By-Tor.com

moYrseYcZode wrote:Also, I have another computer-related question...I have somehow lost the WordPad, Calculator, Solitaire, and Pinball programs that were supplied for free when I bought my laptop. I know I had them a couple days ago, but now when you look at the icons on the desktop for them, the icons are blank windows instead of a calculator, pinball, etc. And when I click on the WordPad icon, as an example, it tells me: "The drive or network connection that the shortcut 'WordPad.Ink' refers to is unavailable." None are to be seen in the Start Menu, anywhere. Am I going to have to buy restore software, or is there some other alternative? Any help would be greatly appreciated !

Have you run an anti-virus scan lately?

You can get free anti-virus software from www.grisoft.com or www.avast.com

Devil's Advocate wrote:

moYrseYcZode wrote:Also, I have another computer-related question...I have somehow lost the WordPad, Calculator, Solitaire, and Pinball programs that were supplied for free when I bought my laptop. I know I had them a couple days ago, but now when you look at the icons on the desktop for them, the icons are blank windows instead of a calculator, pinball, etc. And when I click on the WordPad icon, as an example, it tells me: "The drive or network connection that the shortcut 'WordPad.Ink' refers to is unavailable." None are to be seen in the Start Menu, anywhere. Am I going to have to buy restore software, or is there some other alternative? Any help would be greatly appreciated !

Have you run an anti-virus scan lately?

You can get free anti-virus software from www.grisoft.com or www.avast.com

Yeah, I had Norton Internet Security installed when I bought my laptop, and I have it scheduled to do a quick scan every morning, and a full scan two days a week. I have had this computer for about two months, and have had a total of four Trojan Horses try to execute on it (from certain websites), but my antivirus program caught them and quarantined them right away. I did receive a warning earlier today (or yesterday, I don't remember), about a hacker/spy trying to gain access onto my system, but my password is complex, my antivirus program is always kept up to date, and I have a good firewall. So I seriously doubt that he/she was successful, and I don't have any proof other than this current problem that they might have been. I don't know, it could have been something I did...what though? Thanks for your help, though!

Nice to meet you, by the way ...

Hmmm. Ok, try right-clicking one of the faulty shortcuts, and select "properties."

You'll get a new window. It'll have a bunch of stuff about the shortcut and the program it's supposed to link to. Find "Target" and make a note of it.

Then open a "my computer" window, and try to find the path & filename in that Target.

It looks to me like you've deleted or renamed the programs, or possibly renamed a folder. (That's one thing that virusses do, which is why that was ym first suggestion.)

The other possibility is that the shortcuts themselves have been corrupted somehow, in which case the programs will be where they belong but the Target will point somewhere else. But since you've lost your icons, I think this unlikely.

PS - that "target" may include something like %systemroot% or something else enclosed by a pair of percent-signs. If so, that's an alias for a specific folder on your hard drive. What folder corresponds to what alias will depend on what version of Windows you're running.

If you pick "run" from the Start menu, and enter the alias (comlete with %-signs), it should open a "my computer" window on the folder.


All this legwork will not fix your problems, but it should help to find out what's gone wrong.

That's my boyfriend. Good with computer problems. We are not the mushy type. Well I am but I try showing it in a much more fun way with teasing and throwing pillows at his head. Try getting a picture of him with a big smile. You'll be at it for hours. He's got a Neil way about him.

Neil?

*drools*

RL you said Neil! *is unable to do anything until she recovers*

Devil's Advocate wrote:PS - that "target" may include something like %systemroot% or something else enclosed by a pair of percent-signs. If so, that's an alias for a specific folder on your hard drive. What folder corresponds to what alias will depend on what version of Windows you're running.

If you pick "run" from the Start menu, and enter the alias (comlete with %-signs), it should open a "my computer" window on the folder.


All this legwork will not fix your problems, but it should help to find out what's gone wrong.

I am really excited, because it turned out being a dumbass mistake of mine. See I decided to search for C:\Program Files\Windows NT\Accessories\wordpad.exe on the internet, and happened to find a tech forum in which someone was asking for help because he could not find WordPad, and one of the answers contained a link to "How To Add or Remove a Windows Component in Windows XP" at microsoft.com, and it turns out that I deleted some accessories and games earlier when I was trying to make room on my "D" drive for a successful defragmentation. It's all good now, though !

Thanks a lot for all of your help!

rushlight wrote:That's my boyfriend. Good with computer problems. We are not the mushy type. Well I am but I try showing it in a much more fun way with teasing and throwing pillows at his head. Try getting a picture of him with a big smile. You'll be at it for hours. He's got a Neil way about him.

Long distance relationship, eh ? J/J!

Anyways, so you mean you've never seen Neil smile? I don't have a huge Rush DVD collection, but if you watch Rush in Rio, or any other concert recording in which Alex does his ranting and raving on "La Villa Strangiato", then you'll probably see him smile...I know what you mean, though, Neil has a very unique and mystic character about him. It doesn't help though that he lost both his wife and daughter less than a year apart from one another ...we feel for ya, Neil!!!

In fact, today is the anniversary of Jackie's death if I am not mistaken.

Well, I'd have to do a little research, but I think I trust ya .

BTW, wip, I sent another pm...I could get my photos on the forum tonight if you help me at the point I'm at. I have an account at Photobucket, and have uploaded photos from "My Photos", but I'm not totally sure what to do from there ...

Just copy the 3rd line under the pic on photobucket, then when you post it, just paste it to the body of the post.

I'm just better than computer stoopid, but I'm getting better. And if I can do it............................

If you do what he says, then you don't need to worry about the things I told you about because they are a part of that third line he mentioned.

I sneekie sneak like that.







Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh don't tell no one.

Thanx, I will do that, then...

I'm not computer stupid, It's just I've only been registered to one other forum before, and that was years ago. I never tried hosting photos then. I'm just so damn used to being able to copy and paste a photo or text or whatever ...

*waits*