Thank you, thank you all for your help.
I finally resolved the problem, albeit the hard way.
No, I didn't buy a new computer but close to it.
In my ignorant bliss, I figured I could uninstall the IE9 from my computer and download a fresh version, error free.
Well, it uninstalled perfectly. Too perfectly. I couldn't reinstall it. It would download but not finish the installation process. Man, did I struggle with that.
Finally, I decided I would try to restore everything to a point prior to the time of uninstalling the IE9. Well, none of my restoration points went back far enough. So, what's left? Restore back to the original factory setup.
I dreaded that. I had done that before with my W7 Samsung netbook. It wasn't as harrowing because I kept no files on the netbook. (Whenever I needed documents or photos or other files, I could get them thru the homegroup network with the PC.)
However, the PC was chock full of files. So, I did a back up on my external drive. Then, with bated breath, I started the restoration process. It went smoothly enough. Whew!
Next, I had to retrieve and install the files from my external hard drive, reinstalling the printer and MS Office 2010, and some other stuff. Personalizing my settings and themes, and all the other tweaking involved is still in progress.
I now have IE8 and Mozilla 11. So far, they're working fine. I might get IE 9 later but I don't want to mess with it right now.
There's a few things missing, not quite right yet but I hope to get things back to normal in the next few days.
Again, thank you all for the suggestions. Even though they didn't work for me, they helped me eliminate all other possibilities before plunging into the final one. I learned a few things.