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General discussion

Start menu

Jul 15, 2004 3:47AM PDT

Help

I can't get the start menu back to the bottom lefthand corner its on the top right corner..I can't drag it or anything..

Discussion is locked

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''Misplaced Taskbar''
Jul 15, 2004 4:38AM PDT

1. Anytime the Taskbar is missing from the computer screen, simply press the Ctrl+Esc keys combination and the Taskbar should pop out. If it doesn't, your system may have other problems, [Q247502]. But, try everything else first.

2. When right-clicking the Taskbar and pointing to Toolbars, all of the menu command items may be unavailable (grayed) which can occur depending on the version of the PowerToys TweakUI tool that is installed and if the option IE4 Enabled is null (no check mark) [Q264101].

3. By design, Windows cannot save settings for these three areas when shutting down if the value for NoSaveSettings in the below registry address has been set to 1 (one), [Q130234]:

Changed icon positions on the desktop.
Windows that are open when you exit.
The size and position of the taskbar.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer

a. Hide/Unhide - Choose Taskbar properties (from Start, Settings, or by right-clicking the Taskbar) and either Enable or Disable the Auto Hide option (checked = Hidden).

Hidden Taskbar:

(1) When the Taskbar is hidden, moving the mouse pointer to the location at the screen edge where it resides will cause the Taskbar to pop out.

(2) If the Taskbar is in a permanent hidden state (called zero height really), follow the above instructions until a two-headed arrow appears. Click-n-hold the mouse button and pull the top of the Taskbar away from the edge of the screen to a height/width desired. To more or less permanently hid the Taskbar, simply follow the opposite instructions to hide it by reducing the height/width to zero.

b. Moving the Taskbar - Aim the mouse pointer to the Taskbar, click, and drag it to another position on the screen - left, right, top or bottom. Wouldn't make much sense to point to where it now resides but I don't know which one of the four to leave out.

4. Other Alternatives: [Q134237]

a. Press the Alt+Space Bar keys combination and then release. Press either the M (Move) or S (Size) key to either move or size the Taskbar -- regardless of where it is located.

Note: When pressing this combination of keys, the default system context menu will pop up - the same one located in the ULHC of most programs window which allow command functions. Since the Desktop does not have this display in the ULHC, this key combination causes one to pop up on the Taskbar.

b. You should immediately see a double-arrow cursor - very close to the outside edge of the monitor area.

c. Wherever the Taskbar appears at the edge of the screen, use the arrows on the keypad to "move or size" it in the opposite direction from its current position. Example:

(1) If it's at the top or bottom edge, use either the up or down arrow to stretch it in the opposite direction.

(2) If it's on the right or left edge, use either the right or left arrow to stretch it in the opposite direction.

5. When all else fails --

a. If any Visual Affects features are in use disable them (click Start, Settings, Control Panel. Double-click Display, select the Effects tab to do so, and then restart the computer).

b. Shutdown the computer to reboot but instead of booting normally, start the computer in Safe mode.

c. Once the system starts, and the words "Safe mode" are shown at all four sides of the screen area, the Taskbar then becomes visible. Shutdown the computer and boot normally.

Note: However, when starting Windows in Safe mode and then restarting, certain non-default taskbar options are lost, and occurs because all shell setting values are return to default. For example, if you selected the Show small icons in Start menu option, it is no longer selected after a restart.

d. When there appears to be a problem with the display of some programs on the Taskbar, click each program and select Maximize. Afterwards, right-click a blank space on the Taskbar and click Cascade Windows. Resize the program's window as appropriate.

6. If the Taskbar is alive and well, the information is recorded in the system registry, [Q216663]:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\ Streams\Desktop\Toolbars

7. When starting Windows and the Taskbar is missing or displays incorrectly, the registry information may be corrupt. Delete the key "StuckRects" from the following address and restart the system to recreated it, [Q247502]:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\StuckRects

8. When the Quick Launch toolbar is viewed, icons may be missing or unavailable and the Taskbar command(s) are useless when right-clicking, the following registry value is set to 0x0000, [Q273785]:

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer\ClassicShell

9. The article [Q199161] states there is an issue which can occur when you try to use the taskbar if you have maximized a program window and the taskbar is not configured to always be on top of the desktop. The following list provides descriptions of the different settings on the Taskbar tab of Taskbar Properties:

a. Always on Top: Ensures that the taskbar is always visible, even when you run a program in a maximized window.

b. Auto hide: Reduces the taskbar to a thin line at the bottom of your screen after you use the Start menu or the taskbar. To redisplay the taskbar, point to the thin line. If you want the taskbar to be available even when you run a program in a maximized window, make sure both the Always on top and Auto hide check boxes are selected.

c. Show small icons in Start Menu: Reduces the size of the menu that appears when you click Start.

d. Show Clock: Displays a digital clock on the taskbar. The clock displays the time as specified by your computer's internal clock. You can point to the clock to display the date, and double-click the clock to adjust the time or date.

10. Supplemental reading:

a. "Toolbars Menu Commands Are Unavailable in Windows 98 (Q199059)."

b. "How to Create and Customize a User-Defined Toolbar in Windows 98 (Q216663)."

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Re: Start menu
Jul 15, 2004 9:34AM PDT

Tom,

I know what you said, but lets check just to make sure your doing it right....

Unfortunately, you didn't mention your operating system as that can sometimes make a difference here.

First, RIGHT click on a "blank" space in the taskbar. If there is a menu item that says: "Lock Taskbar" and it is CHECKED, then click there to remove the CHECK mark and unlock the taskbar. Now, using the LEFT mouse button, click and hold down on a blank area of the taskbar, then drag the taskbar down and to the left. It should be placed in the lower left like normal.

Hope this helps.

Grif