BleepingComputer.com: Explorer problem post antivirus pro problem

I have posted on other areas, but have an issue specific to this topic - I have lost explorer access on my PC, but still have access to my mail (outlook) - I do have some remaining issues with the virus, but am trying to find ways round them - any help would be gratefully recieved - XP3 with IE7

What do you mean by

Quote

? Does IE just not work anymore?

Apologies for lack of clarity. All I get is the "page cannot be displayed screen", I have un-installed explorer and reinstalled it last night and it seemed to help, but after a re-start this morning I am back to square one. I cannot get update access to any anti-V or malware program. But I do have mail access, so the network connection itself appears ok. Dave

Have you checked your HOSTS file?

No - What is it?, how do I check it and what am I looking for - Thanks

Go to Start -> My computer -> Local Disk (Or your C drive) then navigate to C:/windows/system32/drivers/etc and there should be a file in there titled "hosts". Double click it and choose to open the file with notepad. Copy and paste the contents of that file into your reply.

And a host file is a file that stops you from visiting certain websites (usually this is used as a security feature to block bad sites). What it does is redirects your connection from a bad website back to your computer (or another, good, website).