Inbox

By DON McALLISTER

Welcome to InBox, where we attempt to answer your internet questions.

* Roger was removing excess programs from his computer when something deleted the contents of the Control Panel. Considering the usefulness of that Windows feature, this could place him in a sticky situation.

It sounds like the .cpl files have gone, Roger, or the control.exe file has been damaged. All these files (if they still exist) can be run by typing their filenames in a Dos prompt preceded by Control. To start the system properties, go to a Dos prompt and type control sysdm.cpl. If this doesn't work, you may have to find a machine running the same version of Windows and copy all the CPL files to the damaged machine, and maybe copy the control.exe file across. Tricky stuff - you might want to get a tame geek to help you.

* Danny's machine was infected. Many friends were compromised and some personal details were seen by others. He asks: "Would the W32. Magistr.39921@mm virus I've found have been responsible?"

It sure would, Danny. See Norton's page on that virus. This virus was identified on September 3 and included in Norton's update list on September 4. I suggest you now set your virus program to automatically update more frequently, so it always protects against the latest-known viruses.

* After strange happenings within Tom's computer, he visited the computer doctor. Now all the problems are gone, but so has his wallpaper.

Restore all windows standard wallpaper options in: Start/Settings/Control Panel/Add Remove Programs/Windows Setup/Accessories. Remove the tick from Desktop Wallpaper, click Apply, then replace the tick and press Apply. Do the same with Desktop Themes in the screen before accessories.

* Anna has the e-mail content of >adiÿ< when she replies to some e-mails. Her computer supplier and internet service provider are stumped.

This problem occurs when a person using Outlook Express replies to an e-mail using HTML (hypertext markup language) formatting and does not include the original in the reply. The person using OE must include the original message in the reply, or not use HTML formatting.

* If there's anything you want to know about the exciting world of the web, just e-mail inbox@nzherald.co.nz.