media files not playing on laptop !

[mariner]

i got this strange problem in my laptop.none of my media files are opening.this happened after i uninstalled real player.now i have reinstalled real player 10.5 but mp3 and vcds are not playing in real player as well as in windows media player.its possible to browse and select the specific file but both players shut down automatically when requested to play that file.

surprisingly if i pop in a dvd i m able to play it thru win dvd but not thru real player or WMP.
one interesting thing, i logged on to a different user account and was able to play mp3 with nero showtime.when i logged on to my default account even nero showtime refused to play.

later i installed the all in one codec package but same result.
then i tried system restore to an earlier point: same result.

i thought that this may be a directx problem but i cannot open directx diagnostic tool.just a pop up comes which says that
' there was a problem last time when this tool tried to access system information.do u want to bypass it?'
nothing happens on pressing yes or no.
directx diagnostic tool doesnt start even from run command.

if it is a directx problem shud i install 9.0c from the microsoft website (17mb download)?

dont wanna reinstall the os cos this is my first laptop and dont wanna experiment.

configuration
s0ny vaio fs vgn fs115b
os win xp home oem edition
dierctx 9.0c( i guess)
windows media player 10
real player 10.5

if i decide to use the system recovery disc will i loose all the applications i had installed later?

need urgent help.

[mariner]

no takers ???????

[Panama Red]

Using the Recovery Disks will return it to the way it was when it was purchased. It basically does a reformat and reinstall of factory installed programs. All your data would be lost too.

Have you tried uninstalling Real Player? Then check in Control Panel/Folder Options/File Types tab and reassign the files you wish to Windows Media Player.

Visit Windows Update and install all the latest updates too. And if you want a Real Player substitute without all the extras, try this:

http://www.free-codecs.com/download/Real_Alternative.htm

[mariner]

uninstalling the real player did not help. guess i have to take a backup and go for system recovery.cannot see ne other alternative.

thanx panama red !!

[mariner]

ell u what guys, i just installed jet audio from the digit dvd,made it my defaut player and voila everything is playing !!! :) :)

god knows what the hell was the problem but all ok now.

many thanx