Windows 7 Icon images disappeared and when I click on them they come up with open with.

[Dan1690]

Hi I need help sorting this problem. Here is a screen shot of what happens when I try to open a program It happend when I was associating a blank icon, one like in the photo, with the game it used to be, which I had re-downloaded but the icon showed as if the game was no longer on the computer. When I done this, all of the icons on the screen and on the 'start' screen when you go into 'all programs' turned to the game icon. I then deleted the game and restarted the computer as 'last known good configuration' or something like that and after it took an unusually long time to start up (about seven minutes), all the icons showed up as in the ones shown on the screen shot above.

I really need your help as it is not my laptop and would like to restore it the original way I had it. Thanks for any help.

By the way the blank files come up as .Ink or .Lnk (it's either one or the other)

 

[davidhk129]

2 suggestions:
1. Restore file type associations.
Use this tutorial..... Default File Type Associations - Restore - Windows 7 Forums
Scroll down to exe - Executable application files.
click the exe
follow the instructions from #1 to #6 at the top.
Scroll down to lnk - Shortcut link (LNK) files.
click lnk
follow the instructions from #1 to #6 at the top.

2. If this problem is not too long ago, and if you remember a "good day" when you did not have this problem, do a system restore.
Pick that "good day" or before as your restore point. Use the tutorial below if you need to know how to do system restore :
Using Windows 7 or Vista System Restore - How-To Geek

 

[Pauli]

Icon problems are quite often related with malware. I suggest you run a thorough scan with at least two different programs.

 

[Dan1690]

When ever I open a .lnk file with a program all the icons change and look the same. What could this be? I dont think it is a virus because it started by me changing one and they all changed until I deleted that game then they all changed back to .lnk files. I opened IE9 with IE9 and now whenever I try to open any other .lnk files it goes to the downloads window of IE9.