the reason no programs are starting is because the path is f'ed up, the command i gave will fix that, but i can't remember how to make it permanent
should do it i think, ummmmmmm, for the 1, you've lost me on that one, the only thing i can think of trying is type
set comspec=c:\windows\system32\cmd.exe
or
if that doesn't work, then /me doesn't know