This is a PC question. First: the PC is a Sony Vaio running WinME. I have a cable modem, wireless router and a firewall plus active virus protection. That said the machine has been acting a bit odd lately, not surprising considering it's age and OS, but still it seems to be doing things like being busy when I am not asking it to do anything. Might be I'm over sensitive since the firewall and virus software claim we're clean. But last night when I shut it down I waited just in case, as a few times it has hung up on shutdown and I had to power off and then run scandisk. So last night as I'm watching the screen, seconds before the HD wound down there was a brief message on the screen, white block letters on a black screen. I think the top line was "If you can see this" and the second line I couldn't catch before the monitor went black. I can't say I recall seeing this before and I don't know how to stop the shutdown and freeze the screen if it should happen again. So my question is does anybody have an idea of what this screen message meant, especially is it possible the thing is infected? Is there a virus/worm etc that does this or is it some minor thing that windoze does just to scare folks?
As an aside, can somebody please tell me why so many messages on PCs (and even Amigas) flash on the screen so fast that you can't possibly read them? Does this date from slower computer days? I HATE the guru warnings on my Amiga as they tell me nothing unless I can find the place where the numbers are explained, and often this tells me nothing practical. Likewise I get the occasional system messsage as I am working on one of the machines and the window spends it's brief life behind one or more other windows so that by the time I close them it too has gone. Anybody know why these things are set up to be so arcane? Why not make it easier on the user/owner? I've heard from more techy people that if you can't understand all this you shouldn't own a computer! What BS! Anyway, here's hoping somebody can give me a clue... :-?
