MacBook desktop problem, can't click on icons?

Question

This is for my sister. 
She tells me that her MacBook's desktop has changed from the picture she had to being completely blue, and she can't click on any of the icons on it.
All her applications and stuff still work, she just has to access them through finder instead of the desktop. 
She has tried repairing the disk permissions, which didn't help. 
She has tried to put her old picture back on her desktop, and it looks right in the system preferences pane, but doesn't actually work. 
I've searched the apple support discussion board, but while I found a couple people with similar problems, nobody had answered them. Please help! :) Thank you!

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

Well the only things I that to try is to relaunch finder (by right clicking the finder icon and clicking relaunch, or holding down the left click and going to relaunch)... If this doesn't work try reseting, and if it wont let you just hold the button! If it still doesn't work try emailing me and I'll see what I can do to help you! macintosh_davis  at  yahoo.com.au  :D

Hope it works out!

Davis

Elbert · Answer

Try Force Quitting Finder and relaunch. Click on Finder or the Desktop and the use the option + Command (â) + esc keys.
Trash com.apple. finder.plist from Home > Library > Preferences, logout and in.
Trash com.apple.desktop.plist from Home > Library > Preferences, logout and in.
Start up in Safe Boot.
Boot from the Install DVD and use Disk Utility to Repair Disk, different than Repair Permissions.
Reboot to the startup disk and Repair Permissions from Disk Utility.
Create a test account in System Preferences > Accounts, log into it and see if the problem is there. If it isn't, then there is something wrong with the original account, usually it's corrupted Fonts, Caches or Preference files. If it does show up in the test account, then it's a system wide problem. Either way run troubleshooting.
http://thexlab.com/faqs/faqs.html
http://forums.osxfaq.com/viewtopic.php?t=7269
http://thexlab.com/faqs/faqs.html
Give Apple a call if the Mac is less than 90 days old without Apple Care, otherwise make an appointment with the nearest Apple Genius bar. If the Mac has Apple Care warranty you have 3 years of phone support that you can use.

gromit801 · Answer

A copy of Disc Warrior might be cheaper then going to the Apple store.  Buy one, boot off of it, and rebuild the directory.

This sounds suspiciously like a prank we used to play on each other in an all Mac office I worked in.  We would take a screen shot of a given Mac desktop, then actually use that as the desktop pic in that computer.  Someone would go nuts licking on icons there were really just part of a picture.

rickrudge · Answer

Hello Kelly C,

This sounds like it might be a case where you might need to take your Sister's MacBook into a Macintosh repair place and have a technician look at it.  I've never heard of the main Macintosh HD icon being missing from a Mac's desktop.  A technician could help you.

Does she have a back-up hard drive that she can re-load and go back to?  Probably not.  That's where buying an external hard drive and doing periodic back-ups of the hard drive is a good idea.

Best of luck to you.

--Rick

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MacBook desktop problem, can't click on icons?

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