Help again please chaps

[Rossian]

The thing I dislike most about computers is their tendency to flash up panels that show words that I understand individually, but as a whole mean nothing to me. Over the past week or so, each morning as I fire it up, the following dialogue boxes appear, first:
"???"
This file does not have a program associated with it for performing this action. Create an association in the folder options control panel.

second:
Desktop
!(in a yellow triangle) Could not run "???" specified in the registry. Make sure the file exists on your computer or remove the reference to it in the registry.

Qs Why would they suddenly appear? I usually just click OK and they go away. They don't seem to DO anything - they're just an embuggerance. I can't find a file "???". I can't even find the Folder options control panel, and if I did how do does one "create an association". Help! Because as usual "Help" doesn't.
The Ancient Mariner

[Parapunter]

Sounds as though something is in the registry that shouldn't be perhaps? I would run cc cleaner first of all, see if that gets rid. It's a free download & is very good.

[bnt]

Re the first one... what is "this file"? Windows is trying to open a file, but doesn't know what program to use, so, correct me if I'm reading your description wrong:
- it sounds like this is happening when you log on, without you explicitly trying to open a file. If so, I think there's something in "Startup" that isn't working.
- from here, we obviously don't know what's in there, or whether it's good or bad. Click on Start / Programs / Startup. and have a look at what is listed there. Do you recognise everything in there? You might expect to see things from Microsoft, Adobe etc., maybe Symantec, but if unsure, see if you can find more info on Google or post the names for us to check.

[hellsbrink]

Rossian, can you tell us what the file is instead of "???" (or at least two of them if it's more than one file it whines about)?

We'll get a solution faster....



(BTW... Uninstalled anything recently?)

[Rossian]

Mayday x3

Hells brink
"???" isn't my shorthand for anything, that's what the dialogue box titles itself as. I tried going into start>run and typed "???" in the space and guess what came up?? the dialogue box at quote #1. Doing search for "folder options control panel" comes up with zip,nada,niente nuffin'.
The Ancient Mariner

Uninstalling? not that I can remember.

[Muffin Themule]

The message specifically mentions the registry, so I wonder if your anti-virus software is up to date.

Parapunter's suggestion seems like a good start point.

[hellsbrink]

Are you using, or have you used Trend Micro antivirus?

[Rossian]

mayday times 3

I usually run Crapcleaner every week along with Spybot. I use Avast! anti-virus (following a suggestion in this forum) and that updates every day (or so a little blue panel and an american voice assure me at least once a day. As I say this mainly an embuggerance and doesn't seem to be life threatening but it is annoying that I don't seem to be able to get rid of them.
Thank you for trying to help.
The Ancient Mariner
PS Trend Micro seems more like a fitting for my router :-))

[gizmocat]

Try "Start>Run>msconfig" and look at the "Startup" tab.

See if "???" is listed anywhere, and it may give you a path to the file it is trying to run.

If so, post the info here.

Rgds
Giz

[Rossian]

mayday times 3

Gizmocat
This is what I found:
start up item="???"
command="???"
location=HKCU\software\microsoft\windows NT\current

Does this help?
The Ancient Mariner

[Saab Dastard]

Interesting, I would normally expect to fins startup items here:

HKCU\software\microsoft\windows\current version\Run

There is also C: \Documents and Settings\username or "all users"\Start Menu\Programs\Startup

I have no entries at that location in my XP Pro SP2 config - I would simply delete that registry entry - having first backed up the registry.

SD