Suddenly I can't create or change my desktop background using Control Panel|Display

Hello Staff and Readers,
I've been using Windows XP Home for several months essentially problem free. But earlier this morning without any known action on my part I've lost the ability to add to or change my desktop background (also referred to as desktop wallpaper). While not a huge loss in the "big scheme of things," I have several photos of my toddler grandson that I switch around from time to time at my discretion! But now the entire desktop has only a soft green color with no centered image of any kind! The desktop icons of course are still present and work perfectly.
Any help will be greatly appreciated; rebooting has not helped.
PC specs include Dell 4600, 40 GB hard drive, 512 RAM, with many GHz of speed.
Sincerely,
Scottdietert

 

Can you be more specific.

Can't get into the panel setting? - the files aren't there? - Changes you make don't take effect?

The background you describe may be the OEM supplied background - default. It also is the system's response to no files in the background folder. Which means you "lost" or "misplaced" the background files.

The location of the screen savers: \WINDOWS\Web\Wallpaper - see what's in there.

One more question - do you use a 3rd party application to add/change your screen savers?

Regards - Charles

 

Hello Charlesvar,
I appreciate your prompt reply! I'll try to provide more details: First I can open and use all the Control Panel icons. The entire list of Desktop Tab Background images below (both the original Win XP selections as well as my additions) are present and each displays on the preview pane at the time of selection. Next I can go through the center vs tile vs stretch choices without difficulty; after making this choice I hit the Apply button on the lower right and again the preview pane shows the desired result; finally I hit the OK button; the screen flickers for an instant suggesting that the change has taken effect; but then when I return from Control Panel to the PC desktop NOTHING has happened. These are the same steps I've taken for weeks with WinXP and for years with Win98 First Edition.
Does this help with your request?
Sincerely,
Scottdietert
PS: Edited Comment: Just the past minute I successfully added a new image (Ayers Rock in Australia) to the Desktop Tab Background list as displayed in the Control Panel Display option. The preview pane showed the centered image, but again after choosing Apply|OK that image still did NOT DISPLAY on the PC desktop.

 

Scott,

From your description of how you do this, its pretty straightfoward - my thought was you used a 3rd party app, and the files appear to be there.

Right now I can't think of a reason for this - so try this. IF you have System Restore turned on, you should have a restore point from yesterday sometime. Execute SR - under all programs > Accessories > system tools. Make sure the "restore to earlier date" button is ticked > next and Once the panel w/calendar comes up, click on yesterday's (or day before) date and then click next.

Once restored to yesterday, see if that resolves the problem. If not, then I would be thinking hardware problem either with the Monitor or video card.

Regards - Charles

 

Something to try, to eliminate the possibilty that there is something wrong with these new images you're trying to add.

Try adding one from the past that worked previously.

Regards - Charles

 

If rolling back to the SR point does not work, then two more general things to try. Both fall into the 'can't hurt and may help' category.

- click on start~run, put sfc /scannow into the run line and tell it OK. You may be asked for your XP install CD. Note that this utility runs quickly and normally does not give you any indication it is doing anything. It will replace any damaged system files and restore any missing system files.

- click on start~run, put cmd into the run line and tell it OK. When you get the command window, type in chkdsk /f and follow the steps to force it to run at next boot then reboot.

If neither of the above fix things then I'm with Charlesvar that you are likely looking at a problem with video. Might be worth making sure you have the latest & greatest drivers from the mfgr (rather than using the XP supplied ones) and then in device manager, removing the vid and rebooting to let it load again then forcing it to load from the new drivers you got.

 

One other possibility. If the files you're using for wallpaper are all .jpg files it's possible your active desktop got turned off somehow (if some of them are .bmp's, then this probably isn't the problem). I've had this happen myself (I have no idea why it happened) and the end result was exactly what you're describing. There's a script available at the following webpage that will toggle the active desktop on or off. You might try downloading and running it to see if this is what's happened. Number 16 in the list.

http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm

 

That's one of the possibilities I was trying to get at:

Forgot to add: to run XP's diagnostics - start > run > type dxdiag > display tab.

Regards - Charles

 

No success so far


Hello Charlesvar, Newt, Zander, and other users/readers/consultants,
I've tried all suggestions except going into the video card issue, where the acronym "mfgr" is new for me. Is this the manufacturer? And of what item? The video card? The LCD monitor?

Perhaps the most significant reaffirmation of a problem I knew existed on June 11 was when a lengthy text that I blocked and tried to paste into my Wordperfect Office 11 revealed that Office 11 WOULD NOT INITIALIZE. Note that I'd never used WP Office 11 since my new Dell purchase and setup in early March 2004. Since I'm not an author I really had no reason to immediately test the Wordperfect software. But uninstall and reinstall did not solve that problem. After lengthy calls to Dell Tech Support they suggested System Restore! Ah Ha! System Restore at multiple early times seemed to work, but on reboot an error screen ALWAY STATED THAT RESTORE WAS NOT SUCCESSFUL; no files had been changed. Now Dell Tech Support said the only solution was to reformat the C: drive and reinstall the Win XP operating system. They indicated that some piece of installed software had corrupted the Operating System and was preventing Wordperfect Office from initializing! This sounded awfully severe for just a system restore that would not work.
So....I chickened out and took no action. I removed the dysfunctional Wordperfect Office 11 and installed OpenOffice.org. The latter office suite installed like a dream and I went on to live with a System Restore that would not restore. This same System Restore option failure occurred again tonight.
Should I bite the bullet and REFORMAT AND REINSTALL WINDOWS XP OS? Will the Desktop Background and System Restore both be solved?
Perhaps this is what I should do, but I am really reluctant to remove and selectively reinstall all Astronomy/Math, etc software I've gradually added to the new Dell PC
Searching for majority opinion.
All the best and a huge Thank You to all who have helped
PS: I even tried the Webshots.com Desktop Software freeware that Liz (with a similar sounding Win 98 problem she presented to Windows BBS sometime in the past) had used successfully to solve her Desktop Tab Background problem; BUT STILL NO CIGAR! This software creates wallpaper as a *.bmp file like lightening; but I still am unable to display the file after its selection.
PSS: One interesting note: everytime I logoff and select restart the Background image that will not display on the desktop does show up very briefly before the LogOff window!! So my LCD monitor can display the image for just this dying second and then poof, the *.bmp image is gone until the next logoff.
Aren't PCs fun!
Scott

 

Hi Scott,

First, no to the reformating! Certainly not yet.

To tackle SR - look thru this thread where System Restore issue came up: http://www.windowsbbs.com/showthread.php?t=31249

In the thread, I gave the poster a way to test SR and advised at the end of that test to delete all the current restore points.

Sorry that I'm not copying/pasting, its late for me

Regards - Charles

 

Microsoft is its usual helpful self.

The Knowledge Base article, Cannot Select a .jpg Image as Your Desktop Background Image, which describes the problems you're having merely says:
RESOLUTION
To resolve this problem, obtain the latest service pack for Windows XP. followed by a link to "How to obtain the latest service pack" and the statement, "This problem was first corrected in Windows XP Service Pack 1. "

 

Charlesvar: You genius! At least System Restore is Up and Restoring


Hello Charlesvar, readers, and staff,
Your link back to the System Restore thread you provided is a God Send; I mean it sincerely! Not only did the post show me where System Restore off/on resided, but it guided me step by step through turning SR off, cleaning out the save points, turning SR back on, and how to test its function! I'd recommend editing this thread and resposting it for future reference!
Desktop tab Background continues to fail, but....hey, I completely avoided Windows XP OS reformat and restore; this saved me hours of restoration time.
Bless you.
Sincerely,
scottdietert

 

A Question for Newt

Hello Newt,
From your earlier post on this Thread:
<latest & greatest drivers from the mfgr>
Please help translate "mfgr;" am guessing this is the manufacturer? But how do I determine who is the manufacturer of the drivers? And which drivers? The video card?
All the best,
scottdietert

 

Everest will tell you more than you ever wanted to know about your computer! Go to the manufacturer's website, download any newer drivers that apply to your hardware, and save them to a convenient place.

Control Panel>System> Hardware > Device Manager
Scroll through the list, click any + to open the tree. Locate your Video Drivers (mine are under display) Right click and choose properties, then click the driver tab. You will see your choices- roll back, uninstall, update drivers.

You can either let XP find them in its database, let it search online (phone home), or point it to the download you just obtained from the manufacturer.

For anyone referencing this thread in the future, update drivers only when you are having problems. If everything is working fine, leave drivers alone. If you do update a driver and you have problems, XP gives you the option to "roll back ", but you might have to boot to safe mode to do it. Be sure you know how your computer boots to safe mode before you tinker under the hood.

Johanna
PS, I know I'm not Newt, but I can assure you, I'm a lot better looking, and I don't smell like fish.

 

Hi Scott,

Thanks for the compliment!

Yes, will cobble it together into something I can paste for future threads.

Two programs to give you Hardware/Software info about your system:

http://www.belarc.com/Download.html I've used this.

http://www.lavalys.com/index.php?page=product&view=1 Haven't used this one yet, people here like this very much.

Regards - Charles

 

I guess I gotta quit using that abbreviation for manufacturer. You aren't the first person I've confused with it. Oops.

For the rest, the good looking one gave you good info.

 

Charlesvar, Newt, and Johanna: My Intel Graphics Controller update WinXP141.exe

Good afternoon Gurus,
There is a newer Intel update for the 82865G Graphics Controller on my Dell 4600 PC called Win2K_XP141.exe; it is dated February 2004 while my current driver is dated April 2003. Feeling a little like the Mars Rover "driver," who is tiptoeing Opportunity into Endurance Crater on Meridiani Planum (pardon the analogy, but I'm a NASA/Mars Rover fanatic), I have two remaining questions:
1. What is the rationale to think a video driver update may solve the lost ability to install Desktop Backgrounds (aka Wallpaper) that has been working flawlessly since March? and
2. Of the 3 choices available in Control Panel|System| Hardware|Device Manager|Display adapters|Drivers, i.e., uninstall, roll back, and update, I assume that I want to select UPDATE.
Correct? Will await confirmation and your ideas.
Thanks for all the help,
Scottdietert

 

#1 - no clue but it does happen with a variety of hardware.

#2 - yep. Update.

 

Loss of Desktop Background (aka Wallpaper) still unsolved

Hello Charlesvar, Newt, Zander, Johanna, and readers/consultants,
Have just installed and confirmed the installation of the February 10, 2004 Intel Controller update for the 82865G chipset identified as the video driver using Control Panel|System etc....etc.
Still no wallpaper. Any more suggestions or other avenues for help would be appreciated, although you know that without my new plea.
Sincerely,
Scottdietert

 

Hi Scott,

Did you run the dxdiag diagnostic that I referred to in an earlier post?

Did you look into Zander's suggestion:

Will a pricture that worked before work again? as opposed to adding one never used before.

Regards - Charles