Weird IE6 problem

PLEASE - don’t suggest I get Firefox. It’s not an option (and actually unavailable now, due to the IE6 problem).

So, I’m helping out a neighbour who’s having problem with the contents on certain websites. Pictures don’t show, enues don’t work, she can’t access her internet bank. After a lot of investigating, I realize that something is wonky with IE6 (I thought it was Java, since the problem only showed with Java script). Looking at Help/about Internet Explorer, there’s nothing listed in the lines: Version, Encryption, Licence number. The lines are blank.

So, I just have to re-install IE6. Piece of cake, right!?
Wrong.

Controll Panel / Add Remove programs / Add remove Windows components: Will let me remove IE6, but only icons and some basic stuff. When I try to re-installit, using the software from Microsoft, I still get the message “You’re running a newer version of…” Blah-blittety-blah.

Windows Update doesn’t work, becaquse the problem in IE6.
Firefox (which I thought of as a temporary option) won’t let me download, because of what’s wrong in IE6.

Deleting the IE6 folder didn’t help either.

I haven’t started scrubbing the registry yet but it seems like it’s the only option besides re-installiung the whole fornicating Windows.

Any other suggestions?

(The computer runs XP Home, SP2)

Follow the instructions on this page. (There are two methods listed there.)

Java and JavaScript have nothing to do with one another. Blame Netscape for trying to ride Sun’s coattails by renaming their scripting language.

Reinstalling WinXP is really not a big problem, as a non-destructive reinstall will preserve all your data and software. It takes about a half hour, but if the problem really is IE6, your problems will be over. How long have you spent on it so far?

Try making a new user account in Windows XP and giving it administrator privileges. See if IE runs on that new user normally. Hopefully, the new user will start with the default IE and Windows settings. If the new user’s IE works, that points to the problem being with your user profile (i.e., settings and the registry) and not the program files or Windows itself.

Also, if you want to download other things to install, you can probably do so without using IE as long as you get a friend (or one of us here) to give you a direct URL to the file download on a HTTP or FTP site.

Update & thanks.

I followed adliberonti’s link, which didn’t really help.
I then decided to delete all references to “Internet Explorer” from the registry. Big mistake, as it turned out. I could re-install IE6, but after booting the computer, it wouldn’t start so I ended up re-installing Windows.
I didn’t want to to that, since it’s not my own computer, and all the settings, e-mails, and stuff like that might vanish, but it all ended well.
The computer is up and running properly.