Maybe a month ago my desktop icons started showing up aphabetized on my
screen and I can't get it back to the normal auto arrange or just placing
them anywhere on the screen. They are all on the left and theres a line A
with A programs under the B and so on. The problem is when I go to right
click on the desktop to bring up properties for the desktop the whole middle
section of Arange Icons by.... are greyed out. The greyed out item are 'show
in groups' (not checked), 'auto arrange' (not checked), and 'align to grid'
(checked). I am unable to drag the icons anywhere on my screen.

Any thoughts.

I am running XP Professional SP2.

Thanks.

have yuo tried System Restore?
Start>All Programs>Accessories>System Tools>System Restore

"Robin" wrote:

> Maybe a month ago my desktop icons started showing up aphabetized on my
> screen and I can't get it back to the normal auto arrange or just placing
> them anywhere on the screen. They are all on the left and theres a line A
> with A programs under the B and so on. The problem is when I go to right
> click on the desktop to bring up properties for the desktop the whole middle
> section of Arange Icons by.... are greyed out. The greyed out item are 'show
> in groups' (not checked), 'auto arrange' (not checked), and 'align to grid'
> (checked). I am unable to drag the icons anywhere on my screen.
>
> Any thoughts.
>
> I am running XP Professional SP2.
>
> Thanks.
>
>

Show in Groups will be grayed out unless you select one of these; Name,
Size, Type or Modified.

Name, Size, Type, Modified, Show in Groups and Align to Grid will all be
grayed out if you do not have Show Desktop Icons selected.

Show Desktop Icons will not be displayed if you have unchecked:
Allow Web content to be added to the desktop in TweakUI.

Or if this registry value is set to 1...
HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
Value Name: NoActiveDesktop
Data Type: REG_DWORD
Value Data: 0 or 1
0 = Allow Web content to be added to the desktop
1 = Don't allow Web content to be added to the desktop

Also the Web tab will not appear under Desktop Items (Display Properties |
Desktop tab | Customize Desktop button).

Also, *.jpg files will not be listed in...
Display Properties | Desktop tab | Background

Lock Web Items on Desktop
[[Specifies whether Web content windows or items that you have placed on
your desktop are locked in place and can’t be moved. Select the check box to
lock Web content in place. Clear the check box if you want to be able to
move Web content.]]

If Lock Web Items on Desktop is checked...
Items can be moved, but they are moved back after reboot.

"Show Desktop icons" and other options missing in the Desktop right-click
menu
http://www.winxptutor.com/showdesktopicons.htm

Arrange Icons By...

Name
[[Arrange icons in alphabetical order by the icon name. ]]

Size
[[Arrange icons in order of file size. If the icon is a shortcut to a
program, the size refers to the size of the shortcut file. ]]

Type
[[Arrange icons in order of type. For example, if you have shortcuts to
several PowerPoint presentations on your desktop, these will be arranged
next to each other. ]]

Modified
[[Arrange icons in the order that the shortcut was last modified. ]]

Show in groups
[[Show in Groups allows you to group your files by any detail of the file,
such as name, size, type, or date modified. ]]

AutoArrange
[[Arrange the icons in columns along the left side of your screen.]]

Align to Grid
[[Snap icons into place as designated by an invisible grid on
your screen. The grid keeps the icons aligned with each other. ]]

Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard
[[The Desktop Cleanup Wizard displays a list of the desktop icons that have
not been used for 60 days or more, enabling you to remove those icons that
you don't want on your desktop. You can retrieve icons you have removed by
opening the Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder on your desktop. ]]

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In news:10905751-446E-49DF-B75C-ECE23B449365@microsoft.com,
Robin <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> hunted and pecked:
> Maybe a month ago my desktop icons started showing up aphabetized on my
> screen and I can't get it back to the normal auto arrange or just placing
> them anywhere on the screen. They are all on the left and theres a line A
> with A programs under the B and so on. The problem is when I go to right
> click on the desktop to bring up properties for the desktop the whole
> middle section of Arange Icons by.... are greyed out. The greyed out
> item are 'show in groups' (not checked), 'auto arrange' (not checked),
> and 'align to grid' (checked). I am unable to drag the icons anywhere on
> my screen.
>
> Any thoughts.
>
> I am running XP Professional SP2.
>
> Thanks.

Try typing in Start Run
regsvr32 /i shell32

then reboot.

--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Read David defending the concept of violence.
http://margokingston.typepad.com/har...e_ga.html#more
=================================================
"Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:10905751-446E-49DF-B75C-ECE23B449365@microsoft.com...
> Maybe a month ago my desktop icons started showing up aphabetized on my
> screen and I can't get it back to the normal auto arrange or just placing
> them anywhere on the screen. They are all on the left and theres a line A
> with A programs under the B and so on. The problem is when I go to right
> click on the desktop to bring up properties for the desktop the whole middle
> section of Arange Icons by.... are greyed out. The greyed out item are 'show
> in groups' (not checked), 'auto arrange' (not checked), and 'align to grid'
> (checked). I am unable to drag the icons anywhere on my screen.
>
> Any thoughts.
>
> I am running XP Professional SP2.
>
> Thanks.
>
>

So I should probably add this. There are two users on this machine. If I
log my wife in, her icons are all fine and the middle items are not greyed
out.

I looked in regedit where you specified but there was nothing listed other
than default.

This is exactly how it is set now.
Under 'arrange icons by'

X Name
Size
Type
Modified
___________________________
Show In Groups (greyed out)
Auto Arrange (greyed out)
X Align to Gird (greyed out)
___________________________
X Show Desktop Items
Lock Web Items on Desktop
Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard

On my wife's login

Name
Size
Type
Modified
___________________________
Show In Groups (greyed out)
Auto Arrange
X Align to Gird
___________________________
X Show Desktop Items
Lock Web Items on Desktop
Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard

Any other thoughts?

Robin


"Wesley Vogel" wrote:

> Show in Groups will be grayed out unless you select one of these; Name,
> Size, Type or Modified.
>
> Name, Size, Type, Modified, Show in Groups and Align to Grid will all be
> grayed out if you do not have Show Desktop Icons selected.
>
> Show Desktop Icons will not be displayed if you have unchecked:
> Allow Web content to be added to the desktop in TweakUI.
>
> Or if this registry value is set to 1...
> HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\
> CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
> Value Name: NoActiveDesktop
> Data Type: REG_DWORD
> Value Data: 0 or 1
> 0 = Allow Web content to be added to the desktop
> 1 = Don't allow Web content to be added to the desktop
>
> Also the Web tab will not appear under Desktop Items (Display Properties |
> Desktop tab | Customize Desktop button).
>
> Also, *.jpg files will not be listed in...
> Display Properties | Desktop tab | Background
>
> Lock Web Items on Desktop
> [[Specifies whether Web content windows or items that you have placed on
> your desktop are locked in place and can’t be moved. Select the check box to
> lock Web content in place. Clear the check box if you want to be able to
> move Web content.]]
>
> If Lock Web Items on Desktop is checked...
> Items can be moved, but they are moved back after reboot.
>
> "Show Desktop icons" and other options missing in the Desktop right-click
> menu
> http://www.winxptutor.com/showdesktopicons.htm
>
> Arrange Icons By...
>
> Name
> [[Arrange icons in alphabetical order by the icon name. ]]
>
> Size
> [[Arrange icons in order of file size. If the icon is a shortcut to a
> program, the size refers to the size of the shortcut file. ]]
>
> Type
> [[Arrange icons in order of type. For example, if you have shortcuts to
> several PowerPoint presentations on your desktop, these will be arranged
> next to each other. ]]
>
> Modified
> [[Arrange icons in the order that the shortcut was last modified. ]]
>
> Show in groups
> [[Show in Groups allows you to group your files by any detail of the file,
> such as name, size, type, or date modified. ]]
>
> AutoArrange
> [[Arrange the icons in columns along the left side of your screen.]]
>
> Align to Grid
> [[Snap icons into place as designated by an invisible grid on
> your screen. The grid keeps the icons aligned with each other. ]]
>
> Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard
> [[The Desktop Cleanup Wizard displays a list of the desktop icons that have
> not been used for 60 days or more, enabling you to remove those icons that
> you don't want on your desktop. You can retrieve icons you have removed by
> opening the Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder on your desktop. ]]
>
> --
> Hope this helps. Let us know.
>
> Wes
> MS-MVP Windows Shell/User
>
> In news:10905751-446E-49DF-B75C-ECE23B449365@microsoft.com,
> Robin <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> hunted and pecked:
> > Maybe a month ago my desktop icons started showing up aphabetized on my
> > screen and I can't get it back to the normal auto arrange or just placing
> > them anywhere on the screen. They are all on the left and theres a line A
> > with A programs under the B and so on. The problem is when I go to right
> > click on the desktop to bring up properties for the desktop the whole
> > middle section of Arange Icons by.... are greyed out. The greyed out
> > item are 'show in groups' (not checked), 'auto arrange' (not checked),
> > and 'align to grid' (checked). I am unable to drag the icons anywhere on
> > my screen.
> >
> > Any thoughts.
> >
> > I am running XP Professional SP2.
> >
> > Thanks.
>
>

OK. I tried it but it didn't change anything. Thanks for trying.

"David Candy" wrote:

> Try typing in Start Run
> regsvr32 /i shell32
>
> then reboot.
>
> --
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
> Read David defending the concept of violence.
> http://margokingston.typepad.com/har...e_ga.html#more
> =================================================
> "Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:10905751-446E-49DF-B75C-ECE23B449365@microsoft.com...
> > Maybe a month ago my desktop icons started showing up aphabetized on my
> > screen and I can't get it back to the normal auto arrange or just placing
> > them anywhere on the screen. They are all on the left and theres a line A
> > with A programs under the B and so on. The problem is when I go to right
> > click on the desktop to bring up properties for the desktop the whole middle
> > section of Arange Icons by.... are greyed out. The greyed out item are 'show
> > in groups' (not checked), 'auto arrange' (not checked), and 'align to grid'
> > (checked). I am unable to drag the icons anywhere on my screen.
> >
> > Any thoughts.
> >
> > I am running XP Professional SP2.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> >
>

I think I did...can't remember for sure though. There have been a few
changes since then and I wouldn't want to revert back that far ago now.

"Dixonian69" wrote:

> have yuo tried System Restore?
> Start>All Programs>Accessories>System Tools>System Restore
>
> "Robin" wrote:
>
> > Maybe a month ago my desktop icons started showing up aphabetized on my
> > screen and I can't get it back to the normal auto arrange or just placing
> > them anywhere on the screen. They are all on the left and theres a line A
> > with A programs under the B and so on. The problem is when I go to right
> > click on the desktop to bring up properties for the desktop the whole middle
> > section of Arange Icons by.... are greyed out. The greyed out item are 'show
> > in groups' (not checked), 'auto arrange' (not checked), and 'align to grid'
> > (checked). I am unable to drag the icons anywhere on my screen.
> >
> > Any thoughts.
> >
> > I am running XP Professional SP2.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> >

Additional note to the previous reply....

And I don't have a choice not to pick one of the items in the top part of
the list.

"Wesley Vogel" wrote:

> Show in Groups will be grayed out unless you select one of these; Name,
> Size, Type or Modified.
>
> Name, Size, Type, Modified, Show in Groups and Align to Grid will all be
> grayed out if you do not have Show Desktop Icons selected.
>
> Show Desktop Icons will not be displayed if you have unchecked:
> Allow Web content to be added to the desktop in TweakUI.
>
> Or if this registry value is set to 1...
> HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\
> CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
> Value Name: NoActiveDesktop
> Data Type: REG_DWORD
> Value Data: 0 or 1
> 0 = Allow Web content to be added to the desktop
> 1 = Don't allow Web content to be added to the desktop
>
> Also the Web tab will not appear under Desktop Items (Display Properties |
> Desktop tab | Customize Desktop button).
>
> Also, *.jpg files will not be listed in...
> Display Properties | Desktop tab | Background
>
> Lock Web Items on Desktop
> [[Specifies whether Web content windows or items that you have placed on
> your desktop are locked in place and can’t be moved. Select the check box to
> lock Web content in place. Clear the check box if you want to be able to
> move Web content.]]
>
> If Lock Web Items on Desktop is checked...
> Items can be moved, but they are moved back after reboot.
>
> "Show Desktop icons" and other options missing in the Desktop right-click
> menu
> http://www.winxptutor.com/showdesktopicons.htm
>
> Arrange Icons By...
>
> Name
> [[Arrange icons in alphabetical order by the icon name. ]]
>
> Size
> [[Arrange icons in order of file size. If the icon is a shortcut to a
> program, the size refers to the size of the shortcut file. ]]
>
> Type
> [[Arrange icons in order of type. For example, if you have shortcuts to
> several PowerPoint presentations on your desktop, these will be arranged
> next to each other. ]]
>
> Modified
> [[Arrange icons in the order that the shortcut was last modified. ]]
>
> Show in groups
> [[Show in Groups allows you to group your files by any detail of the file,
> such as name, size, type, or date modified. ]]
>
> AutoArrange
> [[Arrange the icons in columns along the left side of your screen.]]
>
> Align to Grid
> [[Snap icons into place as designated by an invisible grid on
> your screen. The grid keeps the icons aligned with each other. ]]
>
> Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard
> [[The Desktop Cleanup Wizard displays a list of the desktop icons that have
> not been used for 60 days or more, enabling you to remove those icons that
> you don't want on your desktop. You can retrieve icons you have removed by
> opening the Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder on your desktop. ]]
>
> --
> Hope this helps. Let us know.
>
> Wes
> MS-MVP Windows Shell/User
>
> In news:10905751-446E-49DF-B75C-ECE23B449365@microsoft.com,
> Robin <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> hunted and pecked:
> > Maybe a month ago my desktop icons started showing up aphabetized on my
> > screen and I can't get it back to the normal auto arrange or just placing
> > them anywhere on the screen. They are all on the left and theres a line A
> > with A programs under the B and so on. The problem is when I go to right
> > click on the desktop to bring up properties for the desktop the whole
> > middle section of Arange Icons by.... are greyed out. The greyed out
> > item are 'show in groups' (not checked), 'auto arrange' (not checked),
> > and 'align to grid' (checked). I am unable to drag the icons anywhere on
> > my screen.
> >
> > Any thoughts.
> >
> > I am running XP Professional SP2.
> >
> > Thanks.
>
>

Just wanted to say...thank you for your help. I've installed a new version
of virus software....I think it may have been a virus in my SYSTEM that was
causing the problem. When I rebooted after installation...it was back to
normal.

Robin

"Wesley Vogel" wrote:

> Show in Groups will be grayed out unless you select one of these; Name,
> Size, Type or Modified.
>
> Name, Size, Type, Modified, Show in Groups and Align to Grid will all be
> grayed out if you do not have Show Desktop Icons selected.
>
> Show Desktop Icons will not be displayed if you have unchecked:
> Allow Web content to be added to the desktop in TweakUI.
>
> Or if this registry value is set to 1...
> HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\
> CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
> Value Name: NoActiveDesktop
> Data Type: REG_DWORD
> Value Data: 0 or 1
> 0 = Allow Web content to be added to the desktop
> 1 = Don't allow Web content to be added to the desktop
>
> Also the Web tab will not appear under Desktop Items (Display Properties |
> Desktop tab | Customize Desktop button).
>
> Also, *.jpg files will not be listed in...
> Display Properties | Desktop tab | Background
>
> Lock Web Items on Desktop
> [[Specifies whether Web content windows or items that you have placed on
> your desktop are locked in place and can’t be moved. Select the check box to
> lock Web content in place. Clear the check box if you want to be able to
> move Web content.]]
>
> If Lock Web Items on Desktop is checked...
> Items can be moved, but they are moved back after reboot.
>
> "Show Desktop icons" and other options missing in the Desktop right-click
> menu
> http://www.winxptutor.com/showdesktopicons.htm
>
> Arrange Icons By...
>
> Name
> [[Arrange icons in alphabetical order by the icon name. ]]
>
> Size
> [[Arrange icons in order of file size. If the icon is a shortcut to a
> program, the size refers to the size of the shortcut file. ]]
>
> Type
> [[Arrange icons in order of type. For example, if you have shortcuts to
> several PowerPoint presentations on your desktop, these will be arranged
> next to each other. ]]
>
> Modified
> [[Arrange icons in the order that the shortcut was last modified. ]]
>
> Show in groups
> [[Show in Groups allows you to group your files by any detail of the file,
> such as name, size, type, or date modified. ]]
>
> AutoArrange
> [[Arrange the icons in columns along the left side of your screen.]]
>
> Align to Grid
> [[Snap icons into place as designated by an invisible grid on
> your screen. The grid keeps the icons aligned with each other. ]]
>
> Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard
> [[The Desktop Cleanup Wizard displays a list of the desktop icons that have
> not been used for 60 days or more, enabling you to remove those icons that
> you don't want on your desktop. You can retrieve icons you have removed by
> opening the Unused Desktop Shortcuts folder on your desktop. ]]
>
> --
> Hope this helps. Let us know.
>
> Wes
> MS-MVP Windows Shell/User
>
> In news:10905751-446E-49DF-B75C-ECE23B449365@microsoft.com,
> Robin <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> hunted and pecked:
> > Maybe a month ago my desktop icons started showing up aphabetized on my
> > screen and I can't get it back to the normal auto arrange or just placing
> > them anywhere on the screen. They are all on the left and theres a line A
> > with A programs under the B and so on. The problem is when I go to right
> > click on the desktop to bring up properties for the desktop the whole
> > middle section of Arange Icons by.... are greyed out. The greyed out
> > item are 'show in groups' (not checked), 'auto arrange' (not checked),
> > and 'align to grid' (checked). I am unable to drag the icons anywhere on
> > my screen.
> >
> > Any thoughts.
> >
> > I am running XP Professional SP2.
> >
> > Thanks.
>
>

Try resetting your folder views then. Normally the symptoms are the common task pane showing. What you did added the registry key that something deleted. The common task pane doesn't use saved settings so it disappers next boot.

I've made my desktop like yours. So I can duplicate it.
The desktop is wierd in detail view.

Resetting does 90% of the settings. Post back if you need to do the other 10%.
--
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Read David defending the concept of violence.
http://margokingston.typepad.com/har...e_ga.html#more
=================================================
"Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:2DBF6485-0A99-417F-9FAF-FFDF845FEA6E@microsoft.com...
> OK. I tried it but it didn't change anything. Thanks for trying.
>
> "David Candy" wrote:
>
>> Try typing in Start Run
>> regsvr32 /i shell32
>>
>> then reboot.
>>
>> --
>> --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>> Read David defending the concept of violence.
>> http://margokingston.typepad.com/har...e_ga.html#more
>> =================================================
>> "Robin" <Robin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message news:10905751-446E-49DF-B75C-ECE23B449365@microsoft.com...
>> > Maybe a month ago my desktop icons started showing up aphabetized on my
>> > screen and I can't get it back to the normal auto arrange or just placing
>> > them anywhere on the screen. They are all on the left and theres a line A
>> > with A programs under the B and so on. The problem is when I go to right
>> > click on the desktop to bring up properties for the desktop the whole middle
>> > section of Arange Icons by.... are greyed out. The greyed out item are 'show
>> > in groups' (not checked), 'auto arrange' (not checked), and 'align to grid'
>> > (checked). I am unable to drag the icons anywhere on my screen.
>> >
>> > Any thoughts.
>> >
>> > I am running XP Professional SP2.
>> >
>> > Thanks.
>> >
>> >
>>