Windows ME solution to critical update KB828026 that just wont go

the following was provided by "mTIE":

"Hi,

This thread is a little old, so maybe you don't care anymore, but here's the
answer:
I had the same problem, and it took me a long time to figure out the fix.

First, The advice at http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/828026.htm _might_ be
usefull to people with Windows XP but it was no help to me. (I'm running
Windows ME.)

I found some good advice on these newsgroups from "Smirnoff" who says:
1. Delete all copies of WMP.DLL (There should only be one, probably in
C:\Windows\system; If you're nervous about deleting files, back it up first,
or just rename it.)
2. Re-install Windows Media player. (I found if you just click on the
player icon after deleting WMP.DLL, it will automatically walk you thru
downloading a new copy from the web and reinstalling.)
3. Re-install 828026.

This is very good advice but VERY IMPORTANT: When you go back to Windows
update, install 828026 ONLY! Do not install any other updates at the same
time!

I went thru this routine, and when I went to Windows Update, it told me
there were two critical updates I needed: 828026 and 885492. Like a good
little sheep, I took the path of least resistence and let it install both.
This put my system back to where it was before, where Windows Update keeps
insisting that I need 828026 no matter how many times I install it!

What I've learned is:
Installing WMP9 installs version 9.0.0.2980 of WMP.dll
Patch 828026 upgrades this to version 9.0.0.3075.
Patch 885492 upgrades this to version 9.0.0.3250.

What I think happened to you, me, and a lot of other unfortunates is we
installed both patches to WMP9 at the same time -- becuase Windows Update
told us to. WU installed the second patch first. Then the first patch
failed because WMP.dll was then newer than the one it was trying to deliver.
However, it fails without any error message and tells you that it was
successfull. But then the next time you go back to WU, it sees that you
have WMP9 but you don't have the registry entry that shows that 828026 was
installed, so it just keeps trying....

(sigh. NEFW: Nothing Ever F****** Works)"


The solution works wonderfully! Be sure to follow the directions provided by
mTIE!

Griff~