DISQUS

DISQUS Hello! Tech-Recipes is using DISQUS, a powerful comment system, to manage its comments. Learn more.

Community Page

Tech-Recipes

Cookbook of Tech Tutorials
Jump to original thread »
Author

XP: Make the Background of Your Icon Text Transparent on the Desktop | Windows | Tech-Recipes

Started by qdideas · 9 months ago

No excerpt available. Jump to website »

59 comments

  • Azrael

    4 years ago

    Doesn't work for me
    reply
  • darth_linux

    4 years ago

    doesn't work me neither!!!
    reply
  • ciscomonkey

    4 years ago

    For those of you that this doesn't work for. Make sure that you are using a .JPG file for your background. Personally, I usually use .PNG's, and ran across this issue. When you use a .JPG or .BMP it seems to work just fine.
    reply
  • Ryan

    7 months ago

    Thank you Ciscomonkey. I'd tried everything else to no avail. Then I found your comment and discovered that I had indeed been using a PNG file as the wallpaper.
    reply
  • brassmonkey

    4 years ago

    Changing the filetype still doesn't help
    reply
  • Anonymous

    4 years ago

    Doesnt work for me either
    reply
  • Carolyn

    4 years ago

    There's one more step that these instructions are missing. After you've done what the initial post said with the drop shadows, right click somewhere on an empty part of the desktop. Click on "Arrange Icons By" and turn "Lock Web Items on Desktop" off. If you leave them items locked, the background stays there.
    reply
  • K

    8 months ago

    THANK YOU CAROLYN
    reply
  • Angie

    4 months ago

    Thank you! That was what finally worked for me. I'd already had a jpg file for a background and had use drop shadows for icons checked. :)
    reply
  • Anonymous

    4 years ago

    Thank you caroline
    reply
  • Anonymous

    4 years ago

    Worked for me, Thanks
    reply
  • Kaiwren

    4 years ago

    Still Doesn't work for me.
    reply
  • Stiletto

    4 years ago

    thank you carolyn
    reply
  • chessman21

    4 years ago

    i got mine this way trying to trag a frontpage image onto my desytop

    nothing seems to have any affect ,,
    reply
  • nick513

    4 years ago

    you are just right caroline
    reply
  • seldur

    4 years ago

    doesn't work for me either... :?
    reply
  • Guest

    4 years ago

    I LOVE YOU!! THANKS FOR THE INSTRUCTIONS :lol: :P
    reply
  • Anonymous

    4 years ago

    I could kiss the ground you walk on Carolyn.

    I had it set right before and suddenly I had that stupid background colour on text labels. Fixed now.
    reply
  • newboy

    3 years ago

    I also had an issue I could not resolve after dragging a piccie to my desktop.

    This was resolved by: -

    right clicking on desktop and selecting properties.

    select desktop tab and click on customize desktop

    select the web tab

    You may well find there is an entry that is checked in the Web pages box.

    Uncheck this and apply and as long as the other settings are as suggested in this topic, you should find transparency will return.
    reply
  • selvan777

    8 months ago

    Thanks a bunch Newboy, your tip fixed mine.
    reply
  • mrGinipig

    6 months ago

    this actualy worked... well done Newboy..... what Newboy was trying to say was
    when you select the web tab you will see a web pages dialog box, in side
    the dialog there are check boxes just make sure they are un checked and
    click ok then apply then ok... wella
    reply
  • Gia

    5 months ago

    That was the best tip ever!!!
    I was desperately seeking help all morning...for HOURS...until I tried your resolution. IT WORKED!!!!!
    You are AWESOME!!!
    Grazie!!!
    reply
  • Mike

    5 months ago

    This one fixed it for me when the ones above did not. Thanks.
    reply
  • Iffy

    4 months ago

    Thanks a bunch newboy. Your fix worked for me too.
    reply
  • solved

    4 months ago

    Thank You newboy
    This resolved my issue.
    Dont know why it happen. All I can remember is that I was dragging an Icon , the screen glitched and it was there.
    reply
  • gaurav

    3 months ago

    awesome man ,, this tip worked so well for me. .u saved a lot time for me.. thanks
    reply
  • goku

    3 months ago

    Hats off newboy!
    reply
  • Mastiha

    3 years ago

    I've tried everything listed here and I still have the problem.

    ANy other ideas?
    reply
  • Anonymous

    3 years ago

    I had this problem and my fix was to change the background picture from a .png to a .jpg. For some reason Windows cant make transparent text ontop off a .png file.
    reply
  • anon

    3 years ago

    it still does not work for me... and I do not even use active desktop....
    reply
  • Anonymous

    3 years ago

    THANKS CAROLYN
    reply
  • Anonymous

    2 years ago

    IT FIXED IT------- THANK YOU "newboy" and "carolyn" thankyou bothH!!! guys if it didnt work for carolyn it should work after you do what new boy said which was:

    right clicking on desktop and selecting properties.

    select desktop tab and click on customize desktop

    select the web tab

    You may well find there is an entry that is checked in the Web pages box.

    Uncheck this and apply and as long as the other settings are as suggested in this topic, you should find transparency will return.

    but you should have done what carolyn said aswell which was:

    There's one more step that these instructions are missing. After you've done what the initial post said with the drop shadows, right click somewhere on an empty part of the desktop. Click on "Arrange Icons By" and turn "Lock Web Items on Desktop" off. If you leave them items locked, the background stays there.

    and ofcourse the main post from the forum which was:

    1. Open the Control Panel
    2. Click System
    3. Click the Advanced tab
    4. Click Settings in the Performance section
    5. Check the "Use drop shadows for icon labels on the desktop" checkbox
    6. Click OK until you close the windows


    so this message should clear it all.. hope it helps in some way. once again tahnkyou to carolyn and newboy!

    cheers

    :wink:
    reply
  • Anonymous

    2 years ago

    In case it's still not working,
    AND you have a TV out videocard and the option "extend my Windows desktop onto this monitor" is checked, follow the instructions above then go to display properties (right click desktop > properties) >settings , click monitor 2, give it a value of 800x600 or above.
    If it still doesn't work,
    BEATS ME!
    reply
  • Anonymous user

    4 months ago

    rock on....


    just changing the resolution from 1280x800 to 1280x768 and then back fixed it!
    reply
  • Anonymous

    2 years ago

    potzo, you genius you!! Thank you so much for that last tip! After trying everything else, this is what did it. Thank you thank you thank you!!!
    reply
  • Anonymous

    2 years ago

    omg that totally worked...i tryed changing the colors in like the apearence tab...messed it up..the other thing works though
    reply
  • Anonymous

    1 year ago

    I tried all of the above. The jpg, the active desktop, the web pages box, the lock web items on desktop, the "Use drop shadows for icon labels on the desktop" check box, and the "extend my Windows desktop onto this monitor" resolution above 800x600.

    What finally DID WORK was in the accessibility options. Some how it was changed to "high contrast". To fix, go to: Control Panel | Accessibility Options | Display Tab | uncheck the Use High Contrast check box.
    :D :D :D
    8)
    reply
  • Hrs

    9 months ago

    thanks
    reply
  • rick

    9 months ago

    tks!!
    reply
  • kate

    8 months ago

    EVERYBODY SAYS DO THIS.

    DONE IT TEN TIMES.

    DOES NOT WORK NO MATTER HOW MANY TIMES I REPEAT!!

    ANYTHING ELSE NEW?????
    reply
  • anunumus

    8 months ago

    carolyn I LUV U!!!!!!!
    reply
  • goran

    8 months ago

    eXtra, thank you!
    reply
  • Pious

    7 months ago

    Cool! works for me
    reply
  • xerp

    7 months ago

    doesnt work for me, although i used to have it, one day it just stopped working. i suspect something wrong with a driver somewhere.
    reply
  • tropik

    6 months ago

    Thanks, this helped me. I have been trying to figure this out for a while
    reply
  • Mike

    6 months ago

    What if this solution doesn't work on the target laptop? It worked on a test PC, but not the one where I wanted it to work.
    reply
  • Siddhartha

    6 months ago

    Thanks it worked for me
    reply
  • anonymous

    4 months ago

    i've done EVERYTHING in these comments, and everything online. i even downloaded a few programs to try to fix it and NOTHING HAS WORKED! i have a toshiba tablet laptop and ever since i've had the computer i havent been able to fix the icons... but i'm guessing there's a way. any more ideas????
    reply
  • vic

    3 months ago

    Iv'e tried every solution on these pages and none
    of them work. Thank You
    reply
  • Dee

    2 months ago

    Doesn't work for me, eityher.
    :-{
    reply
  • TY

    2 months ago

    SICK this is really cool thx
    reply
  • Octavian

    2 months ago

    thanks!
    reply
  • Marko

    2 months ago

    Thank you for your help! Those icons were driving me crazy!
    reply
  • Mike

    1 month ago

    Thanks Newboy!!!!!!!!
    reply
  • BabyBoy

    1 month ago

    thank you!!! works great ))))
    reply
  • Alex

    4 weeks ago

    I've got the same problem with me icon text and tried the solution and it did not work. No matter what I do it did not work. Any other solution?
    reply
  • anonymous

    2 weeks ago

    LOVE YA!
    reply
  • jonah

    1 week ago

    Your idea is not working
    reply
  • Rocky R.

    2 days ago

    Weirdness - this happened to my cube neighbor's desktop - it used the background color for the icon text background. I though he must have turned it off, so I went to the Control Panel, and it's CHECKED!!! I logged him off and *I* logged in (thinking it might be something funky with Windows) and mine were transparent. Yet when he went back in - he's still getting a non-transparent background for his icons, even though the Performance settings are set to use drop shadows for icon labels on the desktop.
    reply

Add New Comment

Returning? Login