Cannot find minimized windows

Someone please tell me what I have got going here.  I am unable to find windows that are minimized without running the task manager.  If I minimize a window, it is gone.  It 'appears' to go behind the taskbar, but I can't find it.  This happens no matter if I'm in Explorer, Word, Outlook, or Notepad, etc., so it's not program specific.  I have looked up this problem in previous posts to the forum and have not found one solid answer as to what this could be.  There were a couple of suggestions to edit the registry, but what was suggested did not seem to apply to me, since my registry didn't show the options that were mentioned.  I do not have the "Friendly" virus either.  I have also 'checked' and 'unchecked' several combinations of options under the "Taskbar and Start Menu Options".

It is not critical that this be fixed right away.  It is more of an inconvenience than anything else, but I am extremely upset at the fact that this happened and I don't know how.  If there is anyone out there that has a suggestion, I am open to it.  Maybe one day, I can help solve one of your Microsoft Office issues.

Thanks in advance!