My own dumb computer help issue

I was browsing the Web tonight - I think I was actually on this site - when I got a Microsoft Windows error that said something about C++ and that Internet Explorer had to shut down.

Paying it no mind and thinking it was a standard error, I hit OK and continued on.

But then when I went to load up the Internet again by heading to the Start Menu, Internet Explorer was missing. I went to Program Files and it was missing from there, and I even did System Restore back a month and it's still missing.

Thank goodness for having Firefox, or I'd be completely without Internet access.

I've run every type of spyware scan possible - Ad-Aware, Spybot Search and Destroy, Malwarebytes - and McAfee, which I have installed, has given me nothing. I figure it's got to be some kind of virus, though, because my computer has been running slow for quite some time.

Has anyone heard of anything like this? I think I'm going to just have to re-install Windows - not so much for Internet Explorer, but to get rid of what might be lurking altogether.

Thanks in advance.

 

C++ is a programming language. I have NEVER seen this before. If this is truly a virus, get it to a professional ASAP.

 

Was it something along the lines of this?

Code:

C++ Runtime Error - Internet Explorer 7
This program has asked the runtime to terminate it in an unusual way.
If this problem persists, please contact the application's support staff.

Are you using Google Desktop/Toolbar or some other IE add-on? Sounds familiar. That was your second mistake.

Uninstall. Reboot. Reinstall if desired.

(First mistake, of course, is using Internet Explorer. Nobody should use any version of IE.)

 

Ever.

 

Yeah, I understand, smartasses. That's not the point of the problem.

The point is that something's trying to prevent me from accessing the Internet, which means it doesn't want me removed.

I don't care what your preferences are. I care whether or not someone's had this issue before.

 

Dude, the first two responses to you were legit responses.

 

I just told you what your issue is: gakked-up IE add-ons.

Seriously, IE is full of security holes, lags behind Firefox's feature set and suffers from a godawful case of code bloat. And it's full of security holes.

 

I love Firefox, but not for SportsJournalists.com. I zip around here on IE. It takes forever for pages to load whenim on SportsJournalists.com on Firefox.