i'm using win xp professional (sp1) and litestep 0.24.6, slightly modified simplicity theme. now, since i've quit using the explorer shell, i've noticed a couple of problems...

1.) uninstall software at the control panel doesn't work anymore: "Parser Message - Value creation failed " at line 472"

2.) recycle bin always looks empty, even though there are files in it (since i can delete files and empty the recycle bin) - nevertheless it always appears empty, the files are invisible.

any possible causes / solutions?

Switch back to Win2K

great...

I'd recommend: (stop trying if one works)
- run chkdsk /f and reboot
- find some registry/whatever repair tools and try 'em
- check permissions on everything if you're not running as administrator
- wait for other suggestions
- reinstall windows (and litestep :)
- swap out hardware

thx rabid... i solved the recycle bin issue. for the record, if anyone ever has similar problems, this is how i did it:

started windows in command line mode, deltree'd the "Recycled" folders on all drives, restarted windows. xp automatically re-creates the recycle bin when it doesn't exist... and after that, everything worked normal again for me.