i restarted my comp and now it's gone.
i can get to all my programs via windows button, and can switch between them with alt plus tab, but it's just kinda a pain to have my windows minimize into nothing and have the clock missing and stuff. ps, i have this bar thing set to autohide, so maybe it autohid and somehow got locked up there, but even when hid there's usually a little sliver of silver. i thought that explorer.exe would open it, cuz, i once ended that process and it disappeared, but right now running it just brings up the windows explorer window and it's already running in ctrl alt delete. so. reboot? other dvice? kk thx pal

Thats a strange one. I'll assume you already hovered your mouse down to the bottom of the screen to see if it appears.

Try this set of instructions.

ugh. i was hoping it would be a lil easier than all that. it works on the "guest" profile and when i rebooted (though not the real way, cuz my screen went black and i couldnt do it right) and it showed the bar at very first, but then it disappeared again. oh well...will try later tonight i guess.

Krem, yround?

Or anyone else who is smarter than myself? Doesn't leave many of you, I know, but check it out...

the following instructions fixed the problem:


But when I restarted the comp I got a pop up saying that, because I started in selective mode I would keep getting it...basically, it brings me back to msconfig box, i assume wanting me to go back to "Normal startup".

My question is this...can I leave it in this mode, or should I go back to how it was, and if I go back to how it was will this problem come back?

Also, those instructions basically shut off all of my Startup programs (AIM, GTalk, StyleXP, Tor etc etc)...is it safe to go recheck the one's I KNOW work fine and want to Startup with?

kktx,
kypadeded

Yes, that's what you should be doing: check programs one by one to determine which one caused the problem.

Wait, so I gotta restart my computer like, 20 times? Stay in "Selective mode" changing only the startup programs? Or checking only the "Services" one by one?

I like the way it is now, because before when I ctrl alt delete and looked at the processes there were like, 65,000 and I didnt know what any of them were but was always afraid to end them...not there's only about 10-15 and it's nice and recourse-easy. That's why I ask if I can just select the 5 or so startup programs I use every time I turn on the computer and leave everything else alone? Am I making sense?

Basically, I'm asking what /exactly/ I do next. :O

Sure, you can stay in the selective mode and do that.

You can also delete most of the startup entries manually or by using Spybot. That would allow you to stay in the Normal mode, but still delete most of the programs you don't want from startup.

Ok, you're still being a little vague.

Step one: Stay in Selective mode. (Forever? Will I ever need these "Process System.ini File, Process WIn.ini File, and Load Startup Items" selected?)

Step two: Select the startup programs I KNOW I will start up no matter what (Aim, Gtalk, etc).

Step three: Get rid of everything else that i don't start up every time (OpenOffice, Adobe Reader etc).

Then restart?

Here's what I would do: get Spybot, go to system internals, and delete out all the BS from the startup.

Then you go back to normal mode in msconfig.

Ok. I have Spybot. I went to advanced, then to tools. I see "system internals"...but it says that it "Searches the registry for entries that use incorrect filenames or use non-existant paths". It has a few "blanks" with the wrong app path, a couple wrong uninstall shortcuts and a couple "missing shared DLL" system32 type files.

directly under "system internals" is "system startup"...I assume that's what you mean. However, that page looks like this:

not exactly much BS to get rid of (in mscongif there's a lot more than that, though)

Still kinda confused,
kyeee

Well, you do have startup items disabled

That's because I'm still in "selective startup" with all of the startup items and services unchecked. :O :O