Possible Windows Nightmare!!

[ejnallstars]

Hi

Just got a phone call from my father with problems with his computer.(using win88 SE)

When he switched it on last night he got numerous error messages and also finding new hardware messages appearing. Eventually he got his dektop to load up but the wallpaper was a very old one and also his broadband modem etc was not installed instead all settings was for his old dial up connection.

I have not seen the system yet but it looks as though it has went into a time warp and gone back a year or so. I know from reading in the past that this can be done manually but he would not know how to do this. Using this method could I put his system back to say last week to solve this. (how do I do this?)

Or has anyone got any other ideas what has happened and most of all how I can fix this.??

Any help would be gratefully appreciated.

[glc]

It sounds like it lost its registry and went back to a very old version somehow.

Boot to the boot menu by tapping F8 just before Windows starts - and choose Command Prompt Only. At the C prompt, type SCANREG /RESTORE . There should be 5 registry backups listed, by date. Choose one from a date that you know is good and restore it.

[Miz]

When my mother-in-law was running Win98, she would call me at least every two weeks with the same problem...things missing, icon gone, no internet connection, etc.

She would occasionally click on "Log off" instead of Shut Down and when she booted back up, the dialog box asking for a username and password would appear. She'd just click OK and be logged on as a brand new nameless user. To fix it, I'd just reboot, put her name in the dialog box, get her logged back onto her user account and everything would reappear.

It may be (and hopefully is), that simple with your father's computer.

I fixed it permanently on her new XP computer...I removed the Log off option from the start menu so now she can't click on it.