computer randomly boots into different screens and email prog.

[needhelp]

My friend has just bought a new computer after a problem with her old one which wouldn't boot past the windows desktop screen. just kept freezing. okay bought new computer and had windows 98se installed from her own disk (had been installed on the old computer) she tells me that the guy at the store cloned part of her old computer hard disk to put her old "my documents"on the new computer but that was all that was installed from the old computer as far as she can tell. The problem is that she appears to boot into 2 different desktops when she boots up the computer. this happens at random. sometimes she gets just the plain windows screen and at other times she gets a desktop with a picture on it.
But thats not all the problem, when she checks her email, sometimes it opens her account where she has 2 identities and she has to switch identities to access each email account. I know that is normal procedure and thats fine everything seems normal, her address book etc is all intact. But at other times when she boots up her email opens in another account. its her email name but this time there is no address book and the mail that she had in her other email that opened before is no longer in there. but she still can receive mail that is sent to her if that email window is active.but if she gets mail in that window it doesn't show up in the other one that opens sometimes when she opens her email prog. Her mail program is Outlook Express. but this is driving her mad cos she has no control as to which email window is going to open when she opens Outlook Express. sometimes its the one were she cant switch into her secondary account with no address book and sometimes it opens in her primary email account where she can switch identities and her address book is intact. when she boots the computer, if the standard windows screen is on the desktop, she can only access the account where she has no address book etc. and if the computer boots into the screen where the desktop has a picture on it, she can access all her email options, address book etc.
any ideas guys, the computer is only used by her and is not configured for any other users.
I cant figure this one out. so any suggestions will be welcome.

[GaryRouth]

Hi needhelp

It's very kind of you to offer to help your friend out, but I'm thinking that in this case the only one who really knows all the things he set up is the fellow at the computer shop. If he's reliable and honest, he should stand behind his work and fix this for no charge, as it sounds very like a configuration problem. Since it's brand new, there are many options for his repair: none of which should cost her anything: it should all be under warranty.

I certainly hope that the tech who set up the computer scanned for viruses before he put data from the old machine into the new. . . At any rate: I'd recommend returning it to be re-configured: if there is a warranty, you might risk voiding it by attempting to repair it yourself.

If returning it to the repair shop is not an option, post again & we'll see if we can sort it out
. . . Gary