Member Avatar for vyrox

i have a really good background, but the icons i have (minimal, thanks to Launchy) clash with the image. is there any way i can make the image partially transparent? i am running XP professional v:2002 SP3
any suggestions?

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Two different problems are being conflated in the thread: making the icon artwork itself have see‑through pixels (per‑pixel alpha), and making the desktop/Explorer draw whole icons semi‑transparent on demand. Windows XP supports true 32‑bit icons with per‑pixel alpha, so icon artwork can be created to blend with a complex wallpaper; Explorer does not provide a global opacity slider to make already‑installed icons translucent.

As hinted, the cleanest solution is to replace the few visible icons with 32‑bit .ico files that contain semi‑transparent pixels. Typical workflow: prepare a PNG with alpha, open it in an icon editor that can export 32‑bit icons (many editors support this), include the common sizes (16, 32, 48), export to .ico, then point shortcuts at that .ico (Right‑click shortcut → Properties → Change Icon). For program icons embedded in EXEs the safe approach is to create and use a shortcut with the custom .ico rather than editing the EXE resources. More on the ICO format and alpha support is documented in the ICO file format notes: ICO (file format).

Desktop label rendering and XP visual effects affect how well icons "blend." Enabling the Visual Effects option "Use drop shadows for icon labels on the desktop" (My Computer → Properties → Advanced → Performance Settings → Visual Effects) usually removes solid label boxes and makes icons sit cleaner on detailed wallpapers. If changes do not appear immediately, restarting Explorer or logging off/logging on forces an icon cache refresh.

For anyone unwilling to rebuild icons, third‑party shell tools and skins (e.g., stardock products, or small utilities that manage desktop icons) can provide translucency or organize icons without touching system files. Caution: avoid editing system DLLs without backups; test changes on a single shortcut before mass replacing icons.

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Member Avatar for cohen

Well, with XP, most likely the only thing you can do is make the image transparent.

Member Avatar for Bob_180_Bob

Hi,
I don't know how to make them transparent, but, you can put all your Icons in the "quick launch" tab, Right click your desktop, click "arrange icons" click "Show desktop icons". All you icons will disappear and you can see all your desktop. To access you icons, just click on the >> in the "quick launch tab".

Member Avatar for Bob_180_Bob

Hi again,
Check this out....

Member Avatar for Bob_180_Bob

Hi Adamsappleone,
I like that, very good. It should be used a lot more here.

Member Avatar for Adamsappleone

Hi Adamsappleone,
I like that, very good. It should be used a lot more here.

Hello Bob,

Thank you and I have enjoyed some of the responses you have made as well. Learn something new everyday.

Don

Edited by Adamsappleone because: n/a
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