Thanks to all who replied to my psychotic desktop icon issue.

Here was the fix: I recalled that once at work when my computer was behaving
strangely the company IT person took a look, and proclaimed that NIC card
was probably loose in the motherboard. Sure 'nuff, he opened it up, gave it
a nudge and all was well. For me, it turned out to be the same. Somehow the
NIC card was not sitting well in its PCI slot. A gentle push to reseat it
and the problem has disappeared. (Cross fingers that this is not just a
coincidence and that the evil still lurks within....)

justin