A neighbor gave me four huge butternut squashes.  Since I put eight butternut squash seeds in the ground in May and haven't seen so much as a sprout, I was grateful.  I thought I would try to find a recipe on the internet which reproduces Cambell's Select Butternut Squash Soup; a family favorite, but pricey at $2.50 for two servings.  I found one web page entitled, "Copycat Recipe Campbell's Select Butternut Squash Soup"--but I'm not going to share the URL with my blog readers.  Read on to find out why.

Neither reading an article or two nor buying software is sufficient preparation for the task of cleaning up an infected Windows machine. The task can be difficult as evidenced by Microsoft's recommendation that you blow away the contents of your hard disk and reload. That is a painful process in its own right and, when possible, I prefer to clean up rather than reload.

You can increase the likelihood of success by following the procedure outlined in Knoppix after which your machine should be behaving resonably well. If it is not, I recommend backup and reload. Now you can pick up the process from Windows.

Getting rid of spyware is like sanitizing latrines after a cholera epidemic. You want to use every tool you have, bleach, Lysol, a steam genereator, blowtorch and sometimes even a bull dozer. Microsoft actually recommends the bull dozer, format and reload. With some effort you may be able to reach a comfortable level of sanitation with less intensive methods.

One kinder gentler method is Spybot Search and Destroy. Download it from FileHippo, install it, update, immunize and scan for problems. If the updates fail, try a different mirror. Keep trying until you see the green check mark along side each update. Repeat "Immunize" after every update.

If Spybot says it can't remove offending entries, see Knoppix and follow the procedure there.

An essential tool for Windows users as Windows and Internet Explorer leave detritus and there is no bio-remediation process (like maggots for cleaning the skull of a trophy or manure for the compost heap).

Download from FileHippo, install without the Yahoo Toolbar. Turn on the Advanced Options, in Options, Advanced check "Hide Messages, uncheck the rest. "Run Cleaner", reboot and do it again. Repeat for every user on the machine.

Switch to Registry, Scan for Issues, Fix all Issues. You will want to repeat this process later. This will remove dangling references to Virii and Trojans you have already removed.

Click Tools and run the Uninstaller for every package you do not need. This is a judgment call, but for the most part you can reinstall over zealously removed packages

There is a new version on FileHippo but I prefer 1.99.1.

Hijackthis is the best single tool we have found to diagnose the health of a Windows system. HiJackThis scans system locations frequented by spyware and hijackers and produces a log file. This log file contains the names of both good and bad programs so discernment is necessary. Best practices:

No measure of security can be gained without either intellectual investment or paying a security professional. No computer system is totally secure. Following the best-recommended practice can only reduce the risks. Our technical professionals can assist with your security needs including firewalls, bastion routers, proxy servers, virtual private networking, digital signatures, public key encryption, virus/spyware scanning and protection as well as updates for your system. Even when your computer is well protected, infection can occur. Our staff can perform security and maintenance to remove an invasion and restore the security of your system. For more information use the contact link on your left or post your question in the forums.