windows update not recognised

hello everyone, i am using winxp, service pack 3, all updates are up to date, my system is virus free and seems to be running well, i recently ran the belarc advisor program to check my system as i am having great difficulty installing a scanner driver, an update needed replaced so i went to win update, which is telling me my machine is a mac?, another program to scan for driver trouble is telling me it does not have any stuff at mo for mac's either. i have the free zone alarm, avira premium, have disabled both but get same result, have no problem with connection or anything else, just if i want to update i can't, any suggestions would be appreciated, yours jason.:confused

 

I am not entirely familiar with service pack 3, as I have not had the opportunity to test it before doing a mass deployment. However, You first need to ensure you have no malware, spyware, viruses, etc I recommend these applications, We use them corporate wide on my network and it catches things most scanners miss completely and cleans items that most others cant.

First you need AVG Anti-Spyware
http://www.majorgeeks.com/AVG_Anti-Spyware_d5287.html
it provides full functionality and automation for the duration of the free trial, after that you must either buy it, or just run your updates and scans manually.

Second you need AVG Anti-Virus
http://www.majorgeeks.com/AVG_AntiVirus_Free_Edition_d886.html
This one is completely FREE, and is leaps and bounds ahead of norton and mcafee. And its EXTREMELY LOW overhead, only 407KB of RAM required for it to run.


And Third, just for good measure, AVG Anti-Rootkit
http://www.majorgeeks.com/AVG_Anti-Rootkit_d5249.html
This scans the master boot record for rootkits and other nasties that like to hide in there.

Lastly, and this may sound silly, but it's true. Make sure your system clock and windows clock are set to the correct date and time. This can prevent you from getting updates if not correct... Like i said, its silly. You might also give the microsoft update a try, there is a link to it on the windows update site. If it doesnt help or you dont like it, you just goto the settings on the microsoft update page and check the box to remove it and revert back to the original windows update.

Hope this helps.
Good Luck!
:major

 

thanks for your time, i will give avg a try as you recommend, i use avira premium and zone alarm+adaware, i have also swept yy system with smitfraudfix, the time and date are ok, i will let you know how i get on, many thanks. yours jason.