My MacbookPro keeps randomly crashing with Lion

Question

So I have Lion, and a Late 2010 Macbook Pro. I have the issue where my computer randomly kernel panics and basically shuts down whenever it does something "video card intensive" (like looking at a PDF), it happens most often when using a macapp like keynote, photobooth, or quickview. I have read throughouly through the threads online and have tried a number of fixes. The only one that has worked for me so far is the application GfxCardStatus which allows me to switch between integrated and discrete video cards. However, I do a lot of presentations and use an external monitor, and when using the integrated video card, it does not allow me to connect to external video output.
The only other answer I get is to switch back to Snow Leopard. I have already invested a lot of time in reinstalling lion and all my apps, I do not want to have to go through it another two times. (once to go back to snow leopard, and then eventually back to lion when (if ever) this issue gets resolved, plus the fact that I paid for Lion, and I want to get my moneys worth, especially since I've lost a good 60 hours of work and frustration due to the randomly shutting down of the computer).
Is there a better solution that I can implement until new drivers are released for the NVidia Video card? or Should I peteition Apple to replace the video card on my MBP? So far the geniuses just keep telling me to reinstall lion (Which is just awful, you have to redownload it every time, Unless you were fortunate enough to make a boot disc, and it does not solve any of my problems). Thank You in Advance anyone that can help me

Answer 1

You’ve been infected with the “Flashback” malware. See this Apple support document:
About Flashback malware
Back up all data, if you haven't already done so.
From the menu bar, select
 ▹ Software Update
to install the latest Java update, as well as any other available updates. That should clear the infection in most cases. You must update to the latest version of OS X 10.6 or 10.7 before you can install the Java update.
The removal tool runs automatically in the background and is then deleted. Don’t look for something to click. If the malware is removed, you’ll be notified.
After you’ve secured your system — not before — change every Internet password you have, starting with banking passwords, and check all financial accounts for unauthorized transactions.