Try going back further a bit and see if that helps. I to used system restore a day or so ago, and it would not work for me, so I lost out and had to do a Reformat and Re-installation of Windows. Hope someone else can come up with a fix for you...Good luck.
System Restore is for XP operating system files, not your personal files. It cannot bring back deleted personal files. Did you check the Recycle Bin? From Help:
Restoring your computer does not affect or change your personal data files. It is a good idea to back up your data files periodically. For example, you might copy your data files to removable media, such as a writable compact disc, once a week
I found the files that I was looking for. I had them backed up on a CD but for some reason not all the files showed up the first time when I viewed the CD contents -- not sure how that happened. Does XP have a backup utility or is there a good program that will do a full system backup (personal data files as well)?
You can easily restore deleted (personal) files (not programs!) by opening the Recycle Bin, clicking the file or folder you want to restore in the right pane and then "Restore this file" in the left pane. You'll find it back in its initial place.
As for a good backup program: Any ZIP drive, CD or DVD burning program would do it.
My advice (and personal way-of-doing-it) is to back up only
Your personal files. That means things you cannot get back from anywhere else, like your pictures. If you make sure to store everything in "My documents", you'll have everything in one folder.
Downloaded programs and drivers. Of course, you can download them again, but this takes time and is no fun. When downloading programs or drivers, I keep them in a separate folder, each in a subfolder neatly labeled with what it is. Just because after a month, you don't remember what xyz123.exe stands for....
Your e-mail address book and messages (depending on the program you use, the way of doing this is different).
These are the items I burn on a DVD-RW on a (approx.) monthly basis (and before making important changes to my system). Uncompressed! I just make a data DVD. That takes more space, as backup programs store all the things you want in one single backup file by compressing the data. But the advantage of my uncompressed backup is that you can use the DVD to access your files from any other computer. Or you can transfer them to a new computer if the old one fails.
A real backup file is made to be restored to the same PC (or at least one with the same Operating System). You cannot access data on the CD or DVD unless you restore them to the computer. And I have serious doubts you could restore a backup from a Win 98 computer on an XP computer (but I may be wrong).
XP has such a compressing backup program if you prefer that method. It is included in XP Pro, but not in the default install of XP Home (search the forum for instructions how to install it if you have XP Home).
In XP Pro, point ot Start - All Programs - Accessories - System Tools - Backup.
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You can easily restore deleted (personal) files (not programs!) by opening the Recycle Bin, clicking the file or folder you want to restore in the right pane and then "Restore this file" in the left pane. You'll find it back in its initial place.
As for a good backup program: Any ZIP drive, CD or DVD burning program would do it.
My advice (and personal way-of-doing-it) is to back up only
These are the items I burn on a DVD-RW on a (approx.) monthly basis (and before making important changes to my system). Uncompressed! I just make a data DVD. That takes more space, as backup programs store all the things you want in one single backup file by compressing the data. But the advantage of my uncompressed backup is that you can use the DVD to access your files from any other computer. Or you can transfer them to a new computer if the old one fails.
A real backup file is made to be restored to the same PC (or at least one with the same Operating System). You cannot access data on the CD or DVD unless you restore them to the computer. And I have serious doubts you could restore a backup from a Win 98 computer on an XP computer (but I may be wrong).
XP has such a compressing backup program if you prefer that method. It is included in XP Pro, but not in the default install of XP Home (search the forum for instructions how to install it if you have XP Home).
In XP Pro, point ot Start - All Programs - Accessories - System Tools - Backup.