Quick Launch toolbar moving/rearranging on reboot (XP Home)

Hola. New to forums. I browsed some other Quick launch toolbar threads, but didn’t find any help for my problem.

I put all my icons in my Quick Launch toolbar successfully. (Image 1) I then drug the Quick Launch bar from the taskbar to the desktop (Image 2), and then locked it at the top of the screen(Image 3). (Just my favorite little spot.) Then I drug the icons into the order I liked them (Image 4) (graphics apps together, office apps together, etc.)

For some reason, when I restart the computer, the Quick Launch is back down in the taskbar by the start button, and the icons are arranged back in alphabetical order. I have the Quick Launch set up the same way on 2 other machines running XP Home, and neither one of them have this problem. The Quick Launch stays locked on top after a reboot, and the icons are in the same order I left them at shutdown.

I have tried every combo of locking and unlocking the Quick Launch, and nothing I have done has had any effect on keeping my bar where I want it. Maybe I’m picky, but I’m spoiled by the quick launch staying put on the other 2 machines.

Any suggestions on how to nail my Quick Launch and icons in place? Thanks in advance for any advice.

I’ve included some images to give you and idea of my situation.

Thanks,
TS