hmm. It wouldnt be a java probelm (the java gets down on the server then sent to the browser) I'll try the NOAA when i get home and see what happens.
Yeah ME sucks. As for the updates i dunno about that either. It seems that if MS was purposely sabatoshing updates using a different browser it would get sued (again)
Unfortunatly these sorts of things sort of just happen. You can call it whatever you like it sort of happens. There is a really good reason why ME didnt last long and XP was tossed out the door quickly. You might want to invest in the upgrade.
It sounds like you have a lot of background processes running as well. All that stuff you listed will kill web traffic. Like jack the ripper style killing. you figure your limited to bandwidth and computer power. Then all that traffic gets checked by the firewall (delay) then norton(more delay) and on and on.
As for what to *do* about it. Well i dunno really ;) if i were you i'd toss ME. reflash the harddrive then be maticulas in what you need on your computer. If you really need adware spyware spybegone spyremover. Your doing something wrong. with firefox you only really need one of them. The spyware that gets on the comp will be mainly *real* spy ware such as cookies that track your websites and what not.
also. Never i mean never :) install the latest upgrade or patch. Such as the XP service pack 2 fiasco. let other people dork up their computers first and let microsoft fix it before you put it on your computer. Check out forums and what nots.
hope some of those tidbits helped. If not...umm disregard ;)
Thanks for the input. Yeah, it is a bit annoying to have Pest Patrol reinstate itself to the 'run on startup' list each time I run the program.
XP is going to have to wait a couple of months until I can budget the 99 bucks for it, and really another machine(so the other can be a backup.)