This seems to have gotten my computer working but I don't know if it's a fix for everyone
I copied the admin folder from a working computer
C:\oracle\product\11.2.0\client_admin\network\admin.
The hint I saw said to copy the tnsnames.ora file but in my case the folder was empty so I copied all the files
then I followed the instructions from this website
Use 32 and 64bit Oracle Client in parallel on Windows 7 64-bit for e.g. .NET Apps · Realfiction
Basically they suggest making a softlink shortcut folder in both the 32bit and 64 bit folders in the c:windows folder
using a cmd window and the mklink command
and then to create an entry in the environment path in the advanced settings which points to where the shortcut folder is in the c:\windows\system32 folder .