I am fairly well informed when it comes to computers but this is stumping me.
In Windows XP Professional, when I open the start menu and click on the "All Programs" button I get a list of the actual folders in my C:\Program FIles directory.

These are the actual folders in Program Files showing in my start menu not shortcuts. Attempting to right-click and delete a folder affects the actual program installed in the folder. I removed all the shortcuts from the C:\Documents and Settings/All Users/Start Menu/Programs and also from C:\Documents and Settings/MYLOGON/Start Menu/Programs. One for one the remaining entries are every single folder in the C:\Program Files directory.

I created another user profiles to see if I could recreate the problem under another login ID but it does not show under that logon.

I know the problem is user specific but am unaware of any way to pin the contents of a directory to the ALL PROGRAMS button on the XP start menu.

Any ideas how to fix this?
I have never seen this before either and even comparing it to my other computers does not reveal obvious differences.

could be a type of virus or trojin that's causing it i'm pretty computer savvy and have never ran across this problem. Make sure that after you delete your shortcuts in the start menu that you save your settings by restarting your computer the correct way start - log off - restart or shutdown. otherwise you might attempt to call microsoft or log onto there support site. good luck.