Ok lets try this,
You say when you first open IE it opens fine (maximized) but when opening a link in another window it's half the size.
Open your IE (maximized), right click a link and open it in a new window.
On the new IE window drag the corners to maximize it (not the maximize button)
Now go back to the first window and close that, then close your second window.
I know that sounds strange but hey this is IE we are talking about
