Hello Erico:
I tried as you suggested and ran the eset scanner. It found only one problem and cleaned it, but it didn't look like it was related to the OS or a problem with my .dll file. It sounded like it was a minor spyware. I have also tried Windows startup repair that didn't do anything since I last responded. Windows keeps notifying me that updates are available, but they are the same 2 that have supposedly been successfully installed several times already. They are the ones I referenced in my other reply that have to do with the .NET Framework 4 update. Any further suggestions would be appreciated! Fortunately Explorer and Chrome aren't affected yet, but it's probably a matter of time before they quit too! Thanks again!