? about registry cleaning

[dajoga]

Since I contected my laptop to my new hi-speed provider, I've been inundated with pop-ups (three or four just while typing this thread) that my system has critical errors and my registry needs cleaning. These pop-ups come from five or six different websites.

Where is a good registry cleaner? I'm running XP so does MS have one I can downlaod?

[Rhino]

Those are all spyware or spam ads (or worse), so I wouldn't worry about what they say, particularly in light of the fact that your registry isn't visible to anyone on the internet, so there's no way they could know that anyway. RegClean (http://www.regclean.com/index.php) is free, and is supposed to work pretty good. RegistryFixer and RegCure are also supposed to be good, but they aren't free. Doc probably knows the best ones. But from what you report, I think you need a popup blocker far more than you need a registry cleaner. My advice is to never, ever click on a popup ad.

[DoctorDoom]

My choices vary, but the one thing to be careful of is that some cleaners are too efficient, and they find things that shouldn't be deleted.

Here are a few pages worth reading.

Langa Letter: Testing 10 Windows 'Registry Cleaning' Software Packs (http://www.informationweek.com/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=171203805)

Do I Need a Registry Cleaner? (http://askbobrankin.com/do_i_need_a_registry_cleaner.html)

Why I don’t use registry cleaners (http://www.edbott.com/weblog/archives/000643.html)

PC Registry Cleaners 2007 - Overview (http://registrycleanercomparisons.com/)