I ran System File Check, and it identified four or five DLLs that needed replacing, but I don't have a Windows XP disc to feed it. Windows came installed on my computer, but I didn't get the discs, I don't think. I can't find them.

I'm going to try System Restore, but I don't think that's ever worked for me. In the past, it always tries and says that it was unable to take me back to the Restore point. I did notice, however, that a Windows Update came in Sunday night, and the first time I noticed the problem was Monday night. And I am fairly certain that I was able to open a file from My Recent Documents on Sunday morning. So I don't know if a Windows Update could actually be responsible, but it's a strange coincidence.

I forgot my alarm clock wasn't part of OS X. Anyone have a recommendation for a good free one? I want to be able to set multiple alarms, and set them for custom days like one for every Saturday and another for every Wednesday through Friday.

I used to have an unassuming one that lived in that thar menu bar, but I don't remember the name. I grabbed Apimac Timer, but it looks like you can only have one alarm at a time, either once-off or daily. Nice that it allows you to specify the message read aloud.

I wonder if this would do it?

[link]

That's perfect! Thank so much.

I paid the $20 for Alarm Clock Pro from koingo [link]

Windows came installed on my computer, but I didn't get the discs, I don't think. I can't find them.

It is possible your system came with CAB files that can be used in place of the discs for reinstallation of DLLs. Dammit, don't remember what they are called. Maybe someone can suggest.

Man, System Restore is a crock of shit. As expected, it was not able to restore back before this started.

I spent a couple hours running CHKDSK, which may have found stuff but the final stats didn't stick around when it was done, so all I saw was that I had a clean volume afterward. And, weirdly enough, when I tried to open something in Paint, I lasted much longer than I usually did. So I thought maybe it was fixed...until I tried opening something in IrfanView and it crashed after a few seconds. I went back to Paint and it didn't work. So I don't know.

I'm guessing that it probably isn't a virus or anything at this point because nothing else is going screwy. I've identified four similar operations that cause the program to crash, which does lend credence to the corrupted DLL idea, and I'm going to see if I can figure out how to replace them. Is there a good, reliable scanner available? I searched online but couldn't find one that most people trusted (RegCure appears to be the most popular one, but I read some fishy stuff about it so I'm afraid to try it.) Otherwise, I'll see if I can borrow XP discs from someone.

I think running a repair install with an XP disc should be your next step. It's fairly painless.

Have you tried uninstalling Irfanview and seeing if the problem persists? It may be that it's adding a DLL or substituting one of its own that doesn't play well with the other children.

A month or two ago, I ended up doing a System Restore on my Vista desktop... and it totally worked. Coulda' knocked me over with a feather....

Have you tried uninstalling Irfanview and seeing if the problem persists? It may be that it's adding a DLL or substituting one of its own that doesn't play well with the other children.

I tried that, and it didn't work. I installed that program a loooooong time ago. I don't even remember why anymore.

I think running a repair install with an XP disc should be your next step. It's fairly painless.

Yeah, System File Check found five DLL files that needed replacing. I hope one of them is the one causing the problem.

I wonder why it's asking for my Windows XP Professional CD2. I didn't think I had a Professional installation. Does that mean a Home disc wouldn't work?