win98 start up

I'm having a problem when starting up my Sony VAIO PC with Win98. Specifically, I no longer see any desktop icons, taskbar or start button. All I see is the desktop backround. When I do an alt/ctrl/del to see which programs are running, nothing is listed.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.
mca

 

Will the computer boot in safe mode????

See this article from microsft on troubleshooting startup problems
startup troubleshooting win98

 

didn't work. When I boot in safe mode I still don't get a task bar, startup button or any desktop icons. Any other thoughts?
mca