Can't open Hotmail or use Windows Update

Try uninstalling Internet Explorer 6 and Internt tools, and using Internet Explorer 5.5 instead. I've had problems with IE 6 on all my Win98 boxes. You can get IE 5.5 here:
http://cws.internet.com/file/11712.htm

I also suspect that spyware and other such little nasties may abound on your computer. I would also recommend going to download.com, searching for and downloading Ad Aware SE 1.05, and Spybot Search and Destroy 1.03. Install, update, and run both of these after performing the above roll back of IE.

Remember too, that every time you visit Windows Update after moving back to IE 5.5, you'll want to ignore one critical update; Internet Explorer 6.

I will try this and let you know. I have IE5.5 on a CD somewhere. In the meantime I updated to MSN 6.2 and it would not sign in. I ran the MSN trouble shooter error code 0x81000370 and it did not find any problems on system settings or programs. Interestingly I installed IE6 on another Win98 first edition computer and had no problems (although the computer with the problem is Win98 second). I "know" if I do a new installation it will solve the problem but I want to avoid the hassle and fix the problem. Any more suggesions would be welcome.

Kind Regards Chris

I think that Norton is doing all these troubles..... try uninstalling it and then check for the problem,,,,, if it goes away then u can reinstall back the Norton coz it will reset all settings back to default and it shud resolve the problem !! :)

Well I tried using Ad aware and Spybot and they cleared out a lot of nasties so I am thankful for that. However I still can't log into hotmail or use windows update. It seems that Microsoft require some sort of info that my computer is not sending. I am a bit hesitant about uninstalling IE6 just yet as its a large download if I want to reinstall it but if the problem is not resolved in a day or 2 I will try that. I will uninstall Norton System works tomorrow and see what happens.

Regards Chris  

So far I have uninstalled Norton System Works and I have now uninstalled IE6 and am running IE 5.5 and have removed all spyware and this did not solve the problem. It seems that Microsoft require some sort of info that my computer is not sending. Thus I cannot sign into Hotmail or use windows update.

Any more suggestions would be welcome please.

Regards Chris.

can u try the suggestion here >> http://www.askmarvin.ca/forums/index.php?showtopic=664

please check if your cookies are enabled. that probably should be the problem.
Amir

I think this is a great website. However I have tried everything and the problem still persists.

uninstalled Norton System Works
repaired IE6
uninstalled IE6 to leave IE5.5
Scanned and removed spyware
set IE to defaults
ticked for server certificate revocation
added trusted sites to the list
messenger.hotmail.com , etc etc
deleted cookies, deleted auto complete, passwords, temp internet files etc
I think cookies are enabled as I set IE to defaults but there is no help file on how I can enable or disable cookies.

I'm afraid this may be an unsolvable problem but any suggestions would be welcome.

Kind Regards Chris

Chris, what kind of internet connection do you have?

Chris,
To enable cookies, in IE, click on tools>internet options>privacy tab and set the slider to 'low'
Also, do you have a firewall installed?
Amir

Just found out something. Check it out. Maybe it will work.
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/downloads/critical/813951/default.mspx
Quoted from page: '...This update fixes an issue caused by the February 2003, Cumulative Update for Internet Explorer (810847) where users could potentially be unable to log into MSN mail accounts or authenticate with a Web site in various programs....'

or if u want u can Try running this Winsock2 Repair Utility for Win98\ME which can refresh the winsock settings of ur system:
http://www.bu.edu/pcsc/internetaccess/winsock2fix.html

OR Manually Repair Winsock in WIN98\WINME:
http://support.earthlink.net/mu/1/psc/img/walkthroughs/windows_9x_nt/dialers/dun_1.3/5289.psc.html

Thanks again for the suggestions. In the meantime I have reinstalled microsoft scripting engine. Also installed/repaired Windsock. The IE6 repair patch mentioned above did not install as its not compatible with the version of IE6 &updates I have. I also have cookies enabled and deleted all the certificates and history and passwords & rebooted and did a IE6 self repair and rebooted. However still NO success. As an experiment, I got another OS running on the same computer and it works fine with hotmail so I know the modem and internet provider and proxy server are OK. I use a subscription service with a proxy server suggested by the internet provider (Cytanet). However it will take weeks to reinstall all my programmes and settings and updates so I really want to repair the original OS if possible.  I have a theory that if I could COMPLETELY uninstall IE and reinstall then the system would be repaired. However as you know there are many IE store files that are not removed when IE is uuninstalled and these are used to restore settings when IE is installed again (I think one of the files is called pstores?). Also its not possible to remove the original IE5 that came with Win 98. However if someone could please explain how to manually remove all the store files on IE6 so that I can do a clean reinstall then this might work. Of course, Any other suggestions would be welcome please.

Kind Regards Chris.

I guess that this will be of help:
https://www.experts-exchange.com/questions/21097009/HOW-CAN-I-REMOVE-INTERNET-EXPLORER-6-0-FROM-A-WINDOWS-XP-MACHINE-COMPLETELY.html?query=completely+remove+internet+explorer&clearTAFilter=true

And this completely 'eradicates' IE
http://www.georgedillon.com/web/freeware/ierad.shtml
Good luck

Thanks again for the information. I will try it out and let you know. However I tried the last link

http://www.georgedillon.com/web/freeware/ierad.shtml

It seems a good download but the page was unavailable. Please confirm it still exists or whether there is anywhere else this removal program is available.

Kind Regards Chris

Link works fine for me, though I have also uploaded it here: http://amir.inamdar.spymac.net/  [temporary link, will be removed in 7 days]

also have u yet tried to uninstall ur modem, reinstalling it and recreating the internet connection freshly ??

Does the problem still persist, without any change?

Im afraid the problem still persists. Sorry I coulden't reply sooner but I've been very busy this week.  I tried deleting my modem driver and reinstalling. I also deleted the internet account, restarted and set it up again. Still no change. Also downloaded IE removal tool and reinstalled IE but the problem became worse as couldent reach hotmail sign in page. (previously just signing in to hotmail or using windows update was the problem). I plan to do a system restore using back up CD's to the point when the problem existed but before doing any of the changes mentioned in Experts exchange and trying something else. I also had a back up drive from 2 months previously but this also had the same problem. Its all so weird. I know that a new installation solves the problem as I tried booting another OS on the system and it works fine but I want to restore the old installation with all my programs etc. This could be a complex problem involving third party programs with corrupted registry values. Then again, it could be something amazingly simple that  i have overlooked.  I still appreciate all your help and comments.

Regards Chris

Thanks for the update, Chris.  Curious if the Hotmail account issue could be related to how it was first setup and if some of the components are missing; ie.. MSN Passport interface.

Chris what is te Exact error and error code which Windows Update throws when u try to access it ??

The error code for windows update is 0x800c005 and the MSN sign in error code is 0x81000370. I installed the latest MSN & ran the MSN trouble shooter error code 0x81000370 and it did not find any problems on system settings or programs.

Regards Chris

Just to be sure, have you tried the update trouble shooter?
http://v4.windowsupdate.microsoft.com/troubleshoot/

Yes I tried the Windows update troubleshooter but that did not help.

Regards Chris

Thankyou ALL very much for helping me to solve this problem. I coulden't believe my eyes when I tried the suggestions in the article http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/0x800c0005.htm and my computer was able to sign into hotmail and use windows update without any problems. The Experts Exchange stuck on the trail until the problem was finally solved. I can't thank you all enough. Now I can stop worrying about the computer and spend more time with my family!!!

The article had many suggestions that I tried. I think the point that really made the difference was installing the Microsoft patch Q831167.exe that removed some problems caused by one of their previous patches for IE6. However I also re registered the dll files mentioned in the article and rechecked the date, time, time zone & language. I cleared IE cache, cookies & history, ran Ad Aware, Deleted the contents of the hosts file in Windows/System using notepad. In Advanced internet options unselected "Check server certificate revocation" and selected "do not save encrypted pages to disc".

Kind Regards
Chris Nicola

Terrific news, Chris Nicola.
":0) Asta

Way to Goooooo!! :) ..... Cheers Chris ^_^

I had exactly the same problem and tried everything under the sun but this article solved the problem:

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=241686&p=-1#bottom

Actually this is the specific post that explains the fix:

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies.cfm?t=241686&p=2#r34