're right about the Avant browzer & IE.  I should have been more specific and said I didn't use the actual IE browser itself.

Over time I've manually updated the OS with some DLL's from SP2 (learning never to force an install of advapi32.dll ), but many are original.

Are you saying you've update part of your XP system files to SP2 manually? That sounds so incredibly bad to me and I wouldn't be surprised if this was the source of your problem. SP2 wasn't just another update but actually a complete rewrite of some parts of the XP core. I would under no circumstance mix and match between SP2 and pre-SP2 system files.

I don't use IE,

Actually that isn't completely true. Avant is based on core IE components and as such couldn't function on a computer without IE installed. And since IE is integrated very tightly with Windows this again strengthens my suspicion that this have something to do with your system files.

EDIT
Almost forgot... Welcome to the Computer Hope Forum Heathen.

[saving disk space - old attachment deleted by admin]

[patio]

I think Deerpark is on to something here...IE has to be running properly so Avast can run properly.
Without having SP2 and a fresh version of IE we would be just guessing at which components may be lacking/corrupted.
How does it run with FireFox ? ?

[Heathen]

I really don't understand why it would take so long to malfunction.  Nov 6, 2006 was just the date of the ill-fated replacement of advapi32.dll, but I had replaced many for at least 2 months before that (I don't remember why, & would have to search for writings of exasperation).

The only other browsers I've used besides Avant(since way back when my xp home was legit (come to think of it, this was the main reason I attempted to "fix" my computer, which led to the above-mentioned bad xp.  Now I know it was simply that the chat website I was trying to access used sun java not ms java), SP1 would download, then give the error message "...has not passed windows logo testing and will now close"), has been Opera (briefly), Firefox (until it did a java error & left me hanging forever while it insisted on reporting the error), and Orca (from the maker of Avant, but based upon Mozillas' gecko, still in beta, but downloads faster than anything I've used).  But Orca didn't satisfy any online credit card payment security protocols.  So when you mention Firefox, I thought I'd download it once again (1st time since around 2002), and see how it reacts.

Oddly enough, the problems I had then, I now know how to solve.  Isn't hindsight wonderful? 

Scarily, aside from the welcome page, etc.,  it opened to "The Onion", which was what my 5 yrs old Firefox did.  So much for Registry 1st Aid & my own kamikaze raids into the registry clearing out obsolete links! Stumbleupon was also offered at the onset (which I was happy about, as I had already been planning to add it after seeing Nathans' mention of it in the early pages of "introduce yourselves").  I also found Yoono, which I added.  The only bad thing is that the wealth of sites I had bookmarked in Avant (many existing in IE), aren't present in Firefox.  But that's easy to rectify.

So ends the thrill of (re)discovery.  I will use Firefox (trying to do so exclusively), see what happens, & report.

Thank you for helping to figure this out  . 


quote author=patio link=topic=46413.msg291482#msg291482 date=1195857554]
I think Deerpark is on to something here...IE has to be running properly so Avast can run properly.
Without having SP2 and a fresh version of IE we would be just guessing at which components may be lacking/corrupted.
How does it run with FireFox ? ?
[/quote]

[patio]

It may be time to go back to legit...

 

[Heathen]

It may be time to go back to legit...

 

Way past time! But as I said earlier, that's a question for a whole different forum section.  The potential for screwing it up is enormous, which makes me a bit apprehensive & avoidant.  Still, you never learn anything if you don't do anything...

[patio]

Let's get started then...

 

[Heathen]

Let's get started then...

 

  Thank you, I feel encouraged.  I guess that tomorrow (when I am without the benefit of homemade grape wine vintage 2005 & blasting music), I'll lay out the restoring nitpicking details in a nonbrowser forum.  *Ouch*, I feel as if I should supply at least coffee all around.  The details ain't pretty.   

So wherever you are, have a good night !