Format & Reinstall, or Reinstall over existing XP?

[CiscoJP]

I've been having some internet connectivity problems lately, and I believe it's due to some nasty spyware. I've already gone through all the steps to correct this (checking my DSL speed, anti-spyware scans, anti-virus scans, doing it all in safe mode, even reset my winsock.dll, etc.) but I'm still having problems with slow browsers. So now I think I'm faced with reinstalling Windows XP. My question is, should I do a format & reinstall, or is it better to reinstall Windows over my existing version? I have a Compaq Presario, and it comes with a Recovery CD. Any help is greatly appreciated!

[dlh6213]

A fresh installation is generally preferred. If needed, you can find complete instructions here:
http://www.daniweb.com/techtalkforums/thread6632.html

Read this before you reinstall so you can prepare your system to go online before actually doing so:
http://www.daniweb.com/techtalkforums/thread16365.html

[CiscoJP]

Thanks for the advice & links. I have a Recovery CD that came with my PC, so I'll use that to format the drive and reinstall Windows. I just didn't know if it was better to do a fresh intsall or just "fix" my existing Windows.

[caperjack]

Thanks for the advice & links. I have a Recovery CD that came with my PC, so I'll use that to format the drive and reinstall Windows. I just didn't know if it was better to do a fresh intsall or just "fix" my existing Windows.

A fix will not get rid of spyware/viruses /trojans ,format and reinstall foe best results ,just be ready to reinstall programs that you use as well .

[CiscoJP]

Ok, so I reinstalled last night using the Compaq QuickRestore CD that came with the machine (my computer was barely usable last night). For some reason, it seems to have just installed a bare-bones Wndows XP, instead of loading it with all the Compaq bundled software. This is fine, and not a big issue, but on the first few boots, the mouse/clicking was acting funny. Clicking on the Start button would hang for a long time, or double-clicking an icon on the desktop would yield no result. Eventually, it opened things. I rebooted, and then it seemed to work fine. I noticed on startup that there was a box that I'd never seen before, something about reseal, audit, and doing these things after I tested/installed the software. Does anyone know why I'm having these little isues?