Mike writes:

"I have a computer that sometimes freezes at startup. This is recent, but =
is becoming more frequent. It appears to boot normally, but when bootup =
is complete the mouse will not activate any programs/applications. The =
mouse moves but clicking on an icon gets nothing. Control/alt/delete =
does nothing either. All I can do is shut down using the power switch. ="

If sfc doesn't help,  try removing everything from startup folder, also
remove Run and Run-Once registry entries (use StartED for this if you have
it).  Disable or remove any "Crash-Proof" and anti-virus programs.   These
steps may help isolate the cause.

If no improvement, my guess is that your registry is well and truly
stuffed.  Each forced power-down closure is liable to leave remnants from
programs that have started but not closed down properly.  If you don't
restart into Safe Mode each time,  minor registry corruptions may
accumulate to the point where Windows will not run properly.

I assume your hard drive is not over-full.  What sort of computer?  Some
(maybe all) Compaq's I've seen come with built-in "crash-proofing" which
would make me run scared.  If you have anything like that, try disabling it.

Try restoring registry from a copy made before these troubles
started.  It's always wise to keep an old registry copy on hand for this
reason.  With luck, you may not have to re-install much.  It's a much
easier option than reinstalling Windows afresh.

If you don't have a suitable registry backup, there's probably not much
option but to reinstall, or reformat and reinstall.  You could first try
reinstalling "over-the-top", but I wouldn't give much for your chances of
success.

If there's anybody out there who doesn't know how to make regular registry
backups (don't rely on the automatic backup in Win98) Email me for a copy
of my article on that topic.

Don Penlington









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