Context menu or file delete terminates program

[Tom]

in Explorer or any file dialog box a file delete w/DEL or an attempt to bring
up a context menu terminates the program.

CHKDSK shows no errors; files can be deleted at the DOS level and even over
a network so it's apparently at that machine's XP level.

Any way to repair this short of reinstaling windows?

Thanks

 

[Malke]

in Explorer or any file dialog box a file delete w/DEL or an attempt to
bring up a context menu terminates the program.

CHKDSK shows no errors; files can be deleted at the DOS level and even
over a network so it's apparently at that machine's XP level.

Any way to repair this short of reinstaling windows?

Right-clicking terminates what program? Explorer? The program you're in?
What version of XP and Service Pack level do you have? Your post is
unclear.

The First Question Of Troubleshooting: If the problem is new, what changed
between the time things worked and the time they didn't?

Usually right-click issues are caused by installing third-party software
that puts an entry into the context menu that doesn't play nicely. The
easiest way to manage this is to disable non-Microsoft context menu entries
with the free ShellExView program.

http://www.nirsoft.net/utils/shexview.html

Right-click is slow or weird behavior caused by context menu handlers -
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/slowrightclick.htm

Right click causes an error and crashes Explorer.exe after installing
Windows XP SP2 - http://www.winxptutor.com/sp2/divxcrash.htm

Manage the context-menu entries for folders, drives and Namespace objects -
http://windowsxp.mvps.org/context_folders.htm

Malke

 

[Tom]

Right-clicking terminates what program? Explorer? The program you're in?
What version of XP and Service Pack level do you have? Your post is
unclear.

Right clicking terminates Explorer or _any_ other program that brings up a
file management dialog box. So does highlighting any file in, for example, an
open dialog box, and attempting to delete it with the DEL key.

OS is XP Pro SP3 with all fixes applied through this month.

The First Question Of Troubleshooting: If the problem is new, what changed
between the time things worked and the time they didn't?

Beats me. This is an extremely stable machine used by someone who stays in a
very limited set of programs which haven't been upgraded or modified in any
way for months. No printers have been added, no network changes have been
made and no drivers of any type have been modified.

There may have been an Adobe reader patch applied but that didn't add
functionality; it was a patch, not an upgrade.

Usually right-click issues are caused by installing third-party software
that puts an entry into the context menu that doesn't play nicely. The
easiest way to manage this is to disable non-Microsoft context menu entries
with the free ShellExView program.

I'm aware of ShellExView and will try it later this AM but since I'm not
aware of any modifications that have been made to third party context menus
I'm not hopeful.

I will try to see if any register keys seem to be different between that
machine and mine but that's probably just whistling in the dark. . . .

thanks

 

[Malke]

Right clicking terminates Explorer or _any_ other program that brings up a
file management dialog box. So does highlighting any file in, for example,
an open dialog box, and attempting to delete it with the DEL key.

OS is XP Pro SP3 with all fixes applied through this month.


Beats me. This is an extremely stable machine used by someone who stays in
a very limited set of programs which haven't been upgraded or modified in
any way for months. No printers have been added, no network changes have
been made and no drivers of any type have been modified.

There may have been an Adobe reader patch applied but that didn't add
functionality; it was a patch, not an upgrade.


I'm aware of ShellExView and will try it later this AM but since I'm not
aware of any modifications that have been made to third party context
menus I'm not hopeful.

I will try to see if any register keys seem to be different between that
machine and mine but that's probably just whistling in the dark. . . .

Well, the last Adobe update from 9.0 to 9.1 (and I don't know if you
consider that a patch or not) also installed Adobe.com and Adobe AIR. (I
hate software that adds stuff without your knowledge and approval.) It also
adds the automatic updater to the Run key under Microsoft>Windows>Current
Version. I haven't seen any problems with the update on any machines here
(mine or clients') but it's worth a look. I would still try ShellExView.
Possibly the security software this person has installed has updated itself
and that's causing the issue.

If it was recent, then maybe going back to a System Restore point when
things worked is a possibility.

And as a real WAG, try a different mouse.

Malke

 

[Tom]

:

Well, the last Adobe update from 9.0 to 9.1 (and I don't know if you
consider that a patch or not) also installed Adobe.com and Adobe AIR.

Right. Missed that until I ran ShellExView which showed a new(er) context
key from Adobe.

Possibly the security software this person has installed has updated itself
and that's causing the issue.

ShellExView also shows a relatively new item from a current Symantec product
which ShellExView can't disable - Don't know if that's significant or not as
the AV/anti-malware stuff runs close to the system and probably protects
itself....

If it was recent, then maybe going back to a System Restore point when
things worked is a possibility.

Hadn't thought of that seriously. Thanks

I take C: partition/system backups of my machine but not that one as it has
so little on it.

That will change! <sigh>

Again, thanks

 

[Malke]

:



Right. Missed that until I ran ShellExView which showed a new(er) context
key from Adobe.



ShellExView also shows a relatively new item from a current Symantec
product which ShellExView can't disable - Don't know if that's significant
or not as the AV/anti-malware stuff runs close to the system and probably
protects itself....


Hadn't thought of that seriously. Thanks

I take C: partition/system backups of my machine but not that one as it
has so little on it.

Anything from Symantec is cr*p as far as I'm concerned. If possible, replace
the Norton products with something better. I recommend NOD32 (commercial)
or Avast (free). I really doubt the culprit is Adobe. Considering what
installing Norton 360 just did to a client's QuickBooks installation,
Norton is my suspect in your case.

Malke