it's not malware so what the f is it?

i have a particularly vexing problem. thought i had a malware deal going and did all the things suggested by this site, i guess "all", anyway. i did all the suggested basic maintenance and downloaded all the spyware/malware software programs to do a vista cleaning procedure. the problem persists.

what happens when i start up is all the icons have internet explorer icons. when i click on a program icon, let's say quickplay, i get a pop up "file download security warning" asking me if i want to open or save the file. no matter if i click open or save it returns to the same pop up message. the file extention on the message is .Ink. so what's up? has anyone had experience with a similar situation? any help would be greatly appreciated!