Thank you again for your help. The only program I have running of that type
is Spybot S&D (that may be a problem in itself!) and disabling its resident
functions do not affect the problem.

This time after running the updater, the "Troubleshooter" link provided
included a link saying "When accessing the Update site, you receive the
0x80240020 error"; this states I need to run Windows Update from an
administrator account, which is something I have been doing all along.

"PA Bear [MS MVP]" wrote:

> What anti-virus application or security suite is installed? What
> anti-spyware applications (other than Defender)? What third-party firewall
> (if any)?
>
> Has a Norton or McAfee application ever been installed on the machine?
>
> Tip: Temporarily disable real-time protection by your anti-virus and/or
> anti-spyware applications (e.g., CounterSpy, Spysweeper, Spybot, AVG
> Anti-Spyware) and/or any third-party firewall (e.g., ZA) before attempting
> to install the update(s). If you disable a third-party firewall, do NOT
> connect to the internet without having the Windows Firewall enabled!
>
> =======================
> How to troubleshoot Windows Update, Microsoft Update, and Windows Server
> Update Services installation issues:
> http://support.microsoft.com/kb/906602
>
> You cannot install some updates or programs
> http://support.microsoft.com/kb/822798
>
> => Check WindowsUpdate.log (%windir%\Windowsupdate.log) for errors
> associated with the download/install.
>
> How to read the WindowsUpdate.log file
> http://support.microsoft.com/kb/902093
>
> => Compare errors to those listed here:
> http://www.bleepingcomputer.com/blog...showentry=1122
> and/or go to http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com > click on Help and Support
> link in left pane > Solve problems on your own.
> =============================
> Start a free Windows Update support incident request:
> https://support.microsoft.com/oas/de...spx?gprid=6527
>
> Support for Windows Update:
> http://support.microsoft.com/gp/wusupport
>
> For home users, no-charge support is available by calling 1-866-PCSAFETY in
> the United States and in Canada or by contacting your local Microsoft
> subsidiary.
>
> For more information about how to contact your local Microsoft subsidiary
> for security update support issues, visit the International Support Web
> site: http://support.microsoft.com/common/international.aspx
>
> For enterprise customers, support for security updates is available through
> your usual support contacts.
> --
> ~Robear Dyer (PA Bear)
> MS MVP-Windows (IE, OE, Security, Shell/User)
> AumHa VSOP & Admin; DTS-L.net
>
> bduddy wrote:
> > Thank you for your assistance. The linked article does match the symptoms
> > I
> > am experiencing, including the fact that the updates I attempt to install
> > do
> > not appear in my history. However, I tried both listed methods for fixing
> > the problem, and neither has worked; all updates still fail at the
> > initialization of installing.
> >
> > "PA Bear [MS MVP]" wrote:
> >> CrystalBall© sez...
> >>
> >> Updates are not installed successfully from Windows Update, from
> >> Microsoft
> >> Update, or by using Automatic Updates after you repair a Windows XP
> >> installation:
> >> http://support.microsoft.com/kb/943144
> >>
> >> NB: Also applies to clean installs, upgrade installs, and Recovery
> >> installs.
> >>
> >> bduddy wrote:
> >>> This is the same person... just saying that I am using Windows XP with
> >>> SP3,
> >>> which I was able to install using a manual method; I encountered the
> >>> same
> >>> error when attempting to install in through Windows Update.
> <paste>
> > I am attempting to download several updates, including the final version
> > of
> > IE 7 and Windows Media Player 11. I have downloaded these updates and some
> > others, but whenever I attempt to download these updates or any
> > combination,
> > the installation fails before finishing the initialization step. The only
> > error message given is "A problem on your computer is preventing the
> > updates
> > from being installed"; there is a link to a help page which tells me to
> > switch to an administrator account, but I have attempted to install the
> > updates from two different administrator accounts with the same results.
> >
> > I have attempted to send a problem report, but the provided link leads to
> > "http://support.microsoft.com/ph/6527#tab0", which appears to contain
> > mostly
> > problems from Windows 98 and does not include any information on how to
> > contact Microsoft. I would attempt to provide more information, but as I
> > said, I am only being given the most general of error messages, so I don't
> > know what else to provide.
> </paste>
>
>