This is where I'd start...

Close excel
windows start button|Search
look for *.xlb in hidden folders and for hiddend files.

Rename all you find to *.xlbOLD

Then back to excel and test it.

If it didn't work then rename your *.xlbOLD files back to *.xlb.

If it works ok, then delete those *.xlbOLD files. You will have to rebuild any
customized changes you've made to your toolbars, though.

===
If it didn't work, then the next step will be doing some detective work.

Chip Pearson has some notes on how to diagnose startup errors:
http://www.cpearson.com/excel/StartupErrors.htm

And Jan Karel Pieterse has more notes:
http://www.jkp-ads.com/Articles/StartupProblems.asp

nemyne wrote:

I ran an excel spreadsheet which had some macro functions and after that, I'm
no longer able to access the "Format" & "Insert" tabs. Also, right-clicking
on a cell no longer brings a drop down box.

I've tried uninstalling & reinstalling Office XP to no avail. Would anyone
have a solution ? Is there a "normal" template I can reinstall ??

I currently run WinXP

Any help would be appreciated !

--

Dave Peterson