Ask a TechLord

I was looking through my favorites on Internet Explorer. Then I right-clicked on one of the bookmark links, and there was this "Sort By Name" option...So I got curious and clicked it....and to my surprise, it re-listed my ENTIRE bookmark list alphabetically! It messed up 5 years of building up links! It's a whole mess. How can I fix this?

It's hard to believe, but if you have not made a backup copy of your internet explorer favorites there is no easy "undo" or "restore" feature to get your favorites back. This is a feature desperately needed in internet explorer, so hopefully future releases will incorporate this. In the mean time, your best option is to use the System Restore tool.

System restore takes a snapshot of your computer at regular intervals. These snapshots include system configuration information...what programs are installed, what your screensaver looks like, and even how your internet explorer favorites are organized. This is an invaluable tool for situations in which you have made a change to your system that you can't easily undo. Using System Restore, you can restore your computer to a snapshot from a day or two ago..when your internet explorer favorites were intact.

To find the System Restore tool, follow these steps:

1. Press the Start button.
2. Find the menu item All programs.
3. Click Accessories.
4. Click System tools.
5. Click System Restore. then choose a day from the calendar that you know your internet explorer favorites still exsited.

Just keep in mind that your system returns to the state it was in on the date you choose...so if you install a program on Wednesday, but restore back to Tuesday, that program will no longer be on your system.