take a look at Parallels Desktop 8 for Mac for running Windows apps on a Mac.
Use system restore. Some viruses disable this feature. If that is the case, shut down and restart in “safe mode.” Try safe mode with networking first and restore there. I have had to restart in safe mode with command prompt. When the computer boots you will get a command prompt like in DOS. At the prompt type rstrui.exe Some of my computers use different F keys to reach “safe mode”, one uses F4 during startup, another uses F8. Hold the key down while the computer is booting. My office staff like to surf the internet, and I have had to deal with several viruses. This has always (well, almost always) worked.
Try Malware Bytes and TDSS Killer (running TDSS Killer with TDSS file system checked off). If not, open up an Elevated Command prompt and type chkdsk /f.
If that doesn’t work and you have the excel disks, just uninstall and reinstall Excel.
It could just as easily be a virus as it is application corruption on an older machine.
Back up your data file to a thumb drive or portable drive.
1.Download Windows defender ISO. and burn on a CD.
2.Boot your computer from this CD and run a complete scan.
3.Open C>prompt Run SFC /scannow To check system files.
4. Control Panel > add/remove Programs > Select Excel > click repair.
Reset the system to a restore point when the system last worked correctly. If that doesn’t do it, clean out the registry with a product like Auslogic.
I’ll be honest, I don’t think you picked up a virus that did this. Sounds like a glitch somewhere along the way. Of course, step 1 is to always reboot. Step 2 would be to ensure your Scroll Lock key on your keyboard is off (press it once).
The fact that you have to right click X makes me think something is messed with your mouse - did you try unplugging it and plugging it into a different USB port?
Do what Rodm suggested in #6!
For my money you can't beat the combination of Microsoft's Windows Defender/Security Essentials and Malware Bytes. If used right those two will get rid of anything bad.
AVG free edition does a good job of cleaning up most any virus I might get, and I’ve had some duzies.
That’s not a virus, Joe. FReepmail me, let’s exchange details, and I’ll tell you how to fix it.
Why does everyone think they got a virus when their computer starts acting up, especially when It is just one program like Excel?
It is most likely a corrupted Excel, or a buggy worksheet macro, or just a combination of settings you didn’t expect.
I don’t think it’s a virus at all. What happens when you right-click the “mini-icon”?
Norman Malware Remover didn't, and AVG usually gets these, so I figured while it may be a virus, I'd likely have got it with a scan. Still, you never know.
As for Apples, we often have these computers tied into a net where I work, even though this particular one is personal. The result of having an Apple (whose owner thought they were immune to viruses) tie into a windows based net is often mayhem, and that's a no-no on an oil rig. Apple might run one of the later versions of the software I run, but those are five times the cost of the version I purchased years ago, do little more that I haven't figured out how to do myself, and come with a quarterly tab for an electronic key close to the price I paid for the software when I bought it (annually), 'cause now there's a boom on.
That dog won't hunt, and I've become not only a fair laptop mechanic, but pretty good at scrounging the right part...
If my old Win98SE machine hadn't died in a puddle from a leaking window seal I might be using it yet. (8^D)
(I still have working Win 3.11 and Win95 machines...kept mainly as a curiosity for when the kids complain about these booting up slowly.)
Does this only ever happen with Excel? It kind of sounds like you may have a mechanical problem like a stuck key or mouse button or similar. If you eat and drink around your laptop this can happen, and laptop keyboards are naturally more fragile, too. I really doubt that this is malware, though it’s worth running some of the tools folks have suggested.
You might try reinstalling Excel.
Step 1 - support.microsoft.com/fixit/
Step 2 - windows.microsoft.com/mse
Step 3 - update.microsoft.com
Have you thought about upgrading? My experience with 97 Office products is that they are very buggy (especially Outlook). The newer versions are more stable. See about getting a refurbed laptop. OEM versions of MS software can be had cheap from eBay.