Different log on desktops

[aw56001 via WindowsKB.com]

Apologies if this is the wrong forum but I've just joined and haven't found
my way around yet.
When I boot up/restart (Win XP with SP2) I am getting different
desktops/toolbar showing every time however the screen picture remains the
same and the left hand side of the toolbar remains the same.
Sometimes every program/icon that I have enabled appear in the system tray,
sometimes every program/icon EXCEPT Genius mouse/keyboard appear and
sometimes only five programs/icons appear (instead of the normal 10 which I
enabled).
User Accounts in Control Panel shows:
1) Andrew Wilson's XP
Computer Administrator
Password Protecred
2) Guest
Guest account is off (I turned it off because I thought this was the
problem).
Calling up Control Panel/System/System Properties/Advanced/User
Profiles/Settings I get:

Name Size Type Status Modified
D5185/Administrator 583KB Local Local 27/05/05
D5185/Andrew Wilson 62.9MB Local Local 15/11/05

I think I created this account in error when I was trying to set up a two
computer network but I don't know what I did.
Clicking D5185/Administrator I can 'Change Type', 'Delete' or 'Copy To'.
Clicking D5185/Andrew Wilson I can only 'Change Type'.
I can't actually change the type of any of them because they are both stuck
on 'Local Profile' and can't be changed.
I thought of deleting the 'D5185/Administrator account but I have read
somewhere else that 'Administrator' must be on the system or else problems
will ensue.
Could anyone please help me so that only my preferred desktop/toolbar appears
every time on bootup/restart and not different ones.
I suspect it is the 'D5185/Andrew Wilson' in 'Profiles/Settings' that is the
problem but don't know how to remove it.
Many Thanks
Andrew Wilson

 

[Nightowl]

Apologies if this is the wrong forum but I've just joined and haven't found
my way around yet.
When I boot up/restart (Win XP with SP2) I am getting different
desktops/toolbar showing every time however the screen picture remains the
same and the left hand side of the toolbar remains the same.
Sometimes every program/icon that I have enabled appear in the system tray,
sometimes every program/icon EXCEPT Genius mouse/keyboard appear and
sometimes only five programs/icons appear (instead of the normal 10 which I
enabled).

Hello Andrew

You're in the right place, don't worry

From your description it doesn't sound to me like you are actually
getting different desktops or logons, it's just that the icons in your
system tray or notification area are appearing and disappearing at whim.

This is very annoying but it's a very common fault and can be fixed. I
recommend you go to: http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_abc.htm
Click on the letter I and read everything under Icons -- Notification
Area -- Missing.

Clicking D5185/Administrator I can 'Change Type', 'Delete' or 'Copy To'.
Clicking D5185/Andrew Wilson I can only 'Change Type'.

That's because you were currently logged in to it.

I can't actually change the type of any of them because they are both stuck
on 'Local Profile' and can't be changed.

That's correct.

I thought of deleting the 'D5185/Administrator account but I have read
somewhere else that 'Administrator' must be on the system or else problems
will ensue.

Correct again -- Administrator is a built-in account and necessary for
the running of Windows. Never try to delete it.

Could anyone please help me so that only my preferred desktop/toolbar appears
every time on bootup/restart and not different ones.
I suspect it is the 'D5185/Andrew Wilson' in 'Profiles/Settings' that is the
problem but don't know how to remove it.

I don't think there is anything really wrong with your profile, Andrew,
it's just the icons problem. Have a look at what Kelly suggests and let
us know how you get on. Good luck!

 

[aw56001 via WindowsKB.com]

Nightowl
I am sorry but I am not very good with computers (as no doubt you can tell).
Could you please confirm if the following is what I need to cure my problem
(from Kelly's site) from the information that I provided in my original post.
If it is I can follow the steps required.

Icons - Notification Area - Missing

Three methods/workarounds: Log off and Log back on, password protect your
account or...

Right click My Computer/Manage. Expand Services and Applications then Click
on Services. A list of services appears in the right column. Scroll down to
the SSDP and uPnP Service. Right click each, choose properties. Change the
text next to "Startup type:" to Disabled.

Many Thanks
Andrew Wilson

Apologies if this is the wrong forum but I've just joined and haven't found
my way around yet.

[quoted text clipped - 5 lines]

sometimes only five programs/icons appear (instead of the normal 10 which I
enabled).

Hello Andrew

You're in the right place, don't worry

From your description it doesn't sound to me like you are actually
getting different desktops or logons, it's just that the icons in your
system tray or notification area are appearing and disappearing at whim.

This is very annoying but it's a very common fault and can be fixed. I
recommend you go to: http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_abc.htm
Click on the letter I and read everything under Icons -- Notification
Area -- Missing.

Clicking D5185/Administrator I can 'Change Type', 'Delete' or 'Copy To'.
Clicking D5185/Andrew Wilson I can only 'Change Type'.

That's because you were currently logged in to it.

I can't actually change the type of any of them because they are both stuck
on 'Local Profile' and can't be changed.

That's correct.

I thought of deleting the 'D5185/Administrator account but I have read
somewhere else that 'Administrator' must be on the system or else problems
will ensue.

Correct again -- Administrator is a built-in account and necessary for
the running of Windows. Never try to delete it.

Could anyone please help me so that only my preferred desktop/toolbar appears
every time on bootup/restart and not different ones.
I suspect it is the 'D5185/Andrew Wilson' in 'Profiles/Settings' that is the
problem but don't know how to remove it.

I don't think there is anything really wrong with your profile, Andrew,
it's just the icons problem. Have a look at what Kelly suggests and let
us know how you get on. Good luck!

 

[Nightowl]

I am sorry but I am not very good with computers (as no doubt you can tell).

Hi Andrew

No worries -- we are all learning here!

Could you please confirm if the following is what I need to cure my problem
(from Kelly's site) from the information that I provided in my original post.
If it is I can follow the steps required.

Icons - Notification Area - Missing

Three methods/workarounds: Log off and Log back on, password protect your
account or...

Right click My Computer/Manage. Expand Services and Applications then Click
on Services. A list of services appears in the right column. Scroll down to
the SSDP and uPnP Service. Right click each, choose properties. Change the
text next to "Startup type:" to Disabled.

Yes, that's the section I meant; people have found these three methods
to work in the past. Try disabling the two services and see if that
cures your problem -- if not, try the other solutions one by one. And
don't worry -- there isn't anything seriously wrong, even though it's
seriously annoying

Good luck, and please let us know how you get on.

 

[aw56001 via WindowsKB.com]

Nightowl
I have executed the tasks set out in Kellys document with regard to my
problem. Thanks for the advice. It is better although it is still erratic. On
one bootup the printer icon is missing and on another bootup the printer icon
is there but the caps lock icon is missing. The icons are also appearing in a
different order every time (although that isn't a problem). Is there anything
else that I could try to ensure that the icons I want to appear DO actually
appear at all times to give me easy access to them.
One other thing - in the Shutdown menu there is a 'Log off Andrew Wilson' tab.
I have used a password to log on to my computer so is this 'Log off Andrew
Wilson' tab mandatory or can I remove it so I just get the options, Shut Down,
Stand By and Restart?
Thanks again
aw56001

I am sorry but I am not very good with computers (as no doubt you can tell).

Hi Andrew

No worries -- we are all learning here!

Could you please confirm if the following is what I need to cure my problem
(from Kelly's site) from the information that I provided in my original post.

[quoted text clipped - 9 lines]

the SSDP and uPnP Service. Right click each, choose properties. Change the
text next to "Startup type:" to Disabled.

Yes, that's the section I meant; people have found these three methods
to work in the past. Try disabling the two services and see if that
cures your problem -- if not, try the other solutions one by one. And
don't worry -- there isn't anything seriously wrong, even though it's
seriously annoying

Good luck, and please let us know how you get on.

 

[Nightowl]

Nightowl
I have executed the tasks set out in Kellys document with regard to my
problem. Thanks for the advice. It is better although it is still erratic. On
one bootup the printer icon is missing and on another bootup the printer icon
is there but the caps lock icon is missing. The icons are also appearing in a
different order every time (although that isn't a problem). Is there anything
else that I could try to ensure that the icons I want to appear DO actually
appear at all times to give me easy access to them.

Hello Andrew

I'm glad to hear it's a bit better, though sorry it's not completely
cured. I'm not sure what the caps lock icon is. . . the order the icons
show depends on the order the apps are loading, though this does usually
settle down to a certain pattern. The only other thing I can think of is
for you to double-check that you don't have any icons set to "hide" in
the Taskbar preferences. Or, if your graphics card has a Troubleshooting
tab or similar where you can alter hardware acceleration, try that
(right-click desktop > Properties > Settings > Advanced). It may be that
turning it down a notch or two might help, but you need to experiment
and see.

One other thing - in the Shutdown menu there is a 'Log off Andrew Wilson' tab.
I have used a password to log on to my computer so is this 'Log off Andrew
Wilson' tab mandatory or can I remove it so I just get the options, Shut Down,
Stand By and Restart?

Well, it's useful to be able to log off, even if you are the only user
of your machine; you might need to log in as the Administrator to
perform some task, for example. Or logging off and on again as yourself
sometimes helps bring back missing icons, as Kelly's site says.

Do you have another way to log off, for instance an option on the Start
Menu, next to Shut Down? If so, then, although you can't remove the
option from the Shutdown Menu, you can use the alternative Turn Off
Computer panel; instead of a drop-down menu, you get three icons, Stand
By, Turn off and Restart.

To try this, go into Control Panel > User Accounts and click Change the
way users log on or off, then click Use Welcome Screen.

Hope this helps.

 

[aw56001 via WindowsKB.com]

Nightowl
I have ticked the 'Hide inactive icons' box in the Taskbar and Start Menu
Properties and selected what I want to appear and hopefully that will now do
the trick. The Caps Lock icon is provided by Genius (not essential but useful)
as there is not a Caps Lock indicator on the keyboard.
I will leave the 'Log Off Andrew Wilson' option on as hopefully the missing
icon saga has been solved and I don't want to rock the boat any more than
necessary.
Finally, many thanks to you, your assistance was invaluable and is greatly
appreciated. I did post the same question to a number of forums but this was
the only forum where I got a positive reply and I will certainly return if I
have a future problem.
Thanks again
aw56001 (Andrew Wilson)

Nightowl
I have executed the tasks set out in Kellys document with regard to my

[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]

else that I could try to ensure that the icons I want to appear DO actually
appear at all times to give me easy access to them.

Hello Andrew

I'm glad to hear it's a bit better, though sorry it's not completely
cured. I'm not sure what the caps lock icon is. . . the order the icons
show depends on the order the apps are loading, though this does usually
settle down to a certain pattern. The only other thing I can think of is
for you to double-check that you don't have any icons set to "hide" in
the Taskbar preferences. Or, if your graphics card has a Troubleshooting
tab or similar where you can alter hardware acceleration, try that
(right-click desktop > Properties > Settings > Advanced). It may be that
turning it down a notch or two might help, but you need to experiment
and see.

One other thing - in the Shutdown menu there is a 'Log off Andrew Wilson' tab.
I have used a password to log on to my computer so is this 'Log off Andrew
Wilson' tab mandatory or can I remove it so I just get the options, Shut Down,
Stand By and Restart?

Well, it's useful to be able to log off, even if you are the only user
of your machine; you might need to log in as the Administrator to
perform some task, for example. Or logging off and on again as yourself
sometimes helps bring back missing icons, as Kelly's site says.

Do you have another way to log off, for instance an option on the Start
Menu, next to Shut Down? If so, then, although you can't remove the
option from the Shutdown Menu, you can use the alternative Turn Off
Computer panel; instead of a drop-down menu, you get three icons, Stand
By, Turn off and Restart.

To try this, go into Control Panel > User Accounts and click Change the
way users log on or off, then click Use Welcome Screen.

Hope this helps.

 

[Nightowl]

Nightowl
I have ticked the 'Hide inactive icons' box in the Taskbar and Start Menu
Properties and selected what I want to appear and hopefully that will now do
the trick.

That's a good idea to try -- good luck, Andrew.

The Caps Lock icon is provided by Genius (not essential but useful)
as there is not a Caps Lock indicator on the keyboard.

Ah, I see; I hadn't heard of it before.

I will leave the 'Log Off Andrew Wilson' option on as hopefully the missing
icon saga has been solved and I don't want to rock the boat any more than
necessary.
Finally, many thanks to you, your assistance was invaluable and is greatly
appreciated. I did post the same question to a number of forums but this was
the only forum where I got a positive reply and I will certainly return if I
have a future problem.

That's very nice of you, Andrew, thank you very much. Please do come
back if you have any more problems -- it's what the newsgroup is for

Best wishes