drive history appears in internet address bar

hi,
just a couple of quick questions;
what ever folders i access on my hard drive, the path of that appears in my internet explorer. is there any way i can stop this since it is a pain having to look through folder paths as well as search for a website i had visited previously.?

in the bottom the internet panel, it says that 'protected mode: off'
should it be this way or can i fix it?

also in the top right corner there is a yahoo search bar (right beside the address bar) is there a way i can get rid of it?

i have windows vista on a HPG60 laptop, with all updates installed. i also have shaw secure, malware byte, spyware blaster, TFC, and spybot sd. i also downloaded the WOT add on.(i recently had a rootkit problem fixed by Broni)

 

Look in Add/Remove programs for the Yahoo Search/toolbar and uninstall it. I would do On for protected mode. That is usually default.

 

there is no yahoo search/toolbar listed in add/remove programs.
what i meant to say was the small search bar to the right of the refresh and cancel buttons in internet explorer.

also where do i go to turn on protected mode?

 

Not sure if you can get rid of it or not. Click on the little down symbol next to the magnifying glass and you will see some more stuff.

 

hey petec, the protected mode is enabled when i go into internet properties, but is still shows up as protected mode off.

also any idea on how to prevent the hard drive pathways from showing up in internet explorer address bar?