I found it, just in case anyone else encounters the problem: A: This is a recent problem that is caused by upgrading to Windows XP SP2 (Service Pack 2). Apparently, in some Systems, during the SP2 installation important System files such as: AUTOEXEC.NT or CONFIG.NT get deleted, causing various Applications to fail and yielding the above errors. The same issue has been reported to also happen after a virus attack that is messing up people's System files and it is just running rampant. In order to protect your System, please make sure that you have the latest virus Definitions installed for your anti-virus software program.