Desktop Shortcut Creation Problem

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Up until yesterday I could place shortcuts on my desktop by simply right clicking a file and choosing send to desktop (create shortcut), as per the standard procedure. When I try to do this now it doesn’t work- the shortcut appears in my C:Users RoyDesktop folder, but not on my actual desktop. (I have desktop view set to show desktop icons). If someone could tell me how to sort this out I would be grateful.

Thanks and regards, Roy

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Perhaps you’ll find the answer here:

(http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_7-files/windows-7-files-in-desktop-folder-do-not-appear-on/6a5f4cec-3033-4221-b822-6e28cf087411)

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server

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Thanks Jim, I tried the methods listed in your link but couldn’t solve the problem. Any other ideas? Anyone?

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There used to be an “all users” desktop, in addition to the user-specific desktop. (I haven’t been able to find the “all users” desktop in Windows 7.) If you put stuff in the all users desktop, it would be on everyone’s desktop. Perhaps you could put your shortcuts in the all users desktop, if it is available in Windows 7.

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server

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There used to be an “all users” desktop, in addition to the user-specific desktop. (I haven’t been able to find the “all users” desktop in Windows 7.) If you put stuff in the all users desktop, it would be on everyone’s desktop. Perhaps you could put your shortcuts in the all users desktop, if it is available in Windows 7.

See the attachment at http://windowssecrets.com/forums/showthread//141484-Where-did-it-go?p=822648&viewfull=1#post822648. The document is nice list of where various folders are located in Windows 7.

Joe

--Joe

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Jim, there is an All Users Desktop folder in Win 7, and the shortcuts I tried to put on my desktop in recent days appear there, but I can’t send them to my actual desktop from there, and in any case I want desktop shortcuts that lead straight to the application concerned, not shortcuts to shortcuts, so I still have the same problem.

JoeP, I saved the attachment referred to but when I open it it’s all encoded gobbledygook.Any idea why?

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Joe, the attachment opened normally with Microsoft Word Viewer, I should have realised I needed to use that program. However, that still doesn’t solve my desktop shortcut creation problem. Having said that, I found that my C:UsersRoyDesktop folder had gone, and instead the shortcuts are in C:UsersRoyUsers. How that happened is a mystery. Can you please tell me how to recreate my original Desktop folder? Would renaming the C:UsersRoyUsers folder to C:UsersRoyDesktop work?

I hope when the folder location problem is sorted it will also sort the desktop shortcuts problem out.

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Joe, I jumped the gun before you have had a chance to answer. I renamed the folder but that didn’t solve the problem. Moreover, I tried System Restore but that’s not working either. It says it can’t restore because the file or directory is unreadable or corrupted. HELP!!

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Joe, I jumped the gun before you have had a chance to answer. I renamed the folder but that didn’t solve the problem. Moreover, I tried System Restore but that’s not working either. It says it can’t restore because the file or directory is unreadable or corrupted. HELP!!

Did you do a chkdsk /r?

Jerry

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Jerry, yes I did and no problems were found. I did a non destructive reinstall of Win 7 Pro, using the Fred Langa method, because of the System Restore and other problems I had recently, and that worked to solve all my problems except one relating to an Asus missing file (dealt with in a separate thread) and the desktop shortcut creation problem. Regarding the latter, and post #9, my user profile is not corrupted and I don’t wish to create a new user account. (Thanks anyway for the suggestion Jim).

Any other help regarding the desktop shortcut creation problem would be appreciated.

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Roy, perhaps if you create a new user account, and use it, the new one might work correctly.

As far as putting shortcuts in the All Users desktop, you wouldn’t have shortcuts to shortcuts; rather, you would simply put them in the All Users desktop rather than in the Roy desktop. If the Roy profile is corrupted, and the All Users profile is not, then you have a good workaround.

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server

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Are you regularly using any registry cleaners or computer cleanup utilities that might be responsible for this continuous stream of little problems your systems develop? Maybe you have a “dirty” power supply to your residence and would benefit from UPS. I am just trying to think of underlying conditions for which everything might be common rather than each problem specifically.

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F.U.N. downtown- no I am not using any such utilities. I run CCleaner regularly, but very rarely use it’s registry cleaner. Our power supply is fine and I have a UPS.

I have now started creating desktop shortcuts by right clicking the desktop, selecting New>Shortcut and then browsing for the relevant file. This works, but if anyone can tell me how to do it the normal way (right click the file and select send to desktop (create shortcut) I would be grateful.

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I have now started creating desktop shortcuts by right clicking the desktop, selecting New>Shortcut and then browsing for the relevant file. This works, but if anyone can tell me how to do it the normal way (right click the file and select send to desktop (create shortcut) I would be grateful.

I have always done it the way you are now doing it.

Re: your previous posts: You may have caused a problem when you renamed the desktop folder, because it is a system folder. An easy way to fix it would be to create a new user account, and start using the new user account, because when you create the new account, the system would generate a whole new set of your system folders.

Group "L" (Linux Mint)
with Windows 10 running in a remote session on my file server

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You can also close all windows, click on start > all programs, > move to the program you want a shortcut and right drag to the desktop. Release and you should get a “create shortcut here” prompt. You can also right drag files from a Windows explorer window to the desktop to create shortcuts in the same manner.

Jerry

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I finally found the answer to the problem. I had unchecked Align to grid in the desktop view options. When I checked it the send to desktop (create shortcut) option worked.

Thanks for all the replies.

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So they were being created but placed off screen or stacking on one icon position? Or don’t you know? Because that setting alone doesn’t prevent send shortcut to desktop.

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Hi Roy,
Right click on the desktop, select ‘New > Shortcut’ browse to your programs .EXE or folder you want to use.

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F.U.N. downtown, maybe it doesn’t but it works for me. (Previously they were going to the All Users desktop folder).

Roderunner, thanks but I don’t need to do this now, as what I did (see post #16) worked.

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I see, well maybe just changing that setting made Windows re-established the connection with the proper folder.

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What works for my Windows 7 Ultimate, where “send to desktop” as shortcut is missing from my right-click menu is (1) right-click on the file or folder you want to send to desktop (as a shortcut), (2) select COPY (instead of “send to”), (3) go to blank space on your Desktop and right-click, (4) select “paste as shortcut”

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