Anyone help me with a VISTA question???

I HATE this bloomin VISTA rubbish.

Right - you know you get that desktop icon on the bottom bar and you hit it and everything on your screen disappears revealing your desktop?
Well, i've still got that but i've obviously done something because when i press it now everything on my screen minimises and tiles itself sideways across the screen so i can still see the desktop but i have my open windows at a jaunty angle across it.

I HATE IT - IT'S MAKING ME VERY VERY ANGRY AND UNHAPPY. (and in my house if i'm unhappy that means the Spawn and the dogs are too by default!).

What have i done; how do i get rid of it?

You're clicking the 'Switch between windows' icon.
The 'Show desktop' icon should be next to it.
If you've deleted it by accident this page shows how to get it back

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

You should have two small icons at the bottom left.

One of them just sends you to your desk top screen if you click on it. Click it again and it returns your view to the previous state before you clicked on it.

The second small icon looks somewhat like a queue of cars in a small window. Click on this and all your open windows minimise (to a jaunty angle) slightly opaque and super imposed over your desk top screen.
Click it again and it returns to the views as before you clicked it.

If you no like what these two buttons do, No click them . . [You must be registered and logged in to see this image.] Simple's

Alternately go to your control panel and switch to contemporary window view. Effectively switching some of the fancy vista stuff off.

I'm a bit of an old school keyboard shortcut junkie.

If you can find the windows key (looks a bit like a flag) and hold it down and then press M to minimize

and then

SHIFT, WINDOWS KEY and then M will bring it all back again!

or it works that that in XP certainly!

Cheers
Rosco

WAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH i only have the small button like the queue of cars and thats what i don't like i have the start up windows icon (the M thingy doesn't work on that) the small button like the queue of cars the internet button outlook express then media player button. I don't where my other desktop button has gone - over the other side of the bar where all the technical odds and sods are there is the actual word Desktop and if i right click on that it gives me various options - one being 'show desktop' which i then have to click on - by the time i've done that i may as well minimise all my windows anyway - oh where oh where has my desktop icon gone, oh where oh where can it be ... oh wrong song!!!!