Preference settings control how Photoshop Elements Editor displays images, cursors, and transparencies, saves files, uses plug‑ins and scratch disks, and so on. I did try searches on this forum for the problem and found several matches, but none of them seemed to include a resolution. I don't want to try all sorts of resetting those settings back to defaults since that will probably cause more problems. I don't see anything in PSE settings for this. It's been working fine for years, and all of a sudden this happened. So how can I go directly to Expert mode? I don't even want the menu where you have to pick the mode.

See the screen shot below (note: I went to Export mode to create the screenshot, so that is what is showing in the screenshot, but initially it was in Guided). I've been working on a particular photo for a couple days now, and all of a sudden I get the 'Open / Menu / Quick / Guided / Expert' screen with the default set to 'Guided'. I launch it from a shortcut to the PSD that brings me directly to the PSD file in Expert mode. I use PSE just about every day, version 15, Expert mode only, using Windows 10.

Adobe photoshop elements 14 host file