Friday, March 07, 2008

Skype addon causes IE hangups

I have identified the problem in my previous post, it seems that the skype addon (mastermind) for Internet Explorer , an activeX control, is either defective in itself or incorrectly installed by the skype installer. The effect is to block other activeX controls functioning correctly. So for example users would be unable to use Windows Update, because the site uses an activeX control (Genuine Advantage) or controls, that MUST function as part of the update process. The result of this is that the Blaxxun Contact activeX controls are blocked and IE hangs.

The resolution to this problem is simply to remove or disable the faulty activeX control, in this case identified as being Skype Addon for IE (mastermind). IE may still hang occasionally when used in conjunction with Blaxxun Contact, however this seems to be in the most part due to incompletely downloaded media files or partial files in the internet cache. Clearing the internet cache will usually resolve the problem.