Problem      In the window of Microsoft Internet Explorer ("IE", "MSIE"), the menu bar, the address bar and the tool bar may happen to disappear suddenly as the following example:      We may lose our heads to find the window unoperable by all normal operations like Ctrl keys or Alt keys. The strange state also lasts even after re-booting of the computer!      In my case, it took about 2 hours to examine and solve the problem.      The fault might occur in Explorer as well as in IE. (Explorer contains: My Computer, C:, My Documents, My pictures, My Music, "file and folder search", etc.)      This document tells you the method to revive the bars of the window immediately in such case. * If you are searching "How to recover when background is blue and start/taskbars are missing", it will be found in the page. * When the menu bar of IE is visible but the tool bar, the address bar, or some bar is missing, it might be resolved as follows in many cases: [Display (V)] => [Tool Bar (T)] => turn off the checkmark of [Fix Tool Bar (B)]. Turn on all bar checkmarks of [Display (V)] => [Tool Bar (T)]. 　Drag the mouse cursor downwards from the horizontal border as the right diagram. Solution      I have heard that the fault occurs frequently if some of IE bar customizations have been installed to add some extra functions.      For example, have you attached Google Toolbar on IE as the picture below?      PageRank is the function to display Google's ranking by graph, which rates the "importance" or "popularity" of the Web page, such as how much links are directed from more important/popular site pages.      Anyway (even if it is customizing or not), you can make the bars appear again by the following procedure: (1) Focus the IE (or Explorer) window by clicking the left button of the mouse. Press the function key "F11" of your computer to move the mode to "full-screen mode", and you will see a band area at the top of the display screen. (2) Right-click, and an display option menu will pop up. (3) Attach check marks on the "menu bar" item and the "address bar" item of the display option menu by (left button) clicking. (4) Press "F11" again, and you will see the IE window of the original window size and with the menu bar, the address bar and the tool bar. (5) If one or some of the bars are missing yet, make them appear by the method mentioned above. Right-click and "menu bar(M), address bar(A),..." is displayed      Remember "F11 and right-click". When F11 is ineffective...      An acticle told that IE bars could be recovered by System Restore of XP if the OS is Windows XP. In his case, he installed Yahoo! companion tool bar, IE freezed, bars disappeared, and he failed recovery by F11 according to the advice of this article.      The System Restore program undoes the prior settings of application, so the application might require re-install if you would like to use it by any means.      So, even if your OS is not Windows XP, the trouble might be solved by turning the Windows registry to the prior state in case of the following users:  * Users of registry recovering tools like Config Safe.  * Users who exported the registry to another file.  * Users who are executing Backup (in Accessories) the system files. Supplement      At first, I could not guess the cause, so I made hurriedly a small test program and tried it, which opens a new window with all bars by the window.open command of JavaScript Language.      Because I expected that bars might last in all IE windows, once bars are attached to the new window.      I have put the button here of the same program. It is safe even if you try it at IE or any browser now. Going to open Google in a new window. Do you wish to open it with bars?        I pleased once, as bars were attached also to the new window opened from the bar-less window. However, the effect was found to be limited only to the very window at that situation.      At that time, I remembered that I had installed and had attached Google tool bar（as mentioned above）to IE some weeks ago. The tool bar has functions of Google search and PageRank.      I thought unintallation of Google tool bar might solve the problem, so I executed it by the procedure: [Start]=>[Setting]=>[Control panel]=>[Add/Remove Programs]=>Google toolbar for IE and all the bars returned to me!      But uninstallation was not necessary, I found, since -- as mentioned above -- bars could be recovered by F11 and the right-click. So I installed the Google page bar again. How to recover dispappeared bars other than IE      As related information, links to method to recover vanished bars in programs other than Microsoft Internet Explorer, are listed below:      The phenomenon bars are missing in Microsoft Word is a fault. The information is seen at the Microsoft support site: * 242368 - WD2000: Toolbars, Menu Bar Missing, or Settings Not Retained When You Start Word 2000 (Microsoft) * 93650 - WD97: Menus, Toolbars Disappear When in Full Screen View (Microsoft) * 211625 - WD2000: Menus, Toolbars Disappear When in Full Screen View (Microsoft) * 290947 - WD2002: Menus and Toolbars Disappear and "Repeat Value:8" Is Displayed on Status Bar (Microsoft) * If you are searching "How to recover when background is blue and start/taskbars are missing", it will be found in the page. Response * Mail from Laura (2003.11.27): Thank you SO MUCH for the page telling how to restore the missing toolbars in IE!!! It came up #1 when I searched Google. I had tried everything I could think of and failed. Thanks again! * Mail from Miss M.K. (2003.6.6):      Your article "How to recover unoperatable IE in which bars disappeared" saved me a great deal of trouble. Thank you very much.      To talk more precisely, the Explorer display was abnormal, althogh the Internet Explorer (IE) display was normal.      I am completely at a loss what to do about that problem that nothing other than the title bar was displayed when I did:      click "My Computer", and click "hard disk C:"      It was lucky that Mr. Sonobe's page was hit by Internet "Yahoo!" search. It really helped me.