finder problem - and others

[two cents]

I'm using an iMac with os 9.2.2. Everything was working well until today. The finder quits almost every time I boot up. If the finder works, then Appleworks doesn't..it starts, but quits as soon as I try to print. I get an error message on startup (sometimes) that says the printer engine has quit. It's a hp deskjet 5850.
The error messages are 2 or 3
I checked the About this Computer panel..The System Memory strip is all filled in...?
I've tried everything I can think of..been working on this for about 4 hours straight. Got no help from the Apple site.
Should I reinstall the system? I don't have a disk for 9.2.
What can I do????

Thanks for your help!

two cents

 

[SatCure]

Well you could try running a repair utility such as DiskWarrior. If that doesn't work then I would suggest erasing the Hard Drive, reinstalling the system (you'll have to acquire the CDs) then copy all your important files in from your backup copies.

And, as I always suggest, you should replace the internal memory battery first because this can fail after as little as a year and causes all sorts of symptoms.