I have a laptop here that loads windows in that I see the startup screen, but after that all I get is a black screen as if the desktop has loaded and nothing else. The same thing happens in safe mode.
I am using Windows Vista, and I did use the Recovery Disk that came with the computer, I tried to run a Startup Repair, but it said there were no issues. I also ran the memory diagnostic tool figuring that it might be a bad sector problem, but again no problems.
I initially thought this was a malware problem, so I created this thread, but I was told that this is not a malware problem.
I would really like to avoid a full format here, can the geeks help me? I have read the READ ME FIRST document, but since I can't actually get to a full startup, I can't download the recommended programs.