win xp home taskbar

When I open any folder everything works fine after I
close the folder it remains on the taskbar eventhough the
folder closes, if I atempt to remove the folder from the
taskbar by right clicking and closing I lose everything
on the desktop and the system begins to lock up forcing
me reboot with the reset button. I tried reinstalling win
xp in case I might have lost or corrupted a dll or
something but the fix only lasted for a short time.
Antivirus scans ect are all negative and none of the
troubleshooting software I have norton sys wrks or ilo
sys mech have been much help either. I would like to
solve this I deont repeat whatever caused it again. As a
last resort I'll have to reformat and start clean. I
welcome any and all suggestions the knowladge base hasent
been to helpful yet but I'll keep looking. Thnx for any
and all help

win xp home taskbar