msniasvc not responding

I'm guessing this issue has been prominent in this forum regarding msniasvc, yet I couldn't find any posts in the search engine related to it (perhaps I've posted in the wrong forum category; if so, please feel free to redirect this post to the proper forum).

From what I've learned thus far from numerous Google searches, it appears to be an MSN9 problem, which I currently have, and for some time now. The solutions I've encountered from these searches were mostly uninstalling MSN9 and reinstalling. My question regarding this is whether or not there is an easier solution, perhaps a tweak or two, or do I indeed need to go through this extremely time-consuming process (you guessed it... dial-up guy here), which would involve the uninstallation, followed by a phone call to MSN Tech Support and a lengthly "put me on hold" with lame music that an elevator would reject... you get the picture.

The "msniasvc [not responding]" is located in the ole CTL+ALT+DEL and as I type this, it's currently displaying just that and the computer lags tremendously in this state.

Any suggestions would be a big help and if more info is needed, please ask. Thanks in advance!

Windows 98SE
160MB (about half is free)
As I type, 69% of System Resources is free

 

Also wanted to mention that MSN, apparently "in our customers' best interests" added a new feature automatically and against our will... some sort of "connection wizard" that displays an extremely annoying small pop-up screen that appears to be a miniature toolbar about 2 inches in length. We were given a notice by MSN regarding this new feature a few weeks ago and lo and behold it appeared upon reboot soon after. I'd go into more detail regarding its features but I got frustrated with it because Xing it out caused msniasvc issues and keeping it on my screen usually meant me minimizing it to the taskbar below... so I redownloaded MSN9 from my CD and its currently gone. Just wanted to let you all know about this since this is surely to be a major issue with MSN users soon.... if not already. Anyway, ANY help regarding my first post would be a great help. Thanks once again!

 

Aha! Apparently I've "stumped the band" with this issue

 

No, we just like making some people suffer.

Uninstall it completely, manually deleting any left over files or folders if necessary.

Then download and install Micro$$oft Unicode Layer, then reinstall it.


If that fails, HERE and HERE are a few other things to try.

Bear in mind this is a very common complaint, and what works for one person may not work for you.