Unable to Enable or Disable Style Sheets in Internet Explorer

ID: Q183717

The information in this article applies to:

Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 4.0, 4.01 for Windows NT 4.0
Microsoft Internet Explorer versions 4.0, 4.01 for Windows 95
Microsoft Windows 98
Microsoft Internet Explorer version 5 for Windows 95
Microsoft Internet Explorer version 5 for Windows 98
Microsoft Internet Explorer version 5 for Windows NT 4.0

IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, you should first make a backup copy of the registry files (System.dat and User.dat). Both are hidden files in the Windows folder.

SYMPTOMS

When you use Internet Explorer, you may experience either of the following symptoms:

You disabled the use of style sheets in Internet Explorer 3.x, but after you upgrade to Internet Explorer 4.0 or 4.01 or Windows 98, you may be unable to re-enable them.
You are unable to disable the use of style sheets in Internet Explorer 4.0 or 4.01.

CAUSE

This issue can occur because the ability to disable style sheets was removed from Internet properties.

RESOLUTION

WARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.

For information about how to edit the registry, view the "Changing Keys And Values" Help topic in Registry Editor (Regedit.exe) or the "Add and Delete Information in the Registry" and "Edit Registry Data" Help topics in Regedt32.exe. Note that you should back up the registry before you edit it. If you are running Windows NT, you should also update your Emergency Repair Disk (ERD).

To work around this issue, use Registry Editor to open the following registry key and then perform the appropriate steps:

   HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Main

To re-enable the use of style sheets, edit the string value "Use StyleSheets" in the above key and set it to "yes" (without quotation marks).

To disable the use of style sheets, add a string value to the above registry key called "Use StyleSheets" and set it to "no" (without quotation marks).

NOTE: When you disable the use of style sheets, it may affect the appearance of Web sites or your Active Desktop.

STATUS

This behavior is by design.

Additional query words: css

Keywords          : kbtool kbui msiew95 msient msiew98 
Platform          : WINDOWS
Issue type        : kbprb

Last Reviewed: May 11, 1999