A reader wrote to ask how to copy his Internet Explorer "Favorites" to a USB flash drive, so they could be copied onto his new computer.

Well, in IE6, clicking on File>Import/Export will bring up a "wizard," which shows the steps for moving Favorites (Bookmarks) from one browser to another. Clicking Export will also prompt you through copying your Favorites to a file, which can then be copied onto a flash drive for subsequent copying onto another PC.

IE7, strangely, does not display the automatically customary File, Edit, View, Favorites, Tools and Help menu headings. However, they can be made to display by right-clicking any IE7 Toolbar icon and choosing Menu Bar. This is a one-time fix — the menu headings will always be there in the future.

Personally, I believe this is the reason most people upgrading to IE7 go back to IE6 - so many things are laid out differently that people quickly tire of trying to find many of the commands they frequently use, such as Deleting Cookies.

In IE6, for instance, you click Tools>Internet Options>Delete Cookies. In IE7 you click Tools>Internet Options>Delete>Delete Cookies>Yes. Then you have to click Close and OK to exit the Internet Options dialog box.

In either version of IE, changing some of the numerous options available can create problems that are best fixed by going back to the original default settings. In IE6, click Tools>Internet Options>Advanced>Restore Defaults. In IE7 click Tools>Internet Options>General. Then click on the third "Settings" button (under Tabs) to find the Restore Faults button.

IE6 normally displays a number of helpful icons, such as an Envelope, which will display options for Emailing the page, among other choices. In IE7 you have to click the Page icon in the second row of the Toolbar to find these choices.

In IE6, to see the underlying HTML code you click View>Source. In IE7 you click on Page>View Source, or you can use the IE6 method if you have displayed the Menu Headers as explained above. A lot of familiar items in IE6 seem to have been changed in IE7 just for the sake of change. I have found nothing that makes IE7 more user-friendly. However, Microsoft claims it has better security features.

Another reader asked how to keep incoming Outlook Express messages from appearing in the Preview Pane when she clicks on their name or subject line. You can do this by clicking View>Layout and deselecting "Show Preview Pane."

Also under View>Layout a number of useful Customize Toolbar choices can be found.

Another frequent OE question is, "Why are pictures and other attachments missing from incoming messages?" Well, since most viruses are sent as email attachments, this is intended to keep you from unwittingly opening an infection. However, you can go to Tools>Options>Security and deselect "Do Not Allow Attachments" and/or "Block Images & Other External Content."