Windows XP won't detect Network Adapter (ethernet port)

[pstokely]

Any suggestions?

[Solon]

1. OK, can you get to the device manager?

Right click on "My Computer", then select "Properties". A window should pop up, and then select the "Hardware" tab, and there should be a button for "Device Manager". Click on that, and it should give you a listing of all devices on your computer. Do you see any with any big yellow question marks as icons?

[pstokely]

2. No, it's there, but it's not inNetwork Connections in Control Panel

?

[Solon]

3. OK, I booted into Windows XP myself...

First things first, is this network connection hooked up to a router or straight into any modems, such as a cable modem or DSL?

What you would like to do is create a new connection. It should be listed on the side of the Network Connections window. You can make selections based on whether its for a home network or the Internet, though, if you have an Internet modem hooked up to a router, then setting up a home network would be best.

[pstokely]

4. I fixed the problem, had to remove it in Device Manager and do the hardware wizard stuff

Another Problem I keep having is I have to keep reinstalling repair driver to my wireless adapter, I think my registry is corrupted or something?

[Solon]

5. Hmm, that's weird, it does sound like a registry corruption...

Its like the registry erases certain changes to itself when you reboot or shutdown the computer. Do you run any registry cleaners on your computer?

[pstokely]

6. What (free) program do you recommend?

For the past 2 months, I've been getting a message saying the registry has been recovered from an alternative copy (or something like that) everytime it boots up. Sometimes I takes quite a while to bootup. This seems to happen every time I install something new. I really would not like reformat (even though most of my important files are on an external HD, it's just too muc time). I only started to have the issue with the wired network adapter tonight.

[Solon]

7. To be honest, 99.9% of them are crap, but before you even think of using them...

just be aware that they can seriously screw up your computer using them. We would need to isolate the problem first, if the cause isn't found, then cleaning the registry probably will just make it worse. Have you used any virus scanners or adware programs to scan your computer for either one lately?

[pstokely]

8. Not recently, but I use firefox

I give those a try, but I doubt they will fix it. The icons on my desktop remain in the same positions.