windows update hangs IE or whole computer --- more information

If I try to access http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com IE hangs and needs to
be shut down by the task manager (not responding message from the task
manager when I click "end task"). It seems like anything to do with the
update process causes a problem

Also in my first post I forgot to mention that I am running the home edition
of XP.

Tom

I tried doing some system restores. After one of them I noticed that the
update icon in the notification area said something like "download 2%
complete" when I did a mouseover on it. After the system restore I was not
connected to the internet, so I wondered how that could be. My guess is
that I had interrupted an earlier download because it appeared to have
stopped (that is the connection details showed no data transfer for some
time and the windows update software dialog box was also showing no
activity). My guess at this point is that the canceled or otherwise
interrupted download caused something to go haywire. Ironically, the next
system restore I tried after that came back with a message that the restore
was not successful (I forget the reason it gave), but the update icon in the
notification area no longer showed the 2% message. I was then able to
successfully download and install the latest updates.

Tom
"Tom Harvey" <tom_reader@*att.nospamdotnet> wrote in message
news:%...
> If I try to access http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com IE hangs and needs
> to be shut down by the task manager (not responding message from the task
> manager when I click "end task"). It seems like anything to do with the
> update process causes a problem
>
> Also in my first post I forgot to mention that I am running the home
> edition of XP.
>
> Tom
>