Windows XP Home Edition (on my Dell Dimensions 8200 desktop) is experiencing a bizarre problem. While I have no trouble opening such software as Acrobat, Microsoft Word, Panda anti-virus, Norton Utilities, AdWare, etc. on my main screen, I'm having tremendous problems with such things as My Computer, My Downloads, Windows Explorer, and even the Recycle Bin. When I double-click on these specific icons, the screen instantly goes blue and the only choice I'm left with is Ctrl-Alt-Del (to shut down, log off).

I have already reinstalled my Windows XP Home Edition and I've run the Panda and Norton Utilities software to check for potential glitches ... but the problem remains.

I would be extremely grateful for any help!

Hi Gotham,

When the blue screen appears, it usually dumps a line of code to the screen, which is the error message linked to the problem.

Can you post the details of that line, or failing that, can you post the contents of the error log (aka minidump) which you will find by typing the following in the 'Run' option from the start menu:

%SystemRoot%\Minidump folder

Post the content of that minidump here and we'll be able to assist you further.

Greetings Spider,

I'm grateful for your response. Unfortunately, neither effort bore fruit. First, no error message ever appears when the screen suddenly does go blue. As for the contents of the minidump/error log, I didn't have any luck accessing it. When I entered "%SystemRoot%\Minidump folder" under the "Run" function, I received the message that "Windows cannot find 'C:\WINDOWS\Minidump." Is there any other way that I can get to this specific folder to check the precise error message?

Thanks again.