Member Avatar for Genie2004

My computer, with Win98SE, was on the Internet one day and it worked fine then. But the next day, although Windows booted up okay, I found it impossible to enter shortcuts to "My Computer," "Internet Explorer" and others. I am unable to right click on the display to access "Display," and the entire Control Panel area fails to open up. Applications in the Start Menu bar also fail to work, and the only way to execute applications is the good old "Run" dialog. However, if I run something like MSWord, and click Open, I can perfectly access the folders and items...just not the Control Panel, Printers, and Dial-Up Networking. Help would be appreciated since I also cannot connect to the Internet this way. Any ideas on whether viruses could be involved?

(7-17-04-Any new viruses emerge that could make this happen?)

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Dani AI

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As describes (Win98SE boots but shortcuts, Control Panel and Start Menu items don't respond) and as notes, malware is one possible cause — but the same symptoms also happen when the shell/shortcut associations or the registry get corrupted. The fastest way to narrow this down is to try a few safe checks from the Run box and to work from Safe Mode before attempting repairs.

Try these quick tests (type each into Start -> Run):

control

If that fails, try a direct applet:

C:\Windows\System\desk.cpl

If a .cpl opens, the applets themselves are intact and the problem is with how Windows is launching them (shell/association issue). Also try restarting Explorer:

explorer.exe

If Explorer was not running or restarting it restores right-click/start-menu behavior, the problem is in startup/auto-run code.

If the desktop and shortcuts still fail, boot to Safe Mode (press F8 at boot). In Safe Mode, run up-to-date offline antivirus scans (copy updates from a known-clean PC if this machine cannot reach the Internet). If the problem disappears in Safe Mode, a startup program or shell extension is the likely culprit — use a selective startup to isolate it.

For registry-level fixes: Win98 includes ScanReg to restore registry backups. Make a full data backup first, then try:

scanreg /restore

If you are comfortable with Regedit, the shortcut class lives under HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\lnkfile; corrupt or missing keys there can break shortcuts. Back up the registry before editing.

If these steps do not help, a repair install from the Windows 98 CD or a professional offline cleanup is a practical next step. Always back up personal files before substantial repairs, and if malware is suspected, perform offline scanning from clean media before reconnecting the PC to the Internet.

Member Avatar for DMR

Virus and "Spyware" infections can cause those sorts of symptoms.

- If you currently have an anti-virus program, download the latest virus definitions, unplug your Internet connection, and run a full system scan. Of course, you'll need to be able to open your browser to do so- for Internet Explorer, type iexplore in the "Run..." dialog.

- If you don't have an A-V program, get one now; you're just asking for trouble if you don't.

- Read through the threads in our Security forum to find out how to get and install the recommended spyware detection/removal/prevention tools such as Ad Aware, SpyBot, HijackThis, SpywareBlaster, SpywareGaurd, etc. If you do find spyware problems and have any questions about them, please start a thread on the topic in the Security forum.

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