Unknown shortcut and error message

[mariod]

I have two questions and I'm not sure if they are OS related or SW specific or ???
I have a ThinkPad laptop running Win2000 with HD,CD, Wireless PCMCIA card.

Q1: A new icon popped up on my desktop titled: "Microsoft XML 4.0 Parser SDK". Clicking it takes me to a how-to program on XML. I did not consciously dowload or install the program. Last uncontrolled action was an auto update of Win2000 from MS. Any idea??

Q2: I also have a Palm Vx pad for which I'd like to use the ThinkPad IR capabilities. I activated/enabled the IR in the appropriate Device Management tab. However, on every boot up or wake-up process I get an error message telling me an error occured in the IR process and referring me to a "helpnotes//IR_Readme.txt" file for further info. Searching for such file proves negative (no folder, no such file. Any thoughts??

Thanks much for your help.