Another Computer Question - Win95 security patch

[No Me Ayudes Compadre]

Microsoft is offering a patch for Windows 95 and other Windows products, to patch a problem with bad TCP/IP stacks, which can cause a computer to freeze, crash or otherwise cause trouble.

When I used to run MSIE 3, the computer would often freeze or fail due to kernel errors. Now that I'm running version 5.0, I get similar problems in wininet.dll, mshtml and occasionally in the kernel, although they're not as bad as they were with 3.0.

When I went to download the patch, the program told me that first I need the Microsoft dial-up networking performance and security enhancement 1.3, and to get that I'd need my Win95 CD (which I don't have) and also register with Microsoft to have the DUN 1.3 available.

Now my multi-layered question: (1) Is the TCP/IP patch likely to affect my wininet problems? (2) Am I risking anything by trying to install the DUN program without having the Win95 install CD near me? (3) Is any of this worth it, or am I just jumping through hoops in order to give Microsoft more information about me? (4) Am I making any sense?

Thanks again,

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"Where there is clarity, there is no choice. And where there is choice, there is misery. But then, why should I speak, since I know nothing?"

[Cowboy Greg]

Hoo boy. Let me see if I can answer this coherently...

1. It might help. Then again, your problem could be something else entirely. Windows is such a freakin' house of cards that you could be having wininet.dll blow up because of a bad video drivers. I've seen weird shit like that often enough to wish Microsoft would fix the features they've already got before shoveling more in... ::sigh::

2. DON'T attempt to install DUN 1.3 without having your install CD (or the CAB files on your hard disk) handy. It will ask for many, many files, as it's pretty much re-installing all of network support when you install DUN 1.3. You MIGHT squeak by with telling it to go to \WINDOWS\SYSTEM when it asks you for the location of a file, but don't blame me if it screws up entirely.

3. That depends on how you define "worth it". DUN 1.3 does give you TCP/IP 2.0, with some patches and minor performance increases, and is generally recommended as A Good Thing, but only you know if it's worth giving name, rank, serial number, blood type, mother's maiden name, etc. to Microsoft for. You might, if privacy is important to you, fill out their stupid form with bogus information, or perhaps you could go to this link (http://download.microsoft.com/msdownload/msdun/patch/1.3ug/en/MSDUN13.EXE) and find that you'd mysteriously bypassed their silly registration. I don't know what would happen, of course... ;)

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Someday we'll look back on this, laugh nervously, and change the subject....