Background photo disappears...

[Karen McDonald]

Hi. This problem has nothing to do with RC, but maybe someone can help. I would certainly be very grateful...

I save our own photos, plus piccies from the web, to use as desktop backgrounds and I change them almost daily.

Yesterday, I changed the pic and all was OK. Then I turned the PC off. A couple of hours later, I turned it on again and the picture was gone.

To cut a long story short, I've tried everything I can think of, but nothing works. When I open the system control side (I have a German system - don't know what everything is called in English!) and go to the part where backgrounds, screensaver, etc. are, the little diagram of the screen shows the picture which I have installed, but the desktop itself has no picture, only the icons! 

When I turn the PC off, it goes through its usual blah-blah and, shortly before the screen gets powered off, the desktop picture, which I have installed,  flashes up for a second or two.

I have the feeling, my 'pooter is taking the mickey out of me...

One suggestion I received was to go into the desktop settings and save it as "no picture", then install the required picture and save it. This I did and could actually see the photo on the desktop! Yippee!, I thought. Then I turned the 'pooter off...  Of course, the next time I powered it up, the picture was not there, only the icons.

We have Norton Live Update and Firewalls and all the safety stuff. I have done a complete Norton system check and nothing comes up, so I am hoping that we are virus-free.

I have also tried installing older photos which I had as desktops a long time ago, but they don't work, either...

Does anyone have any ideas?!
We have XP Home, BTW.

Thanks,
Karen

[Zeb]

I take it you're viewing the pictures through Window's own picture viewer, right-clicking on it and selecting "Set as Desktop Background"

If you want, I can check your system for you to double check that you've not got any nasties installed by downloading a small program called HijackThis.  It'll create a log file which I'll need you to email to me so I can then take it from there.  Norton virus "protection" is well known for letting nasties of all sorts through and why its preinstalled on many machines you buy now I've no idea.  I stopped using it because Norton products can cause many problems from slowing computers down to interfering with net connections.

http://www.merijn.org/files/hijackthis.zip

Right-click that link, save to your desktop and extract and run the executable.  Perform a full scan and make a log file then email it to me as an attachment and not pasted into the email and send to iloliver@NOSPAM.blueyonder.co.uk (remove "NOSPAM")

[Karen McDonald]

Hi Zeb

Thanks for the offer of help - very nice of you.

I just tried changing the pic again and found that if I change the Windows design first, and then the photo, it works(?!)  (I put one of my favourite Magic Roundabout pics on the desktop    )

However, the photo which I had installed when the problems started will not stay on the desktop! I've checked it with Norton and it's clean, but something is obviously not OK.

Before I try the HijackThis solution, I'll see what happens tomorrow. Maybe this one photo really is the cause of the problem.

I'll let you know...!

Thanks again,
Karen

[Karen McDonald]

Me again. The piccy from yesterday was still there today! 

Looks as though it really was a problem with the other photo. Don't know why. One of life's mysteries...!

Thanks again for your kind offer of help.

Karen