# Mysterious Desktop Icons **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 29, 2001, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-desktop-icons/74117 "2001-07-29T00:52:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2001, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-desktop-icons/74117/1 "2001-07-29T00:52:07Z")
(I thought this Board was closed for the weekend. Well, since it’s open:) Yesterday, in the midst of working on my computer (ME). I noticed that several icons mysteriously appeared on my desktop. I put two in the bin since the folders were empty, but three are needed: language, cache, profile. Now I know I need cache, but I don’t need it on my desktop. I don’t know what the heck profile is, and my language is English, so I’m not going to change it. My questions are how did they get on my desktop and, more importantly, how can I put them back where they belong? ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2001, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-desktop-icons/74117/2 "2001-07-29T01:19:29Z")
I thought you could trash icons without affecting the folders. I can on my mac, then make another whenever I want it. Icon: Those little doo-hickies that open folders, right? Nevermind. Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2001, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-desktop-icons/74117/3 "2001-07-29T01:25:21Z")
Oh, you can? OK, I’ll trash them. I was afraid to do so, fearing I would delete the file along with the desktop shortcut. I’ll do that now. Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![JamesCarroll](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@JamesCarroll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JamesCarroll)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2001, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-desktop-icons/74117/4 "2001-07-29T05:59:32Z")
Be careful, though. Some icons on your desktop may not be icons. If you have a folder or program “right on the desktop” (that is its path is something like c:\win98\desktop\myFolder") then its not a shortcut. Usually shortcut icons have a little black arrow on them. Deleting these will not delete the item they point at, but if it doesn’t deleting it _will_ delete the item it represents. ---
**Author:** ![Sycorax](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@Sycorax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sycorax)\ **Post date:** [July 29, 2001, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-desktop-icons/74117/5 "2001-07-29T17:05:25Z")
This thread reminded me of my problem - I delete them but they come back! I delete them from the recycle bin and they come back. There are four of them - one looks like a notepad, the other three like sheets of paper with the windows logo on them, and what I assume are the names of the files underneath. Any clue as to how I get rid of them permanently? ---
**Author:** ![JamesCarroll](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@JamesCarroll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JamesCarroll)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2001, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-desktop-icons/74117/6 "2001-07-30T04:36:32Z")
Just a few questions: What OS are you running? What are the actual file names? This will help… ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2001, 12:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-desktop-icons/74117/7 "2001-07-30T12:07:45Z")
I’d guess your problem is that some of your software is set to put these files on the desktop. Netscape, for instance, creates a cache folder. If the folder is missing, it’ll create a new one. And if it’s set to create the folder on the desktop, that’s where it will appear. You’ll have to try to determine what software is creating the folder, then go and change the path for that folder to something else. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [July 30, 2001, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mysterious-desktop-icons/74117/8 "2001-07-30T14:28:39Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by RealityChuck \* > **I’d guess your problem is that some of your software is set to put these files on the desktop. Netscape, for instance, creates a cache folder. If the folder is missing, it’ll create a new one. And if it’s set to create the folder on the desktop, that’s where it will appear.** I trashed the cache, profile & language folders that were on the Desktop. They were just yellow folder icons, with no arrow. But the computer is working. After reading James Carroll’s post, I checked the “Find” to see if I still had it and where it was. I still had cache and profile files in the C drive. (I didn’t check language.) So I don’t know how they got on the Desktop, but it appears to have been shortcuts.