System restore is out of the question as reading between the lines, your problems have been with you since you purchased the machine.

Here are two things to try. Create a system restore point first, just in case you have finger problems. I'm not very optimistic with either but I think you should try them :-

1. Have a look in Device Manager for the optical drive that's misbehaving. Right-click and uninstall it, reboot and let Vista find it. If that doesn't work, have a look at the upper and lower filter registry key removal, here http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929461/en-us

2. If you are ABSOLUTELY certain that your email address details are correct, run the system file checker (sfc) from an elevated Command Prompt, i.e. Click Start > All Programs > Accessories and right-click Command Prompt, then ‘Run as Administrator’. Type sfc /scannow (note the space) and press Enter. This may take some time and you may have to put the Vista DVD in the drive. You can analyse the SFC log file, here http://support.microsoft.com/kb/928228/en-us

Number 2 above may cure both problems if they were caused by corruption.