i recently downloaded and installed spybot search & destroy. when i open it my desktop goes black it is as if i started in safe mode, everything is hugh and will not fit on the screen. this is the only program that does this. when i close spybot search & destroy my desktop goes black and then returns to normal.

thanks for all suggestions, larry



Mod Edit: This will be moved to a more appropriate Forum.

You may have got a corrupt download.
Download a new version.
Uninstall Spybot, then reinstall the new download.

thanks for the quick response, i gar'rontee, larry

You're welcome, Larry.
Hope it helps.

it's still doing the same thing!

How does Spybot behave in Safe Mode?
How to start Windows in Safe Mode
While in Safe Mode, run Spybot, any Anti-malware programs you have, and your Antivirus.
Do you have any unusual icons in your taskbar?

it does the same in safe mode!

Have you run any other Anti-malware programs, and your Antivirus?
Do you have any unusual icons in your taskbar?

Is it possible you might have downloaded one of the rogue programs that looks similar? Is this where you downloaded from?
http://www.spybot.info/en/index.html

I had the same size problem when in safe mode. When in safe mode I went to view/text size and reduced it so I could use all the programs. You can try it. Download spybot from a dependable site .

http://www.filehippo.com/download_spybot_search_destroy/
http://www.majorgeeks.com/SpyBot-Search_&a...troy_d2471.html

The best place to download any program, is from the site that created it, or one of it's mirror sites.
Also, always scan, all downloads, with your Antivirus, before opening them.

yes i have run anti malware and spyware plus anti virus. i downloaded fron Cnet's download.com they are suppose to be a very safe site. no there are not any unusual icons in my task bar and i always run a anti virse before opening the .exe. larry

On top of Cnet forum on a page discussing Spyware S&D is an ad and link for Spywarebot. A lot of users have mistaken that program for the good one.
Checking their page for Adware and Spyware removal programs, their is no mention of Spybot S&D but their is for Spywarebot.
http://www.download.com/Adware-Spyware-Rem...-0.html?tag=dir

Here is a direct link to the actual Spybot Search & Destroy web site:

http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html


if you notice, there is NO reference to Spybot in this link

it is still doing the same thing after i downloaded from the hyper link you gave me.

Do a file search for Spybot and make sure none of the program is still on your computer. After deleting all the Spybot files try it one more time. If you don't find any remnants to delete I would wait for others to offer suggestions.

Have you thought to post a Hijack This log?

Here is a link to Merijn's web site, directly to the page that contains all good download links.

http://merijn.org/programs.php , and also a link to the HJT forum here

http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/forums/forum22.html

yes i did and the response i got was "have you tried spybot s&d" but, that was when i was having other problems which i was able to fix. i have done a search of spybot files and there was some that i coud not delete. i received an error message'cannot read from source file or disk, could this be because i removed spybot before i tried to delete them? larry

p.s. what to do now

Make a note of the files you can't delete.
Reinstall Spybot.
Delete those files.
Uninstall Spybot.
Then, reinstall a new version.

does this mean i have to go to each site i downloaded from and download and uninstall?

No.
Just reinstall a legitimate copy of Spybot.
Preferably from the link oldf@rt provided, in post #14.

did everything and still not working correctly. still very big.

Unless anyone else has a suggestion, the only other thing I can suggest, is to post about this problem in the Spybot forums:
Safer Networking Forums
I did a search of the forums there, but I couldn't find anything that pertained to you particular problem.

If you do find a fix to this problem, please post back here with what it was.
It might prove helpful to someone else, and I would also be interested in knowing what was causing this behavior.
It's got me curious.

i have already posted and received a response but, it is to late tonight to try. i will in the morning and let you know. larry

Thanks, Larry.

Are you running any theme apps like WindowBlinds (that change the appearance of your desktop), if so try diabling or uninstalling them.

You might want to right click the spybot.exe file and select properties and see if anything is checked under the "compatibility" tab.

here is the response from 'md usa' in the http://forums.spybot.info/ forum page:
Using Windows explorer navigate to:
C:\Program Files\Spybot - Search & Destroy.
Right click on SpybotSD.exe and select "Properties".
Click on the "Compatibility" tab.
Under "Display settings" if "Run in 640 x 480 screen resolution" is checked:
Uncheck it.
Click the "Apply" button followed by the "OK" button.
can you belive how simple this was?
i also got help from village drunk
thanks everyone for everything,larry

ahh the little things....Thanks for letting us know

Funny how the simple things, give you the most trouble.
Thanks, Larry

I learn something new everyday. I didnt even know spybot could be run in 640x480 mode.