origin

It sounds like you're launching the wrong executable for Origin.

Try this once. Right click that shortcut and in the context menu that appears look on top for an option called 'Open file location.' Once in the Origin directory try to find the correct executable to launch Origin. If found you can right click that executable and create a shortcut on the desktop. To do that right click the executable and chose 'Copy' and then right click the desktop and chose 'Paste shortcut.'

Another way of finding the directory to a shortcut if the 'Open file location' doesn't appear in the right click context menu is by choosing 'Properties' toward the bottom in the right click context menu. In the 'Shortcut' tab of 'Properties' there will be an option to 'Open File Location.'


I also like to use a pretty nifty program to find "everything" on my computer called Everything.exe by Voidtools. This program not only has some advanced search abilities, but is relatively a lot faster at finding something over the built-in Windows search facility. Because I exclusively use this program for searching, I turn off the indexing service in all my Windows installs which not only saves on resources, but reduces writes to an otherwise finite write capability SSD. Although, I hear in this day and age with flash storage technology like an SSD or M.2, wear leveling has improved greatly. And on that topic, I would refrain from using so-called data erasers or hard drive erasers on flash media. ESPECIALLY the old mSATA drives. mSATA withstanding, even though wear leveling has improved in modern day NAND flash, I personally wouldn't want to place more unnecessary writes to a NAND flash type drive anyway. Not only that, but this technique is NOT the way to completely zero out a flash-based drive. The proper technique is by raising the voltage on the drive (probably by a few millivolts). This procedure will vary from manufacturer to manufacturer and I'm sure product to product as well. So you have to use the manufacturer's drive cleaning program if they offer one. Even still, I wouldn't completely trust it and I'd try a full deleted data recovery with industry tools and see if anything shows up. Flash memory is a real pain when it comes to total data sanitation. It's not like a mechanical hard drive that CAN be zeroed out with a ton of writes as apposed to flash-based hard drives. Though, for mechanical hard drives, total sanitation should simply be done with a degausser meant for mechanical hard drives. But those are very cost prohibitive. If a flashed-based drive like a SSD won't be used anymore, just open the case and drill a hole in the center of each memory chip. Data is now completely sanitized. No if s or NANDS about it.

Anyway, back to the topic about the program called Everything.exe. If you use this program and simply enter the search term "Origin" (no quotes required). You can dig up where it's splattered all over your hard drive/s. Right click a file result in Everything.exe and navigate to its directory...

There are other programs like Everything.exe, but I found Everything.exe to be more robust and feature rich. Also, I compared the results with Everything.exe to others and I got more (probably complete) results with Everything.exe. The program will find hidden files without showing hidden files as well. You can actually open Everything.exe, click the 'Date Modified' tab to organize the results from new to old and watch as new files are added and deleted in real time on your hard drive. This is just one way to figure out where data may be written. I also use a program called Disk Pulse and some other programs for this purpose though.


Anyway, I think I answered your question and then some. LOL