Cannot Change Icon Font (Windows 8.1)

docfreed

New Member
Messages
19
I am trying to set my desktop background to a neutral grey but every time I do this the icon font changes to a hideous "hollow white" and I cannot find how to change it to a solid black. It seems that the background/font are linked and fixed. Help?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
I'm afraid that's not possible because white/light backgrounds will have black/dark text and the other way around but only if you don't use shadows under text. By using shadows under text, text will always be white.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy DV6 7250
    CPU
    Intel i7-3630QM
    Motherboard
    HP, Intel HM77 Express Chipset
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD4000 + Nvidia Geforce 630M
    Sound Card
    IDT HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6' built-in + Samsung S22D300 + 17.3' LG Phillips
    Screen Resolution
    multiple resolutions
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 250GB + Hitachi HDD 750GB
    PSU
    120W adapter
    Case
    small
    Cooling
    laptop cooling pad
    Keyboard
    Backlit built-in + big one in USB
    Mouse
    SteelSeries Sensei
    Internet Speed
    slow and steady
    Browser
    Chromium, Pale Moon, Firefox Developer Edition
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    That's basically it.
So is there any way to NOT have the shadows?

Computer -> Properties -> Advanced System Settings -> Performance:

settings.png

Disable "use drop shadows for icon labels on desktop". Done.

Using a solid color background instead of a wallpaper is safer to see this in action.
Some minor side-effects will be seen on the start screen where the wallpaper (if you have one set) will be locked or doesn't change automatically... something in that matter.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy DV6 7250
    CPU
    Intel i7-3630QM
    Motherboard
    HP, Intel HM77 Express Chipset
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD4000 + Nvidia Geforce 630M
    Sound Card
    IDT HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6' built-in + Samsung S22D300 + 17.3' LG Phillips
    Screen Resolution
    multiple resolutions
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 250GB + Hitachi HDD 750GB
    PSU
    120W adapter
    Case
    small
    Cooling
    laptop cooling pad
    Keyboard
    Backlit built-in + big one in USB
    Mouse
    SteelSeries Sensei
    Internet Speed
    slow and steady
    Browser
    Chromium, Pale Moon, Firefox Developer Edition
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    That's basically it.

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1.1 Pro with Media Center
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Gateway
    CPU
    AMD K140 Cores 2 Threads 2 Name AMD K140 Package Socket FT1 BGA Technology 40nm
    Motherboard
    Manufacturer Gateway Model SX2110G (P0)
    Memory
    Type DDR3 Size 8192 MBytes DRAM Frequency 532.3 MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    ATI AMD Radeon HD 7310 Graphics
    Sound Card
    AMD High Definition Audio Device Realtek High Definition Audio USB Audio Device
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Name 1950W on AMD Radeon HD 7310 Graphics Current Resolution 1366x768 pixels Work Resolution 1366x76
    Screen Resolution
    Current Resolution 1366x768 pixels Work Resolution 1366x768 pixels
    Hard Drives
    AMD K140
    Cores 2
    Threads 2
    Name AMD K140
    Package Socket FT1 BGA
    Technology 40nm
    Specification AMD E1-1200 APU with Radeon HD Graphics
    Family F
    Extended Family 14
    Model 2
    Extended Model 2
    Stepping 0
    Revision ON-C0
    Instruction
    Browser
    Opera 24.0
    Antivirus
    Avast Internet Security
Thanks For The SUggestions..

the advanced performance is where I found the customizations. Just don't understand why the Windows software developers bury this stuff way deep - 8.1 is the most user-unfriendly OS I have seen - it's no wonder they are "abandoning" it next year.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
So is there any way to NOT have the shadows?

Computer -> Properties -> Advanced System Settings -> Performance:

View attachment 35430

Disable "use drop shadows for icon labels on desktop". Done.

Using a solid color background instead of a wallpaper is safer to see this in action.
Some minor side-effects will be seen on the start screen where the wallpaper (if you have one set) will be locked or doesn't change automatically... something in that matter.


Changing this setting did nothing to change my icon labels from white
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
Changing this setting did nothing to change my icon labels

Changing this setting did nothing to change my icon labels from white
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
Changing this setting did nothing to change my icon labels from white

If you refer to my post:
I was talking about shadows to enhance the text readability.

The desktop icon text color itself cannot be manually changed.
It is automatically chosen. Black or white.
If you use a light wallpaper / background on the desktop then the label text is black.
If the desktop wallpaper is dark then the text is white.

That's all.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy DV6 7250
    CPU
    Intel i7-3630QM
    Motherboard
    HP, Intel HM77 Express Chipset
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD4000 + Nvidia Geforce 630M
    Sound Card
    IDT HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6' built-in + Samsung S22D300 + 17.3' LG Phillips
    Screen Resolution
    multiple resolutions
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 250GB + Hitachi HDD 750GB
    PSU
    120W adapter
    Case
    small
    Cooling
    laptop cooling pad
    Keyboard
    Backlit built-in + big one in USB
    Mouse
    SteelSeries Sensei
    Internet Speed
    slow and steady
    Browser
    Chromium, Pale Moon, Firefox Developer Edition
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    That's basically it.
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