Skybird - right click the start button - go to properties - and select "classic view". It gives you your old desktop icons and start button back. Other screens also offer the classic view - like the control panel for example.

Also - Skybird - I think you may have noted what problem you have. Looks like your running multiple scanners there. Remember - each one loads when you boot - and most have to "filter on access" of a file - meaning regardless of memory, cpu speed, hd space, etc - you have a program or file that must be looked at by 4 or more applications that you listed before it can be allowed to "execute" in its own memory space.

Alot of people make this mistake. Remember - Windows has Defender built in - so if you want to run ad-aware or something similiar - turn of defender. Or - don't let the apps autoload. You need ONE - repeat ONE virus scanner/adware/spyware application loaded. You can have others installed - and let them each run their own scan on occasion - but if you let more than one load - your asking for HUGE perfomance hits.

Think of it this way - you ask someone to give you your keys from your jacket pocket. They reach in, look over the keys - and hand em to someone else to pass to you. That person gives them an inspection - and passes them on to the next... do that with 4 people in between you and your keys - and it will take a while for you to get what you need. Same thing going on in your pc.......

I am aware that you should not have several scanners of the same kind running. But I use free versions of the software(s) only, and while Firewall and Antivirus are active (Windows security centre items switched off and centre disabled), I think the free versions of Spybot and Adaware do not run in the background (just update services, but not the scanners). For Spybot, if I remember correctly, the registry protection (Tea Timer) could be switched to running constantly, and Spybot also blocks the websites in the immunisation databases, but the tea timer I have left off since my Mom does not know what to do if there are constantly some access requests and alarms on changes in the registry.

Spybot and AdAware scan for the same kind of things, but in the past I often had the situation that the one was finding what the other had left out, and the other way around.

Since I run the same software, even in wider functionality modes, I should see the same kind of problem on my system, shouldn't I?

I have Windows Defender inactive and only run the free version of Avast antivirus. It has all a general user would need to protect their computer.

A late addendum:

I had two occasions to run the active scanning processes of the above mentioned programs with windows Defender, Firewall, AntiVir and a handful of more background tasks being activated before.

The scanner still work incredibly slow, so that I would say it does not make any difference at all. The thing that makes the obvious difference seems to be Vista itself indeed.