every time i turn on my system, "my computer" folder boots up automatically. I checked Folder Options, under "View" tab to see if "restore previous window at logon" was ticked, and it wasn't.
Any ideas? ...anybody?

colud it be a virus? have you virus scanned?

Not a virus. This can be fixed, but there are also free download tools you can find with a Gurgle search which are like "Reset Desktop" and other such headings... that will restore the Desktop to what Windos intended.

but the "reset desktop" forums i get only refer to resetting whats on the desktop. what happens is when the computer starts the "my computer" folder automatically pops open. did a virus scan and nothing showing. sam old problem.

Go to start, programs, startup, and see if it is there? If so, R click, delete, reboot, problem solved.

hope this helps

can it be so simple? hmmm....will try it when i get to the system.

hey Daproblemis solution of yours didnt work. any other suggestions?

Odd, my friend has this on his computer to. He had download a lot of custom start up screens and themes and stuff so maybe that may have something to do with it. Do you have any custom boots screens, desktop themes and whatnot?

Also try Start, Run, Msconfig, Startup tab.

Deselect anything you don't need or programs that you don't know of.

did the msconfig thing. was not there. plus i WISHED i had custom boot up screens.

Custom Boot up screens? Like what?
Start by using Windows XP Professional SP3. That gives you tools you do not now have.
The custom startup screens are usually part of the problem.

Microsoft Knowledge Base: support.microsoft.com/kb/899865

tried that solution, but all the info mentioned was already entered.
Problem still occuring.

Got anything else?

Save your data.
Reformat.
Reinstall Windows XP as a clean install.
Download and install drivers.
Reinstall software.
Install your saved data.

Ouch! Seems like alot for this annoyance.

jalba- Just to be clear about the KB article:

When you open the key- HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon
The Userinit entry should read:
[COLOR="RoyalBlue"]Userinit REG_SEZ C:\WINDOWS\system32\userinit.exe[/COLOR]

AND

The key- HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanc ed
should list the entry PersistBrowsers as:
[COLOR="RoyalBlue"]PersistBrowsers REG_DWORD 0x00000000 (0)[/COLOR]


If no joy, I suggest creating a new Admin level account from the User accounts applet of the Control Panel.
Name it as you like, but make it an Administrator account.
Log off, and log on into the new account.

Please be patient with XP as it configures the new account. It will take a couple of minutes before it is ready to use. If the "My Computer folder does not pop open, and everything seems good with the new account, you can transfer all your data and settings over as explained: support.microsoft.com/?kbid=811151

This is basically a copy and paste exercise ommitting 3 or 4 files. The only trick is that it must be done from an Admin account that is not involved. I usually use the overall ADMINISTATOR account. If you are using XP Home you will need to boot to Safe Mode to access it. There are several ways to get there in Pro, but the easiest is to use Tweak UI to show the ADMINISTRATOR account on the Welcome Screen. (Main left panel after clicking Logon in the left panel.)

I generally wait a few days before deleting the old account to be sure that I have all my data and my settings are all correct.
After deleting the old account, it is possible to rename the new one to the same name as the old if that is important to you.

I find this to be a simple and effective way to resolve many forms of 'goofyness,' and keep an unused Admin account on my system so that I can check 'goofy' behavior there. Many instances of 'goofyness' are only account level deep. A new account can often be the quickest answer.