Recently, Revelations2212 posted a question to the experts:  "I have some nasty spyware or adware on my PC.  I have ran Ad-Aware, Spybot and Anti-Malware and I can't get it removed. I have done everything I can think of, can someone give me some suggestions on what to do? What is the best spyware / adware remover out there?  I need it badly, as this has been going on for more than a week now."

I've decided to tackle this question since it seems to be the root of the vast majority of people's computer related issues, and in many instances, can be easily resolved.  I'd like to share some of my personal insights and experiences, gleaned over the years from helping dozens of people with this type of issue.