ghost in my machine??????

G

guapagirl

Registered
Dunno if any one can help, but on my daughters part of my LCD imac there is a little thing that says "untitled (WP)" right in the middle of her desktop. It is white writing on a dark background and sausage shaped. It can't be trashed or moved, I can't find it in any of her documents or files. It just sits there. She swears blind that she hasn't been fiddling (though given that her desktop is constantly changing in a headache inspiring fashion, I think she probably has!). We are running 10. 3. 5 if that helps.

Thanks a lot, Liz :)
 
Have you tried restarting the Mac or just changing the background? I'm thinking that if you can force the background to be redrawn, (i.e. restart/change background) it may go away.
 
Yup, she could even be making fun of you by putting the thing on the desktop picture... But there sometimes _are_ Finder anomalies where the Finder doesn't correctly redraw the list of files on the Desktop. Usually reordering the files or even a good old 'select all' (Cmd-A) and a click on empty desktop space or a Finder restart, logout or reboot helps. If all of those things (plus changing the desktop picture) don't help, you can also try and trash the Finder's preference file (/Users/USERNAME/Library/com.apple.finder.plist).
 
Sounds like a leftover from an Exposé action. Sometimes if I activate then deactivate Exposé quick enough, the window titles (which, incidentally, are white text in a sausage-shaped dark container) "stick" to my screen and won't go away until I invoke Exposé again.

Try invoking Exposé and see if it helps to clear it up.
 
More detail if you need it: Click and hold down your mouse button while pointing somewhere up and to the left (diagonally, in other words) from the sausage-shaped thingie.

Now, move the mouse down and to the right (keep holding mouse button down) until you've drawn a box around it.

Now, press Apple-key and the letter O (use the Apple key like a shift key--press and hold it before pressing O--to open and look at the file.

If it is nothing you want, repeat the mouse-dragging step above and press Apple-key and the delete-key that is next to the = key.

"untitled (WP)" should now be in your trash.

Let us know if this doesn't work, or if you have further questions.

Doug
 
It's not a file; it's not something that can be clicked on or selected with the mouse or keyboard. It's a label that Expose uses to label the window when you activate Expose, and on certain systems, like mine, if you activate/deactivate Expose quick enough, these labels that labeled the window when Expose was open but are suppsed to disappear when Expose is deactivated are somehow "left over" and don't go away.

Easy fix is to activate and deactivate any Expose function.
 
I was thinking it might be a file with no (visible) icon. Sausage-shaped, like a selected label or an icon. Missing icon. That's the first thing I'd try, drag-select it and try to trash it.

I read your note about Expose'. Fortunately, I haven't seen any artifacts yet from it.

For guapagirl, F9, the function key at the top of the keyboard activates Expose.

Doug
 
Whhhhhhhhhooooooooooo Hey!!!!! :D :D :D
.....and the prize goes toooooooooo...........

El Diablo!!!!!

yep, it has cleared up with some exposure LOL! Have to say though Fryke, the thought that she is able to create her own desktops is very worrying as it means that she would then know more about pooters than me, and we can't have that :rolleyes:

Anyhow, thanks a lot guys, I knew I could count on you! ::love::
 
guapagirl said:
...very worrying as it means that she would then know more about pooters than me, and we can't have that :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Uhmm get used to that because - sooner or later - it's coming ;)
 
:) ... Seems you'll have a community here to help keep on top. As long as you can describe the symptoms, one of us might find a cure. ;-)
 
...yes, but can it help with screaming tantrums and foot stamping? Maybe someone can develop a virus to cause the kids to crash every time they are rude "D
 
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