After the IE stops responding you usually get a send to microsoft for solutions box,if you are running vista.Click the send to microsoft and click the solution page that pops up afterwards.This will guide you in finding the problem.

Appreciate the reply.  I checked out the Microsoft site and found a forum on the above referenced subject - twelve pages.  I did not see any viable solutions. I have heard comments over the years that "microsoft is the last place they would check."

Above comments notwithstanding, I did a Ggoogle and found a solution for my problem.  It may work for others too.  It seems my context menu on Windows Explorer was filled with seveal programs that I could launch from Explorer.  The suggestion was that one or more of those programs was the culprit.  I removed some of the context viewable programs on Explorer (there is free sofware available to do this too). 

My Windows Explorer, at least at this point, is running smoothly with no hiccups.

Thanks again, for your response.

Jonathan