[Hulk]

I just got my new Mac Pro with Boot Camp running Windows XP and have limited experience with Windows. Anyone know how to eliminate all those repeating and annoying pop-up messages that keep appearing when you first open Windows?

[Big Mac]

What kinds of messages?

[brokenjago]

Maybe he's referring to those "YOU DON'T HAVE ANTIVIRUS INSTALLED!" and "TAKE A TOUR OF WINDOWS XP!!!" and "YOU HAVE TO TURN ON AUTOMATIC UPDATES!!!!" bubbles?

[ghporter]

The ones brokenjago mentions are easy to get rid of. Install an antivirus package (it IS Windows, after all), click on the "take a tour" bubble and then click Cancel in the new window it opens, and turn on the Automatic Updates. No brainers all.

If it's other messages, we'd need to see what they are.

[Hulk]

I get four different pop-up messages and they come back repeatedly even after I cancel them. After 2 or 3 cancellations they stop and I can proceed to run my one and only Windows program. They are:

1- "Found New Hardware". I have dedicated printers, one for Mac and one for Windows. It wants me to set up both for Windows and I want to keep them separate.
2- "Welcome to the Found New Hardware Wizard". Relate to above.
3- "Your Computer Might Be at Risk". I hadn't planned to install anti-virus because I don't use Explorer or any e-mail program in Windows and don't feel I'm at risk if I stay off off the internet when using Windows. Am I wrong here?
4- "Wireless Network Detected". I'm hooked up to the internet via Ethernet even though I have wireless capability for future use of AppleTV (on order).

It seems there ought to be a preference button to click to stop all this nonsense but I can't find one.

[ghporter]

Just set up the stupid printer and never use it. It may take a few hundred bytes of disk space, but it will get the new hardware found messages to stop. I think there's also an option somewhere in the "install new hardware" process to ignore the hardware and never bother you again, but you have to get into the installation process to find it.

If you have any network connection that eventually gets to the Internet, your Windows installation CAN be compromised. If you install ClamAV for Windows, which is free, then tell the Security Center you have it covered, the "at risk" messages will go away and you'll be protected.

Go ahead and set up the wireless network and the messages will stop. Since you expect to use it for something eventually, you may as well set it up.

[Cadaver]

Originally Posted by Hulk 

I just got my new Mac Pro with Boot Camp running Windows XP and have limited experience with Windows. Anyone know how to eliminate all those repeating and annoying pop-up messages that keep appearing when you first open Windows?

One reason why many don't like Windows...

[CaptainHaddock]

Those are part and parcel with the OS. Windows is like an annoying kid brother who constantly bugs you about trivial things but will let everything go to crap without a peep.

[ghporter]

I'd hardly consider "no antivirus" on Windows to be trivial. And the machine offering to set up hardware for you is just that-an offer. If you go into the wizard and tell it "ignore this device" it will, but how would the machine know to ignore it unless you tell it.

Sure, Mac OS doesn't offer these things, but it works differently. There are still things about it I don't care for because I am used to having total control at my fingertips, and the safety of OS X is that it doesn't let you have that without going through hoops. This is an annoyance to me sometimes, but a trivial one because I know why it's there.

[Sub]

I know a few other good programs that I use for my XP box: Spybot search and destroy, ( for spyware), and AdAware (for everything else). I used to use Avast!, which was great, but that was when it was free.

[brokenjago]

There's always AVG antivirus free edition (I'm pretty sure it's still free.)