Twice now upon logging in my desktop icons have mysteriously disappeared. The fix is simple enough. Right click on the desktop, select View, and make sure Show Desktop Icons is checked.
IE8 Compatibility View
The latest incarnation of Internet Explorer 8 adds a new twist to standards compliant web pages. When viewing a webpage in standards mode the user is presented with a compatibility icon that can be toggled to view the page using the Internet Explorer 7 engine.
However, as web master you have ultimate control. By using the X-UA-Compatible meta tag in your documents you can choose which mode you want your page rendered in and hide the button from users.
<meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=Edge" />
Always uses the latest available rendering engine.
<meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=8" />
Display using the IE8 rendering engine.
<meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=EmulateIE7" />
Display standards mode documents in IE7 standards mode, quirks mode documents in IE7 quirks mode.
<meta http-equiv="X-UA-Compatible" content="IE=7" />
Use IE7 standards mode.