1. File permissions incorrect?

Or...

Is it being saved to C documents & settings\administrator\desktop, for some reason?

Try looking in C documents & settings\all users\desktop

Thanks for your input chaps - looked under all possible users and files, once saved, have just gawwwwwwwwwnnnnnnnn !!!
I appreciate the suggestions and thank you all.
Cheers
SF

Tried showing hidden files?
Long shot but worth a try, possibly.
Control Panel>folder options>view, and move the check dot to "show hidden files and folders".

If that works, the next step would probably be to find out why they are being saved as "hidden".

If you open/create a document and then select 'save as' the dialogue box should give you the path to where it's going to save it, if it's not where you want it you can change it, worth a try.

To be honest, it'd be a LOT quicker to blat the machine and start again after moving the files you want to keep to a removable disk.

There's troublesome issues that are easy to fix, and there's troublesome issues that are damn difficult to fix. This one sounds closer to the latter, and hence your efforts are probably better spent rebuilding (with all the benefits that gives) than trying to repair and never knowing fully whether it's fixed.

Files not hidden - path ( several paths ) tried and still gawwwnnnnnnnnn !!
I don't wish to sound defeatist ( no cheese eating retreaters here !!! - snort ) but I suspect mike is on the money.
I may just go for a fresh new format and enjoy the ( shortlived, no doubt ) benefits of that.
For My tuppence worth though, cross the street to avoid IOBit stuff. :=
Thanks again
SF :ok: