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Recycle Bin appears as a generic icon after changing desktop themes in Windows XP
http://www.winhelponline.com/articles/217/1/Recycle-Bin-appears-as-a-generic-icon-after-changing-desktop-themes-in-Windows-XP.html
By Ramesh Srinivasan
Published on 15-Jun-07
 
I changed Desktop Themes and then switched back to Windows Classic theme. The Recycle Bin icon is now merely an icon indicating it's a picture of some sort, but it isn't the default trash icon. If I put something in the Recycle Bin, the icon returns to normal. When I empty the Recycle Bin, the icon reverts to the generic icon. Any suggestions on how to fix the Recycle bin icon? I'm using Windows XP.
Recycle Bin appears as a generic icon after changing desktop themes in Windows XP

Question

I changed Desktop Themes and then switched back to Windows Classic theme. The Recycle Bin icon is now merely an icon indicating it's a picture of some sort, but it isn't the default trash icon. If I put something in the Recycle Bin, the icon returns to normal. When I empty the Recycle Bin, the icon reverts to the generic icon. Any suggestions on how to fix the Recycle bin icon? I'm using Windows XP.

Answer

This is a common problem after changing the desktop themes. Follow these steps to fix the Recycle Bin icon:

  • Right-click on the Desktop, and choose Properties
  • Select the Desktop tab, and click Customize Desktop
  • Select Recycle Bin (empty) and click Restore Default
  • Click OK

If that does not help, download ShellIconFix (utility which I wrote to fix the shell folder icons in Windows XP) and run it. Select Repair Recycle Bin and click the Repair button. You may need to restart Windows for the changes to take effect. (see Note below)

Note: You may also opt to apply changes immediately, by selecting the option Apply changes immediately. Note that selecting this option will reset the desktop icon layout to defaults.