I want to talk about some of the steps you can take when the computer goes haywire, and hopefully get yourself out of trouble.

Sometimes when you start a program or application it might not start correctly, the program (application) might have some sort of problem and you could find yourself looking at a white screen with nothing much else happening, possibly you get an error message instead of the program you were trying to use, sometimes a program will refuse to start altogether so it looks like nothing happens at all. When something strange occurs, you can try closing the offending program and start it again, if it doesn't start normally this time you should 'restart' the computer. Sometimes Windows can get in a bit of a huff and do strange things, starting the computer from scratch will commence a brand new Windows session, hopefully with all its settings and bells and whistles in the right place.

If after restarting the computer you are greeted with the same type of problem (ie something acting the goat) you might have to uninstall the program (application) that is causing you headaches. Always make sure you 'restart' the Computer before you reinstall the program. Also it is a good idea to search the internet for a newer version of the program you are having trouble with, sometimes program makers release a new version that fixes bugs and problems that might have plagued older versions and could very well be the problem your having.

Another thing to remember is always update your programs (applications), this includes Windows itself, however Vista and Windows 7 users wont have to worry about windows updates as they do a great job of keeping you up to date. Most programs, however, will want to be updated sooner or later, so its always a good idea to keep up to date with what is happening to your favorite program or app, you can do this by checking the programs website on the internet (some programs are known by a different name ie the company that owns or makes it, like 'Norton Antivirus' is owned by 'Symantec', if you have trouble finding a programs website, type the name of the program into Google and it should point you in the right direction.) Some programs will pop up and ask if they can check the internet for updates when you start your computer, if you know the program then it is ok to let it look and install updates, if you don't know the name of the program, write it down and ask a professional for advice on whether it is safe to let it update itself.

If all else fails you may have to call an IT professional to diagnose the problem for you, however most of the time you can get out of trouble with these simple steps. best of luck and as always