Phantom desktop icon

[Gene E. Bloch]

Not at all, as I explained in another post just now.


It only changes the initial folder location. In other words, it saves
you a couple of clicks. If you almost always go to the same place, it
may make sense to create a shortcut to that place to save the extra
clicks it normally takes to get you there.


Of course it's the same program. That should have been obvious...

And it always was, ever since the invention of the printing press.

That's why I mentioned in the post alluded to above what I said about
Microsoft and terminology, since that's a lot of where Steve got
confused...

 

[Gene E. Bloch]

Everyone needs a good laugh once in a while, it's good for you!
So Windows 7 calls it "Computer". Sure, I look in there quite often. But
they also list "Explorer". If I type it in the search box, it leads me
to the Library. I end up in Library no matter how I get to Windows
Explorer. All the other versions of Windows I ever used, Explorer was
useful and let me see everything in the computer.
If Windows explorer is simply the Library, why on earth do they call it
Windows Explorer??? Odd things with names, indeed.

As has been stated many times in this thread, Library is just where
Explorer starts looking at your computer's files, because of how your
shortcuts are set up or how your Explorer is set up.

I am beginning to suspect that you're not showing the navigation pane,
AKA the folder pane.

Try this: click on Organize in the bar near the top of your
Explorer/Computer window, choose layout, and make sure that the entry
for Navigation Pane is checked.

If it already was, then click on the folder icon in the address bar,
then on the down-pointing triangle near it, then on anything in the menu
that drops down.

You'll be amazed at what you see.

And buy a book on Windows 7, like a For Dummies book or "Windows 7 Plain
& Simple". Turn on your computer and *read* the book while sitting at
your computer.

 

[Steve]

As has been stated many times in this thread, Library is just where
Explorer starts looking at your computer's files, because of how your
shortcuts are set up or how your Explorer is set up.

I understand now.

I am beginning to suspect that you're not showing the navigation pane,
AKA the folder pane.

Exactly right.

Try this: click on Organize in the bar near the top of your
Explorer/Computer window, choose layout, and make sure that the entry
for Navigation Pane is checked.

Well, would you look at that! OK, now I have something that looks like
what Windows Explorer should look like. What good does it do me though
(other than to learn about why I haven't seen this before), because it
still doesn't solve the original problem. I can't delete or do anything
with my phantom icon from here, either.

If it already was, then click on the folder icon in the address bar,
then on the down-pointing triangle near it, then on anything in the menu
that drops down.

You'll be amazed at what you see.

Not that amazed. In fact, not at all. Maybe I'm not seeing what you want
me to see. Clicking on the folder icon in the address bar makes all the
arrows go away except the down arrow to the far right. When I click on
that, only 2 items come down. If I click on either of those, it goes
into the address bar. When I click to go there, it just says that
windows can't find it.

And buy a book on Windows 7, like a For Dummies book or "Windows 7 Plain
& Simple". Turn on your computer and *read* the book while sitting at
your computer.

Oh gosh, wouldn't it be great to have that much time? Seriously, maybe I
will. Books are cheap and I could work my way through the book as time
allows. I could probably get far enough to learn a few worthwhile things
before Windows 7 becomes obsolete. ;-)

Steve

 

[Stan Brown]

*******************
Well, that just uncovered another weird thing.
I went to all programs>Accessories>Windows Explorer, but when I click on
**********************

If you do not like its standard behaviour, you could put a shortcut to
Windows Explorer, say on the desktop. (that is find it, right click it,

Please quote in the standard way. Your method makes it difficult to
tell who said what, and impossible tell when your message itself gets
quoted.

I see you're using Windows Live Mail. If you can't configure it
properly, there are lots of free alternatives. news.software.readers
is where to find out about them.

 

[Char Jackson]

I understand now.


Exactly right.


Well, would you look at that! OK, now I have something that looks like
what Windows Explorer should look like. What good does it do me though
(other than to learn about why I haven't seen this before), because it
still doesn't solve the original problem. I can't delete or do anything
with my phantom icon from here, either.

You've already been given multiple suggestions to help solve that
issue so I assume you just haven't gotten around to trying them yet.

Not that amazed. In fact, not at all. Maybe I'm not seeing what you want
me to see. Clicking on the folder icon in the address bar makes all the
arrows go away except the down arrow to the far right. When I click on
that, only 2 items come down. If I click on either of those, it goes
into the address bar. When I click to go there, it just says that
windows can't find it.

Why would you click on the address bar? Stop clicking there and click
on an item in the Navigation Pane! You can easily navigate to anywhere
on your system by using the Navigation Pane, which coincidentally is
how it got its name.

 

[Gene E. Bloch]

You've already been given multiple suggestions to help solve that
issue so I assume you just haven't gotten around to trying them yet.


Why would you click on the address bar? Stop clicking there and click
on an item in the Navigation Pane! You can easily navigate to anywhere
on your system by using the Navigation Pane, which coincidentally is
how it got its name.

Partly he's doing that because of what I said.

Unfortunately, as I eventually realized, I incorrectly told him to click
on the down-pointing triangle at the left of the address bar, when I
should have said the *right-pointing* arrow

 

[Char Jackson]

Partly he's doing that because of what I said.

Unfortunately, as I eventually realized, I incorrectly told him to click
on the down-pointing triangle at the left of the address bar, when I
should have said the *right-pointing* arrow

I see now what you meant.
As usual, there are multiple ways to get wherever you'd want to go.

 

[Gene E. Bloch]

I see now what you meant.
As usual, there are multiple ways to get wherever you'd want to go.

Yes. Way more than I know about, of course...

But that's part of why I gave Steve a couple of choices, since I wasn't
sure what was happening on his machine.

Turns out my guess about the Navigation pane was accurate, but he still
needs help with it, as I read his reply to me...

 

[Bob]

FileMenu Tools Windows 7

http://www.windows7download.com/win7-filemenu-tools/ouczzyws.html

 

[Steve]

Partly he's doing that because of what I said.

Unfortunately, as I eventually realized, I incorrectly told him to click
on the down-pointing triangle at the left of the address bar, when I
should have said the *right-pointing* arrow

I don't see any messages from Char Jackson, but I do see your 2 replies
to what Char Jackson wrote.

 

[Steve]

I downloaded that and installed it.
I right clicked my Phantom file, found "shred it". I clicked that and
tried it. Nothing happened. I tried all 4 options under shred it. No
change at all. It's still there looking at me and I can't do a thing
with it except move it around to different locations on the desktop.

 

[Gene E. Bloch]

I don't see any messages from Char Jackson, but I do see your 2 replies
to what Char Jackson wrote.

There's a lot of that in my newsreading. It seems that not every server
carries the same collection of posts.

Currently, I have set up this reader (Dialog) to combine the posts on
alt.windows7.general from Albasani and Eternal-September into a single
folder; other newsreaders have similar capabilities. That lets me see
the posts missing from each of those servers (as long as a post isn't
gone from both of them), and Dialog is smart enough not to duplicate
posts that are present in both servers.

I don't know if that can be done in Thunderbird, but you could at least
open an account at Albasani if you want to more directly see the posts
missing from E-S.

 

[Bob]

Try deleting it from an Admin Command Prompt.

I downloaded that and installed it.
I right clicked my Phantom file, found "shred it". I clicked that and
tried it. Nothing happened. I tried all 4 options under shred it. No
change at all. It's still there looking at me and I can't do a thing with
it except move it around to different locations on the desktop.

 

[Steve]

Just tried it. The message comes up: Could not find
C:\Users\Steve\desktop....etc...
Note that this thing does not have a file extension associated with it.

 

[Bob]

Try dir with the ah switch to show hidden files. dir/ah

 

[Char Jackson]

Just tried it. The message comes up: Could not find
C:\Users\Steve\desktop....etc...

Does the DIR command list it? If not, then the DEL command won't find
it either. Be sure you're in the right folder.

Note that this thing does not have a file extension associated with it.

Irrelevant. Use the DIR command to get the exact spelling, in case the
Windows GUI is hiding the extension.

 

[Steve]

Does anyone know how to get rid of a desktop icon that my computer
insists doesn't exist?
A friend sent me some information in a file. I could only open it by
dragging and dropping it on my Open Office shortcut icon. It opened
looking like a spreadsheet. Soon after, I noticed what appeared to a
second copy of the same. Dragging to recycle bin does nothing. Right
clicking and choosing delete only leads to a message that the file
doesn't exist. I can't move it anywhere else because "it doesn't exist".
Restarting the computer didn't change things. So it sits there on the
desktop taunting me and I can't make it go away.

Steve

I had a dinner meeting tonight. I saw the guy who sent the original
working file with the same name as my Phantom file. Others at the
meeting got the same (normal) file. It appears that I'm the only one who
ended up with the Phantom copy on their desktop.
I did find out that the file was (as I thought) made with an old version
of Microsoft Office. I learned that he uses a Mac computer.
One of the other members, who has a computer repair business, overheard
the conversation asked if I had tried deleting it from safe mode. Easy
enough to try. Did it work? Of course not. Windows doesn't believe it is
really there and safe mode didn't make windows any smarter.

So, I have my own idea. Before I try it, think about any pitfalls that I
might not think of.
My user profile is the only one that has ever been on this computer. I
did create the administrator account to see what I could do from there,
but I took that back off.
So, what would happen if I put everything I like on my desktop, into a
folder, and put it somewhere else... then create a new user profile....
then delete my "Steve" account, almost certainly taking my Phantom icon
with it? I can't think of any reason it wouldn't work. I assume I could
then rename the new profile to "Steve" or create a new "Steve" and put
everything back the way I like it.
Is there any reason I couldn't delete the existing, original user
profile? Would a newly named "Steve" user account have all the abilities
as the current one?

 

[Steve]

It gave me a list of 38 items, 35 of which are .dll files. I am unable
to see anything useful on this list.

 

[Char Jackson]

It gave me a list of 38 items, 35 of which are .dll files. I am unable
to see anything useful on this list.

Then you're looking in the wrong folder. Navigate to the proper
folder, make sure the DIR command finds and lists the file, then use
the DEL command on it.

 

[Char Jackson]

I had a dinner meeting tonight. I saw the guy who sent the original
working file with the same name as my Phantom file. Others at the
meeting got the same (normal) file. It appears that I'm the only one who
ended up with the Phantom copy on their desktop.
I did find out that the file was (as I thought) made with an old version
of Microsoft Office. I learned that he uses a Mac computer.
One of the other members, who has a computer repair business, overheard
the conversation asked if I had tried deleting it from safe mode. Easy
enough to try. Did it work? Of course not. Windows doesn't believe it is
really there and safe mode didn't make windows any smarter.

So, I have my own idea. Before I try it, think about any pitfalls that I
might not think of.
My user profile is the only one that has ever been on this computer. I
did create the administrator account to see what I could do from there,
but I took that back off.
So, what would happen if I put everything I like on my desktop, into a
folder, and put it somewhere else... then create a new user profile....
then delete my "Steve" account, almost certainly taking my Phantom icon
with it? I can't think of any reason it wouldn't work. I assume I could
then rename the new profile to "Steve" or create a new "Steve" and put
everything back the way I like it.
Is there any reason I couldn't delete the existing, original user
profile? Would a newly named "Steve" user account have all the abilities
as the current one?

That's too extreme to get my endorsement. I don't think you've
finished trying the command prompt yet, according to what you've told
us.