can't open "My Computer"

[Geek]

I clcik on My Computer and all that shows is a white blank window and the computer locks up. I have to do the three finger slaute to stop my computer from running and sometimes the icons reappear and other times I have to re-boot. Any way I can replace a line of data that must be missing that is causing this problem? Thanks.

[GX1_Man]

Have you done the drill of remove spyware/adware/viruses yet? What happened before this occurred that might have caused it?

[Geek]

Thanks for the reply. Yes, I ran a few registry programs and my computer is clean. I was fortunate in that the first time it happend, I use go back and all cleared up showing that a line of data had been removed or screwed up somehow. It lasted fsor a full month and was working just fine when I shut down on a friday two weeks ago. On Saturday AM upon boot and attempting to bring up "My computer and or "My Documents" the same thing happened. Why, who knows? But I do believe a line of data has been corrupetd some how and I need to replace same and wish I knew what it was and how to do same?

[pcdoc4christ]

Geek:

My guess:

Virus, or corruption of the Registry, or hard drive is going bad and corrupting operating system files.

To rule out the last guess as the cause, try this if you have Windows 2000 or XP:

1. Click Start > Run
2. In the Run dialog box, type CMD and press the Enter key.
3. In the command window, type

CHKDSK C: /F /V /R

and press the Enter key.

If the result displayed is "windows has ... found no problems" or zero bad sectors, then your hard drive is OK.  If the result shows a number of bad sectors found, then your hard drive is about to die, and you should backup as many files as you can to CDs or floppy disks before it crashes.

Do you hear any unusual sounds coming from inside your computer case, like grinding noises or a metalic pings?  If so, this is another sign that the hard drive may be going bad.

Let us know how it turns out.

Best regards,
Doc

[Raptor]

Virus scanners
AVG Free
-- Anti virus scanner
Trend Micro Housecall
-- Online anti virus scanner.

Anti spy/malware
Microsoft Antispyware
-- Anti spyware scanner. Windows XP Home and Professional only.
Spybot Search & Destroy
-- Anti spyware scanner
Adaware SE Personal
-- Anti spyware scanner

Firewalls
Use both a hardware and software firewall.
Be advised as dual software firewalls may cause problems

ZoneAlarm Free
-- Free firewall - more user friendly
Sygate Personal
-- Free firewall - more configuration options

Removal tools
The following files are not substitutes for the ones described above.
They are either diagnostic tools or removal tools for malware of a certain kind

HijackThis
-- Manual malware remover. Post the HijackThis log generated only if requested!
McAfee Stinger
-- Virus removal tool. No substitute for a fully functional virus scanner!
CWshredder
-- CoolWebSearch removal tool. Widely known and persistant Hijacker.