[nan.wellins]

Hello -
For a long time I was a happy user of Picasa (first version 2, then 3) on my HP laptop running on Windows XP. Then one day when I clicked on the icon, it refused to open. Hmm. I kept trying, went to the origin file in the Programs folder and clicked on the .exe file, still nada.

Eventually I decided it had gotten corrupted somehow so I uninstalled it using the windows uninstall feature and then reinstalled it.

Twice, actually.

Still no action.

I'm really sad and bewildered. I went to Google for help and got nowhere. Hoping you wonderful people may have a clue what has gone screwy here.

Thanks!

[Zri]

Have you tried to temporarily disable your firewall before starting Picasa? Some applications refuse to start up if they are being blocked by a firewall.

If the firewall is not giving you this problem, try removing the Picasa folder from the Application Data folder. Make sure you that you have fully uninstalled Picasa before removing the Picasa folder.

This hidden Picasa folder can be found in "C:\Documents and Settings\<Your Windows XP user name>\Local Settings\Application Data\Google". Cut this Picasa folder from the Google folder and paste it onto your desktop. Then restart your computer and install the latest version of Picasa. I hope that these steps would solve your problem.