Windows Explorer extremely slow to open

Symptoms:
When pressing the Windows+E key - which should open windows explorer immediately - it takes a long time before something happens.
Consequently opening a word document or excel sheet are also slow.

Reason for slowness
The reason is not known to me ... but the solution may work in your case ...

Solution
After ruling out a number of straith forward reasons like unavailability of network paths ... one of your last resolutions may be a problem in some Microsoft - or what had you thougth - temporary files.

Solution
In order to solve the problem, it is very well possible that you must create an other windows local admin user, if none accessible user exists. The next scenario foresees the steps including the creation of the extra account

Solution Steps

• Create a local admin user if none exists yet which is different from the user who has the problem;
• Log off as the user having the problem;
  
• Log on as this admin user;
• Go to the following directory
  c:\Documents and Settings\<profile>\local settings\application data\microsoft
  ;
  
• Locate in that folder a folder named 'windows' ... what had you thought ;o)
• Rename - or delete if you want to - the folder to something else (eg windows.old)
• Log off as the newly created or exisiting other admin user;
• Log in as the user who had the problem;
• The windows folder will be created again;
• For some wonderful reason ... this will solve the problem;

Hope this helps ... don't ask why it helps ...