Why doesn't my XP GUI open properly?

2 thoughts on “Why doesn't my XP GUI open properly?”

1. x_southernbelle says:

   July 18, 2010 at 8:41 am

   Must be a bad update which affects explorer.exe.

   If this is in deed the case, then you have no choice but to do an OS re-install. THIS time turn OFF Automatic Updates and ONLY allow updates ONE at a time (past SP2) at a specific time interval (say a week or two) so as to pinpoint the offending Update and uninstall and skip the thing. Contrary to popular belief not all updates are good code and not all are absolutely needed. It all depends upon what you use your computer for and what the update is supposed to actually do.

   Sorry for the bad news, but this is the World of Windows. Good Luck!

   EDIT:

   I got to thinking about your problem and recall a similar one that I had a while back. Never did figure out what was causing it, but it’s resolved itself with time. Of course, I’ve run ScanDisk and Defragged several times since then. So, who knows, may that have something to do with it?

   AND

   Sandy has a point about System Restore and running AV and anti-malware scans. You don’t have to use P2P software to get infested. All you have to do is land on the >"right"< website and get hit by a ‘drive-by’!

   http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drive-by_download

   To find out if this has happened, first run this on-line scanner:

   http://www.f-secure.com/en_EMEA/security/security-lab/tools-and-services/online-scanner/index.html

   IF it finds any _virii_ at all, you need to turn OFF System Restore …especially if those infestations are in System Restore files… until you get that computer cleaned up! Using System Restore can actually re-infest a computer no matter where an infestation is found. If you find you must do this, you will need to turn System Restore back on and create a manual Restore Point once you have your computer as clean as possible.

   You may have to disable your firewall and/or AV software while F-Secure runs, so you don’t really want to be doing anything else with your computer in this condition. F-Secure can take from just under an hour to several hours to run depending upon the size of your hard drive and how many files you have on it.

   After F-Secure has run and you’ve cleaned up anything it finds, then UPDATE your on-board anti-malware progs and run scans with them. Just be aware that sometimes it takes several scans to eek out and destroy certain mal-warez. So run all scans including F-Secure more than once. After you’ve run your on-board stuff run F-Secure one more time just to make sure. If you need ideas on additional on-board anti-malware progs, you can see what I recommend on my profile here. You need ONE AV and at least two anti-spyware/malware progs installed.

   Once you’re sure your computer is as clean as possible then turn System Restore back on and make your manual Restore Point.

   IF you’ve found virii or mal-ware of any kind to have to clean up and you use IE, STOP! Download and install Firefox with the Add-ons I listed here:

   http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AiCm06_YQgcCQm0qtYfTHqfty6IX;_ylv=3?qid=20100208111140AAXygqn&show=7#profile-info-Liha5kjdaa

   If all of this doesn’t fix your problem and if you still want/need to keep the OS intact, you can try doing so with the help of a forum with complete computer GURUS in it here:

   http://www.p2plife.com/forums/

   They’ve even helped me out of a jam or two!!!! If you need the help from these folks, it would behoove you to follow the advice here:

   http://catb.org/esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

   to help you get to the root of the problem quickly and get accurate answers that have better solutions than can be gleaned from here.

   Again, good luck!

2. Sandy G says:

   July 18, 2010 at 8:41 am

   >>I’ve used system restore a couple of times and it works, but the problem comes back after a few days.

   Whatever caused the problem in the first place is happening again. Stop doing that!

   Since you can recover the system at will, run full antivirus and antimalware scans before you use system restore again. Then run a second set of scans with different AV and AMw apps. Hope scans name the problems they find and fix.

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