Member Avatar for badsiss2

Hi Everyone

When my computer comes on I get a little box that has nothing in it,I have to click on it 3 times to get it to go away.When I click on the start tab it sticks and freezes so nothing pulls up.Also when I try to pull up my computer,my documents or history and temp files from the desktop all that shows up is a RED X.

I had a CD burner in my computer that I didnt use because I lost the disk for it and I was using windows media player when I found that I could burn a CD from there.The same day I got it working is when these problems began so I am wondering if it could be the reason I am having this problem. I have an E MACHINE 600is. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by Gary335

Dani AI

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The combination of a sticky Start button, a small empty dialog that must be clicked away, and desktop icons showing a red X points at the Windows shell (explorer.exe) or the user profile rather than the keyboard or mouse. Because this began the same day a new CD/burning component was used, focus first on shell extensions, newly added drivers/services, and corrupted shell resources — then branch into deeper repairs if needed.

Quick diagnostic sequence to follow (in this order):

  • Boot to Safe Mode (press F8 at boot). If the Start menu and icons behave, the cause is almost certainly a third‑party shell extension or startup service.
  • Test with a new user account. If a new account is clean, the original profile is corrupted.
  • When Start locks, restart the shell: open Task Manager (Ctrl+Alt+Del), End Process on explorer.exe, then File -> New Task -> explorer.exe to restart. This is a safe way to restore access temporarily and to capture error messages.
  • Check the Winlogon shell registry value (back up the registry before editing):
    HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon\Shell

    It should normally read explorer.exe.

Fixes to try next:

  • Rebuild the icon cache (close explorer, then delete the IconCache file from your profile Local Settings/Application Data and restart explorer or reboot).
  • Perform a clean boot: run msconfig and disable non‑Microsoft services/startup items to isolate the offending program. Use a tool that enumerates shell extensions if needed (ShellEx viewers/Autoruns) to turn off suspect context‑menu or icon handlers.
  • If the problem follows the day you enabled burning, uninstall the burning software/driver or roll back its driver in Device Manager.
  • Check Event Viewer for Explorer or Application errors, run sfc /scannow if system files look damaged (XP requires the install CD), and use System Restore to a point before the change.

A few cautions: back up personal files before major changes, and export registry keys before editing. If normal tools won’t run because explorer hangs, use Safe Mode or a bootable rescue environment to inspect and remove offending components. This approach expands on and ’s suspicion of software problems by giving targeted, non-destructive steps to find and fix the shell/profile source.

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Member Avatar for 'Stein

Have you run virus scans?

I have a feeling this is the problem.

Member Avatar for Gary335

Sounds to me like some kind of adware or Spyware. Run spybot Search And Destroy and Adaware.

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