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Q: About a year ago, I noticed I could not run any videos like “You tube” on my Dell Dimension E521.   Several sites stated  I had to download the latest version of  Adobe Flash Player.  I did this, but did not get the confirmation video that Flash Player was loaded correctly.  Note, I attempted loading the video using Internet Explorer (IE) .  I have the latest version – v8.  Later I tried accessing videos and “ You Tube” via Mozilla Firefox and it worked!   To make matters stranger, my wife can run video via IE on her account.  My account is the system administrator account. How can I get IE to accept Flash Player video? 

– Kirby L.
Fort Walton Beach, Fla

A: For readers not in the know, the Adobe Flash Player is a little piece of free software produced by Adobe Systems (formerly produced by MacroMedia Systems) that allows your browser to play certain types of embedded video and other content on the web.  There is currently some debate on whether Flash is an obsolete technology.  One example – the iPhone, as popular as it is, has never supported Flash, and if Steve Jobs, President and CEO of Apple is to be believed, it never will.  The latest version of the language that web pages are made from does indeed make Flash seem dated, and indeed, Adobe software is one of the biggest methods for spreading malware in recent months.  Nevertheless, Flash content can currently be found all over the web, and without a working copy of the Flash Player, you miss out on some of the rich content that is available.

Now then, Kirby, if you’ve got web pages telling you that you need to install a new version of the Flash Player, then it’s a pretty safe bet that is exactly what you need to do.  Since you know that when it successfully installs you are supposed to get a confirmation video, and since you did not get it, it’s pretty obvious that your installation failed for some reason.  Now, based on the information I have, I can’t really tell you why, but I can tell you that what I would do is completely de-install Flash from your computer and start again.  You can download Adobe Flash uninstallers from tinyurl.com/c3e657.  Once Flash has been completely purged, reboot the computer to ensure all files marked for deletion are removed.  Then, make sure you temporarily disable your virus scanner and any other system protection software you have, as these are often known to interfere with software installs, particularly those that link into your web browser.  Go to tinyurl.com/3wytk4 and install the player.  Be sure and UNcheck the box that says “Free McAfee® Security Scan Plus” if you don’t want this on your system.  McAfee tools are notoriously difficult to remove once installed, and you probably don’t need this anyway.

You can test your flash installation any time you like by going to tinyurl.com/22x8n7.  This handy page will not only tell you whether Flash is properly installed and working on your computer, but it will tell you what version you are running, and whether or not a newer version exists.