After the computer has been idle for some time, a message appears saying ‘The device driver for the standard 101/102 key or Microsoft Natural PS/2 Keyboard is preventing the machine entering standby. You may need to update this driver’. Rebooting the machine does not resolve this issue, and it always occurs after a period of inactivity. While trying to fix this problem, I also noticed the Windows taskbar has been modified and the three buttons which launched Internet Explorer, launched Outlook Express, and displayed the desktop, have disappeared. How can I stop the error message appearing, and recover the missing icons?

As the message indicates, there is a problem with Windows preventing the computer from entering standby mode, which is a special low-power mode the computer can enter after a certain period of inactivity. The message you are receiving about the keyboard device driver preventing the computer from entering standby is a known issue in both Windows 2000 (support.microsoft.com/kb/257199) and Windows XP (support.microsoft.com/kb/814149). In both cases, the root cause of the issue is third-party software on the computer that is conflicting with the Power Management features of the operating system. In either case, it appears the problem is caused by the Adobe Type Manager or Pgpdisk software being installed on the computer. Go to the ‘Start’ menu > ‘Settings’ > ‘Control Panel’ and open the ‘Add/Remove Programs’ control panel. Look through the list of installed programs for either of these two programs and, if found, uninstall the programs. Restart the computer and the problem should no longer persist. If you desperately need any of these programs to be installed, visit the manufacturer’s website to check if a newer version of the software is available, which hopefully does not conflict with Windows.

Addressing the second question, it seems the Quick Launch toolbar has disappeared from the taskbar. To display this toolbar again, right-click in an empty area of the taskbar and, in the menu that appears, select ‘Toolbars’ > ‘Quick Launch’. The Quick Launch toolbar should reappear. However, it may reappear in the wrong location. Should you wish to change the location of the Quick Launch toolbar, you should be able to simply drag the toolbar to a new location. However, if you are using Windows XP, the taskbar may be locked, so you will need to first unlock the taskbar. To do this, right-click in an empty area on the taskbar and click (to disable) ‘Lock the Taskbar’. Once you have finished reconfiguring the taskbar, make sure you re-lock the taskbar. This will prevent you from accidentally moving portions of the taskbar.