SOLVED : change single-click setting
STRATEGY : Since my xNView settings were not being removed upon un-install, I did another clean install on a new computer. I then checked every setting one-by-one. (You may have too many!) The "single-click to expand folder tree" was the culprit. Of course, a double-click when it is expecting single-click input would re-direct the browser to an unexpected location. Of course!
RECOMMENDATION : I must have changed this setting at some point in time. There are two ways to fix this problem (and future similar problems:)
1) Add a feature-button for "restore all defaults' and put it in two locations : Options dialog AND the drop-down menu so it can be found easily.
2) Fix the uninstaller to remove ALL settings. Mine were apparently saved somewhere on the system and persisted after three un-installs. Not good.
Dave