Desktop shortcut Icons & opening e-mail links problem

[ladywolf]

I need some serious help with this one please. I have tried to put a shortcut on my desk top for ebay and other sites that i use frequently and also tried to open links from e-mail and when i click on them i get the following message:

This file does not have a program associated with it for performing this action. Create an association in the set associations control panel.

I have only had windows vista premium for a while, through buying a new computer, nothing has been transferred from the old pc. I can only assume it is some sort of security setting??? that is stopping me doing it...probably totally wrong, but some setting appears to have gone wrong. When i first put on ebay icon when i first had the computer it worked, just double clicked on the desktop shortcut and up popped ebay, but after some sort of update of some kind the desktop disappeared and i haven't been able to get it back. Same with the links in the e-mails, i get the same box with the red circle and the cross in and the above message. :(

I really hope that someone has an idea if not it looks like putting in the recovery discs. Thanks in advance from this newbie.

[Scarecrow Man]

Go to the website in question. Make the Internet Explorer window a size in which you can see the desktop. Click and drag the icon in the address bar onto your desktop.

If this doesnt help, make sure Internet Explorer (or whichever browser you use) is your default browser.

http://windowsxp.mvps.org/IEFAQ.htm#IE_Default

[ladywolf]

Go to the website in question. Make the Internet Explorer window a size in which you can see the desktop. Click and drag the icon in the address bar onto your desktop.

If this doesnt help, make sure Internet Explorer (or whichever browser you use) is your default browser.

http://windowsxp.mvps.org/IEFAQ.htm#IE_Default

Thanks so much for the advice. When i checked to see if Internet explorer was set as the default browser, it wasn't as soon as i ticked the box, the icons worked perfectly and so did the e-mail links, opened immediately. :) Don't know what i would of done without you. Best wishes., cheers mate.