I'm stumped. Maybe someone else has a suggestion.
One thing you can do, re: Restore Points, is download a little software program that will let you set your own restore points, and create ones immediately by double-clicking on its icon.
It's just a stop=gap measure, but it might help until you can find out what's causing it. You can download it from
Windows XP Utilities and download it directly from
System Restore .zip (direct download).
The only other thing I can think of, is possibly some spy/adware. Do you have AdAware or Spybot S&D installed to check?
Lavasoft's AdAware and
Spybot Search & Destroy
You can also install
Spyware Blaster which prevents any spy/adware from installing on your PC in the first place.
I'm grasping at straws, but it couldn't hurt to check.
Rose