Although the icons all restored, it didn't last very long. Now they are all corrupted again and no matter how many times I rename the icon cache and reboot, it doesn't resolve the problem.

One of the suggestions was to uninstall (and reinstall) MS Office. I tried that too but I just can't get clear icons. I even used the patch offered on that link but still no go. Am I condemned to a life with corrupted icons....at least till Windows 8?