Expert: James Filmer - 1/3/2009

Question
I am having trouble loading my desktop. The background appears but no icons or start bar. Prior to this happening, a whole bunch of ads kept popping up about anti virus protection.I tried system restore but it never went thru. I'm thinking about wiping the system clean and reinstalling, however, I dont want to lose my old files. Is there some way that I can extract my files onto an external hard drive while in safe mode(because thats the only way I can use the computer)or is there some way to cure my pc and keep my files?

Thanks in advance
Sky

Answer
Could detail in my words how to do it. Bur not knowing more about your system and any error messages leading up to its present condition leads me to suggest some detailed info from the source. A search using your words came up with several sites (independent from Microsoft), but be careful. Check site reputation.  

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315341

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/196603

http://scscc.com/bkk/Windows%20XP,%20Repairing%20Your.pdf

And, yes you can and should backup files to an external hard drive:

http://onecare.live.com/site/en-US/article/backupbasics_how.htm

http://www.wikihow.com/Copy-Files-to-an-External-Hard-Drive

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/magazine/2007.09.backup.aspx