Desktop has narrow gray bar on top while taskbar gets narrower

[skytop]

This is not about manually modifying the thickness of the standard taskbar (located at the bottom of the desktop on my machine). An additional bar has appeared above the desktop. This peculiar occurance has stumped me and I cannot find any posts concerning this .

After a bootup, a very narrow (gray color) bar appears across the at top of screen just above the blue of my desktop. The regular taskbar narrows by about 20% to a thickness that is not among the normal thicknesses available. Additionally, it contains groups of two dark gray lines for every object on the task bar. Place a new program on the taskbar, and two stacked lines appear on the narrow bar above the desktop vertically aligned with the taskbar program button. Also, if I move the mouse cursor along the task bar, I see a 'mirrored' stack of very small arrow heads move in concert along the top narrow gray bar (above the desktop).

When I perform a print screen operation and view the image in paintshop, the entire desktop appears in the image but the narrow bar I speak of does not. That is why I did not attach an image of the desktop. Taskmanager does not show any unusual application running.

The only way I can eliminate this situation is by rebooting. Sometimes it does not reappear, other times it does.

I run daily spyware searches with 4 top programs. The machine is clean. I run XP Pro.

Anyone have any ideas on this? Thanks.

[BipolarBill]

Try unchecking any non-standard toolbars.

[herosrest]

If You can 'right click' and hold.............on the top gray bar, it may be possible - to drag it onto the desktop to work on.

[Kil4Thril]

Maybe the vertical alignment of your screen is off so that the bottom is slightly offscreen and the top is showing above the actual desktop area?

[skytop]

Bill: Tried that first thing. Thanks anyway

Kil4Thril: That's not on target. This is a Windows product not a misaligned screen. There is a unique type of 'mirror image' of the taskbar but no program buttons, just the parallel bars and the quirky image of the mouse as I move it along the real taskbar.

herosrest: I have tried to drag it but the mouse only abuts it and will not actually touch or control it. I never tried the right or left clicking move though. Next time this occurs (did not happen today) I will try your suggestion. Thanks.

This is a new machine. The funny thing is that this also would sometimes (rarely though) happen on my old machine. Very strange.

[Strawbs]

video\chipset drivers & direct x reinstallation?

does sound like a dodgy monitor\resolution to me too though.