Icons No Longer indicating program type

[hellopookie]

Hello.....for some reason all of my MS applications (Outlook, Office
Commuicator, Excel, Word) no longer have their icons indicate the program
type when I view the shortcuts on my desktop or as attachments in my email.
They all look the same generic icon you see when you're not sure with what
program to open an attachment. They still open normally without issue but
how can I fix this? Thanks

 

[Herb Tyson [MVP]]

Is this in Vista? Something similar happened to me a couple of days ago.
Assuming it's Vista, try this:

Right-click the desktop and choose Personalize.

In the left pane, under Tasks, click Change desktop icons.

Click Restore Default.

This fixed the problem for me in Vista. If you're using Windows XP, I don't
know if there's a comparable control in its Control Pane.

 

[hellopookie]

Sorry, that option is not available for me and I tried to go to Control Panel
and the options under the Display properties for my desktop don't work,
though this problem is not limited to files located on my desktop.

 

[Bob Buckland ?:-\)]

Hi Pookie,

You haven't mentioned yet the version of Windows you're using, but if the Display properties are not working at all it could be a
corrupted or outdated graphics card driver, a problem with Windows registry for file associations or it could be that the iconcache
(that stores all of the icons) may have been corrupted.

There are a number of utilities that can repair the icon cache by rebuilding it or by resetting the registtry key, or you can do it
manually
http://windowsnetworking.com/kbase/WindowsNT/AdminTips/TroubleShooting/HowtoRestoretheIconCache.htm

===============
Sorry, that option is not available for me and I tried to go to Control Panel
and the options under the Display properties for my desktop don't work,
though this problem is not limited to files located on my desktop. >>
--

Bob Buckland ?
MS Office System Products MVP

*Courtesy is not expensive and can pay big dividends*

 

[Cyber_guy]

i am also facin the same problem..its also showin my that my word documents
have been compressed..i have removed the "compression" option..but still face
the same prob..i tried to rebuild my shelliconcache but i get the prompt that
"file cannot be found"..help me out ppl..

 

[Dennis C. Jr., Virginia Beach, VA]

I looked at the "HowtoRestore" URL included and note that I was unable to
locate this "shelliconcache" file at all.

I have found other references to,
"HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer" and a
MaxCachedIcons Registry value, as well as the following:

"re: Cannot find ShellIconCache on XP
Wednesday, November 22, 2006 at 9:52 pm
Windows XP Annoyances Discussion Forum
Posted by Xapp (1 messages posted)

1. Delete %APPDATA%\..\Local Settings\Application Data\IconCache.db
2. Ctrl-Shift-Esc (bring up Task Manager)
3. Kill "explorer.exe"
4. In Task Manager, choose File->New Task (Run...), type 'explorer.exe' and
click OK.

Note: You will lose your Start bar and all Explorer windows will die between
steps 3 & 4.
Icons should be restored.

--Xapp"

I am testing this in a way and will advise if it works. Posting this now
just in case Explorer windows are not the only thing that dies between Steps
3 & 4. For newer troubleshooters: "Explorer" is not the same as "Internet
Explorer".