Inbox

By DON McALLISTER

Welcome to InBox, where we attempt to answer your internet questions.

* MSN Messenger starts with Windows, and Brian would prefer it didn't.

It's easy, Brian: Open MSN Messenger/Tools/Options/Preferences. Remove the tick from "run this program when Windows starts".

* David has a couple of pesky document scraps stuck in the left side of his taskbar and he wants to obliterate them.

This sounds like the Quick Launch bar, David. Right-click your mouse on the item and select Delete. Your wish will be granted.

* A keyboard key identity crisis has Trevor baffled. When he types a he gets a £.

Check the keyboard type, Trevor. You may have your US keyboard running as a UK keyboard. Control Panel/Keyboard is the section to check. The US keyboards we use here have a different layout from the UK-designed items.

* The W32.Badtrans.b virus appears to pass Dan's "up-to-date" Norton AntiVirus software. When the virus arrives, he clicks on the e-mail to delete it and it seems to open an empty mp3 player.

Stop these nasty frights, Dan. Start Outlook Express, highlight the Inbox Folder and select View/Layout. Remove the tick from Show Preview Pane. Next, open Tools/Options/Security and tick "do not allow attachments to be saved or opened that could potentially be a virus". Now go to your Norton AntiVirus/Options/Auto Protect. On the line "how to respond when a virus is found", use the drop-down menu and select "delete the infected file". The virus can't run if it is deleted. You'll then get a message telling you the file is not available because it was deleted by Norton AntiVirus. Lastly, confirm that Norton checks all files. Go to Options/Auto Protect/File Types to Scan/All File Types.

* If there's anything you want to know about the exciting world of the web, just e-mail inbox@nzherald.co.nz.