There is now a more common worm that sasser that replaced. It may be causing the LSA Shell error. Your most common junk antivirus such as McAfee can detect and delete sasser. Most firewalls can stop sasser. This sounds more like the womourge worm. You can find and eliminate this with the tools from Symantec.

Here is more input:

• Although these sites are great to find help and answers some people don't keep up with the information being released every momment of every day and it is difficult to keep up with the ever so progressive virus world. Please search out as many casses of this and read all info pertaining to it before fallowing one post. You could just end up in circles over and over again.

• The solution is easy, somewhat. I take it when you receive the LSA Shell (Export Version) notice, a few moments later the System Shutdown Count appears? Not to worry. Just restart your computer, making sure that you are, in fact, disconnected from the internet. Then click Start, click Run, and in the white box type "cmd". A black box will appear, inside the black box, after your computer's administrater's name type "shutdown -I" (when typing this, don't forget the space between the hyphen and the word "Shutdown".) and press enter. The Shutdown Setting's window will appear. In the first box, type in your computer's name and click Add. Then in the box that reads: 20 seconds, type 9999. This will increase your time on the internet to about three hours!This will give you time to download Stinger, which can be found on the McAfee website. Stinger will find and repair this problem. Simple.

1. click start -> Run

2. type "services.msc" (without the double quotes) and press Enter.

3. Double Click "Remote Procedure Call"

4. On the "Recovery" tab, change "Shutdown Computer" to "Restart the Service" for all Failure counts ie. 1st, 2nd and subsequent.

5. Press OK.

That should be the first step to preventing it. Then download any "Blaster Worm Removal Tool" from the net and scan your system for it. This shutdown is often caused by the msblast worm. That should fix your problem.

And if it continues, just do this everytime the shutdown count begins:

1. Select Start -> Run

2. type "shutdown -a" and press Enter

That's it. This solves everything. the countdown disappears.

If you had internet connection firewall (ICF) enabled, this wouldn't have happened. Worms use the LSA shell security flaw to get into the remote system. Enable the ICF by:

1) Right click connections icon in the Network Connections and select properties.

2) Go to advanced and tick ICF option.

This will evade viruses from getting into the system as it blocks all incoming connection requests.

Here is more input:

• Go to Start > Run> type services.msc and search for RPC, double click on it and on the TAB's go to Recovery, all the failure notices that say "Restar the Computer", change them to "Restart the Service", apply it and then reboot your machine. Once you reboot, it'll give the error message again, but will stop once you press ok twice, restart your machine and it shall be removed.

• Sometimes its not sasser or the msblast worm like for my case! So the thing is to go to run. type "services.msc" then go to the option "RCP" from there another window will pop up and click the recovery tab. change all three setting to "restart the service" and reset the comp. That should do it.

There are several ways in which you can format a Windows computer. If you want to save data and settings; you will need USMT (User State Migration Tool). You'll also need something to save the data from USMT. Next, you'll need either your original Windows CD that came with your computer (or recovery/restore disc), a boot disc which has formatting tools, or an HP Recovery Drive. First, I'll say this: I do not recommend HP Recovery Drive. Many people have used it and have had a bad experience with it. Also, it's not very efficient. In fact, I won't even explain how to use it. Next, if you have a boot disc with formatting tools on it. Most commonly these will be Linux Distros. Then you can run that disc on startup and run the formatting program on your primary drive. However, you won't be able to install Windows without the original CD. Make sure that you have your BIOS setting are set to boot from the Disc befor the Hard Drive. The BIOS is different for every manufacturer. Most commonly you can enter the BIOS by pressing "delete" at the first splash screen on boot up. Here is a list of BIOS manufacturers with their corresponding keys to enter BIOS settings: http://michaelstevenstech.com/bios_manufacturer.htm When you start your computer with a windows CD inside; you will see "Press any key to boot from disc...". So, when you press something; the Windows CD will load some generic drivers. The first screen you get will say "Welcome to Setup" and gives you a few options.

1. Setup Windows [ENTER]
2. Repair Windows with Recovery Console [R]
3. Quit the Setup [F3]

If you don't wish to format your computer and simply wish to fix Windows; you should try to use the recovery console. Be sure to consult someone who knows how to deal with your specific problem. The recovery console is not made for the average user. Assuming that you've now hit enter; you will be brought up with a screen diisplaying the Windows Licensing Agreement. Press F8 to continue. The next screen wil be titled something like "Windows XP Home Edition Setup". You have three options on this screen.

1. Setup Windows on selected item [ENTER]
2. Repair Installation [R]
3. Create a partition [C]
4. Delete the selected partition [D]

If you wish to simply make a reapir installation; select R. Windows system files will be overwritten with the new ones on the CD. Thus, this would fix any problems with system files or perhaps a missing system file. To continue with our formatting; we must delete the partion with [D]; press [L] to confirm. If you wish; you may create a partition with [C]. This is useful if want to have a dual boot feature or perhaps a backup partition or partition as virtual RAM. On that screen you can select the size of the partition. Once you have highlighted your partition you wish to install Windows on; press [ENTER]. From there; you can format using NTFS (New Technology File System) or with FAT (File Allocation Table) also known as the Old Technology File System. I recommend you format with NTFS (Unless you have a really small hard drive). You also have the option of formating "Quick" or not. Simply said, the quick format simply overwrites the tables/headers on the Hard Drive. Whereas, a normal format Overwrites the tables/headers and the data. If you do a quick format; the data will not be recognizable anyway (Except with certain software which recovers "Ghost Images"). So, I recommend you do a full format. The overwritten data will provide your computer with better performance and your files will be less likely to get fragmented.

Your computer will then be formatted and will run a setup asking for "Regional and Language Options", your name and organization (You can put N/A or leave blank), your Windows Product Key (found on the case of your CD or on the side of your computer tower), the name of the computer (for networking), and the Date and Time. The computer will reboot and ask you to add at least one User with up to 5 others. Click Finish and Login.

Now, you need to activate Windows, either by telephone or internet. Then, use Windows Update to give security yo your computer (must have internet). At first, do these updates manually. You will need several reboots. Then set the updates to automatic. Make sure all your drivers are installed.

== == == == The easiest way to explain solution is: Open the C:\windows\repair folder Highlight and copy autoexec.nt and config.nt (Ctrl+C) Open the C:\windows\system32 folder Paste (Ctrl+V) files and click Yes if box prompts to replace existing file If it does it again, it is because it gets deleted on Restart You just do it again or mark the files for Read-Only I just paste and copy and worry about tomorrow tomorrow If you try to start or install an MS-DOS-based or a 16-bit Windows-based program on your Windows XP-based computer, you may receive an error message that is similar to one of the following:

KB324767 - 16-bit MS-DOS Subsystem

path to the program that you are trying to start or install

C:\Windows\System32\Autoexec.nt The system file is not suitable for running MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows applications. Choose 'Close' to terminate the application. Although you may be prompted to quit the program or ignore the error message, either selection makes the program quit.

This issue may occur if one or more of the following files are missing or damaged: * Config.nt * Autoexec.nt* Command.com

Note: Both Mac OS X and Windows have come out with newer versions as of the writing of this answer. Some details may be different from what is written below, and the answer should be updated accordingly.

The best desktop operating system to use depends on what its intended use will be and who will be using it. There is no specific operating system which can be called "the best" overall, and since most current operating systems share most common and advanced features there is much debate on the topic. A few of the most popular operating system, their pros and cons, and some of their best uses are described below.

Microsoft Windows:

Pros:

• The largest library of programs and applications.
• Some commercial games work only with Windows and DirectX.
• Almost all hardware has drivers which are compatible with Windows.
• Most widely used.

Cons:

• Prone to viruses, spyware, and adware if proper steps not taken such as installation of internet security software, which reduces performance speed.
• Requires regular maintenance to avoid system errors and reduced performance.
• Even with maintenance, issues can slowly accumulate requiring a re-installation of Windows to restore performance and fix software issues.
• Purchasing a Windows license/install disk can be relatively expensive
• Windows Vista, the most recent version of Windows, has high system requirements.

Notes:

• Windows Vista has relatively high system requirements compared to its Windows XP and other operating systems. This has caused many individuals and businesses to continue using the older Windows XP.
• The two most common versions of Windows are Windows XP and Windows Vista. Vista, although it has some issues, does have some new features such as search-as-you-type search and a 3D-accelerated desktop, features up until now only found in Mac OS X and some versions of Linux.
• With the introduction of Virtual-machine software, Windows has become a popular add-on for Mac and Linux in order allow those computers to support Windows-only software or hardware when needed.
• The Windows market share has seen some decrease in recent years and months.

Best uses:

• Gamers
• People who must use Windows-only software for work or school.
• People or businesses looking for an inexpensive computer yet do not have the ability to use Linux.

Mac OS X:

Pros:

• Relatively simple and intuitive interface with many advanced features.
• Not a target for virus or malware attacks, generally: there are no Mac OS X viruses in the wild, and with its UNIX base, it is fairly resilient. There are a small number of trojans (malicious software) which have been known to take effect through applications running in Mac OS X, though they are almost always found on illegal-content-based websites and are not of significant concern. Apple has begun integrating malware blacklists into Mac OS X to prevent infection.
• Second-largest selection of software, with many high-quality Mac-only programs in existence, such as those found in iLife. Although at one point software for certain tasks were not Mac-compatible, most software is now either Mac-compatible or has an equivalent that is. Most advanced games have also recently became compatible with Mac OS X.
• Reliable and high performance.

Cons:

• Limited to Apple-manufactured hardware.
• Some hardware does not have Mac-compatible drivers, though the number of this hardware has recently become small and negligible.
• In some cases, it may be difficult to do cross-platform network hardware sharing for a Mac OS X based computer in a Windows network or visa-versa. For example, a printer's Mac driver may not support cross-platform printing to a Windows-connected printer, and replacement drivers may or may not exist.
• Smaller library of applications in comparison to Windows.

Notes:

• Macs occupy the medium-range to high-end computer market and as such are not sold for the same prices of some low-end PC brands (e.g. the low-end Mac Mini costs $600 USD yet many mainstream low-end PC brand desktops can be purchased for around $400-500). As a result, Macs are popularly considered to be more expensive than PCs, however Macs have been shown to have competitive pricing to comparable PCs (e.g. the Lenovo Thinpad X300 costs about $2,500 while the MacBook Air runs between $1,800 and $2,700 and outperforms the Thinkpad, or the Dell XPS One prices at about $150 higher than a comparable iMac. Additionally, the following factors can cause the total price of owning a Mac to be even less compared than that of a PC: Apple iWork is relatively inexpensive compared to Microsoft Office, PCs experience hardware or software failures more frequently than Macs, increasing service and replacement costs, Macs do not require the frequently expensive internet security software subscriptions.
• Though Mac OS X suffers from relatively very few real-world hacks, security holes in Mac OS X do exist, just like in any other operating system. Also like in other operating systems, they are fixed with software updates upon their discovery.
• With a relatively low market share compared to Windows, there are still individual programs which are only Windows compatible. However, virtual machine software with a Windows installation or compatibility layer software can allow those programs to run even on a Mac.
• The Mac has seen significant market share increases in recent years and months, something which has also increased the amount of Mac-compatible software.

Best uses:

• Students who are not required to use Windows-specific software (though Windows can easily be installed to use Windows software). A recent study indicated that the number of American students intending to purchase Macs has neared that of Windows-based PCs.
• Home users looking for an easy and reliable computing experience who are willing to pay more than low-end PC prices.
• Graphic designers and photographers.
• Scientists.

Linux and other UNIX-based:

Pros:

• Low number of viruses and other malware, similar to Mac OS X
• Usually free
• Large selection of Linux distributions to choose from.
• Has a large amount of free and open source software equivalents to commercial Windows and Mac software
• More easily customizable
• Can run many Windows programs with the use of a compatibility layer such as Wine. (Programs such as Cedega can be used to run many Windows games)
• Reliable with good performance and low requirements.

Cons:

• Advanced use and installation of some software may require more advanced knowledge than is required for use of Windows and Mac.
• Many commercial programs do not support Linux
• Small commercial game library

Notes:

• There are a few main types of Linux: Debian, Fedora, Red Hat, and SUSE. Ubuntu, a type of Debian, is highly popular among home users, as is SUSE, to a lesser extent. Fedora is more popular among businesses.
• There are many other (non-Linux) UNIX-based operating systems (with the same UNIX base as Linux), including Mac OS X and SunOS (which are based on Free-BSD). There are also some UNIX-like operating systems.
• Through customization and software like Beryl, Linux can be made to have advanced desktop effects similar to Aero on Windows Vista or Aqua on Mac OS X.
• "Dependency hell" can make installation of certain programs on Linux difficult even for advanced users.

Best uses:

• Experienced computer users looking for a good, free operating system.
• Businesses looking for reliable and affordable computing, so long as they do not need Windows-only software and have a competent IT manager.

Bottom line:

Though there is no one clear best operating system, each does have its advantages and disadvantages, and different people will be best using different ones. Microsoft Windows is the most common operating system and is a reasonable choice for most people. Mac OS X is second-most popular (and gaining market share) and is an excellent operating system for those who can purchase a Mac. Linux is a very good advanced operating system available for free and is recommended for experienced users.

Mobile Operating Systems:

Aside from the main question of which OS to use in your home or work computer, lightweight mobile operating systems are also used (and almost always pre-installed or even hard-wired) in mobile devices such as cell phones, smartphones, PDAs, and Internet Notebooks/Superportables (which are similar to downsized laptops with low specifications). There is not a great deal of choice among these, and features differences are based more on the mobile device itself, and less on the operating system. Windows Mobile is usually used in Pocket PCs and Smartphones; iPhone OS (based on Mac OS X) is used in the Apple iPhone and iPod Touch; Symbian is used in Nokia, Sony-Ericsson, and other cell phones; and Linux-based mobile OSes are common both on cell phones and small Internet Notebooks.
First off: Freedom. You can do whatever you want as an end user on Linux, including reverse engineering, modifying, and even making copies and selling it to firends. These are things Windows never allows for its users to do.

Second off: Lots of choice. Linux has plenty of ways to allow for a user to make use of it. There's several desktop environments, several command line shells, and dozens of window managers, and chances are one *will* find their preferred "desktop" on Linux. On Windows, you're stuck with explorer, even with so-called "shell replacements" which don't replace explorer so much as try to paint over it, and often poorly.

Third: Linux is so much more efficient than Windows in many ways: It and its applications take WAY less space than Windows (Linux and applications are perfectly comfortable in 5-20 GiB of hard disk space, you'll generally need at LEAST 120 GiB just for a "light" Windows user.), WAY less RAM (Linux can still work comfortably within less than a GiB of RAM, Windows these days is nigh-unusable unless you have at least 2 GiB), and run WAY faster (Performance benchmarks speak for themselves.).

Fourth: Unless you're a gamer, most applications on Linux are a higher quality (And are also available on Windows, such as GIMP, Firefox, and VLC.) than their proprietary Windows counterparts.

Fifth: Linux is very stable, provided you use a stable Linux distribution (Debian is legendary for this.)

You need to run these 5 essential steps to remove all the spyware on your computer.

1. Run Deckard's System Scanner (DSS)

2. Run Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

3. Run the anti spyware removal programs spybot

4 Run Superantispyware

5. Run a complete scan with free curing utility Dr.Web CureIt!

Install threat fire which will enhance your antivirus protection

I don't have windows 2000 but what you can do is either go to Microsoft.com and ask there, or just click on help and type in system restore to find info on it, im sure it is on your system somewhere just need to find it -)

You can get rid of the Trojan horse (downloader dyfica AB), by following these steps .

1 Download and intall the Malwarebytes on your computer .

2 Update your Malwarebytes .

3 Scan your computer for all the malwares in your computer .

4 Remove all the malwares , found while scanning with the malwarebytes .

A near pointer is a 16 bit pointer to an object contained in the current segment, be it code segment, data segment, stack segment, or extra segment. The compiler can generate code with a near pointer and does not have to concern itself with segment addressing, so using near pointers is fastest, and generates smallest code. The limitation is that you can only access 64kb of data at a time, because that is the size of a segment - 64kb. A near pointer contains only the 16 bit offset of the object within the currently selected segment.

A far pointer is a 32 bit pointer to an object anywhere in memory. In order to use it, the compiler must allocate a segment register, load it with the segment portion of the pointer, and then reference memory using the offset portion of the pointer relative to the newly loaded segment register. This takes extra instructions and extra time, so it is the slowest and largest method of accessing memory, but it can access memory that is larger than 64kb, sometimes, such as when dealing with video memory, a needful thing. A far pointer contains a 16 bit segment part and a 16 bit offset part. Still, at any one instant of time, without "touching" segment registers, the program only has access to four 64kb chunks, or segments of memory. If there is a 100kb object involved, code will need to be written to consider its segmentation, even with far pointers.

Now, segments overlap. Each segment is 64kb in length, but each one overlaps the next and the prior by 65520 bytes. That means that every address in memory can be addressed by 64kb-1 different combinations of segment:offset pairs. The result is that the total addressible memory was only 1mb, and the total usable memory address space was 500kb to 600kb. That sounds odd, but Intel built it, Microsoft wrote it, and DOS/Windows 3.1 grew up around it. I still have that computer, and it still works just fine.

Now the huge pointer. The far pointer suffers because you can not just add one to it and have it point the the next item in memory - you have to consider segment:offset rules, because of the 16 byte offset issue. The huge pointer is a monolithic pointer to some item with a large chunk of memory, and there are no segment:offset boundaries.

Well, in order to get that, the pointer to segment:offset calculation has to be done every time you reference the pointer. It does allow you to create and manipulate a single monolithic object that is greater than 64kb, but it has its costs. Far pointers are the normalized pointers of four bytes which are used to access the main memory of the computer ...it can access both the data segment and code segment thus by modifing the offset you can modify refer two different addresses but refer to the same memory .

In a generic OS , memory is organised in a segment:offset fashion. Now say, it is of "X" MB and this "X" MB is made up of say "S" number of segments of each segment having "B" Bytes where S*B Bytes=X MB.

Near Pointer: A near pointer is that which will only point within the current segment say segment 3 (there are S number of segments numbered 0 to S-1) by containing only offset .

Far Pointer: A far pointer is that which will point anywhere in the X MB across segments by containing segment+offset .

The numbers X,S and B vary across diff operating system memory models under which you are programming .

Say for MS-DOS,X=1MB;B=16 Bytes and S=1Mega Bytes/16 Bytes . Here, near pointer will have 4 bits to express address from 0 to 16 Bytes in a segment . Here, far pointer will have "l" bits for segment part of memory where 2^l=S (Here S should be a multiple of 16 bytes i.e; B=offset memory) and 4 bits for offset part of memory, so far poinetr will have l+4 bits.

In DOS only 1 mb (10,48,580 bytes) of memory is accessible. Any of these memory locations are accessed using CPU registers. Under DOS the CPU registers are only 16 bits long. Therefore, the minimum value present in a CPU register could be 0, and maximum 65,535. Then how do we access memory locations beyond 65535th byte? By using two registers (segment and offset) in conjunction. For this the total memory (1 mb) is divided into a number of units each comprising 65,536 (64 kb) locations. Each such unit is called a segment. Each segment always begins at a location number which is exactly divisible by 16. The segment register contains the address where a segment begins, whereas the offset register contains the offset of the data/code from where the segment begins. For example, let us consider the first byte in B block of video memory. The segment address of video memory is B0000h (20-bit address), whereas the offset value of the first byte in the upper 32K block of this segment is 8000h. Since 8000h is a 16-bit address it can be easily placed in the offset register, but how do we store the 20-bit address B0000h in a 16-bit segment register? For this out of B0000h only first four hex digits (16 bits) are stored in segment register. We can afford to do this because a segment address is always a multiple of 16 and hence always contains a 0 as the last digit. Therefore, the first byte in the upper 32K chunk of B block of video memory is referred using segment:offset format as B000h:8000h. Thus, the offset register works relative to segment register. Using both these, we can point to a specific location anywhere in the 1 mb address space.

Suppose we want to write a character `A' at location B000:8000. We must convert this address into a form which C understands. This is done by simply writing the segment and offset addresses side by side to obtain a 32 bit address. In our example this address would be 0xB0008000. Now whether C would support this 32 bit address or not depends upon the memory model in use. For example, if we are using a large data model (compact, large, huge) the above address is acceptable. This is because in these models all pointers to data are 32 bits long. As against this, if we are using a small data model (tiny, small, medium) the above address won't work since in these models each pointer is 16 bits long.

What if we are working in small data model and still want to access the first byte of the upper 32K chunk of B block of video memory? In such cases both Microsoft C and Turbo C provide a keyword called far.

normally Pointers are 32 bit length. which are divided as segment and offset.

which are represent as

seg : off 0000:0000 . . . 8000:FFFF. . . . FFFF:FFFF

first 4 hexa digits are segment, last 4 hexa digits are offset

C Program will allocate 64KB (only one segment) memory for data Part (dynamic memory allocation, Local variables).

by using 16 bit we can access that memory that's called near pointer(16 bit pointer).

suppose we need more than 64KB memory to a program / we want to access a particular memory location (in TSR Program)

at the time we neet 32 bit pointer. through 32 bit pointer we can access any segment and offset address.

there are 2 types of 32 bit pointers 1. far pointer. 2. Huge Pointer.

In TSR programming normally we use far Pointer.

The Main Difference between Far and Huge Pointer is

Far pointers are not Normalized.

Huge pointers are Normalized.

First let me state this is based on my current understanding. If someone can update or improve my version I will be grateful:

1.For those in hurry far simply means "its not here find it somewhere else in memory" 2. far, near and huge and not a part of the C standard( am I right?)

-So the answer to this is: "It depends" Its highly compiler specific and platform(processor) specific.

Different processors have different ways to handle memory, and also different amount of memory.

when you say "far" you are just telling the compiler find or put this data somewhere else.But the compiler does the hard work for you: writing the instructions to change the segment properly and accessing the correct memory location for you..and that's because it knows the processor..

I think previous answers are mostly related to Pentium family of processors..and perhaps turbo C or similar compilers.But remember that is only one of them!

Below are the examples which perhaps can have different meanings in different places:

1. far int* near a; 2. far int* a; 3. far int *far a;

So the best way is to try it out with your compiler and find out.

Pointers can either be near, far, or huge. Near pointers refer to the current segment, so neither DS nor CS must be modified to dereference the pointer. They are the fastest pointers, but are limited to point to 64 kilobytes of memory (the current segment).

Far pointers contain the new value of DS or CS within them. To use them the register must be changed, the memory dereferenced, and then the register restored. They may reference up to 1 megabyte of memory. Note that pointer arithmetic (addition and subtraction) does not modify the segment portion of the pointer, only its offset. Operations which exceed the bounds of zero or 65535 (0xFFFF) will undergo modulo 64K operation just as any normal 16 bit operation.

For example, the code below will wrap around and overwrite itself: char far* myfarptr = (char far*) 0x50000000L ; unsigned long counter ; for(counter=0; counter<128*1024; counter++) // access 128K memory *(myfarptr+counter) = 7 ; // write all 7s into it

The moment counter becomes (0x10000), the resulting absolute address will roll over to 0x5000:0000.

Huge pointers are essentially far pointers, but are normalized every time they are modified so that they have the highest possible segment for that address. This is very slow but allows the pointer to point to multiple segments, and allows for accurate pointer comparisons, as if the platform were a flat memory model: It forbids the aliasing of memory as described above, so two huge pointers that reference the same memory location are always equal.

This near, far & huge pointers comes only in DOS or other, which have only less memory accessible. In DOS only 1 Mb ( 10,48,580 Bytes) of memory is accessible. Any of these memory location are accessed using CPU registers. Under DOS the CPU registers are only 16 bits long. Therefore, the minimum value present in a CPU register is 0, and maximum is 65,535. If we want to access more than 65,535 ? how to ? We can do this by - using two registers ( Segment & Offset ). Here memory is divided into 64 Kb locations or chunks. C Program will allocate 64KB (only one segment) memory for data Part (dynamic memory allocation, Local variables). by using 16 bit we can access that memory that's called near pointer(16 bit pointer). suppose we need more than 64KB memory to a program / we want to access a particular memory location (in TSR Program) at the time we need 32 bit pointer. through 32 bit pointer we can access any segment and offset address. The Main Difference between Far and Huge Pointer is Far pointers are not Normalized. Ex: TSR Programs use Far Pointers Huge pointers are Normalized. I think by this u can have brief idea about near, far & huge pointers. According to my knowledge far pointers are mainly used to build I/O commands.Such as you can write "printf" function by using far pointer void main() { char far *vdu=0xB8000000; *(vdu+2)='a'; } If you run this program in C,you can see "a" in the DOS screen There are 2 blocks of memory above the 640KB RAM of 64KB each. The first 32KB are used by MA, rest by CGA/EGA/VGA. The "far" pointer is used to access the VDU memory directly. Hence the displaying functions or output functions are not required.

On 16-bit operating systems, a huge pointer allows the developer to access a single block of memory that's larger than 64 kilobytes in size.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

With the development of Intel's 80386 and later microprocessors that support the flat memory addressing model these variants of pointers became unnecessary and most modern C compilers no longer support them. While many modern compilers do accept this syntax for backward compatibility with old source code, they ignore them and treat all three just as ordinary pointers that can access any location in memory.

One Way

1. BACK UP ANYTHING IMPORTANT!!! eg. Documents, Music, Saved Games, etc.

2. Insert your windows XP CD.

3. Follow the Menus till you get to drive formating. Pick ether NTFS (for windows Xp0 or FAT32 (windows 95,98)

4. Wait for the disk to be formated.

5. Restart computer or continue with installing if you like.

OR (FAT32 Drives only) Create a windows 98 boot floppy. Boot computer with the boot floppy. type "format [drive letter]:" (no quotes) Eg for the C drive: format c:

Format Drive Restart Computer

NOTE FORMATING THE DRIVE LOSSES EVERYTHING.

Similar Way

Insert the XP pro CD and shut down the computer. As it's starting to turn on repeatedly press the Enter key until you get to the Windows XP setup screen. Follow the instructions to reformat and reinstall the OS.

How_can_you_reformat_windows_xp_with_the_boot_CD

"Formatting" is wiping all files, programs, etc. off of the drive

How to Reformat Windows

This guide will wipe out your current Operating System - and the drive it's on - and start afresh, the new system will have no memory of the old. Please back up your data before continuing.

I STRONGLY recommend downloading all drivers etc for your system and saving them to a flash drive or burning to CD/DVD BEFORE you begin this process! Most device drivers are available on the PC manufacturer's website

1. Put the Windows CD/DVD into your CD/DVD drive
2. Restart your computer.
3. While your computer is booting, if a new message should appear: "press any key to boot from CD", Press any key, go to step 5
4. Pressing F5, F8 or F12 while the computer is booting should bring up the boot options where you can select from which drive you want to boot. It should tell you which key it is if you watch it booting. If you only have the BIOS setup, change the boot sequence to CD first instead of hard disk, save changes & exit.
5. Wait patiently for the CD/DVD to load up.
6. Choose the option which sounds closest to "partition editor" or "custom install"
7. Here you will see your hard drive partitions. The easiest way to reformat would be to delete all of them and create one new partition. You may need to enable advanced options to see these. You may also consider making one small and one large partition, the small one being around 15GB and the larger one for movies, games and personal data.
8. Either select a partition and click next, or go back to the menu and select something along the lines of 'install windows'.
9. The rest of the process is mostly automatic, it may restart automatically a few times, and it could take up to 2 hours, depending on the OS being installed, and the size/speed of the drive.
10. Follow instructions as they appear, it will ask you to set some things like a computer name and users.

Your reformat should be complete, and it should be just as it was when you bought it (with maybe a few pieces of software missing, but most of it should be in CDs provided when you bought your computer)

On a side note: Ninite is a free website that offers downloads of useful programs such as antivirus, web browser, office suites, and image editors, which is perfect to use after a clean install. you can find it in the related links below.

first u change the BIOS battery and restart the PC in last known config mode.

Also can try removing RAM chips and re-seating them.

There are 3 step to repair 0x759723ee error

If you got 0x759723ee error then there is a 94% chance that your computer has registry problems. To repair 0x759723ee error you need to follow the steps below:

* Step 1 - Download a 0x759723ee error repair tool RegInOut Cleaner, and install this error repair tool.

* Step 2 - Click the Repair All Button.It will scan you pc for Free.

* Step 3 - Then click the Repair All Button again and your done! It is very easy to repair 0x759723ee error.

****************************************

I DISAGREE COMPLETELY! First of all the person who answered this question doesn't know what kind of PC you're using or how old it is. They don't know what OS you're using or what level of comfort you have troubleshooting in such sensitive areas. Your best bet is to visit a site that has the credentials to answer your question. After you give them ALL the info about your pc - i.e. brand & type, (laptop or pc) age, your CPU and which OS you're using. Then they can give you educated and SAFE suggestions. If you mess with the Registry or BIOS and don't know what your doing you could really do irreperable damage. You may not have to but If you make a post on any site you should state your comfort level of fixing this issue yourself.

The fact that you came here for an answer (instead of going to a tech site or googling the error) tells me that you're not at the level that's required to do the instructions above. (Besides I'm sure neither one of those areas are the problem) I know you're using Windows so here are some links to go to where you will get a much better answer. Don't forget to give them the info they need about your pc. BTW - Winlogon.exe is the application that logs you on/off the system. It has nothing to do with the BIOS and using a Registry Cleaner is very dangerous if you're not familiar with Registry values. Even the ones that tell you to let the program do the "cleaning" is dangerous - 90 percent of the time they remove files that are needed to keep your system stable. DON'T EVER USE A REGISTRY CLEANER UNLESS YOU KNOW & UNDERSTAND REGISTRY VALUES.

Don't worry this problem is fixable. It's usually caused by security issues (virus, trojans, etc) that have caused damage to one of your volume drives OR faulty hardware like RAM or Hard Disk Drive (HDD). You'll probably have to do a chkdsk fix which is pretty simple, but Changing your BIOS or messing around in the Registry will not help. You could just pull up the event - go to your events monitor - find the event, r-click on properties and when that pops up at the bottom there should be a direct link to the Windows online event help. From there you can go to the Tech Library or try the related links below.

Or, check out the link to the Windows forum - you will have to choose which OS (XP, 7, VISTA, etc) forum you want from there. You'll have to register and then they will validate to make sure you've got a legitimate Windows OS.

After that do a search for your propblem by typing in 'Winlogon.exe Error' in the search box. If you can't find one then start a new thread. GOOD LUCK

You need to convert it to QT or mp4 format to use in iMovie. Download and install a free video converter onto your computer. Use the program to convert the (Finished/Published) Movie Maker file.

You may try the Tune4Mac Video Converter Free Version for Mac.

ADDED: You do not need to download a conversion tool, although it can obviously be done. If you would like to know, there is a handful of free online video converters, if you would not like to download one.

sysupd.exe is a process process associated with an Dialer application. It tries to disconnect your current internet connection and dial a toll number with ...

www.liutilities.com/products/wintaskspro/processlibrary/sysupd/

Run Malwarebytes Anti-Malware

Run the anti spyware removal programs spybot

Run Superantispyware

Run a complete scan with free curing utility Dr.Web CureIt!

1) Write a batch file killsysupd.battop

ren sysupd.exe xxx del sysupd.exe goto top

Start this batch file - it will run continuously.

2) Press Ctrl-Alt-Del to go into Task Manager. Right click on the sysupd process and select Set Priority. Set it to Low. Now find the process for your batch file and set this to High.

3) Highlight the sysupd process and choose End Process.Confirm Yes and the batch file running at high priority should be able to kill the program before it can restart.

4) Switch to the batch file window. When it starts saying file not found you can press Ctrl-C to end the batch file.

Here is more input:

• Install a firewall on your machine. there are free ones you can find easily. using the firewall you can stop the sysupd.exe from doing whatever it is doing online, which was prohibiting you from stopping the service. ctrl+alt+delete to bring up the task manager and stop the service. if you close task manager, I've found the sysupd.exe starts right back up, so don't close the task manager until you've searched for the sysupd.exe on your machine, and deleted it completely. cool.

enjoy.

• Sysupd.exe is a known dialer and also accompanies dpusys.ini usually found on the desktop, but known to other locations as well. To get rid of, end process on sysupd.exe. Make sure that you are set to see all hidden system files and folders. Search your hard drive for the following SYSUPD.EXE and DPUSYS.INI. Delete all found instances of these files. Reboot!

• Delete the sysupd.exe from registry. Download the adaware 6.0 {www.tinyurl.com/tjxr} do a complete scan..delete all infected files. Do a complete chk for sysupd.exe in the whole system. Delete it. It should work out.

• Make sure you check the Startup folder (Start->Program Files->Startup) and look for a wscript file. It is a Visual Basis script file that generates network traffic via Internet Explorer and (I believe) always tries to reinfect the PC.

• I found deleting sysupd.exe difficult. It worked in conjuction with a program called Advertimondo. I tried to delete if from the start-up menu and it wouldn't let me. McAfee viruscan found it but since it contstantly runs it wouldn't let me delete it. I finally went to the registry and did a find on sysupd.exe and deleted all references. One problem is it is resident in the reg start up folder. doing this apparently got rid of it since it no longer runs and I can find no reference to it in task manager, McAfee and the startup menu. The program was also imbedded in Advertimondo. This was really a pain in the neck.

• To end and delete 'sysupd.exe' from WinXP this is what I had to do: run a command prompt; find the sysupd.exe file in C:\windows; RENAME the file to sysupd.old (attempting to delete the file while in memory returns "access denied" error). Once the file is renamed then you may end the process in Taskmgr and once that process is killed you can go back into C:\Windows and delete the file you renamed (sysupd.old), reboot and run SpybotS&D, AdAware, Webroot Spysweeper, etc., to remove any remnants of the bundle that remain.

• Here's what worked for me: locate the directory containing sysupd.exe. Open Task Manager Processes and find sysupd.exe. Run some CPU intensive apps to slow your machine down, this should give you a couple of seconds between killing the process and it restarting, enough to flip over to the directory and deleting the .exe

• I wrote this batch file, started some CPU intensive task, and ran this. pskill sysupd ren c:\windows\sysupd.exe sysupd.old del c:\windows\sysupd.exe del c:\windows\sysupd.old dir c:\windows\sysupd.* In this order it was fast enough to delete it. Remember to clean your registry as well afterwards. No reboot required.

• I found this really hard to get rid of - the process restarts itself as fast as you terminate it in Task Manager and the file is recreated eevry time you rename or delete it.

That is a question that has many different answers, depending on what aspect of Windows or Linux you want to know about. Both are what are known as Operating Systems, and in this case, both are designed to work on the same type of hardware -- PCs, otherwise known as IBM Compatibles. There are enormous differences in the way that they behave at a technical level, but I suspect what you really want to know is how they differ from the perspective of an end user. This makes any answer I give somewhat subjective (users have different preferences and expectations of their computers), but I will do my best to give an answer that is generally accepted by the IT community.

Windows was introduced by Microsoft in 1983, and has been the dominant Operating System available for the PC since the early-nineties. As such, Microsoft has enjoyed great financial success, and Windows has had many years and incredible fiscal resources to evolve to meet the demands of the mass-market. There is an staggeringly rich set of features here, from very explicit, step-by-step user interfaces for the first time computer user, to powerful interfaces for the computer professional, and everything in between. By contrast, Linux achieved notoriety a bit later, in the mid-nineties, with a distribution known as Redhat, and although Linux was built on more mature, stable underpinnings (Unix), it did not enjoy nearly the same marketing or development budget that Microsoft threw behind Windows. In fact, the developers of Linux are commonly credited as founding the Open Source Software movement, which is the idea that software can be made better through the free sharing of its source code. In this philosophy, programmers often volunteer their time to develop software for free, as was done with Linux, and Linux is still available for free in its more basic forms. Companies like Redhat only make money by "packaging" Linux with printed documentation, extra software utilities, and setup wizards designed to make the installation of Linux and its subsequent software packages easier. Even so, the amount of money they are able to generate this way is paltry compared to the wealth of Microsoft (which makes most company's financials look paltry). Because of this, the marketing behind Linux has been miniscule compared to that of Windows, and its lack of acceptance among less technical users reflects this. A large reason is because Windows has established a very deeply-ingrained (and some have argued unfairly controlling) relationship with PC hardware manufacturers, ensuring that almost every new PC ships with Windows installed from day one. Given that they must satisfy the demands (though perhaps less than perfectly) of the majority of novice computer users, and add to that the amount of time and money that Windows has enjoyed to make itself accessible to these users, and it is easy to see why Windows is generally regarded as superior to Linux in the area of accessibility to novices. There are graphic user interfaces (abbreviated as GUI) present for almost everything you could want to do, and there is almost always more than one way to do it. In fact, one common criticism of Windows is that so many features have been layered on top of one another over the years, that it has become an overly-complicated, almost labyrinthine user experience. By contrast, some may find Linux to be more streamlined; however, there are still many equivalent features in Windows for which Linux does not provide a GUI, and the user is forced to type textual instructions into a command-line interface, or shell. While many power users consider this a plus, it is unrealistic to demand this of novice computer users, and novice users should bear this strongly in mind. All this being said, Linux still shines brilliantly in some areas that Windows seems to consistently flounder. Because the underlying architecture of Linux is more mature, stable, and secure than Windows, Linux "crashes" and "freezes" significantly less often, and can run continuously without problems for months or even years without being "rebooted". In addition, Linux does not suffer from the same security flaws as Windows, and your chances of contracting a virus, a worm, or some other form of predatory software is much lower. On an more subjective note, I suspect that given the same time and monetary advantages as Windows, Linux might have easily developed into a superior operating system in every regard.

As it stands today, they each have pros and cons. Windows is widely accepted everywhere, boasts an enormous plethora of GUIs, and has millions of software packages that run under it. But it is buggier, less secure, and sometimes feels cavernous. Linux is solid and smooth running, and feels more stream-lined to many. But what technical users call stream-lined, novices may interpret as spare, and sometimes barren or just plain missin. There are also fewer software packages available for it currently, though many of those that are available are free. As time goes by, and the Open Software Community develops more for Linux, these differences will shrink, but until there is financially powerful, unifying force (company) behind Linux, this author thinks it is doubtful they will go away all together.

Another reason WHY Linux is not affected by viruses, is that its code has been open source for more than a decade, tested by people all around the world, and not by a single development team like in the case of Windows. I mean to say that, probability of finding (and thus fixing) exploitable holes in Linux is very high. So there is extremely enhanced security and lesser chances of exploits.

Again, theres one more good reason. Linux was originally meant to be a multi-user OS. Windows was meant for the end-user. After a few years, Microsoft realised the fact and tried to change their primary design goal. After building two floors, if you try to replace bricks, you would end up with high instability. This is what Windows is experiencing.

The Linux operating system was developed from a base of Unix (another operating system) after the Unix systems stopped being free. The Linux people believe in free and open software, and so they "reinvented" Unix, and improved it slightly to make Linux.

Windows is a proprietary operating system owned by Microsoft. It was developed independently from Unix, and its internal details are much different. They should perform the same tasks, however at the deepest levels, details differ, and so a program written to run on Windows will not run on Linux, and vice versa.

Widows comes in several "flavors", like Windows NT, Windows 2000, and Windows XP, all of which are slightly different, but share enough in common that programs written for one flavor will run on the others 99.9% of the time.

2) All the flavors of Windows come from Microsoft, the various distributions of Linux come from different companies (i.e LIndows , Lycoris, Red Hat, SuSe, Mandrake, Knopping, Slackware).

3) Linux is customizable in a way that Windows is not. For example,NASlite is a version of Linux that runs off a single floppy disk and converts an old computer into a file server. This ultra small edition of Linux is capable of networking, file sharing and being a web server.

4) For desktop or home use, Linux is very cheap or free, Windows is expensive. For server use, Linux is very cheap compared to Windows. Microsoft allows a single copy of Windows to be used on only one computer. Starting with Windows XP, they use software to enforce this rule (activation). In contrast, once you have purchased Linux, you can run it on any number of computers for no additional charge. 5) You have to log on to Linux with a userid and password. This is not true of Windows. Typically Windows 9x does not ask for a userid/password at boot time and, even if it does, this can be easily bypassed. In general, Windows NT, 2000 and XP do require a userid/password to log on. However Windows 2000 and XP can be configured with a default userid and password so they boot directly to the Windows desktop. Windows XP, 2000 and Linux all support different types of users. Windows XP Home Edition supports Administrator class users that have full and total access to the system and restricted users that, among other restrictions, can't install software. Windows XP Pro and Windows 2000 support additional levels of users and there are groups of system privileges that can be assigned to a particular user. In Linux, the user with full and total access is called root, everyone else is a normal user. The options for Linux security privileges don't seem to me to be as robust as in Windows 2000 and XP Pro, they are focused on files and directories (can you read, update and execute files). Linux has a concept of a group of users that Windows does not, but again the privileges associated with a group are all file/directory related. 6) Linux has a reputation for fewer bugs than Windows 7) Windows must boot from a primary partition. Linux can boot from either a primary partition or a logical partition inside an extended partition. Windows must boot from the first hard disk. Linux can boot from any hard disk in the computer. 8) Windows uses a hidden file for its swap file. Typically this file resides in the same partition as the OS (advanced users can opt to put the file in another partition). Linux uses a dedicated partition for its swap file (advanced users can opt to implement the swap file as a file in the same partition as the OS). 9) Windows uses FAT12, FAT16, FAT32 and/or NTFS with NTFS almost always being the best choice. Linux also has a number of its own native file systems. The default file systeAll the file systems use directories and subdirectories. Windows separates directories with a back slash, Linux uses a normal forward slash. Windows file names are not case sensitive. Linux file names are. For example "abc" and "aBC" are different files in Linux, whereas in Windows it would refer to the same file. Case sensitivity has been a problem for this very web page, the name of which is "Linux.vs.Windows.HTML". At times, people have tried to get to this page using "Linux.vs.windows.HTML" (all lower case) which resulted in a Page Not Found error. Eventually, I created a new web page with the name in all lower case and this new page simply re-directs you to the real page, the one you are reading now (with a capital L and W). m for Linux used to be ext2, now it is typically ext3. 10) Windows and Linux use different concepts for their file hierarchy. Windows uses a volume-based file hierarchy, Linux uses a unified scheme. Windows uses letters of the alphabet to represent different devices and different hard disk partitions. Under Windows, you need to know what volume (C:, D:,...) a file resides on to select it, the file's physical location is part of it's name. In Linux all directories are attached to the root directory, which is identified by a forward-slash, "/". For example, below are some second-level directories: /bin/ ---- system binaries, user programs with normal user permissions /sbin --- executables that need root permission /data/ --- a user defined directory /dev/ ---- system device tree /etc/ ---- system configuration /home/ --- users' subdirectories /home/{username} akin to the Windows My Documents folder /tmp/ ---- system temporary files /usr/ ---- applications software /usr/bin - executables for programs with user permission /var/ ---- system variables /lib --- libraries needed for installed programs to run 11) Both support the concept of hidden files, which are files that, by default, are not shown to the user when listing files in a directory. Linux implements this with a filename that starts with a period. Windows tracks this as a file attribute in the file metadata (along with things like the last update date). In both OSs the user can over-ride the default behavior and force the system to list hidden files. 12) Windows started with BAT files (a combination of OS commands and optionally its own language) and then progressed to Windows Scripting Host (WSH) which supports two languages, JavaScript and VB Script. Linux, like all Unix variants, provides multiple scripting languages, referred to as shell scripts. In general, the Linux scripting languages are older and cruder than WSH but much more powerful than BAT files. They tend to use special characters instead of English commands and don't support objects (this only matters to programmers). One scripting language that can run on both Linux and Windows is PHP. It always has to be installed under Windows, it may have to be installed under Linux. PHP is typically found running on Linux based web servers in combination with Apache, but it is capable of running "client side" (on your computer). 13) Every computer printer ships with drivers for last last few versions of Windows (at the time it was manufactured). Running the printer on a very old or too new version of Windows may or may not work. Still, this a far better situation than with Linux which does not support as many printers as Windows. In an environment with many Linux users, shared network printers a tech support staff, this should not be an issue as you can limit yourself to well supported printers. Home users of Linux however, will no doubt suffer from the relatively poor support for printers. 14) Windows allows programs to store user information (files and settings) anywhere. This makes it impossibly hard to backup user data files and settings and to switch to a new computer. In contrast, Linux stores all user data in the home directory making it much easier to migrate from an old computer to a new one. If home directories are segregated in their own partition, you can even upgrade from one version of Linux to another without having to migrate user data and settings. 15)

2) All the flavors of Windows come from Microsoft, the various distributions of Linux come from different companies (i.e LIndows , Lycoris, Red Hat, SuSe, Mandrake, Knopping, Slackware).

3) Linux is customizable in a way that Windows is not. For example,NASlite is a version of Linux that runs off a single floppy disk and converts an old computer into a file server. This ultra small edition of Linux is capable of networking, file sharing and being a web server.

4) For desktop or home use, Linux is very cheap or free, Windows is expensive. For server use, Linux is very cheap compared to Windows. Microsoft allows a single copy of Windows to be used on only one computer. Starting with Windows XP, they use software to enforce this rule (activation). In contrast, once you have purchased Linux, you can run it on any number of computers for no additional charge. 5) You have to log on to Linux with a userid and password. This is not true of Windows. Typically Windows 9x does not ask for a userid/password at boot time and, even if it does, this can be easily bypassed. In general, Windows NT, 2000 and XP do require a userid/password to log on. However Windows 2000 and XP can be configured with a default userid and password so they boot directly to the Windows desktop. Windows XP, 2000 and Linux all support different types of users. Windows XP Home Edition supports Administrator class users that have full and total access to the system and restricted users that, among other restrictions, can't install software. Windows XP Pro and Windows 2000 support additional levels of users and there are groups of system privileges that can be assigned to a particular user. In Linux, the user with full and total access is called root, everyone else is a normal user. The options for Linux security privileges don't seem to me to be as robust as in Windows 2000 and XP Pro, they are focused on files and directories (can you read, update and execute files). Linux has a concept of a group of users that Windows does not, but again the privileges associated with a group are all file/directory related. 6) Linux has a reputation for fewer bugs than Windows 7) Windows must boot from a primary partition. Linux can boot from either a primary partition or a logical partition inside an extended partition. Windows must boot from the first hard disk. Linux can boot from any hard disk in the computer. 8) Windows uses a hidden file for its swap file. Typically this file resides in the same partition as the OS (advanced users can opt to put the file in another partition). Linux uses a dedicated partition for its swap file (advanced users can opt to implement the swap file as a file in the same partition as the OS). 9) Windows uses FAT12, FAT16, FAT32 and/or NTFS with NTFS almost always being the best choice. Linux also has a number of its own native file systems. The default file systeAll the file systems use directories and subdirectories. Windows separates directories with a back slash, Linux uses a normal forward slash. Windows file names are not case sensitive. Linux file names are. For example "abc" and "aBC" are different files in Linux, whereas in Windows it would refer to the same file. Case sensitivity has been a problem for this very web page, the name of which is "Linux.vs.Windows.HTML". At times, people have tried to get to this page using "Linux.vs.windows.HTML" (all lower case) which resulted in a Page Not Found error. Eventually, I created a new web page with the name in all lower case and this new page simply re-directs you to the real page, the one you are reading now (with a capital L and W). m for Linux used to be ext2, now it is typically ext3. 10) Windows and Linux use different concepts for their file hierarchy. Windows uses a volume-based file hierarchy, Linux uses a unified scheme. Windows uses letters of the alphabet to represent different devices and different hard disk partitions. Under Windows, you need to know what volume (C:, D:,...) a file resides on to select it, the file's physical location is part of it's name. In Linux all directories are attached to the root directory, which is identified by a forward-slash, "/". For example, below are some second-level directories: /bin/ ---- system binaries, user programs with normal user permissions /sbin --- executables that need root permission /data/ --- a user defined directory /dev/ ---- system device tree /etc/ ---- system configuration /home/ --- users' subdirectories /home/{username} akin to the Windows My Documents folder /tmp/ ---- system temporary files /usr/ ---- applications software /usr/bin - executables for programs with user permission /var/ ---- system variables /lib --- libraries needed for installed programs to run 11) Both support the concept of hidden files, which are files that, by default, are not shown to the user when listing files in a directory. Linux implements this with a filename that starts with a period. Windows tracks this as a file attribute in the file metadata (along with things like the last update date). In both OSs the user can over-ride the default behavior and force the system to list hidden files. 12) Windows started with BAT files (a combination of OS commands and optionally its own language) and then progressed to Windows Scripting Host (WSH) which supports two languages, JavaScript and VB Script. Linux, like all Unix variants, provides multiple scripting languages, referred to as shell scripts. In general, the Linux scripting languages are older and cruder than WSH but much more powerful than BAT files. They tend to use special characters instead of English commands and don't support objects (this only matters to programmers). One scripting language that can run on both Linux and Windows is PHP. It always has to be installed under Windows, it may have to be installed under Linux. PHP is typically found running on Linux based web servers in combination with Apache, but it is capable of running "client side" (on your computer). 13) Every computer printer ships with drivers for last last few versions of Windows (at the time it was manufactured). Running the printer on a very old or too new version of Windows may or may not work. Still, this a far better situation than with Linux which does not support as many printers as Windows. In an environment with many Linux users, shared network printers a tech support staff, this should not be an issue as you can limit yourself to well supported printers. Home users of Linux however, will no doubt suffer from the relatively poor support for printers. 14) Windows allows programs to store user information (files and settings) anywhere. This makes it impossibly hard to backup user data files and settings and to switch to a new computer. In contrast, Linux stores all user data in the home directory making it much easier to migrate from an old computer to a new one. If home directories are segregated in their own partition, you can even upgrade from one version of Linux to another without having to migrate user data and settings.

Microsoft Windows is a closed-source operating system created by Bill Gates, supreme ruler of the earth. It is gradually losing it's grip on the market because it is insecure, slow, and wasteful.

Either system works very well, and can do the almost same job. The difference is in how they do it, and how much you will pay for any additional software - rather than if they can or can't do a particular job.

If you are looking for a complete replacement for Windows, there isn't one! Linux can run many Windows programs right out of the box, but Microsoft won't share certain technical information that will allow ALL Windows programs to run smoothly. If they did, you probably wouldn't want to pay for Windows when Linux is free for use.

Conversely, Windows cannot run anything "out of the box" from Linux. There are Windows versions of many programs, though.

Linux bundles almost everything you need (word processor, chat, etc) all in one package, but with Windows you must download, or buy each of them separately. I'd try them both, and decide for yourself what works best for your situation and budget.

I hope that's really the answer you wanted.